Since the rioting and protesting began after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis Police officers, we have expanded our vocabulary to include such terms as systemic racism, white privilege, all lives do not matter to everyone and defund the police. It has been reported that the consensus is that one’s skin color hinders the ability to escape the oppression exerted by those in power. In other words, everyone is out to get the black man and to keep him down and if escape is attempted the police will hunt them down and murder them. Facts are indeed the enemy of the left. If people understand the truth, they are much more difficult to deceive or to be led astray. When one misinterprets or fails to realize the objectives of various organizations or persons, they can be easily manipulated. If one takes the time to understand just what defines the talking points that the left, democrats and the mainstream media parrot, the truth begins to come into focus.
Systemic: Relating to a system, especially as opposed to a particular part. In other words, widespread practices that permeate entire systems, such as business, the criminal justice system and in general, economics.
Systemic racism: Racism resulting from the inherent biases and prejudices of the policies and practices of social and political organizations, groups, or institutions. It is the belief that the unfair targeting of persons of color has led to increased incarceration, lower wages and unfair practices in general society that disproportionally and negatively affects persons of color.
Institutional racism: This is a form of racism that is embedded as a normal practice within society or an organization. It is believed that it leads to such issues as discrimination in criminal justice, employment, housing, health care, political power, and education, and pretty much everything else.
Reverse discrimination: The practice or policy of favoring individuals belonging to groups known to have been discriminated against previously. An example of this would be the policy of affirmative action.
Respect: The act of having due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, or traditions of others. This is a simple and logical concept that is becoming increasingly underused in our society.
Society: The aggregate of people living together in a more or less ordered community that has common laws and expectations of acceptable behavior.
Societal norms: Common standards within a social group regarding socially acceptable or appropriate behavior in particular social situations, the breach of which has social consequences. A prime example of societal norms is the respect of others and their property. To harm another, steal or damage their property would be considered aberrant behavior in civil society.
Crime: An action or omission that constitutes an offense that may be prosecuted by the state and is punishable by law. Crimes consists of misdemeanors and felonies, conviction thereof will likely result in incarceration.
Anarchy: A state of disorder due to absence or non-recognition of authority. ie; Portland, Oregon where the Mayor and Common Council order police to stand-down and allow rioters to burn their city.
Antifa: is an anti-fascist political movement in the United States comprising a diverse array of autonomous groups that aim to achieve their objectives through the use of both non-violent and violent direct action rather than through policy reform. Antifa is not against facism, they are anarchists that engage in all sorts of violence and wanton destruction of property in an effort to destroy civil society.
Black Lives Matter: A Marxist organization that seeks to radically transform America into a socialist country. No, BLM is not a movement meant to seek justice for blacks that are wrongly targeted by police or society in general. Its’ first and only goal is to overthrow the system of government and destroy capitalism, and to replace it with socialism, the first step toward communism.
Legal authority: The ability of a participant in a legal relation to take certain actions or demand certain actions of another participant in this legal relation; this capability is provided for in the law. Police are granted the legal authority to detain and arrest, in effect taking away freedom, for those who choose to violate the law.
Police: The civil force of a national or local government, responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the maintenance of public order. The police enforce the law and maintain public safety. Defunding of which would lead to far less public safety.
Acknowledging that any death that could have been avoided is tragic, one must keep the consequences of those regrettable events in perspective. According to a study conducted by Rafael Mangual, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, in 2018 there were over 800,000 police officers in the US that engaged in over 10 million citizen contacts. Of those over 10 million contacts, less than 1,000 ended with deadly force, and .003% of those contacts ended in a deadly shooting. Over 91% of those deadly shootings involved a visibly armed suspect, certainly indicating that deadly force was likely justified in those shootings. The reason that a plane crash makes the news is because of the infrequency of plane crashes. The same goes for deadly police shootings. If this was such a common occurrence, it would not be newsworthy.
The study also indicated that the use of non-lethal force by police is also greatly exaggerated. Negative contacts with civilians consist of less than 3% of all interactions with the public. Arrests are made in only about 70% of that 3%. The greatest use of force by police in making an arrest is bodily force, which includes simply placing hands on the suspect, not just the use of less than lethal and not lethal force. Having served 30 years as a police officer in a Milwaukee, WI suburb, arrests of compliant individuals did not ever escalate into a use of force incident. Civilians that followed the lawful commands of police did not end up injured or shot. Civilians that were non-compliant or combative forced the police to escalate in order to effect the arrest.
Police have continued to train in de-escalation techniques that are constantly updated and improved. Police are trained to use minimal force, while keeping themselves and the public safe, and those techniques are formulated to have the most effect while keeping the risk of injury to the suspect minimized. Are police perfect? Of course not. Could police training be improved? Of course, anything can use improvements. One of the factors not receiving the appropriate notice is that more and more of the public are acting inappropriately when interacting with the police. In almost every instance of alleged police brutality is that the suspect refused to comply with police orders and resisted, causing an escalation of the incident. Take the most recent incident in Kenosha, WI. Jacob Blake refused to obey lawful orders to drop a weapon, attempted to flee by opening a car door and reaching into the floor area of an auto. Was there a gun under the seat? Was Blake going to use the knife against the officer? The lesson to be learned is that police have the authority to give orders to citizens and citizens are obligated to obey. Should the police be determined to have acted outside the scope of their authority in any arrest situation, the price of their misconduct will be paid in civil court.
Black Lives Matter and local activists have been organizing protests around the country decrying their perception that police unfairly target black males and claim that the United States applies a pattern of systemic racism targeting blacks. These protests have devolved into rioting and looting in cities across the nation. Professional sports, athletes, Hollywood, the mainstream media and many businesses virtue signal their support for an organization that has a primary goal of transforming our nation into a socialist society, which if realized, would necessarily bankrupt those very organizations that parrot their support of BLM. The facts simply do not meet the veracities of these claims. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King said, “The limitation of riots, moral questions aside, is that they cannot win and their participants know it. Hence, rioting is not revolutionary but reactionary because it invites defeat. It involves an emotional catharsis, but it must be followed by a sense of futility.”
There are a myriad of issues surrounding why blacks perceive a lack of fairness in society. The claim that police unfairly target them is not one of them. Certainly, there are “bad apples” that wear the badge, but they are few and far between, identified and removed, especially if there is a pattern of behavior. Defunding the police is not only an absurd demand, it is dangerous on its face. With the increased civil disobedience and violence, there should be a move to increase our police force, not decrease it. Should the police be reformed? Training for police should continue to evolve and improve. New and better techniques should always be considered and implemented. The Thin Blue Line is the only thing between the public and anarchy. Eliminate the police and it truly becomes the Wild West when each and every citizen is responsible for providing for their own safety and security.
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.” Romans 13:1-4
Showing posts with label racial inequity. President Trump. Show all posts
Showing posts with label racial inequity. President Trump. Show all posts
Monday, September 7, 2020
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Seriously....
I was reading a FaceBook post where a democrat/liberal/leftist commented about how much good the democrats have done for our great nation. (I added the part about “for our great nation”) Her diatribe just bolstered the arguments that public schools have been indoctrinating their students for years with revisionist history. Republican bad, democrat good. Conservative bad, liberal good. Free market capitalism bad, socialism good. If history was actually taught appropriately and honestly, just think about how well we could all get along. Anyway, here are the counterpoints to her misguided comments that credited democrats with everything from creating the cure for cancer (just kidding!) to inventing the internet (for real). This is a pretty extensive list, but to properly understand just how out of touch with reality people that vote “d” are, this is worth the read.
• Social Security – FDR’s unfunded Ponzi scheme that the democrats have used to fund their never ending social programs instead of actually funding the program. Going into insolvency in 2032.
• Medicare – Lyndon Johnson’s expansion of the welfare state
• Medicaid – Lyndon Johnson’s program that reimburses pennies on the dollar, which has led to the increasing cost of healthcare and insurance and the collapse of nursing homes nationwide.
• Healthcare reform – The ACA is such an utter failure, so much so that the democrats already want to change it to single payer, Medicare for all or whatever is the name du jour today. Puuu-leeze.
• FDA began on Theodore Roosevelt’s watch, a Republican.
• The New Deal – FDR’s foray into socialism. Coming out of the Great Depression, FDR spent more than the GDP on programs that paid for infrastructure repair and numerous other employment and projects at taxpayer expense. This administration begat the entitlement culture that so permeates our society.
• Great Society – Lyndon Johnson’s expansion of FDR’s social programs to ensure the continuing segregation of African Americans into the inner city, giving them just enough money to live with a few creature comforts and keep them voting for democrats that only want their vote to maintain power.
• Peace Corps – Good program serving those in need. President Kennedy signed Executive order 10924 to create the program.
• Vista, which was expanded by President Clinton in 1993 as AmeriCorps. Six years ago, USA Today called “AmeriCorps a wasteful flop” saying many members are serving as recess referees. The article also asked the question, do we really need playground monitors? In 2018 a CBS News investigation revealed that AmeriCorps programs, are rife with sexual misconduct and failed to meet federal standards and requirements.
• The Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964 with more than 50% of the democrats in Congress voting against it.
• Women’s right to vote or the 19th Amendment - Between January 1918 and June 1919, the House and Senate voted on the federal amendment five times. Each vote was extremely close and southern democrats continued to oppose giving women the vote.
• Motor Voter – You’ve got to be kidding, a democrat scheme to allow more fraudulent voting, including issuing driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants is a positive for who?
• Equal Rights – The Equal Rights amendment has not yet garnered ratification by enough states to be enacted into law.
• Voting Rights Act – Passed into law in 1965 with a 77-19 vote in the Senate, with 16 democrat southern state Senators voting no and all but 2 Republicans voting to approve.
• Equal Pay Act – Signed into law by President Kennedy in 1963. In 2020, women make only $0.81 for every dollar a man makes. How’s that working for ‘ya?
• Consumer protection – This includes a number of different agencies created under numerous administrations, both democrat and Republican.
• Funding for science, Medical and engineering research, space exploration, NSF and NIH - Wow where do I begin. Spending on the above programs increased $4.95billion in 2018. How does that fit the narrative that the Trump administration has gutted those programs.
• Support for public education, HeadStart school lunch and breakfast programs - As public school unions support democrats by the tune of over $30 million annually, democrats do support any and all programs that the teacher’s unions want. (See common core and the steady decline in our student’s scores as compared to the rest of the world.) Head Start was a program that began with Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society initiative.
• NLRB, 40 hour work week, overtime and unemployment compensation – Yep, all democrat programs signed into law by FDR.
• EPA, National Parks, and increased wilderness areas, aka federally owned lands – Richard Nixon, a Republican, signed an executive order creating The EPA. Theodore Roosevelt, a Republican, made conservation a top priority and established many new national parks, forests and monuments intended to preserve the nation's natural resources.
• Endangered species act and FEMA – The Endangered Species Act was signed into law by Richard Nixon, a Republican. FEMA was created by and executive order by Jimmy Carter, a democrat. I guess not everything Carter did was a disaster, no pun intended.
• GI bill, UN, NATO, Marshall Plan – Check, all democrat policies.
• Vehicle safety requirements and emission standards – Sorry, the Clean Air Act was signed into law by George HW Bush. Federal vehicle safety requirements were instituted on Lyndon Johnson’s watch.
• TVA, federal loan program, PBS, NPR and finally, the democrats are responsible for the internet – TVA-FDR, federal loan program aka FFEL, Federal Family Education loan, began issuing loans in 1965, Lyndon Johnson, until it ended in 2010. PBS-1970, Nixon. NPR-1971 Nixon. And now the internet-To credit the creation or even the inspiration for the creation of the internet is ludicrous on it’s face. Free enterprise and the free market created the internet and capitalism encouraged it’s growth. To even attempt to credit democrats for the internet is beyond the pale.
So, there you have it. I am certain that many of our “friends” on the other side of the aisle believe, in some form or another, exactly as the author of those “factoids about democrats” believes. Many democrat policies and programs are littered with unintended consequences and even more are deliberately and insidiously proposed with an expected outcome that benefits their base and benefactors. Be careful what you wish for when deciding to give credit for some of the legislation passed by democrats that accomplishes little or nothing for the majority of the people that they are charged to represent.
• Social Security – FDR’s unfunded Ponzi scheme that the democrats have used to fund their never ending social programs instead of actually funding the program. Going into insolvency in 2032.
• Medicare – Lyndon Johnson’s expansion of the welfare state
• Medicaid – Lyndon Johnson’s program that reimburses pennies on the dollar, which has led to the increasing cost of healthcare and insurance and the collapse of nursing homes nationwide.
• Healthcare reform – The ACA is such an utter failure, so much so that the democrats already want to change it to single payer, Medicare for all or whatever is the name du jour today. Puuu-leeze.
• FDA began on Theodore Roosevelt’s watch, a Republican.
• The New Deal – FDR’s foray into socialism. Coming out of the Great Depression, FDR spent more than the GDP on programs that paid for infrastructure repair and numerous other employment and projects at taxpayer expense. This administration begat the entitlement culture that so permeates our society.
• Great Society – Lyndon Johnson’s expansion of FDR’s social programs to ensure the continuing segregation of African Americans into the inner city, giving them just enough money to live with a few creature comforts and keep them voting for democrats that only want their vote to maintain power.
• Peace Corps – Good program serving those in need. President Kennedy signed Executive order 10924 to create the program.
• Vista, which was expanded by President Clinton in 1993 as AmeriCorps. Six years ago, USA Today called “AmeriCorps a wasteful flop” saying many members are serving as recess referees. The article also asked the question, do we really need playground monitors? In 2018 a CBS News investigation revealed that AmeriCorps programs, are rife with sexual misconduct and failed to meet federal standards and requirements.
• The Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964 with more than 50% of the democrats in Congress voting against it.
• Women’s right to vote or the 19th Amendment - Between January 1918 and June 1919, the House and Senate voted on the federal amendment five times. Each vote was extremely close and southern democrats continued to oppose giving women the vote.
• Motor Voter – You’ve got to be kidding, a democrat scheme to allow more fraudulent voting, including issuing driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants is a positive for who?
• Equal Rights – The Equal Rights amendment has not yet garnered ratification by enough states to be enacted into law.
• Voting Rights Act – Passed into law in 1965 with a 77-19 vote in the Senate, with 16 democrat southern state Senators voting no and all but 2 Republicans voting to approve.
• Equal Pay Act – Signed into law by President Kennedy in 1963. In 2020, women make only $0.81 for every dollar a man makes. How’s that working for ‘ya?
• Consumer protection – This includes a number of different agencies created under numerous administrations, both democrat and Republican.
• Funding for science, Medical and engineering research, space exploration, NSF and NIH - Wow where do I begin. Spending on the above programs increased $4.95billion in 2018. How does that fit the narrative that the Trump administration has gutted those programs.
• Support for public education, HeadStart school lunch and breakfast programs - As public school unions support democrats by the tune of over $30 million annually, democrats do support any and all programs that the teacher’s unions want. (See common core and the steady decline in our student’s scores as compared to the rest of the world.) Head Start was a program that began with Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society initiative.
• NLRB, 40 hour work week, overtime and unemployment compensation – Yep, all democrat programs signed into law by FDR.
• EPA, National Parks, and increased wilderness areas, aka federally owned lands – Richard Nixon, a Republican, signed an executive order creating The EPA. Theodore Roosevelt, a Republican, made conservation a top priority and established many new national parks, forests and monuments intended to preserve the nation's natural resources.
• Endangered species act and FEMA – The Endangered Species Act was signed into law by Richard Nixon, a Republican. FEMA was created by and executive order by Jimmy Carter, a democrat. I guess not everything Carter did was a disaster, no pun intended.
• GI bill, UN, NATO, Marshall Plan – Check, all democrat policies.
• Vehicle safety requirements and emission standards – Sorry, the Clean Air Act was signed into law by George HW Bush. Federal vehicle safety requirements were instituted on Lyndon Johnson’s watch.
• TVA, federal loan program, PBS, NPR and finally, the democrats are responsible for the internet – TVA-FDR, federal loan program aka FFEL, Federal Family Education loan, began issuing loans in 1965, Lyndon Johnson, until it ended in 2010. PBS-1970, Nixon. NPR-1971 Nixon. And now the internet-To credit the creation or even the inspiration for the creation of the internet is ludicrous on it’s face. Free enterprise and the free market created the internet and capitalism encouraged it’s growth. To even attempt to credit democrats for the internet is beyond the pale.
So, there you have it. I am certain that many of our “friends” on the other side of the aisle believe, in some form or another, exactly as the author of those “factoids about democrats” believes. Many democrat policies and programs are littered with unintended consequences and even more are deliberately and insidiously proposed with an expected outcome that benefits their base and benefactors. Be careful what you wish for when deciding to give credit for some of the legislation passed by democrats that accomplishes little or nothing for the majority of the people that they are charged to represent.
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
The Fall of the Fourth Estate
The Fourth Estate is a term that frames the news media both in its’ clear power of advocacy and tacit ability to illuminate political issues. Though not formally established as a part of the political system, it can exert considerable influence upon society. The First Amendment rights afforded the press is indeed, a sacred privilege, imbedded into our Constitution as a check and balance that empowers the press and provides a process to assure that political leaders are held accountable to the people. The framers of our Constitution did not intend that the press become an arbiter for any particular political party. All were to be held to account regardless of their political affiliation. Unfortunately, the mainstream media has devolved to consider their advocacy as all important as they fill the airwaves with opinionated news analysis replete with their political biases.
Proper journalism should always endeavor to seek the truth, act in the public interest and minimize harm. Journalists have an obligation to seek out that truth and report it as accurately as possible. Journalists should also corroborate any information with multiple sources. Journalists should avoid taking political sides and should not act on behalf of any special interest groups. Any political affiliations or other conflicts of interest should be declared and properly acknowledged. Objectivity is paramount and the reporter should remain fair and balanced, making certain to uphold and protect the public interest. In addition to being independent, journalists should show impartiality and balance in their reporting. Unfortunately, today’s mainstream media does nothing of the sort. They misrepresent their role and simply become a cheerleading team, championing the goals of the left, all the while abandoning their responsibility to themselves and the public.
The Fox News moniker proudly proclaims its’ “fair and balanced” news coverage, but the majority of their news casts are partisan and conservative. But, Fox News is greatly outnumbered by the vast mainstream media outlets that continually lean far to the left. ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, MSNBC the Washington Post and the New York Times continually promote their goal to overturn President Trump’s election by any means necessary and to ultimately defeat conservativism, apparently at any and all costs. They openly support socialism and decry capitalism, religion, free speech, gun rights and the Constitution in general. They twist their reporting to promote a narrative that often ranges far from the truth. In their ivory towers, particularly on the east and west coasts, they obviously do not understand mainstream America. There is good reason that newspapers are dying and that the mainstream media is not trusted. Mainstream media reporting has simply transformed into editorials tainted with opinion, often disregarding the actual facts of the matter.
An article in the Washington Free Beacon illustrates just how out of touch the mainstream media is. “New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet said it's "odd" to be called a member of the elite, but he acknowledged journalists must do more to understand religion. We have to do a much better job … understanding some of the forces that drive people in parts of America that maybe are not as powerful as New York or Los Angeles," Baquet said on NBC's Meet the Press. "We have to do a better job covering religion. We have to do a better job understanding why some people support Donald Trump." This “matter of fact” statement demonstrates just how “siloed” the media has become. They truly do not understand how this nation was founded and continues to function as a democratic republic. They have lost the ability to understand what their role in maintaining an orderly society truly is. They do not understand how harmful to our nation their failure to uphold the public trust by failing to report positive results from President Trump’s administration all the while echoing the negativity and false statements by politicians on the left, asserting those statements as valid and truthful.
As the mainstream media, academia, and the “Deep State” work in concert to undermine our democracy, we have a choice to make. Do we decide that our nation is worthwhile to protect and save, or will we simply remain unengaged and let the chips fall where they may? I, for one, believe in this nation as it was founded and will work my hardest to secure a bright future for our nation and our children. I, for one, will support all candidates that believe as I do with my vote and my donations. I, for one, will do whatever I can to properly inform as many as possible of the dangers to our way of life that the left brings. If we stand by idly and do nothing the left will fundamentally transform this nation and destroy our way of life. The choice is apparent. Are you willing to do your part to save our nation?
Proper journalism should always endeavor to seek the truth, act in the public interest and minimize harm. Journalists have an obligation to seek out that truth and report it as accurately as possible. Journalists should also corroborate any information with multiple sources. Journalists should avoid taking political sides and should not act on behalf of any special interest groups. Any political affiliations or other conflicts of interest should be declared and properly acknowledged. Objectivity is paramount and the reporter should remain fair and balanced, making certain to uphold and protect the public interest. In addition to being independent, journalists should show impartiality and balance in their reporting. Unfortunately, today’s mainstream media does nothing of the sort. They misrepresent their role and simply become a cheerleading team, championing the goals of the left, all the while abandoning their responsibility to themselves and the public.
The Fox News moniker proudly proclaims its’ “fair and balanced” news coverage, but the majority of their news casts are partisan and conservative. But, Fox News is greatly outnumbered by the vast mainstream media outlets that continually lean far to the left. ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, MSNBC the Washington Post and the New York Times continually promote their goal to overturn President Trump’s election by any means necessary and to ultimately defeat conservativism, apparently at any and all costs. They openly support socialism and decry capitalism, religion, free speech, gun rights and the Constitution in general. They twist their reporting to promote a narrative that often ranges far from the truth. In their ivory towers, particularly on the east and west coasts, they obviously do not understand mainstream America. There is good reason that newspapers are dying and that the mainstream media is not trusted. Mainstream media reporting has simply transformed into editorials tainted with opinion, often disregarding the actual facts of the matter.
An article in the Washington Free Beacon illustrates just how out of touch the mainstream media is. “New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet said it's "odd" to be called a member of the elite, but he acknowledged journalists must do more to understand religion. We have to do a much better job … understanding some of the forces that drive people in parts of America that maybe are not as powerful as New York or Los Angeles," Baquet said on NBC's Meet the Press. "We have to do a better job covering religion. We have to do a better job understanding why some people support Donald Trump." This “matter of fact” statement demonstrates just how “siloed” the media has become. They truly do not understand how this nation was founded and continues to function as a democratic republic. They have lost the ability to understand what their role in maintaining an orderly society truly is. They do not understand how harmful to our nation their failure to uphold the public trust by failing to report positive results from President Trump’s administration all the while echoing the negativity and false statements by politicians on the left, asserting those statements as valid and truthful.
As the mainstream media, academia, and the “Deep State” work in concert to undermine our democracy, we have a choice to make. Do we decide that our nation is worthwhile to protect and save, or will we simply remain unengaged and let the chips fall where they may? I, for one, believe in this nation as it was founded and will work my hardest to secure a bright future for our nation and our children. I, for one, will support all candidates that believe as I do with my vote and my donations. I, for one, will do whatever I can to properly inform as many as possible of the dangers to our way of life that the left brings. If we stand by idly and do nothing the left will fundamentally transform this nation and destroy our way of life. The choice is apparent. Are you willing to do your part to save our nation?
Saturday, September 23, 2017
Who's Your Bully?
President Trump is under fire for stating that he believes that professional athletes, particularly NFL players, are being disrespectful of their country with their National Anthem protests. He even took it further, suggesting that NFL owners fire these ungrateful miscreants. Although they have the right to free speech and can express their displeasure with any perceived slights they believe are afflicting Americans of color, the fact remains that President Trump is correct in his view. Athletes that have the skills necessary to perform on the public stage and earn a considerable amount of money for doing so, have to keep in mind that, although Charles Barkley may disagree, they are examples for those that pay to watch them, particularly young people, who can be unduly influenced by their actions. So, back to the question at hand, who is the bully? President Trump who speaks his mind and has an opinion, shared by a majority of citizens of these United States, or athletes that use the public stage to promote a reality that, truly, no longer exists?
Over the last 8 years we were exposed to President’s Obama’s opinion of unequal race relations in this country. From the Cambridge police officers questioning a black professor attempting to break into his home without the requisite identification on his person that were deemed to be “acting stupidly” by our commander in chief to his divisive comments about the police after the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and his suggesting that if he had a son, he would look like Trayvon Martin. Personally, I believe that President Obama’s outspoken criticism of the police has driven the spike in violence against police officers including the shooting deaths of 5 Dallas officers and any number of police that have been ambushed by persons of color that somehow believe that every white police officer begins his tour of duty with the intent to kill as many persons of color that he can. President Obama’s views on racial inequities could not be further from the truth.
Having been a police officer for 29 years, I think I have a clearer understanding of how law enforcement in conducted. Every time force of any nature is used by a law enforcement officer it is thoroughly investigated. Any use of deadly force is referred to the District Attorney’s office and if the officer is deemed to have used an unlawful level of force, he/she will be subjected to the appropriate criminal charges and the courts will prosecute. Video recorders on squad cars and on the police themselves, document almost all of the police interactions with citizens, to be used as evidence against the perpetrator, even if it is the police officer. Records of police interactions with minorities are monitored by the Justice Department and any agency with an inordinate number of contacts with minorities will have action taken against them. After Ferguson, out of 17,985 US law enforcement agencies, only 21 departments, including St. Louis and Ferguson, were under investigation by the DOJ due to civil rights complaints, amounting to just over .001% of all police agencies in the country.
Have all racial biases been erased? Not all, but claims that minorities somehow are being targeted by police has no factual basis. Take the incident involving Seattle Seahawks player Michael Bennett and the Las Vegas Police. Police responded to a shooting in progress. Everyone in the casino was ordered to lay down on the floor with their hands in front of them. Bennett decided to hide and not comply with the officers. He then thought it appropriate to try to flee on foot. I’m sorry, but he is extremely lucky that the officers had the prudence to refrain from assuming that he was the bad guy by shooting him and eliminating the threat he presented to them and the public. Now he has the temerity to complain and threaten a civil rights lawsuit. Talk about the world turning upside down. Then you have Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors vacillating about not attending a white house visit because he doesn’t like President Trump. President Trump says fine, then I’m rescinding your invitation and the left and media (I repeat myself here) goes on another “hair on fire” rampage. Now the whole team will not attend. Great, that will open up the calendar for President Trump so that he can continue to advance the people’s agenda.
For many, sports are an avenue to escape from the harsh realities of this out of control world. If I want to listen to politics, I will tune in to Fox News, CNN or any other news channel. I don’t need to be lectured to by any celebrity, including athletes, that don’t have the intelligence or can’t or won’t properly inform themselves. (See LeBron James, Leonardo DeCaprio, etc….) I think we can look no further than NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s response to President Trump. “Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities.” Talk about calling the kettle black. And this is coming from the man presiding over the NFL’s fall from grace! These “protests” by NFL players are simply showing a lack of respect for the country that gives them an opportunity to become rich playing a game. This is the ultimate insult to all those who contribute to the money they make. Even if you do not watch or attend, you are paying, when the cost of items you purchase rise, in part, because of the advertising on the networks that broadcast those events.
Unqualified and erroneous “facts” are repeated over and over by the left and they attack anyone who fails to share their opinions. See illegal immigration, global warming, and especially the University of California, Berkeley and any number of college campuses that will use any means necessary to squelch any conservative speaker with the audaciousness to schedule an appearance at these “so-called” bastions of debate and free exchange of ideas, unless it fits their progressive, liberal agenda. Who is it that is really engaging in hate speech? The real bully is becoming more and more apparent, and he does not live in the White House.
Over the last 8 years we were exposed to President’s Obama’s opinion of unequal race relations in this country. From the Cambridge police officers questioning a black professor attempting to break into his home without the requisite identification on his person that were deemed to be “acting stupidly” by our commander in chief to his divisive comments about the police after the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and his suggesting that if he had a son, he would look like Trayvon Martin. Personally, I believe that President Obama’s outspoken criticism of the police has driven the spike in violence against police officers including the shooting deaths of 5 Dallas officers and any number of police that have been ambushed by persons of color that somehow believe that every white police officer begins his tour of duty with the intent to kill as many persons of color that he can. President Obama’s views on racial inequities could not be further from the truth.
Having been a police officer for 29 years, I think I have a clearer understanding of how law enforcement in conducted. Every time force of any nature is used by a law enforcement officer it is thoroughly investigated. Any use of deadly force is referred to the District Attorney’s office and if the officer is deemed to have used an unlawful level of force, he/she will be subjected to the appropriate criminal charges and the courts will prosecute. Video recorders on squad cars and on the police themselves, document almost all of the police interactions with citizens, to be used as evidence against the perpetrator, even if it is the police officer. Records of police interactions with minorities are monitored by the Justice Department and any agency with an inordinate number of contacts with minorities will have action taken against them. After Ferguson, out of 17,985 US law enforcement agencies, only 21 departments, including St. Louis and Ferguson, were under investigation by the DOJ due to civil rights complaints, amounting to just over .001% of all police agencies in the country.
Have all racial biases been erased? Not all, but claims that minorities somehow are being targeted by police has no factual basis. Take the incident involving Seattle Seahawks player Michael Bennett and the Las Vegas Police. Police responded to a shooting in progress. Everyone in the casino was ordered to lay down on the floor with their hands in front of them. Bennett decided to hide and not comply with the officers. He then thought it appropriate to try to flee on foot. I’m sorry, but he is extremely lucky that the officers had the prudence to refrain from assuming that he was the bad guy by shooting him and eliminating the threat he presented to them and the public. Now he has the temerity to complain and threaten a civil rights lawsuit. Talk about the world turning upside down. Then you have Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors vacillating about not attending a white house visit because he doesn’t like President Trump. President Trump says fine, then I’m rescinding your invitation and the left and media (I repeat myself here) goes on another “hair on fire” rampage. Now the whole team will not attend. Great, that will open up the calendar for President Trump so that he can continue to advance the people’s agenda.
For many, sports are an avenue to escape from the harsh realities of this out of control world. If I want to listen to politics, I will tune in to Fox News, CNN or any other news channel. I don’t need to be lectured to by any celebrity, including athletes, that don’t have the intelligence or can’t or won’t properly inform themselves. (See LeBron James, Leonardo DeCaprio, etc….) I think we can look no further than NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s response to President Trump. “Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities.” Talk about calling the kettle black. And this is coming from the man presiding over the NFL’s fall from grace! These “protests” by NFL players are simply showing a lack of respect for the country that gives them an opportunity to become rich playing a game. This is the ultimate insult to all those who contribute to the money they make. Even if you do not watch or attend, you are paying, when the cost of items you purchase rise, in part, because of the advertising on the networks that broadcast those events.
Unqualified and erroneous “facts” are repeated over and over by the left and they attack anyone who fails to share their opinions. See illegal immigration, global warming, and especially the University of California, Berkeley and any number of college campuses that will use any means necessary to squelch any conservative speaker with the audaciousness to schedule an appearance at these “so-called” bastions of debate and free exchange of ideas, unless it fits their progressive, liberal agenda. Who is it that is really engaging in hate speech? The real bully is becoming more and more apparent, and he does not live in the White House.
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