4 Officers Shot Dead By Snipers, 7 Wounded in Dallas Protest Against Police Violence

[account_inactive]

Hope the attackers get a bullet between their eyes.

In Bush Country? They will fry.

Great!

[paulpablo]

I don't know your position.

That's unfortunate and disappointing, because my position is what  Black Lives Matter is actually about.

I was responding to the cartoon and saying that black lives matter divides what could be an organised group protesting against police brutality into an organization that gives preferential treatment to victims based on racial characteristics rather than dealing with individual circumstances.

There is an obvious difference between "not being discriminated against" (which is what BLM is about) and receiving "preferential treatment" (which is not what BLM is about). Again, in order to argue against the BLM position, you're going to acknowledge the beliefs that are actually held by people who support BLM, and then if you wish to dispute the validity of the movement, provide evidence that black people aren't being discriminated against. Nobody is asking for victims to receive preferential treatment based on racial characteristics.

Black lives matter as an organization gives preferential treatment based on racial characteristics, that's all in the title.  I'm not talking about what they're asking for, it's what they're giving.                                         I wasn't talking about the validity of their position or if black people are discriminated against.  I'm arguing about the effectiveness of a group which focuses on and supports, one group of victims giving preferential treatment to them based on racial characteristics rather than focusing on the issues themselves which have an effect on people of every race.

[Thumpalumpacus]

A while ago on a forum about a policeman shooting a white person you said something along the lines of "What the po-lice shot a white person, was there a mistake?"  Which I'm pretty sure is a sarcastic comment about black people are usually the victims of police shootings rather than white people.  That's ok when you make comments about police officers shooting black people without thinking about the reasons behind the shootings and stating it in a manner which I think impugns the entire group of police officers. 

I spent the other day worrying about my cousin, a police officer in the Dallas suburb of Carrollton. I didn't know if she had been on-scene or what. She was safe; she was off-duty.

She's a good cop -- but there are far too many who aren't. When one wields the power of life and death, bring racial attitudes or power trips is unacceptable.

That I use sarcasm to make that point is simply because I like good sarcasm. The idea you seem to have, however, that I haven't though about the reasons behind the shootings is simply not true.

[A Theist]

And how many of those whites are really "hispanics?"

What! HA HA HA HA HA!!!!! What a shit wit! That was funny. You're really reaching with that one.  The stats are the stats. You can't change them around to your satisfaction just so you can malign and demonize white people. It must be pure hell for you to wake up every morning to look in the bathroom mirror and to see that white face staring back at you.

[Rhondazvous]

This means that roughly 232 offenders were black, and that roughly .000005% of that demographic were responsible for 43% of those police fatalities.

I know what you're trying to say -- blacks are disproportionately represented in these statistics -- but stating it in such a manner impugns the entire group for the actions of a miniscule few. And that's not even addressing the causes for such discrepancy, which is probably better ascribed to the sociology of being black: less access to good schools, jobs, and housing leading to more criminal behavior.

A while ago on a forum about a policeman shooting a white person you said something along the lines of "What the po-lice shot a white person, was there a mistake?"  Which I'm pretty sure is a sarcastic comment about black people are usually the victims of police shootings rather than white people.  That's ok when you make comments about police officers shooting black people without thinking about the reasons behind the shootings and stating it in a manner which I think impugns the entire group of police officers.  But when I show statistics of black people shooting police officers, not sarcastic comments but actual statistics, then we all need to think more carefully about it, we need to understand why black people do it and have an understanding that it isn't all black people just a miniscule few.                            I'm not saying I disagree, I do agree, but let's think about the reasons on both sides and not just fall for the usual narratives. I'm showing these statistics not to impugn a whole group but to show a contrast and some resistance to the usual race baiting, the sarcastic comments, the meaningless articles about some white people who weren't killed by the police.

Just referring to them as offenders implies that black people who are shot must have done something. But we know that this is not true.

[Seraphina]

I was just thinking the same thing today - I don't blame President Obama for any of this; I'm thinking more like a leader to lead peaceful marches and galvanize people to come together. We need revolutionary ways of thinking to get rid of our race problems in the US. Where's Martin Luther King when you need him?

The word "blame" is wrong to assign to Obama regarding the violence, but I am completely comfortable using that word when it comes to motivating congress to do the right thing. He's had 8 years and things have gotten worse with respect to race relations and police violence. Maybe he just lacks the leadership juice to get everyone united behind a common goal.

My vision for an effective president is one who transcends politics and delivers a clear message to everyone to rally behind. Those politicians who defy this and instead ally themselves with their lobbyists rather than their constituents will find themselves out of a job the next election cycle.

So the president sets the foundation for this to occur.

Bold is mine.

I wasn't alive in the 60s but I've seen the videos of blacks being hosed by the authorities with water cannons and set upon by police dogs merely for peacefully protesting. And much of that was when President Lyndon Johnson was in office -- he signed the Civil Rights Act and initiated the War on Poverty. Yet race relations still weren't that great.
What about Governor George Wallace who physically stood in a doorway for hours to block 2 black students from attending the University of Alabama? That was 53 years ago. And all the lynchings back in the bad old days? Race relations today are just as bad as they ever were, the only difference now is everybody has a smartphone to record incidents.

Will race relations ever improve? I'm not sure but probably not. We all have, at one point or another, looked down our noses at someone who looks different than us and then acted on this belief.

But The Man - any authority or government figures including the police - must always be held accountable and questioned, including in matters of police brutality.

[paulpablo]

A while ago on a forum about a policeman shooting a white person you said something along the lines of "What the po-lice shot a white person, was there a mistake?"  Which I'm pretty sure is a sarcastic comment about black people are usually the victims of police shootings rather than white people.  That's ok when you make comments about police officers shooting black people without thinking about the reasons behind the shootings and stating it in a manner which I think impugns the entire group of police officers.  But when I show statistics of black people shooting police officers, not sarcastic comments but actual statistics, then we all need to think more carefully about it, we need to understand why black people do it and have an understanding that it isn't all black people just a miniscule few.                            I'm not saying I disagree, I do agree, but let's think about the reasons on both sides and not just fall for the usual narratives. I'm showing these statistics not to impugn a whole group but to show a contrast and some resistance to the usual race baiting, the sarcastic comments, the meaningless articles about some white people who weren't killed by the police.

Just referring to them as offenders implies that black people who are shot must have done something. But we know that this is not true.

The only time the word "offenders" was used in either of those posts was to describe blacks people who feloniously shot and killed police officers, unless I'm missing something and if I am I apologise.

[A Theist]

Just coming across the news. Seems the Dallas Police HQ is on lockdown after receiving an anonymous threat. SWAT Team outside. Unconfirmed reports state that the police have a suspicious person cornered in the parking garage. Not sure yet if the threat is real or a prank.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Let's hope no more bloodshed results.

[A Theist]

Evidently, something's going on. Officers are searching the parking garage for a suspicious person. SWAT officers used a device that set off a shotgun blast to breach a locked door. Still not sure if the threat is actually real or a prank. The police are taking the threat seriously given the murders of five of its officers.