Member
Posts:
Joined: Jun 2016
|
While the ongoing protests and rioting are way
over the top, it is curious to see a large number of
non-black participants. Some have suspected Antifa
activists, others neo-Nazi types try to foment a
race war. One of those arrested appears to be an
old-fashioned anarchist. It could very well be a
combination of bad actors that only coincidentally
have the same immediate objective.
It seems curious that despite numerous arrests by
police that few real answers are coming forth. Is
this lack of candor due to politics or another
cause. Our police can be legitimate heroes risking
their lives or a self-serving group that acts
outside the law.
Excessive force by Police in making arrests is
unfortunately common. Most of it goes unrecognized,
despite complaints, thanks to the old blue shield -
police looking out for fellow cops or other friends
to shield them from prosecution.
My own experience with the blue shield came some
years ago. My younger brother was in an unsignalized
crosswalk when a driver - evidently in a hurry to
beat oncoming traffic - made a quick left turn and
struck my brother sending him flying. That driver
abandoned his car and ran from the scene. My
brother was taken to the hospital and died three
days later from internal injuries. The police
eventually tracked the driver down and gave him a
ticket for failure to yield right of way. When I
talked to the police lieutenant in charge after my
brothers death he refused to add any additional
charges to that driver. No vehicular manslaughter,
no leaving the scene of the accident, driver not
checked for drug or alcohol abuse, no reckless
driving, no anything but a slap on the wrist. The
incident was not reported by the local press.
I read accounts of people getting tazed to death
for mouthing off to cops. Remember the 50s crooner
Jimmy Rogers ("Honeycomb"). He was severely beaten
by LA cops one night- he was hospitalized for months
and was never able to resume his career. It's not
just black victims either though they seem to be
subject to mis-treatment on a disproportionate
basis. It may be from being too resentful for being
stopped or something similar.
Other examples include no-knock searches
authorized on dubious evidence and conducted in the
the wee hours of the night by SWAT teams breaking
down the door guns blazing. If the victim is lucky,
it's only the family dog that gets shot. People have
money and other property taken from them despite not
being charged and frequently have to sue to get it
back.
The ugliest thing in my view is unfortunately a
common business model. The local drug syndicate that
supplies recreational drugs - marijuana, cocaine,
etc. pays off the local cops to look the other way.
Law Enforcement is fed a steady diet of small time
drug dealers poaching on their territory to make
them appear to be doing their job while the
syndicate gets enforcement at a bargain price.
It is a sad truth that not only some American
cops behaving this way but police around the world
do much the same with some places worse than others.
In my view, the only thing that will stop this is
courageous leadership and investigation capability
outside of the judicial system that is all too often
corrupted by the police. At one time civilian review
boards were proposed but were shouted down by police
unions.
In a previous post of mine on stasis - the
breakdown of civil order - I submitted that it is a
threat to all polarized societies. Sometimes a
strongman on the left or right will break it, others
will see a decline into chaos. The thin blue line
is often the difference - but to be trusted and
respected by all, means that its integrity must be
above reproach. Our cops need to clean up their act
and quickly too. Things will likely get worse before
they get better.
This message was edited by jpdell33 on 6-4-20 @ 11:51 AM
|
jpdell33
06-03-2020 @ 1:46 PM