It’s the day after the Chauvin verdict. Even as we heard that Derek Chauvin is guilty, guilty, guilty, we also were hearing about a black teenage girl in Columbus, Ohio, who had been just killed by police. Details of this new shooting are sketchy. It appears 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant was brandishing a knife, and so she had to be shot? Somehow I think there must be other ways to deal with such situations. That’s what we keep saying after every wasted life.
As many people have pointed out, one verdict hardly erases all the injustice that has gone before and doesn’t mean anything will change. It does represent an opportunity for change, however. I think a lot of white people especially who watched this trial (except on Fox News) may have gained some understanding of what’s wrong with U.S. policing.
Chauvin had a history of doing to other detained people what he did to George Floyd — forcing them to lie face down, and then putting a knee on their necks. He had done this six times before, that we know of. People had complained. The Minneapolis police did nothing. Now the U.S. Justice Department has announced an investigation of “the practices and culture of the Minneapolis Police Department,” it says here. Let’s hope some reforms come from that. But that’s just one municipal police department.
This moment has also laid bare the unvarnished racism harbored by a lot of influential people. I mean, Tucker Carlson? He’s gone from supporting racist “replacement” theory to calling the Chauvin verdict “an attack on civilization.” Now he’s saying the only reason the jury convicted Chauvin is that … they feared for their lives? Or that they thought Black Lives Matter would burn down Minneapolis? It’s not clear. Erik Wemple:
Leave it to Fox News host Tucker Carlson to skip past the evidence in search of some way place an asterisk on this moment of racial justice. “The jury in the Derek Chauvin trial came to a unanimous and unequivocal verdict this afternoon: Please don’t hurt us,” said the host on Tuesday evening.
What did that mean? As best we can surmise, Carlson was suggesting that a motivation behind the verdict was to head off the the protests that would likely have erupted after an acquittal. “The jury spoke for many in this country,” continued Carlson. “Everyone understood perfectly well the consequences of an acquittal in this case. After nearly a year of burning and looting and murder by [the Black Lives Matter movement], that was never in doubt.” (In fact, the overwhelming majority of racial justice protests have been peaceful.)
Tucker interviewed Former NYC Deputy Sherriff Ed Gavin, who had some constructive and reasonable suggestions for reform. Tucker wasn’t having it.
Wemple again:
When Gavin started to suggest reforms, Carlson cut him off: “How about enforce the law? Do we need to do that? So hold on, wait a second. So, wait, slow down. Do we enforce the law? Like let’s say, people are going through the windows in Macy’s and the cops are just standing there, do they resign?” As Carlson was concluding the discussion, Gavin tried to get in one more point. “Nope, done,” scolded Carlson.
So that’a another revelation. Not that I’d ever confused Tucker for a lover of civil liberties, but this is just bare-assed racism/authoritarianism. Sieg heil, Tucker.
At this moment, Americans have to decide whether they’re with Black Lives Matter or with Tucker Carlson. No fence sitting allowed. Make up your mind. Justice or injustice? That’s the choice.
While T**** Carlson prepares the ritual of martydom for Chauvaz, the backlash from the racist far right and their odious brethren will be swift, furious and unrelenting. A state with an administration separated at birth from the former racist in chief( I'm looking at you, Florida) was so convinced that the verdict would be not guilty that a law was rapidly passed giving police and drivers of cars(??) special dispensations to respond to "violent demonstrations" with extreme violence. Without a specific definition of "riot" one can be assured that the functional definition of riot will be "three dark-skinned people standing quietly on a streetcorner".
I will be waiting for the law to state it is illegal to record police activities at any time.
The battle for accountability and equality is just beginning, no, continuing, and cannot be considered because one police officer with Gestapo tendencies is in jail.
Oh, I can't spell the guys name and I am too lazy and indifferent to look it up.
How about Tasering the girl instead of shooting her?
We tax-payers pay for those too, right?
Did you police lie to us?
We bought… I don't know… Probably a million or more of the damn things. And why? Because you, YOU, the police, told us that if we bought you enough Tasers that you'd stop shooting people (mostly POC).
Now you have TWO things to apprehend suspects.
And yet, you always seem to go for the gun first. So much so, that 26 year police veteran, Kim Potter, while yelling "Taser!" to her suspect, 20 year-old Daunte Wright, instead, reached for her gun, shot it, and killed the young man in his car. The Taser was yellow and on her non-dominant left hip; her gun was on her dominant right hip.
Yeah, I can see you how someone might do that. NOT!!!!! So wazzupwidat?!?
I don't get it.
Yeah, it's a tough job. But it's not in the top 10 most dangerous jobs in America. Being a garbage collector, or a crossing-guard, or a landscaper is far, far more dangerous. #22. That's where policing is. Now, I'm not disparaging the police. Facts 's facts! It's a dangerous job. Just not as dangerous as being a garbage-collector, a crossing-guard, or a landscaper.
Justice, btw.
Definitely, definitely justice.
To borrow a term from Doug…. Tucker Carlson is a complete "Richard head". Words just can't describe how effed up he is.
Tucker is a scary piece of work. He's got the "I'm confused" (and you should be too) furrowed brow schtick down pat.
Remember: You Literally Can’t Believe The Facts Tucker Carlson Tells You. So Say Fox’s Lawyers. In other words, a fabulist. Even his employer had to admit it.
As for TV Dinner boy ( he's an heir of the Swanson Empire ), MotherTucker KKKarlson?
He's a nasty, bigoted, oleaginous turd in human form.
I think Ol' Rupe Mur(der)och wants to start another civil war.
That SOB is, what, 90? Long enough is too much already.
What really irks me about Tucker Carlson is not that he's stupid by nature, who is reacting to his ignorance and prejudices. It's that he's stupid by design and has to intellectually work to project the ignorance and prejudices. I think an apt description of Carlson would be to say he's a moral and intellectual whore /geek.
One last thing about MotherTucker and Fox "news."
We have learned nothing.
RTLM Radio Rwanda was one of the biggest causes if the massacre, the slaughter, by the majority Hutus of the minority Tutsis.
RTLM was closely allied with the government – like tTUMP and Fox?
RTLM talked a lot about how great the country would be if there were no Tutsis around. The talk took on eliminstionist notes – until there was a symphony of violence, rape, and death.
Fox treats liberals/progressives (someone tried to explain the difference to me one time, but I didn't get it) like we're Untouchables who deserve to be treated worse than dogs. And since tRUMP lost, there is growing talk of things that can be construed as eliminationist.
Now, with my big fat mouth, you KNOW how much I love the 1st Amendment. But, are there no limits? None?
New, this Fall: Fox's TV tRUMPwanda.
I'm reserving judgment on the girl shot for threatening OTHERS with a knife. I do expect cops to take some risk – not shoot any time they 'feel threatened.' But if there's a threat to unarmed civilians by an armed person, the rules change. I expect cops to protect the unarmed person from the armed person.
With that said, might a tazer have been an option? Lots of variables in that question. I wouldn't make a call without more information. That said, if there's no body cams, I have to ask why. Like most, I'm interested in the truth, not hanging cops as a matter of principle. But help me out – give me evidence. Or my paranoid self will kick in and suspect you are trying to NOT have evidence.
If Tucker Carlson almost got run over by a train, I'd consider that a major argument for high-speed rail.
Some people, by their names, tip you off as to what they're about:
Bernie Made-Off
Howard Weiner
Tucker Carlson is someone skilled at mind-f*ing.
The other day, while trying to get out in front of Erik Wemple of the Washington Post looking into his yearbook and finding that Carlson joined the "Dan White Society" as a way to celebrate Dan White as the murderer of Harvey Milk, Carlson referred to his show as a "news show." And his show is anything but. Carlson’s show is pure propaganda and plays to the lowest order of intellect, if you could call it that.
That this is what Fox insists on putting on the airways should be enough for decent people not to watch anything on Fox