This is the calm before the storm

[Odell]

Saw this on another Facebook page in regards to protest with the recent events in Ferguson and NYC and I get to thinking of this revolution in what would happen after such a storm. Would things really get better? This same individual is making everything a white and black thing, an us verses them.

I think they are missing the big picture. This is a spiritual problem and philosophical problem. It seems it’s not so much about justice as it is power. And if this is the root of all this then what is to stop such discrimination and injustice after this so called storm? If people are only interested in their own political benefit what will happen when tides turn yet again. It’s only a black issue today because they are the minority. What’s to stop it from being a white issue tomorrow when the majority becomes the minority? There will not be change there will still be injustice.

So how do we address injustice. Certainly not by revolution, right? Am I correct? Would you add anything to my premise to make it a stronger argument?

 

[Charlemagne_III]

So how do we address injustice. Certainly not by revolution, right? Am I correct? Would you add anything to my premise to make it a stronger argument?

Revolution may be righteous if there is oppression of the people, as there was at the time of the American Revolution. There could be grounds for another revolution ahead. But that cannot happen unless the majority of the people and their representatives call for such a drastic action. Lacking that call, violence will always be regarded as irrational, and the people who are violent will have the large part of the masses turn on them and demand their suppression. This is why the mob violence at Ferguson was so tragic. That mob violence may have set back race relations by several decades, especially considering that the violence was justified by lies about the so-called murder of Michael Brown.

 

[Poussin]

Saw this on another Facebook page in regards to protest with the recent events in Ferguson and NYC and I get to thinking of this revolution in what would happen after such a storm. Would things really get better? This same individual is making everything a white and black thing, an us verses them.

…

So how do we address injustice. Certainly not by revolution, right? Am I correct? Would you add anything to my premise to make it a stronger argument?

I am not sure about revolution, but if there is one, it goes both ways, with two separate and opposed sides feeling righteously oppressed. As the poster above me stated, the current movement does not have “majority” support and doomed to fail. There is reasons why it does not have support (and it is not about ‘lies’ btw, not sure whre he/she came up with that). The moderate to conservative majority has just as much legitimate rights to justice as the minority and pure power plays and manufactured feelings of oppression do not get our condolences.

 

[PJH_74]

This is why the mob violence at Ferguson was so tragic. That mob violence may have set back race relations by several decades, especially considering that the violence was justified by lies about the so-called murder of Michael Brown.

Here’s the thing, exactly what happened in Ferguson is a bit of a moot point now. It became a symbol for what many Black American’s feel and experience; that life is harder for them no matter what status they achieve or how industrious they are.

I, as a white person, believe I have seen enough evidence that at least justifies the basis of this general view point in the Black community. Are all claims by Blacks that something was done for racial reasons actually true? Certainly not. Are white generally trying to discriminate on a regular basis? I think not. But to ignore the evidence and impression that a large group of people have is fool-hearty. All viewpoints need to have an honest discussion about where things aren’t working and own our part in the story. Only then will things begin to change.

 

[Charlemagne_III]

There is reasons why it does not have support (and it is not about ‘lies’ btw, not sure whre he/she came up with that).

The well documented lies that Michael Brown had his hands up and said “Don’t shoot” and was shot in the back by the cop he was assaulting.

 

[Poussin]

The well documented lies that Michael Brown had his hands up and said “Don’t shoot” and was shot in the back by the cop he was assaulting.

Ah, okay. I read it as being the lies of the cop or something. My apologies.

 

[edwest2]

Saw this on another Facebook page in regards to protest with the recent events in Ferguson and NYC and I get to thinking of this revolution in what would happen after such a storm. Would things really get better? This same individual is making everything a white and black thing, an us verses them.

I think they are missing the big picture. This is a spiritual problem and philosophical problem. It seems it’s not so much about justice as it is power. And if this is the root of all this then what is to stop such discrimination and injustice after this so called storm? If people are only interested in their own political benefit what will happen when tides turn yet again. It’s only a black issue today because they are the minority. What’s to stop it from being a white issue tomorrow when the majority becomes the minority? There will not be change there will still be injustice.

So how do we address injustice. Certainly not by revolution, right? Am I correct? Would you add anything to my premise to make it a stronger argument?

Having lived through the latter parts of the Civil Rights Movement, I can tell you this.

Black people sat in the back of the bus, they were, on a national basis, poorer than whites. The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. took the non-violent approach. Before a march, he told those who believed in him (presented in summary form here): “If you can’t handle the violence (dogs, fire hoses, bricks and thrown bottles) without responding with violence then stay behind. Those who can, follow me.” The Reverend King was jailed and then Attorney General, Robert Kennedy, contacted the place where he was being held and asked if he could be released on bail. It was his words and work that prompted Presidents Kennedy and Johnson to initiate and pass laws to help end the real injustices facing black people.

The whole point was that black people were denied fair access to housing in certain areas. This was called redlining. Certain political figures, a few more vocal than others, made it known that they desired or preferred a separate area for black people to live and another for white people. Mixed race relationships were frowned upon. I was in Detroit in 1967 when the riots occurred. I saw the National Guard, along with local law-enforcement, putting down a riot where allegedly, black people broke into businesses, stole goods, set buildings on fire and created general chaos. The National Guard included jeeps with machine-guns mounted on them. We were told to stay in our homes. Other riots occurred in other cities, and depending on what you read, it is still unclear what purpose these riots served. People were arrested.

Today is far different than the past. Although we have a mixed race President and people of color in positions of “power,” all black people still want the same education white people get, the same access to better paying jobs and finally, an end to poverty and a black community that is functional. After decades of living in poverty, it is argued that the mind-set of too many black people is not a positive one. The lack of positive role models, and fathers, for young blacks has created a generation to generation repetition of single parent families. Unskilled work is scarce, selling dope is easier, or joining the military. The recent events related to the killing of black people is stirring old memories. It appears these events will result in police forces across the country reexamining their approach to handling certain situations. Cities have been sued due to unlawful actions by police officers.

In the 1970s, and to this day, I still hear about the coming race war. Such people have no reason to expect anything of the kind. Black people have a lower life expectancy, they are not as well organized as in the past and even though they have access to assault rifles, they are not as well-armed as some whites who are stockpiling weapons and ammunition primarily for a world or national collapse situation as opposed to a race war.

So no, it is not about power, which means making people do things they don’t want to do. It’s about making sure that black people have the same level of access to good paying jobs, low crime and stable, or at least, a better family life and neighborhoods that white people do.

A black leader, Malcolm X, was more militant than the Reverend King. Both he and King met, with King urging him to take a less militant approach since the Reverend King believed black and white people could live together. Malcolm X was murdered in February of 1965. Accounts vary concerning who the shooters were.

So, unless police forces across the country improve their handling of certain situations that can lead to unnecessary deaths, there will be tension. However, all of us, black and white, must realize this: there will only be a problem IF more incidents occur. That is highly unlikely. Not impossible, but highly unlikely.

Ed

 

[Charlemagne_III]

So, unless police forces across the country improve their handling of certain situations that can lead to unnecessary deaths, there will be tension. However, all of us, black and white, must realize this: there will only be a problem IF more incidents occur. That is highly unlikely. Not impossible, but highly unlikely.

Ed

There are at the very least two ways to avoid future bloodshed.

1. Impress upon suspects the necessity of following orders of policemen and never assaulting them in their line of duty. Both the recent tragedies in Missouri and New York could have been averted had the suspects followed the policeman’s orders.
2. With all the advanced technology available to us, the second recourse is to invent a police weapon that subdues without the risk of deadly force. I have no idea what such a weapon would look like or do, but there must be some device that can be invented to harmlessly subdue uncooperative suspects.

 

[Winterwolf00]

There are at the very least two ways to avoid future bloodshed.

1. Impress upon suspects the necessity of following orders of policemen and never assaulting them in their line of duty. Both the recent tragedies in Missouri and New York could have been averted had the suspects followed the policeman’s orders.
2. With all the advanced technology available to us, the second recourse is to invent a police weapon that subdues without the risk of deadly force. I have no idea what such a weapon would look like or do, but there must be some device that can be invented to harmlessly subdue uncooperative suspects.

As a Security Student (recently certified level 2, not sure what term to use)a method that is HARMless would be quite difficult to come up with but there are already a few non-lethal tools to use including OC and rubber bullets.

As for a harmless method? Perhaps some kind of fast-acting drug that puts subjects to sleep that can be delivered like a bullet?

That’s a question that they’ve been working on for a while now.

Oh and Police body cameras is an idea that is becoming more popular.

 

[dee_burk]

There are at the very least two ways to avoid future bloodshed.

1. Impress upon suspects the necessity of following orders of policemen and never assaulting them in their line of duty. Both the recent tragedies in Missouri and New York could have been averted had the suspects followed the policeman’s orders.
2. With all the advanced technology available to us, the second recourse is to invent a police weapon that subdues without the risk of deadly force. I have no idea what such a weapon would look like or do, but there must be some device that can be invented to harmlessly subdue uncooperative suspects.

Agree totally with these.

Plus this country needs to work more on education within the inner cities. We pay teachers barely enough, we dont give them the tools they need, we now tell them to teach the tests instead of the basics. We (the US) invests more money on building and maintaining prisons and correctional facilities than we do schools and education anymore.

 

[edwest2]

There are at the very least two ways to avoid future bloodshed.

1. Impress upon suspects the necessity of following orders of policemen and never assaulting them in their line of duty. Both the recent tragedies in Missouri and New York could have been averted had the suspects followed the policeman’s orders.
2. With all the advanced technology available to us, the second recourse is to invent a police weapon that subdues without the risk of deadly force. I have no idea what such a weapon would look like or do, but there must be some device that can be invented to harmlessly subdue uncooperative suspects.

There is the taser, which has, in a few cases, killed people. However, social media does fan the flames, and often not in an accurate way. Police procedure, and scenarios, need to be reviewed in light of these recent incidents. Police officers could role-play these scenarios to help officers better handle similar situations in real life to prevent further incidents in the future. This is the proper approach:

latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ferguson-darren-wilson-20141130-story.html

We can figure this out.

Ed

latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ferguson-darren-wilson-20141130-story.html

 

[Charlemagne_III]

There is the taser, which has, in a few cases, killed people.
latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ferguson-darren-wilson-20141130-story.html

Yes, there must be a better way.

miaminewtimes.com/2014-03-20/news/taser-deaths-reefa-hernandez/full/

I suppose one other consideration, so far as the social media inflammation problem is concerned, is to make sure that when blacks are arrested the arresting officer, if possible, is black, or at least one of the officers present at the scene is black. In the event that the arrested person dies by resisting arrest, at least the race card would not be so likely to be played, even though police brutality could still be alleged if the evidence warrants.