[Military State] Ferguson, MO

Ok unfettered gun rights activists who believe armed citizens protect against tyranny and Constitutional subversion, libertarians, those fearful of a police state and anybody else skeptical about the increased militarization of American police forces - this is your chance! Let us know how you feel about your hypothetical situation quickly becoming a real-world situation in Missouri!

 

I love here. It's unfortunate. Young kid list his life. A family lost their son and a community and it's businesses got destroyed. How the hell is that justified?

 

nevermind

 

Forgive me if I sound naive, but how are they so well-equipped?

 

America. The juxtaposition of right wing nuts brandishing assault and sniper rifles to steal back confiscated property with no response from the government to enforce the law vs a bunch of folks protesting a shooting being tear gassed by riot police. The clear message is that if you're going to defy the law, be armed to the hilt.

 

They would, but they're kind of tuckered out from rallying around a racist freeloader in Nevada. They'll give the police the benefit of the doubt on this one, looks like it's just thugs and looters anyway, right?

 

I used to work at Bush Stadium downtown. That was the only time I've ever had a stranger say to me, "There's too many damn n****s working here", (or anything like it) and say it seriously. Dude was in some really nice seats a couple of rows up on the 3rd base line, too. Freaked me out for a month. St Louis, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Central Illinois, and other Midwest places like that have a really strong sub current of overt racism that I don't see at all in Houston. Maybe its under the surface in Houston, but in St Louis it kind of peaks out from behind the curtain.

Between Ferguson and downtown, also, is the most ghettoized part of St. Louis (outside of the Illinois side of the river). It really looks like a total s**t hole. It's all run down old buildings from the 1920's and earlier, many of them abandoned or in total disrepair, and it is absolutely all black. From personal experience, in Houston, If you go down 290 into Pearland, the Pearland police have an attitude like they are defending against invading hordes poised just on the other side of Beltway 8. In St. Louis, I have no doubt that it is about 10x worse.

Finally, St. Louis is very small compared with most cities, ringed with little tiny cities, with little tiny police forces. Imagine if the city of Houston ended well inside the loop, and it was surrounded by layers of little places like Bellaire - little tiny independent jurisdictions perhaps 6 or 7 deep out to Katy. This is not a major metropolitan police force, with a ton of diversity and a great deal of experience navigating racial issues. This is a bunch of blue collar white guys hired to protect other mostly blue collar white guys.

 

I did basic at Fort Leonard Wood and that sort of gives me an anti-Missouri bias, but I'd imagine they are doing these riots partly just to have something to do.....they live in Missouri. It was either play around with tear gas or hang out at Wal-Mart.

 

It's definitely either that, or because an unarmed teenager was shot to death by police

 

I'm not sure exactly what you're asking, but protecting yourself, your family, and your possessions in the face of societal breakdown is absolutely a reason to arm yourself.

The only worse thing I could imagine in such a situation is being a sitting duck.

 

I'm far from a gun-nut, but can't someone want to protect themselves from all the assholes out there? Why the "gubmint"?

 

Will also say that I have not read up on this situation much at all, because frankly it hasn't entered anywhere near the outer pings of my life-radar, but if a couple of you polarized types want to give bullet-point summaries....

 

Nah, that was just exaggeration for effect. What does he really have other than a Kevlar helmet, a rifle, a vest, a mask, and whatever is on his hip? He'd have all that stuff on deployment plus a thing or two.

Everyone needs something to start the party.

 

And I'm sure you were silent when "militia" groups pointed loaded weapons at law enforcement in the Bundy ranch.

 

I was watching Fox news earlier in the evening and a gentleman whose name I don't remember, was on and after a few insults at President Obama, he stated that the President should get back from his vacation and deal with the ISIS situation swiftly.
As much as I realize the situation w/ISIS in Iraq is just deadly atm, perhaps the President should be cutting short his vacation to deal w the situation in Ferguson?
Perhaps working with the Governor to find some way to bring peace to the streets there(arresting the officer that killed the civilian would be a start) Finding out why the Police chief decided to set curfews on his own? Finding out why the Police in Ferguson were trying to prohibit members of the media from filming in the area and then arresting members of the media?

So much sad from the scenes in that place tonight. Thought this was America, not Syria, Gaza or Egypt circa Jan/Feb 2011.

 

And be white and tout right wing propaganda.

 

I'm assuming the poster was implying that gun nuts should support this community arming themselves and resisting the "out-of-control" police - but presumably, they instead look at it as a bunch of minority thugs causing trouble. IOW, when its Clive Bundy and crew resisting police, it's patriotism and defending the constitution. When its urban blacks resisting police, it's thuggery. Not saying I agree, but I assume that was the intended implication. You don't see conservatives rallying around the protestors here.

Basically,

* Ferguson police shoot a black kid that's not armed. Circumstances are unclear.

* Peaceful protests break out. Dumbasses join and start looting and causing other trouble.

* Protests continue and expand - without the looting, but with more anger as the local police don't seem to want to explain what happened or why the kid was shot.

* All hell breaks loose with police using tear gas, arresting and apparently assaulting some WaPo and HuffPo reporters without any cause, and other shananigans. Circumstances behind all this still unclear, but local police department now seems overwhelmed, whether it was at fault initially or not.

(Meanwhile, people question why a local police force is loaded with military-style equipment)

Here's a good article on the "arrests":

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/13/huffington-post-reporter-arrested-ferguson_n_5676829.html

My favorite part about the now-overwhelmed local PD:


The Huffington Post called the Ferguson Police Department to inquire about the status of Reilly shortly after tweets indicated that he had been arrested. The person who picked up the phone -- who identified himself as "George" -- said he couldn't give any information at this time and that there was no one who could do so. Asked for his last name, he mumbled something quickly. When pressed for the spelling of his name, he hung up.

The Huffington Post called back and again asked for information on Reilly. We were simply put through to the "Ferguson jail" voicemail. On the third try, George again insisted he didn't have any information at this time and referred us to the city's website for email information. When again asked for his last name, George simply hung up.

 

You ask for action, let them investigate, then protest if its not done correctly or in a reasonable amount of time. Then a riot could be expected, if the results seem shady.

However, people there went straight to the riot. I can't blame police for coming out on the defensive, even if it's just a protest now.

 

A reference:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...n-ferguson-mo-had-little-to-do-with-ferguson/

NSFWL Video from a former St. Louisan:

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