I guess I'm swimming against the current on this one, but I live in a poor part of the city. As I understand it, a neighbor contacted police to report a break-in; the police responded; the guy who was "breaking in" lived there and showed identification. Beyond that, things get a bit hazy in the journalistic reports - perhaps deliberately so.
If I witness what appears to be a break-in, should I not contact police? If I do contact them, should they then not ask for a description of the suspicious person or persons? If I describe the suspicious person as a black man, should the police then refuse to respond?
Let's all try it that way and see if we end up being satisfied with the results. To me, this is just another example of political correctness trumping public safety. If somebody mouths off to the police, more police will arrive. That's how it works, folks! If the derision continues, the person with the loud mouth is apt to be arrested.
But we know the correct reaction to all this: a black man was being discriminated against because of his race. Right. It seems to me he was arrested because he was a loudmouthed jerk who hurled insults at the police and privately wanted to create a media event. He certainly succeeded!
Yeah, well....
Date: 2009-07-22 08:43 pm (UTC)I guess I'm swimming against the current on this one, but I live in a poor part of the city. As I understand it, a neighbor contacted police to report a break-in; the police responded; the guy who was "breaking in" lived there and showed identification. Beyond that, things get a bit hazy in the journalistic reports - perhaps deliberately so.
If I witness what appears to be a break-in, should I not contact police? If I do contact them, should they then not ask for a description of the suspicious person or persons? If I describe the suspicious person as a black man, should the police then refuse to respond?
Let's all try it that way and see if we end up being satisfied with the results. To me, this is just another example of political correctness trumping public safety. If somebody mouths off to the police, more police will arrive. That's how it works, folks! If the derision continues, the person with the loud mouth is apt to be arrested.
But we know the correct reaction to all this: a black man was being discriminated against because of his race. Right. It seems to me he was arrested because he was a loudmouthed jerk who hurled insults at the police and privately wanted to create a media event. He certainly succeeded!
=^..^=