How many riots does it take...

[MobBoss]

I'm as black as most Christians are Christian, I can comfortably say.

Rofl, you mean not at all.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Rofl, you mean not at all.

Indeed, that is exactly what I meant!

 

[warpus]

Well, I said what I did as a Christian. Are you black?

I'm as black as Tim, apparently.

Alternate response: Poland is in North Africa, isn't it? Check your privilege.

 

[Pangur Bán]

@answer to OP question, it's cheaper for 'mainstream' society to lock the descendants of their slaves up in urban ghettos and prisons, and brutalize them, than it is to give them a fair slice of America. And if they riot, well, does the zookeeper care when the gorilla trashes its own cage? Some work, but in the end its the gorilla that suffers.

 

[Borachio]

Well, I said what I did as a Christian.

I take it you really are a Christian. In which case, let me say, I'm very glad to meet you. You're the very first one I've ever met.

But hang on just a minute, didn't you say you were a paralegal in the military? I'm beginning to have my doubts already at this point.

 

[thecrazyscot]

I'm confident that he did know that. The question is though; how many self proclaimed Christians know that? And why the real Christians put up with them is another good question.

While it's impossible for us to know someone's relationship with God, scripture is pretty clear that there are many who claim to be Christian who God will reject.

Yeah, given the Sodomy level of poverty that is allowed to go on in Baltimore, I have come to the conclusion there are very few real Christians around anymore.

Christians seem to be a largely hypothetical bunch more easily able to exist on the internet than in practice.

Yes. To be honest, though, I think genuine, devout Christians have always historically been a fraction of those who claimed to be Christian. I don't think there's anything new about that.

 

[MobBoss]

I take it you really are a Christian. In which case, let me say, I'm very glad to meet you. You're the very first one I've ever met.

But hang on just a minute, didn't you say you were a paralegal in the military? I'm beginning to have my doubts already at this point.

Was a paralegal in the military. Retired a couple of years ago after 26 years of service.

Not sure how that would be a problem being a Christian, but ok. And I am far from perfect, but I do try every single day to walk the best walk I can.

 

[Commodore]

Yes. To be honest, though, I think genuine, devout Christians have always historically been a fraction of those who claimed to be Christian. I don't think there's anything new about that.

Isn't that the case with just about any religion though? Most "followers" of any given faith are usually just pretenders for a variety of reasons (social pressure, fear of persecution, political/financial gain, etc.) but deep down don't give a rat's butthole about what their religion is truly about.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Isn't that the case with just about any religion though? Most "followers" of any given faith are usually just pretenders for a variety of reasons (social pressure, fear of persecution, political/financial gain, etc.) but deep down don't give a rat's butthole about what their religion is truly about.

I disagree. Most followers genuinely think that they have "interpreted the word" and are right on track. This is a result of the pervasive human need to not take responsibility. Nothing says "it's not my fault" like following a religious path...as long as no one ever forces you to recognize that the religious path you are on is something you made up yourself, practically out of whole cloth.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Isn't that the case with just about any religion though? Most "followers" of any given faith are usually just pretenders for a variety of reasons (social pressure, fear of persecution, political/financial gain, etc.) but deep down don't give a rat's butthole about what their religion is truly about.

I agree, I think for a lot of Americans religion is part of our cultural or ethnic identity. Where I grew up there were a lot of Jews, but almost none were practicing. They'd eat latkes & brisket at channukah, smile when a Jewish artist or athlete did something notable, go to temple for big social events like weddings, that sort of thing. But they were basically agnostic. I imagine there are Asian-Americans who are "culturally Buddhist" or "culturally Hindu" in much the same way.

 

[ParkCungHee]

...to screw in a light bulb?

Or, from a more practical perspective, to get cops to stop killing citizens on a regular basis?

I suspect Baltimore will be even harder to quell than StLouis has been, though I suspect the authorities will handle it without the glaring stupidity so it may not.

The problem is you think the Riots are a sign the system isn't working.

The riots are already accounted for. They have been for years.

 

[Pangur Bán]

The problem is you think the Riots are a sign the system isn't working.

Not so sure about this. Isn't the gorilla expected to trash its cage now and then? That's surely already factored in.

 

[ParkCungHee]

Exactly. Riots like this have been going on since I could remember the news. They're like hurricanes. A big one comes in every few seasons and then life proceeds exactly the same.

 

[onejayhawk]

Waco just saw the other side of all this. Following an extremely violent gang related outburst, the police dropped the hammer--martial law, curfews, full tactical gear. By morning everything was back to normal. In the wake of the Branch Davidian situation 20 years ago, Waco PD has had a more than the usual level of attention. They behaved admirably in this case.

Walmart closed. That never happens.

J

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Exactly. Riots like this have been going on since I could remember the news. They're like hurricanes. A big one comes in every few seasons and then life proceeds exactly the same.

Except it doesn't. Anyone who can look at the LAPD and say the riots didn't make things better isn't really looking.

I think this is a matter of how people perceive time. I would love to see racism eliminated overnight, but that doesn't mean that anything short of overnight change is meaningless. Over the course of two generations many things have improved a lot. Over the next four or five I'd guess they will improve a lot more...and the riots along the way will be a big part of that...as they have been so far.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Waco just saw the other side of all this. Following an extremely violent gang related outburst, the police dropped the hammer--martial law, curfews, full tactical gear. By morning everything was back to normal. In the wake of the Branch Davidian situation 20 years ago, Waco PD has had a more than the usual level of attention. They behaved admirably in this case.

Walmart closed. That never happens.

J

That isn't really "the other side." The other side is when a cop shoots a citizen and the cops actually investigate it as if it might be a crime without having to have a riot hanging over their heads or federal intervention. Let me know when that happens.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Play it again, Sam...

Washington state police officer shoots two men accused of stealing beer
Thomson Reuters - VICTORIA CAVALIERE - May 22nd 2015 5:15AM

A police officer in the Washington state capital of Olympia shot and wounded two unarmed black men suspected of trying to steal beer from a supermarket on Thursday, law enforcement said, prompting protests in the city.

The two brothers, aged 21 and 24, were hospitalized, one in critical condition with multiple gunshot wounds, Olympia Police Chief Ronnie Roberts told a news conference.

Officer Ryan Donald, who had been with the Olympia Police Department for three years, told authorities the men had no weapons but attacked him with a skateboard, and that he had issued a verbal warning before opening fire.

The incident follows a series of fatal police confrontations across the United States that have put law enforcement agencies under scrutiny over the use of force, particularly against minorities.

After reports of the shooting, several protests took place in Olympia, a city of about 48,000 people where only 2 percent of the population is black, according to U.S. Census data.

Around 400 took to the streets on Thursday evening, meeting at a park before marching to City Hall, according to local newspaper The Olympian. Photos of the demonstration published by the paper showed a racially mixed group, with many whites taking part.

The police chief said Donald, who is white, and other officers responded to an assault call at a supermarket around 1 a.m. An employee reported that two men who were trying to steal beer had thrown the items at him and then ran away.

One man was shot in a confrontation with Donald, Roberts said, and the two suspects then ran into the woods. When they re-emerged, multiple shots were fired, Roberts said.

"There was some sort of confrontation there, and the officer felt threatened and discharged his firearm," Roberts said.

The men shot were identified as brothers Andre Thompson and Bryson Chaplin. Thompson, the older brother, was stable while Chaplin was critical but expected to survive, Chief Brad Watkins of the Thurston County Sheriff's Office said.

Donald was placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. The Olympia police will not be involved in the probe, Watkins said.

Olympia police are not equipped with body-worn cameras and there was no dashboard camera video of the incident, he said.

The Thurston County prosecuting attorney will review the investigation to decide if the use of force was reasonable.

 

[Senethro]

Unarmed black men get shot or placed in restraints that put them at risk of death. White thugs in a shootout get to text their moms that they won't be home for dinner that night. Not guys I'd turn my back on.

 

[Leonel]

At least that beer is safe and sound.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Cleveland has agreed to reforms proposed by the Justice Dept, which include things like not pistol-whipping people and rendering first aid to people who may die without it. Residents of Cleveland rejoice. Next, you'll get running water and public libraries.

Also in Cleveland, prosecutors mishandled the case against Officer Brelo so badly, the judge had almost no choice but to acquit. Brelo was one of the officers who murdered two people in 2012, prompting the Justice Department to put its boot down on the whole nest of snakes.

Again in Cleveland, Ricky Jackson filed a civil suit against the City for his 39-year false imprisonment for a murder he didn't commit. Jackson and two others were convicted after a 12-year-old witness was coerced by police detectives into giving false testimony.


Meanwhile, in Florida, a woman called for help to get her suicidal boyfriend committed to a hospital (he had a history of mental illness and had been committed by the family before). Police arrived and promptly killed him.


Three steps forward, two steps back? I dunno...