Running racism in America thread

Think how many lives would have been saved had these patriots prevented the Bowling Green Massacre!

 

Sure, at an actual battlefield park (where perhaps they all belong, at least the Confederate ones.) But I think the debate is a lot more concerning the statues in town squares, in front of court houses, etc.

 

I was in Germany last fall and made a big point to track down the area my great, great, great, great grandfather came from. Ended up wandering through an old church in his hometown and through the nearby graveyard. There were most certainly monuments to soldiers who died in both the world wars. There was a large WW1 monument with names engraved of all the community members killed, and the places and dates they died. There was a statue on the top of a soldier laying down with his helmet as a pillow, under a large cross.

Then for WW2 there was a similar structure with names and places and dates of death, but with just a round rock on top instead of a statue. Inside the church, there were plaques for soldiers killed in WW2, as well. Again, most had places and dates. Some just had "1945" as shit got pretty intense toward the end.

Anyway, thought it was interesting. One element of the Confederate statue debate I've seen is "no other country celebrates losers." This certainly didn't have an air of "celebrating" but I wasn't expecting to see any acknowledgment, honestly.

 

I understand Crossfit is a conservative culture, but FFS.

The Head Of CrossFit Told Staff On A Zoom Call, “We're Not Mourning For George Floyd”

 

Georgia Sec. of State is getting ready for November.

Georgia election 'catastrophe' in largely minority areas sparks investigation

 

He gone!

 

Damned libruhl cancel culture. Haven’t they heard of Freedom of Speech? This ain’t Amurrica.

 

Raffensperger might as well rhyme with Trumpfluffer.

 

‘What I saw was just absolutely wrong’: National Guardsmen struggle with their role in controlling protests

 

This is what they want.

Whenever you hear of the problems of those damned libruhls and their silencing of Tom Cotton, remember that Trumpists are the people engaging in voter suppression and fraud. The cops who have been caught killing black people and mocking them across the country are almost entirely Trumpists. They have a hero in the White House. Remember that there would be absolutely no movement toward reform of a corrupt system without the actions of those damned libruhls.

 

We're memorialize the dead from Vietnam. We lost that war. But that's still different from the statues that lionize the heroes of Confederacy.

 

I've seen the "defund" the police arguments and I've seen the "pro-police" arguments, and choose to make my point known...

My perspective is that I am the son of a retired sheriff's deputy. His service ended almost 30 years ago, and I know there have been huge changes in society in those 30 years.

I make it a point to thank every police officer I encounter because I understand the dangers they face and the lack of gratitude they receive. That won't change.

Being a police officer is a life-and-death situation every day. But that cannot afford police officers the right to take the law into their own hands without repercussion.

Without video, George Floyd's death would be an unfortunate act of what happens when someone resists arrest. The officers would likely lie to save their collective asses, and no one would think anything of it. Just another criminal who paid the ultimate price because he didn't listen to what an officer told him.

Most police officers are in their careers for the right reasons, but most isn't good enough. Because of the bad situations that have happened, the positive work that law enforcement does in their communities doesn't get nearly the credit it deserves.

Over time, police across the country have taken on an us-vs.-them mentality. The rank-and-file, with the support of way-too-powerful unions, have spent their efforts on protecting all the apples instead of getting rid of the bad ones. To put that in cliché form, a team is only as good as it's weakest link.

And when life is at stake (both of the police and of the citizenry), having weak links is not acceptable.

So what's my solution? I don't have an one.

I do have a few suggestions as starting points.

Police officers do not need powerful unions. They are government employees, serving all of the people. I have no problem with a fraternal group supporting police or their cause.

But too many police unions have gotten too powerful and exacerbate the problem.

I've read of unions dictating speed of response calls because a budget item didn't go their way or someone was disciplined. That's a problem.

I've read about mass walkouts ("blue flu") or union officials encouraging officers to resign from an elite group because two were suspended. That's a problem.

Just this week, a union leader invited the "bad" cops to his jurisdiction in Florida because his power is so strong that they don't have accountability. That's a problem.

You have a union leaders, in and out of Minnesota, defending the George Floyd killing. That's a problem.

Police officers are allowed to break the law in non-emergency situations without repercussion. That's a problem.

Police officers are allowed to lie in the pursuit of criminals or in the questioning of a citizen. That's a problem.

If the police forces across the country would have cleaned up their own messes before now, the anti-police movement would have never gained any traction.

But too many people (mostly minorities) can't claim a positive interaction in their lives with police. Or, more likely, the negative interactions have so outweighed the positive ones. That's a shame and a big part of the problem.

Change is here and it has to happen. The police officers, government leaders on both sides and the people must work to make the change and must be willing to accept those changes.