Ferguson: too much or not enough?

[Minimalist]

I work and live near sanford Fl where treyvon Martin was shot and killed.

Zimmerman was not a cop. He was a nut with a gun.

Cops are supposed to held to a higher standard, Drippy....although that does seem to have gone by the wayside.

[Esquilax]

How do we know the police side of things? All the news has reported on was what the community's pov was.

Kinda hard to report on the police's side of the story when they close ranks and attempt to obstruct the media by hook or by crook, isn't it?

[Fidel_Castronaut]

I don't think the police can have any legitimacy when they've arrested reporters looking to get coverage of the protests/riots whatever and indeed fired on a news crew who were setting up their equipment from their van.

If those reporters then go and write a story about how violent and brutal the police have been in their dealings with reporters, they'd be 100% justified in doing so.

[Jaysyn]

Since Dritch quite obviously hasn't bothered to find out any info about what's going on in Ferguson past what Fox News has spoon fed him, I'm just going to leave this here:

1.) Washington Post & Huffington Post journalists have been arrested.


2.) Al-Jazeera news vans have been fired upon with tear-gas & rubber bullets.



Police dismantling Al-Jazeera news gear.


3.) There are eye-witness reports that the police are removing their badges to avoid being ID'd.

4.) A city alderman got caught up in a police sweep.

5.) A state senator was tear-gassed during a non-violent protest.

6.) Anonymous has dug up the police dispatch calls on the afternoon of Brown's murder. It's very telling that the cop who called in for police back-up never mentioned that he was assaulted or the shooting. Also, Brown laid on the ground for 4 hours before EMS was called in.

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I don't think the police can have any legitimacy when they've arrested reporters looking to get coverage of the protests/riots whatever and indeed fired on a news crew who were setting up their equipment from their van.

Exactly. A governor doesn't stand down an entire police department for handing out candy. We are going to see hundred of civil rights lawsuits resulting from this, most with video evidence. It will probably bankrupt St. Louis county.

Also, just as a reminder, even if the police account is 100% true (& it's not) it's still a fairly cut & dry case of 2nd degree murder.

[Fidel_Castronaut]

Exactly. A governor doesn't stand down an entire police department for handing out candy. We are going to see hundred of civil rights lawsuits resulting from this, most with video evidence. It will probably bankrupt St. Louis county.

And the people that will lose out will of course be ordinary people, most likely the people protesting against the police right now. They can look forward to high bills, lower living standards and a local government stretched to the limit and burdened with the (presumably vast) costs that bankruptcy brings.

All because one guy shot a an unarmed man.

[Jaysyn]

Exactly. A governor doesn't stand down an entire police department for handing out candy. We are going to see hundred of civil rights lawsuits resulting from this, most with video evidence. It will probably bankrupt St. Louis county.

And the people that will lose out will of course be ordinary people, most likely the people protesting against the police right now. They can look forward to high bills, lower living standards and a local government stretched to the limit and burdened with the (presumably vast) costs that bankruptcy brings.

All because one guy shot a an unarmed man.

I've always thought they should start with the pensions of all the involved police in situations like this. "I was just following orders" doesn't work with the military & it damn sure shouldn't work with civilian police.

[Napoléon]

Since Dritch quite obviously hasn't bothered to find out any info about what's going on in Ferguson past what Fox News has spoon fed him, I'm just going to leave this here:

Yes, because all of the following gives people an excuse to go looting...

I don't think, to be fair to Drich he's tried to justify anything the police have been doing in this incident. He's merely saying rioting and looting isn't the way to respond. He's absolutely right. How is rioting solving anything? How is stealing from local business owners getting back at the police/government?

[Jaysyn]

Since Dritch quite obviously hasn't bothered to find out any info about what's going on in Ferguson past what Fox News has spoon fed him, I'm just going to leave this here:

Yes, because all of the following gives people an excuse to go looting...

I don't think, to be fair to Drich he's tried to justify anything the police have been doing in this incident. He's merely saying rioting and looting isn't the way to respond. He's absolutely right. How is rioting solving anything? How is stealing from local business owners getting back at the police/government?

Everything I've read & watched has shown that the looting only occurred on Sunday and arrests were made. Why are the police gassing & shooting rubber bullets at peaceful protests lead by clergy members & a state senator 3 days later? There are multiple videos of it, it's quite clear what went down.

[Napoléon]

Everything I've read & watched has shown that the looting only occurred on Sunday and arrests were made. Why are the police gassing & shooting rubber bullets at peaceful protests lead by clergy members & a state senator 3 days later? There are multiple videos of it, it's quite clear what went down.

Fair enough I didn't know all the facts.

I just watched a pretty good video on it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckMIS93dA6w

Still, I don't think it's fair to have a go at Drich for simply asking the questions he did, he didn't justify what the police were doing.

[Jaysyn]

Still, I don't think it's fair to have a go at Drich for simply asking the questions he did, he didn't justify what the police were doing.

Maybe, but the questions he was asking were predicated by the false narrative that the looting is ongoing & the peaceful protesters & journalists that the police attacked were rioting. If that wasn't what he was leading into, then I will gladly apologize for the snark.