America sinks into chaos and brutality as police shoot at reporters

[The Lurker Below]

Here the burbs of St. Louis take on the look a third world dictatorship and the people of Palestine are giving the protestors advice on how to deal with rubber bullets and tear gas.

http://rt.com/usa/180168-ferguson-pr...swat-standoff/

[a completely inoffensive name]

I was anticipating the thread about this. If you can, change the title to reflect it better, I almost skipped past this thread thinking it was about the middle east.

If anyone is following the Ferguson events, you should be disgusted with the militarization of police.

Euro's in here can claim that our guns are no use against our trained military with B-2 bombers. But you can go to hell if you tell me if a bunch of high school bullies in body armour and atv's should be able to scare entire communities and drive away reporters with tear gas.

[Husar]

But you can go to hell if you tell me if a bunch of high school bullies in body armour and atv's should be able to scare entire communities and drive away reporters with tear gas.

Here in Europe, the police would deal with them...

edit: That's also an rt link, it was obviously all made up by Putin.

[Hooahguy]

That article coming from RT kinda tickles me, though that doesnt diminish what is going on.

If #Ferguson was happening in another country the US Military would currently be consdering arming the people against the oppressors.

Wut, this kind of stuff happens all the time, like in Brazil, Venezuela. Typical Anonymous nonsense. Firing tear gas at protesters does not make it like the Egyptian revolution.



Also whats with this title? How does this have anything to do with the Palestinians?

[a completely inoffensive name]

Forget the RT article. Just google and there is plenty on the police actions.

http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local...-gas/14042747/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politi...washingtonpost

[Husar]

Yeah, this is what happens when the leftist media try to be smart around those who serve to protect them and risk their lives every day out there on the streets for the safety of their babies.

Should be thankful that those men go out there every day into the thick of the riots and violence and even help the press stay out of harm's way. These are the men who protect your freedom at home, because that is where it's done and not in some 'stan! The very least you could do was finance them the same gear the guys in 'stan wanted but never got because they really need it against riot signs and suicidal cameras.

What were those terrorist riots about anyway?

[Greyblades]

Would be nice if the same people arming the police weren't also selling those arms to the public, makes the monopoly of force harder to maintain.

It would also be nice if the opening post or any of the others actually told us what the heck is going on beyond: "smeg going down in missouri".

Edit: http://www.theguardian.com/world/201...brown-shooting

Seriously guys, stop it with the half-assed Thread openers, if your not going to tell us what you are talking about you're not going to get meaningful responses.

[a completely inoffensive name]

Could a mod please change the title.

[Husar]

Could a mod please change the title.

I gave it a try but @Tiaexz or @Proletariat may have a better idea.

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

Euro's in here can claim that our guns are no use against our trained military with B-2 bombers. But you can go to hell if you tell me if a bunch of high school bullies in body armour and atv's should be able to scare entire communities and drive away reporters with tear gas.

Seems to me the problem is the over-militarisation of the Police, not the under-militarisation of the populace.

anyway, looks like heads are already rolling behind the scenes: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-28793865

Local Police have essentially been removed and replaced with State Police.

[HoreTore]

I'll bet a few trigger happy fatsoes with handguns would form an impenetrable bulwark against police actions like this.

The 2nd amendment is clearly needed.


Oh, wait. You already have guns, but this stuff still happens? Yeah, clearly guns are the answer. /sarcasm

[The Lurker Below]

I was anticipating the thread about this. If you can, change the title to reflect it better, I almost skipped past this thread thinking it was about the middle east.

If anyone is following the Ferguson events, you should be disgusted with the militarization of police.

Euro's in here can claim that our guns are no use against our trained military with B-2 bombers. But you can go to hell if you tell me if a bunch of high school bullies in body armour and atv's should be able to scare entire communities and drive away reporters with tear gas.

I also expected this thread to be started earlier, but could wait no longer after hearing the news on the radio Wed morning. Palestinians are using social media to instruct the demonstrators in Ferguson on how to deal with tear gas and rubber bullets. The media has taught us in the last decade(ish) that the Palestinians hate us. So I found amusement that they were offering us, or at least the parts of us they believe to be dissidents, sound and helpful advice. SO THATS THE THREAD I STARTED!

I wanted to talk about this ironic turn of events re: Palestinians and you hijacked my thread with serious business.

Is it possible to delete a thread?

[Hooahguy]

Well you really didnt do a good job about the whole "I started a thread to discuss a certain topic" as the title did not accurately reflect the topic at hand.

[Sp4]

What exactly is going on there? People started rioting over someone getting shot by a police officer and now the police is trying to.. I am not sure what are they trying but I guess it is police-y stuff.

[Husar]

What exactly is going on there? People started rioting over someone getting shot by a police officer and now the police is trying to.. I am not sure what are they trying but I guess it is police-y stuff.

I think the police are trying to shoot even more people to make up for only getting one the first time around. And then they tried to silent the press by pretending to help them, which meant firing smoke at them and arresting them at McDonald's restaurants far away from the filthy rioting serfs.

Or that was the case before dictator Obama pretended to care and made the governor of Messerschmissetts or what it's called recall the local army militia police units with their riot sniper machine guns gear and replaced them by state police who actually seem to be terrorist sympathisers and get along with the filthy plebs.

As for the thread title, it could be interpreted in two ways and the link to Palestinians was not obvious from the first post at all, I think we will have to live with a new title now.

[PanzerJaeger]

And so it turns out that the kid was indeed a thug, having just robbed a convenience store before being shot. That same store was later burned down by these animals, which is the real story here. What about the store owner who was robbed and assaulted by Brown and then had his store looted and burned to the ground by his friends? Why did a large number of blacks take this as an opportunity to loot and destroy wholly unrelated private businesses? That's true injustice... Not some street thug that ran out of luck.

While I sympathize with those calling out the militarization of the police and hope that this episode shines a light on the issue, in a lot of these 'communities of color', the cops are essentially zookeepers and I have a hard time faulting them for militarizing in the face of a community so prone to looting and destruction.

[rvg]

I'll bet a few trigger happy fatsoes with handguns would form an impenetrable bulwark against police actions like this...

Damn right it would and it does. Back a few months ago there was this guy in Nevada who got slapped with a 1 million dollar fine for grazing his cattle on federal land. He told the feds to piss off. Naturally, feds seized most of his cattle. The guy didn't take kindly to that and decided to stage a protest with a couple of dozen supporters, most of them armed. He got his cattle back and continues to wipe his ass with the federal fine. So yes, you can get much further with a kind word and a gun.

Cops are cowards. They're good at using force on those who cannot fight back. Whenever there's a serious possibility of getting hit with return fire cops immediately become far more diplomatic and far less likely to indiscriminately shoot/arrest people. Guns have that effect even when no shots are fired. If anything, having guns both sides makes it more likely that no shots will be fired.
Either that, or a 100/1 protester/cop ratio. That works as well, but in the absence of numbers guns are great force multipliers.

[HoreTore]

Damn right it would and it does.

You already have guns.

Stuff happened.

Your argument is invalid.

[rvg]

You already have guns.

Stuff happened.

Your argument is invalid.

Who exactly is this "You"? Me? No. The guy who got shot? No. The protesters? No. Who is it then?

[HoreTore]

Who exactly is this "You"? Me? No. The guy who got shot? No. The protesters? No. Who is it then?

The protesters are not Americans? They are not allowed to carry guns?

[rvg]

The protesters are not Americans? They are not allowed to carry guns?

I can't shoot you with my right to bear arms. I need an actual firearm.

[HoreTore]

I can't shoot you with my right to bear arms. I need an actual firearm.

Ah, so the 2nd amendment is meaningless? It simply doesn't prevent government abuses?

[rvg]

Ah, so the 2nd amendment is meaningless? It simply doesn't prevent government abuses?

No more or less meaningless than the 1st amendment. Amendments do not prevent government abuses. People do.

[HoreTore]

No more or less meaningless than the 1st amendment. Amendments do not prevent government abuses. People do.

Ah, yes, people most certainly do.

Guns don't.

[rvg]

Walmart sells guns, and these communities have gun-shops on every corner next door to the liquor stores, I have heard.

And? They can be gun shop owners, but unless they actually brought guns en masse to the protest, their right to bear arms would not prevent the cops from brutalizing them.

[rvg]

I am sure they could move away, collect said weapons and return.

They could do lots of things. The point being that at the time of the protests they were unarmed and thus gave the cops every incentive to commence with the general beatdown. Cops hate protesters whom they cannot control, but they hate dying in the line of duty even more.

[Don Corleone]

Very unfortunate incident. I have a great deal of compassion for the people of Ferguson caught up in all of this. Before you get all worked up one way or the other, ask yourself what it's like to be a 9 year old kid living in the midst of all of this.

Militarization of the police and the suspension of most of the 4th ammendment provisions is a separate issue from this thread, but clearly warranting a discussion. It can't be easy to be a lawman these days, and I have a great deal of respect and admiration for them. But there are rampant abuses out there that need to be addressed.

Finally, on point of the original post... I agree. I'm stunned that the Palestinians are taking to Social Media to encourage Americans and offer practical advice for dealing with crackdowns. No commentary on any of their relative positions, I am touched by their compassion and sense of human family. Very interesting indeed.

[Greyblades]

And so it turns out that the kid was indeed a thug, having just robbed a convenience store before being shot. That same store was later burned down by these animals, which is the real story here. What about the store owner who was robbed and assaulted by Brown and then had his store looted and burned to the ground by his friends? Why did a large number of blacks take this as an opportunity to loot and destroy unrelated private businesses?

While I sympathize with those calling out the militarization of the police and hope that this episode shines a light on the issue, in a lot of these 'communities of color', the cops are essentially zookeepers and I have a hard time faulting them for militarizing in the face of a community so prone to looting and destruction.

Oh I dont know, It's hard to not fault them them considering it was their mismanagement, abuse of power and general neglect over the course of american history that caused the 'communities of colour' to be as bad as they are now.

[ReluctantSamurai]

It is wholly unacceptable, but there seems no drive to reverse the trend

Actually, the trend has come full circle. This sort of police action happened all too frequently back in the anti-'Nam protest days....

[PanzerJaeger]

Touching video of Michael Brown's last moments, before he was martyred in the name of American racism. Why does our society continue to stereotype young black males as prone to criminal behavior?