The Shooting Gallery: Police Violence MEGATHREAD

[Martinus]

I like pork.

[derspiess]

Seems like a chicken or egg kinda thing.

Whether the police forces who took the surplus military equipment wanted to play soldier before getting the equipment or whether obtaining the equipment caused them to want to play soldier?

Ah, forgot where I was when I posted that.  Never mind.

[garbon]

I have to say that I'm not sad to be missing out on all this post-racial controversy that has been going on in the waning days of Obama.

[crazy canuck]

I have to say that I'm not sad to be missing out on all this post-racial controversy that has been going on in the waning days of Obama.

I am not sure what the Obama administration coming to an end has to do with it.

[garbon]

I have to say that I'm not sad to be missing out on all this post-racial controversy that has been going on in the waning days of Obama.

I am not sure what the Obama administration coming to an end has to do with it.

Oh nothing. It was just that there had been so many hopes of America becoming more post-racial when we elected a black president.

[crazy canuck]

I have to say that I'm not sad to be missing out on all this post-racial controversy that has been going on in the waning days of Obama.

I am not sure what the Obama administration coming to an end has to do with it.

Oh nothing. It was just that there had been so many hopes of America becoming more post-racial when we elected a black president.

Perhaps the people who voted for him thought that might occur but the picture depicting Obama as a monkey (and its popularity) probably alerted everyone to the fact that it would take more than one black president to move the US to a post-racial society.

[derspiess]

People were depicting Dubya as a monkey and it even made its way on to t-shirts.  I guess we're only allowed to ridicule our authority figures if they're white.

[dps]

There is more at work here than just the militarization, of course. The racism involved in what is happening in some of these places has little to do with that directly.

It is the effect of one upon the other.

The military is probably the most well-integrated part of our society.  Race relations are one area where police forces might benefit from being more like the military.

[grumbler]

People were depicting Dubya as a monkey and it even made its way on to t-shirts.  I guess we're only allowed to ridicule use a money as a symbol for our authority figures if they're white.

Fixed that, and duh!  You are smarter than to post that shit.

[grumbler]

The military is probably the most well-integrated part of our society.  Race relations are one area where police forces might benefit from being more like the military.

I also think the military has a lot more respect for "civilians" than the average cop, sad though that is to say.

[Ed Anger]

Seems like a chicken or egg kinda thing.

Whether the police forces who took the surplus military equipment wanted to play soldier before getting the equipment or whether obtaining the equipment caused them to want to play soldier?

Ah, forgot where I was when I posted that.  Never mind.

[11B4V]

The military is probably the most well-integrated part of our society.  Race relations are one area where police forces might benefit from being more like the military.

I also think the military has a lot more respect for "civilians" than the average cop, sad though that is to say.

Interesting statement, but true.

[Razgovory]

And this caused the riot?

Well we have not had major riots like this since the 1960s. Mistrust of the police and authorities also featured there completely coincidentally. Or not so coincidentally.

   I'm fairly certain we have.  Big one in 1992.  Smaller one in Cinncy a decade ago.

[HVC]

People were depicting Dubya as a monkey and it even made its way on to t-shirts.  I guess we're only allowed to ridicule our authority figures if they're white.

even you have to know that the context of these two situations is very different.

[Valmy]

Oh nothing. It was just that there had been so many hopes of America becoming more post-racial when we elected a black president.

It's a process.