Ferguson discussion thread (FERGUDISHU)

[ToddG]

What do you guys say to the polite people in your life, who parrot, "We need to give police more non-lethal options," other than call them ignorant of current options and reality?

FIFY. To answer your question I say the same thing I did during the Trayvon Martin fiasco: if you confuse MSNBC's spin with actual evidence and cannot be bothered to educate yourself on the actual legal standards, of course you'll be surprised that this was the outcome.

The saddest part is that we'd think logic dictates when case after case is decided opposite of the media's suggested resolution, people would begin to realize the media is wrong at the least and complicit at worst. Instead, they come to the conclusion that it's an epidemic of racial and/or LE hateful violence. Because drama.

[BaiHu]

Thanks for the reply and I'm glad to see you're feeling well enough to fix my punctuation [emoji6]

[ToddG]

... and I'm glad to see you're feeling well enough to fix my punctuation.

[BaiHu]

That was autocorrect [emoji13]

[ToddG]

That was autocorrect

OK.

[BaiHu]

OK.

Good to see you snarky Todd.

Good to see you too CyberTodd.

[czech6]

I really feel sorry for the overwhelming number of decent people that live in Ferguson, that are perpetual victims. Because of what's going on they get painted with a broad brush stroke as being a bunch of shitheads and there's no chance that there lives will improve. One of the real travesties to come out of the Michael Brown shooting is that the media has largely refused to acknowledge the destructive parties from outside of Ferguson that have descended on the city with the intent to destroy it, especially the anarchist and instigators from OWS that are looking for new cause to latch onto. Just a casual observation, since Monday the number of backpack toting, college age, Guy Fawkes mask wearing, white males at the protest have dropped dramatically and the arsons and level of violence has dropped too. I'm sure that Ferguson has enough of it's own turds that it doesn't need outside help to pillage and burn.

The people in Ferguson deserve a much better Police Department than they are going to end up with.

[Dagga Boy]

Most of the arrests on the first night were Ferguson residents, and the "Burn this Bitch Down" chant was started and initiated by Michael Brown's ex-felon step-daddy.

[IceDevil]

That is exactly what I've heard a number of people say. There was NO valid reason in the world that a white police officer should shoot a black 18 year old boy. Period. Nothing he could have done could possibly make that valid. That's their belief.

Setting aside race, there is also a large portion of the population that believes that there is no possible reason that a police officer should shoot an unarmed person. Of course unlike the officer involved, the people making that argument have the benefit of knowing in hindsight with certainty that the suspect was in fact unarmed.

[hufnagel]

That is why I gave up caring at all. If I said that, I would just be another racist. I guarantee I have saved more black teens either incarcerating them before they got killed, or protecting the ones who happened to live amongst a bunch of drug dealing gangsters who wanted to go to college, speak "white" and had high hopes for bright futures and to leave their ghetto behind with hard work at school. In one incident my partner and I interrupted a in progress gang shooting just before it started between two rival Crip sets over drug territory. We made 15 arrests with 11 handguns recovered.......by ourselves. It was actually funny when one of the out of town Crips got up off the ground and tried to go through me....(sound familiar..charging the guy with gun, daring you to shoot him). One of our local guys said "don't do it, he'll f*ck you up". He didn't listen. He ate a Maglite. Our guys knew my partner and I, and wouldn't challenge us. In that one incident, how many young black lives did two white cops save. How many little black kids playing in front of the TV in their apartment weren't killed when 11 handguns (including a very nice .44 mag Redhawk) were not being fired indiscriminately. When the "racist" white cops who do nothing but arrest black criminals in black neighborhoods just give up, who suffers? I know I no longer care. Rev. Al can fix it now.

beers. you visit my neck of the woods, they're on me.

edit: not because you deserve it, but because you'll (hopefully!) not smack me upside the head and call me the dumbass I am sometimes. eternally glad you've stuck around.