Reactions to the Cop Killing

~ Laura

As you all know, two cops were murdered by a kook over the weekend. The guy was a kook. There shouldn’t be any connection to events surrounding recent protests of police behavior, but the guy made the connection in Instagram and everybody else is making those connections, so now we’re in a full fledged stand-off between police and the mayor of New York City.

I’m not sure what to say. I’ve been pretty disgusted with a lot of the commentary regarding race in the past few weeks. Both sides took it too far for me. I have no patience with people who argue for the end of policing and all laws. (Yes, I’ve heard people argue for that.) I just read some blog post by a woman who said that she hates nice white people. And then the other side starts putting its foot in racism and then I run the other way.

When the arguments go to the extreme, people start cocooning. If you argue that we should have no police force, that all cops are assholes, and that all white people are probably evil inside, then there can be no meaningful reforms. Hell, there can’t even be a proper dialogue. If you argue that there is no need for reform, then you are also cutting off discussion. I also feel manipulated by people who have a lot to gain from intensifying tensions.

We need to get some moderates into this national discussion.

Published by Laura

12 thoughts on “Reactions to the Cop Killing”

  2. Interestingly, from what I know (and all I know is what I read on the internet), the killings of Tamir Rice and John Crawford were much more questionable than the killings of Michael Brown or Eric Garner, but attracted much less protest.

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    1. I don’t think it is that hard to explain. The killing of Crawford (and non-indictment of the officer who killed him) was a very large part of what primed things for the current round of protests. If Garner died first, I think the protests would have been about Crawford. Rice’s shooter is still potentially facing trial.

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  3. I am so annoyed with the NYPD right now, and it is not going to make Christmas very fun if my BIL and I get into it. What the fuck does DiBlasio have to do with anything? Blame the protester rhetoric if you like; lord knows I blame Bill O’Reilly and all the Repubs for the murders of doctors who perform abortions. But DiBlasio just happens to be the schmo in office right now and he really has nothing to do with it. Assholes like Patrick “Chris Traeger” Lynch (“the mayor LIT-erally has blood dripping from his hands”) are the same people who rioted against Dinkins in 92. Fuck them. And fuck Giuliani. http://crooksandliars.com/2014/12/rudy-guiliani-knows-exactly-how-spark

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    1. Wikipedia suggests that there have been about 4 abortion doctors murdered in the US over the course of the past 21 years. At least according to Wikipedia’s list (which they believe may be incomplete), the last one listed was Tiller in 2009.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-abortion_violence

      Interestingly, roughly the same number of abortion doctors have been murdered on Law and Order and spin offs as in the past 20 odd years in the US.

      http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/archive/index.php/t-569255.html

      Meanwhile, the FBI says that just in 2013 alone, 27 law enforcement officers died as a result of felonious acts committed against them while they were performing their duties. That was actually a good year. It was 49 in 2012, 48 in 2009 and 57 in 2004.

      http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2013-statistics-on-law-enforcement-officers-killed-and-assaulted

      Now, granted, there are way more law enforcement officers than abortion doctors, but if Bill O’Reilly and the Republicans are whipping up the murders of abortion doctors, they’re doing a really lousy job of it.

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  4. The NYC shooter first killed his girlfriend. That is getting lost in the hoopla of accusing the anti-police brutality protesters as responsible for the shootings of the cops. An interesting article about how violent men start hurting women first just went up on Slate. http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/12/domestic_violence_before_mass_killings_ismaaiyl_brinsley_man_haron_monis.html

    Thurgood Marshall wrote against police using chokeholds–that’s how old the complaint it.

    On a cheery front, I bought the book you recommended Pigeon Don’t Drive the Bus for the 5 yo nephew and had to read it myself several times. Thanks.

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    1. If you liked Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, you might also like Diary of a Worm. I just bought a version of that for my beginner-reader nephew for Christmas. (I’ve decided enough crappy toys–I’m going to be the aunt who gives books.)

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  6. Possible Sequels, Inspired by This Blog: Don’t Let the Pigeon Be An Adjunct; Don’t Let the Pigeon Eat At Olive Garden; Don’t Let The Pigeon Take Loans Out for College.

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