It pains me to say this, mainly because Charles Barkley went to the farm school on the east side of the state, but I feel my respect for Charles Barkley growing after reading this article. The possibility of rationality warms my heart and my brain. The media has a vested interest in making everything sensational/tragic/cliff-hanging (you get the point), as they work for competing syndicates each trying to capture listener/readership/viewership shares. Losing a life was awful for whatever reason, but the media reporting on the losing of a life is often the difference between a rational consideration of why and how the loss of life happened and a knee-jerk reaction.
For my two cents while questions may arise about over zealousness of police officers that we should take seriously, the benefit of the doubt belongs to the police officer. Very rarely do officers engage in deadly force. Very rarely do officers actually use physical force of any type. Officers are trained, better than the average person, how to use force, how to limit the use of force, and how to be situationally aware. Why are we so willing to overlook that the loss of life in Ferguson began with an officer recognizing a subject of interest in a burglary? Why are we so willing to castigate the officer who was attacked by a man 80 pounds heavier and several inches larger for use of force? Because what we heard, read, saw all pointed to an egregious use of force against and unarmed man with his hands up just because of the color of his skin. Well, now what do we know?
We know now that a grand jury heard testimony, viewed autopsy evidence and other physical evidence that does not support what we heard, read, and saw. We know now that in the face of evidence contrary to their news service generate opinion, a minority of the population is willing to burn, loot, pillage, and riot. I am sickened by the whole affair and done considering this mess. And, I will still give law enforcement the benefit of my doubts.
For my two cents while questions may arise about over zealousness of police officers that we should take seriously, the benefit of the doubt belongs to the police officer. Very rarely do officers engage in deadly force. Very rarely do officers actually use physical force of any type. Officers are trained, better than the average person, how to use force, how to limit the use of force, and how to be situationally aware. Why are we so willing to overlook that the loss of life in Ferguson began with an officer recognizing a subject of interest in a burglary? Why are we so willing to castigate the officer who was attacked by a man 80 pounds heavier and several inches larger for use of force? Because what we heard, read, saw all pointed to an egregious use of force against and unarmed man with his hands up just because of the color of his skin. Well, now what do we know?
We know now that a grand jury heard testimony, viewed autopsy evidence and other physical evidence that does not support what we heard, read, and saw. We know now that in the face of evidence contrary to their news service generate opinion, a minority of the population is willing to burn, loot, pillage, and riot. I am sickened by the whole affair and done considering this mess. And, I will still give law enforcement the benefit of my doubts.
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