Tulsa, Charlotte, BLM, Police Shootings and Whatnot

I have precious little to contribute to the whole discussion, frankly, as so much has been said. I found this interesting article about the difference between Tulsa and Charlotte's reactions to the shootings in their cities, and it echoes one of the points I learned here in Cincinnati as a result of our difficulties in the past and the change in how the CPD now deals with controversial policing events: get the information out ASAP. That's what Tulsa did: released the video to the family and the public and made quick (but not hasty) determinations about the event and the charges against one of their own officers. Delay feeds unrest. Charlotte finally released the footage they had. It's not good.

70% of the arrests made in Charlotte's protests and riots (there was both and they weren't necessarily related) were of out of state people. That's right, the professional protesters are real and they were there. No conspiracy theories necessary. Rush\ thinks that fact that Oklahoma isn't going to vote for Hilary anyway, so why send them there? North Carolina, however,is in play, and mobilizing the black vote for Hilary is important. That's his spin, can't see any fault in it, whether or not I agree.

Now, my input is that it is possible to have two views of these events. Clearly, there is no reason for the cops to have approached these men and cars the way they did. I believe it was because of their skin color. I also believe that there was no indication that any of the officers were in mortal (or really any kind of) danger. That's disturbing, methinks. the job of the police is tough, but these filmed incidents aren't helping.

That being said, it is also, I think, reasonable and fair to ask why the men, innocent or not, didn't simply comply with the officers? That's a factor, folks. Clearly the guy in Tulsa didn't follow the officer's instructions, even without audio, you don't back away from the cop towards your vehicle. Ever. He shouldn't have been in the situation, but that made a stupid situation worse, it took a "hey, I'm stalled here asking for help, why is your weapon out, Ma'am," to a fatal encounter. Should she have been scared? I can see no reason for it. She WAS, though, justified or not. I'm sure he could have talked her down and de-escalated the situation by just standing still and complying with her.

Again,let me re-iterate: I am not blaming him or excusing her. More information may come to light. But, if I'm confronted with a scared cop that has her gun out (wtf, amiright?), I'm frozen, compliant, and talking calmly "I'm just having car trouble, I'm not sure why you are handling me this way. I'll remain frozen till your backup gets here so we can all go home tonight safely. Just wait for your backup and I'll stand right here." I am not walking back to my car under any circumstances, even if I'm promising to get my license and registration, or shut the car off (was his running, even?). Nope.

The Charlotte, well that looks really bad. No call was made reporting the guy as far as I know, and to have several officers show up like that, it's strange. He was definitely not being threatening when he was shot, as far as you can see on the video. Three shots? Really? Toxicology will reveal more, but he seemed compliant to me. Even if he had a gun in his ankle holster, that's legal. The cops say it was in his hand, of course, but the video isn't conclusive either way (to his credit, that's what the family's attorney said as well). Yikes.

Here's the rub, though. There's some social media about a white kid that got sold some pot by an undercover, then they tried to arrest him and he kept driving...and got shot to death. No media coverage at all.

There's also this article about 2016 shootings indicating that in raw numbers far more whites get killed by police. Interesting. Also, of hundreds have been shot, why do just a few cause riots and get all the national attention. That, I believe, is very political, which takes us back to Rush's claims. Something to think about....

Once A Weiner, Always A Weiner.

Let's start with me showing some restraint...a nephew of a sweet friend of mine from years ago was part of a team that won a fricking Sundance award for their documentary on serial reprobate Anthony Weiner, and I'm not going to ask on Facebook how they are all dealing with this latest news that the rest of us were right all along and HE IS A SCUMBAG!!!!

He's at it again. I am sick of the apologists. He has been able to continue being a predator because of the Democrat party and his connections to Hilary Clinton. Sick. Read the story, see how this girl actually admired him. Pathetic. Her father allowed this because he didn't want to mess with her already fragile mental state? Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. People putting politicians on pedestals allows this mentality, this idol worship, this cult of personality. It sickens me.

I wrote what I think was an exceptional short post about this asshole a few years ago.... I linked it last time his name came up, because he's a SERIAL SCUMBAG.

What I find most disturbing is that the parents of the High School girls that are a part of all of this willingly parroted the Weiner Talking Points, same as given to the former porn star.

Politics over morals and family, I guess. Disgusting. Yet, it happens every time. Chandra Levy's family loved Gary Condit who, while not a murderer, was involved inappropriately with their daughter. Monica Lewinski's parents just looooved Bill Clinton (well, at first). Yuck.

Wonder what those parents are saying today?

Let's see who defends him this time.

I May Switch Gears On Here For A While

I just got diagnosed with some polyps on my vocal folds (lesions, if you will) that will require surgery. I'm a little freaked out, although not majorly as I've gotten several reassurances about the procedure and the surgeon, but still a little freaked out.

Have I mentioned that I'm a singer?

Of course I have. The Cincinnati Christmas Carolers. Hyde Park Community United Methodist Church Cathedral Choir.

Have I mentioned that my current career as a trainer requires me to talk quite a bit? So, this isn't just, "oh, I can't do that thing I like to do," it's also "how am I going to earn a living?" Regular readers (ha!) should know that after my first 6 glorious months as an Epic consultant trainer, I have been unemployed for 2 and a half months.... So, the inabililty to do that job puts me in quite a situation, eh?

(This is the part where I cuss excessively)

So, let's recap the summer, shall we?

All of the extra cash I make working for the big consulting money gets used paying off bills. Then, I get rolled off the project, so instead of having 6 months to bank the rest, I have no job. No one else seems to be interested in my Epic skill set. I do some work for a friend, and like a fool, I stash the cash in my car. I never do that, but I didn't take it inside my house. My car got robbed in my driveway. Twenty years living here, no crime, and the night I have cash in my car, it gets robbed. $200ish.

Now, my source of income is in jeopardy. Life is good.