Ferguson unrest

[bush_cheney2004]

There have been far more sympathetic victims of fatal police shootings than Mr. Brown, as he clearly threatened and/or attacked a police officer.

These protesters picked a bad case to bleed their hearts over and destroy/loot property.

[Hal 9000]

The witness stories conflict with Dorian Johnson..and the girl who said he was shot in the back, sure. The blood stains are conclusive - there was blood that proved that Michael Brown cam back toward Wilson as well as blood on Wilson, his gun and in his car. The coroners were consistent in every detail that mattered, meaning all shots were to the front of Brown. Ok, so you don't think Wilsons bruises were bad enough? The bruises, no matter what degree, show that Wilson was attacked.

[On Guard for Thee]

I've already pointed out I see that the dna seems to show that they had contact. Beyond that the evidence seems to fall short of proving that deadly force was warranted. The GL accepted the evidence where the bar is set much lower than at a trial. You get the same idea from the quorum required to come to a conclusion in each setting.

[Hal 9000]

If a 300lb guy was running toward you after he's already made one attempt for you gun, you have to know that it's either him or you at that point, would you agree to that?

[scribblet]

Sorry, but making Officer Wilson pay the price for slavery or for the mistreatment of blacks in the 50's/60's is just plain wrong.

Agreed. This particular incident had nothing to do with racism as much as some would have us believe and as we are seeing, the lies about why Brown was shot keep repeating.

Meanwhile The New York Times should be ashamed of themselves, they published Officer Darren Wilson’s home address; how badly does media want mayhem and 24 hour live coverage? It's allready been tweeted and re-tweeted, protesters have taken note. The Times should now have to pay for moving him and security. The fact that he isn't there right now or that it could be googled doesn't excuse such irresponsible journalism.

Why many ‘eyewitnesses’ in the Darren Wilson investigation were wrong; “The most common element in all wrongful convictions later overturned by DNA evidence has been eyewitness misidentification”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/25/why-many-eyewitnesses-in-the-darren-wilson-investigation-were-wrong/

[scribblet]

The Michael Brown saga had me wondering when/why walking down the middle of the street became so popular. I noticed this behaviour several years ago and just wrote it off as some kind of insurance scam or passive protest that takes advantage of new laws to protect pedestrian right-of-way, but apparently it is quite popular in many U.S. cities. Here is what can happen:

.............

Guess he won't be dancing in the street any more.. yikes

[Black Dog]

Blood stains 25+ feet behind where Brown dropped

That doesn't mean he was "charging." The eyewitness accounts varied on that score and that's entirely what the case hinges upon. I find the notion that a guy who had been fleeing, having already been shot, would suddenly turn charge into a hail of bullets to not be credible. The whole scenario plays out like a KKK fantasy of a mindless rampaging superhuman Negro.

[Black Dog]

Agreed. This particular incident had nothing to do with racism as much as some would have us believe and as we are seeing, the lies about why Brown was shot keep repeating.

Of course race is a factor. To pretend otherwise is to willful ignorance.

Why many ‘eyewitnesses’ in the Darren Wilson investigation were wrong; “The most common element in all wrongful convictions later overturned by DNA evidence has been eyewitness misidentification”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/25/why-many-eyewitnesses-in-the-darren-wilson-investigation-were-wrong/

Presumably all the same things that skew eyewitness accounts would apply to Wilson's own recollection of events. But where other witness have their credibility questioned, Wilson's account is treated as gospel despite him having a vested interest in the case.

[scribblet]

Of course race is a factor. To pretend otherwise is to willful ignorance.

Presumably all the same things that skew eyewitness accounts would apply to Wilson's own recollection of events. But where other witness have their credibility questioned, Wilson's account is treated as gospel despite him having a vested interest in the case.

It's 'willful ignorance' to infer that the cop shot Brown out of racial motivation or prejudice, there is no evidence to back that up. Nor can we assume that the jury was prejudiced, a GJ which was representative of the county as legally required. While there maybe other incidents that were racially motivated around the country, there is no proof that this one was. I suppose by your lites et al, anytime a non white is killed in some way it's racism !

Meanwhile, back in Toronto organizers are being racist by telling non blacks to stay in the back etc.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ferguson-aftermath-protests-in-toronto-ottawa-spark-debate-1.2850162

A suggestion that white and non-black protesters limit their visibility and "stand behind black folks" at protests Tuesday in Ottawa and Toronto against the fatal shooting of a black teen in Ferguson, Mo., has sparked a heated debate on social media.

Edited November 26, 2014 by scribblet

[Black Dog]

It's 'willful ignorance' to infer that the cop shot Brown out of racial motivation or prejudice, there is no evidence to back that up.

Well, I didn't infer that, nor did I imply it.

Nor can we assume that the jury was prejudiced, a GJ which was representative of the county as legally required. While there maybe other incidents that were racially motivated around the country, there is no proof that this one was. I suppose by your lites et al, anytime a non white is killed in some way it's racism !

I didn't say "racially motivated" I said "race was a factor." There's a difference.

Meanwhile, back in Toronto organizers are being racist by telling non blacks to stay in the back etc.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ferguson-aftermath-protests-in-toronto-ottawa-spark-debate-1.2850162

A suggestion that white and non-black protesters limit their visibility and "stand behind black folks" at protests Tuesday in Ottawa and Toronto against the fatal shooting of a black teen in Ferguson, Mo., has sparked a heated debate on social media.

That's not racism.

[scribblet]

...............................

That's not racism.

Whatever floats your boat.

[Black Dog]

Whatever floats your boat.

A++ argument, would read again.

Keep the Hot Takes coming.

Edited November 26, 2014 by Black Dog

[GostHacked]

That doesn't mean he was "charging." The eyewitness accounts varied on that score and that's entirely what the case hinges upon. I find the notion that a guy who had been fleeing, having already been shot, would suddenly turn charge into a hail of bullets to not be credible. The whole scenario plays out like a KKK fantasy of a mindless rampaging superhuman Negro.

Was there ever a toxicology done on Brown? People on certain illicit drugs can have 'super human' powers. The drugs may hide the pain and make you more raged, who knows.

[Black Dog]

Was there ever a toxicology done on Brown? People on certain illicit drugs can have 'super human' powers. The drugs may hide the pain and make you more raged, who knows.

He had weed in his system and we all know how people on pot get.

[Bryan]

He had weed in his system and we all know how people on pot get.

Hungry?

[Shady]

can be a factor with some. But not all. In this case, I don't see race as being an issue. What mattered more was Brown's deplorable actions. You don't commit robbery, you don't disobey police, you don't assult an officer in his vehicle, you don't attempt to retrieve his gun, and you don't run at him after all of that. It's pretty basic stuff, all logical. But for some people, it's much easier to process everything via race instead. Less critical thinking to do.

[cybercoma]

The witness stories conflict, the blood stains aren't conclusive, the coroners reports don't match. The DNA I agree indicates there was in all likelihood a confrontation that got physical, but to what degree? Have you seen the pictures of Wilson's so called "bruises"? In any case, had this gone to a trial there would have been a burden of proof rather than a burden of acceptance on whatever evidence exists.

This is exactly the point. With all of the conflicting evidence, this should have gone to trial. A grand jury's job isn't to determine guilt. It's to determine whether the case should go to trial. The grand jury got it wrong because the prosecution led them to believe that they had to dismiss this if there was any reasonable doubt the officer did not break the law. That's not what a grand jury does. That's what the courts do.

[cybercoma]

The whole scenario plays out like a KKK fantasy of a mindless rampaging superhuman Negro.

It's like something out of a movie, right? Shot and hobbling, he still came running full speed ahead into a volley of bullets with the look of menacing anger on his face. He was like an animal intent on killing his prey. It stretches the limits of credibility.

[Shady]

He had weed in his system and we all know how people on pot get.

Keep pretending that you know all of the evidence.

[cybercoma]

It's 'willful ignorance' to infer that the cop shot Brown out of racial motivation or prejudice

No one said that. He shot Brown out of fear. He was more afraid of Brown than he would have been of a white person in the same situation because there is a culture of fear built around young black men. It's not because the officer was overtly racist and wanted to kill a "n***er." Nobody is arguing that. Well, nobody that I've seen. Conservatives seem to be completely unwilling to understand macrosocial structures. It's like if you pretend there isn't something bigger than individuals and their choices, it doesn't exist. That's not how society works. And it's not just you, thinking that people mean racism in the sense that the cop hated black people so he shot him, it's conservative ideology on both sides of the border. Harper doesn't think there needs to be an inquiry into the murdered and missing aboriginal women because it boils down to individual incidents. It's a total unwillingness to recognize that people live together in a society and there are social forces that influence people's choices and interactions (that's not to say determines them).

[cybercoma]

He had weed in his system and we all know how people on pot get.

Super human strength when it comes to opening bags of Doritos.

[cybercoma]

can be a factor with some. But not all. In this case, I don't see race as being an issue.

Of course you don't because you don't ever see race as being an issue.

[Shady]

Of course you don't because you don't ever see race as being an issue.

I didn't say that. I said in this particular case, I don't see it being an issue. Certainly not the issue that Brown's deplorable actions were.

[cybercoma]

I didn't say that. I said in this particular case, I don't see it being an issue. Certainly not the issue that Brown's deplorable actions were.

It's not an issue if your understanding of race being an issue is the same as scribblet's. Then no. But that just shows a misunderstanding on your part and probably a miscommunication on others' parts about what the race issue is here.

[Smallc]

I find that some of you try so hard to find racism in everything. From all accounts, this wasn't racism. Keep looking though.