George Floyd murder | Clashes between US police and protestors

[Tugay One Cup]

Anyone with access to the BBC can listen to him say those words, to the letter. That's not up for debate.

I'll have to take your word for it, the missus is asleep.

 

[mexico1970]

I'll have to take your word for it, the missus is asleep.

Just putting it on site for others to see, it's better than sticking your fingers in your ears.

 

[purplenose]

As far as I can tell from the article, he's not said those words. He might well have done but it would be odd that such a divisive statement wouldn't be included in there.



I just don't agree with this for the simple reason that there is a way of doing it responsibly.

If you're taking the necessary precautions to protect both yourself and those around you then I see absolutely no issue with it.

I hope you are right but suppose you are not and over the next couple of weeks things take a turn for the worse because of this? The advice is very clear , stay at home unless its necessary to go out. Not to gather in large groups. If what we have seen today is ok then everyone going watching City is.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

I'm really taking umbrage with anyone who breaks cover and endangers other people by helping to spread this shitty virus bud, we've gone past sanctimoniously clapping at doorsteps or putting nice fancy rainbows at the windows to what is total fuckwittery.

The furore surrounding the Cummins debacle and now this, it's just not on. I genuinely do understand the plight of black people in the USA but what I can't get my head around is that in this country they could be causing a second wave, that's what I find Raz guilty of IMO.

I take your point and agree mostly. I’ve not felt the need to join the protest in Manchester. One that has been totally peaceful and hardly, if any arrests.

What is hard on social media of any form is to sound balanced in your response to anything.

If you say you are worried about the social distancing, then you don’t care about BLM and silently support white oppression.

If you say you worried about BLM matters, then you don’t care about social distancing and don’t care about your elderly relatives.

This isn’t exclusive to this particular juxtaposition. This is the curse of social media and the power of memes to easily lead people.

Social media debates in the extreme. Either you are awesome or you are deplorable. (Synonyms of these superlatives are available)

Most posts are to affect, rather than debate. This is why we aren’t getting anywhere, whilst getting people angry and not getting close to changing anyone’s opinion.

 

[cleavers]

Absolutely and it's incredibly irresponsible.

It would have beeen helpful if Raheem had pointed that out, which is why I don't think his comments are that clever at this point.

 

[purplenose]

That’s pretty much my take on it too. And just because someone isn’t hugely articulate, it doesn't mean they aren’t intelligent and don’t have something worthwhile to say.

In that case nor can they be excused for getting a foot in mouth award, it seems Raz has indeed earned a whopping one of those.

There are alot of people tried to do thier best during this pandemic, many who have lost loved ones and what they have seen this weekend will have sickened them.

 

[mexico1970]

I take your point and agree mostly. I’ve not felt the need to join the protest in Manchester. One that has been totally peaceful and hardly, if any arrests.

What is hard on social media of any form is to sound balanced in your response to anything.

If you say you are worried about the social distancing, then you don’t care about BLM and silently support white oppression.

If you say you worried about BLM matters, then you don’t care about social distancing and don’t care about your elderly relatives.

This isn’t exclusive to this particular juxtaposition. This is the curse of social media and the power of memes to easily lead people.

Social media debates in the extreme. Either you are awesome or you are deplorable. (Synonyms of these superlatives are available)

Most posts are to affect, rather than debate. This is why we aren’t getting anywhere, whilst getting people angry and not getting close to changing anyone’s opinion.

Good post bud, well put my only concerns are that we still need to socially distance I don't want to lose any more people than we already have and will and that infiltration has happened and the very good message is being lost by the minority of thugs there for a day out.

Just to add that I have been crossing roads treating people like they've got leprosy for what seems an age now, I haven't seen my children or grandchildren in months it could have all been for nothing.

 

[Tugay One Cup]

It would have beeen helpful if Raheem had pointed that out, which is why I don't think his comments are that clever at this point.

With the exception of the clumsily worded sentence that the headline is apparently taken from, everything he said is bang on, as far as I'm concerned.

It would have been nice for him to add a reminder about social distancing guidelines but leaving that out doesn't detract from the message.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Good post bud, well put my only concerns are that we still need to socially distance I don't want to lose any more people than we already have and will and that infiltration has happened and the very good message is being lost by the minority of thugs there for a day out.

Absolutely. I’ve decided to not join in the protests because my 93 year old grandma lives with us.

What has been lost and turned around on them is that these people have decided to protest even though a pandemic is happening. That’s how strongly they feel. They are being castigated for it, rightly in my opinion, but I also support their right to do it, especially in the States. Less so here, but I can’t begin to comprehend the depth of feeling that BAME people have, so I am more saddened that this protest has happened now as it risks their lives more, but accept the inevitability of it once the murder happened.

It is an inevitable reaction to an abhorrent killing during a pandemic.

The consequences may end up killing more BAME people than have been killed by systemic racism, but how do you stop people being enraged by watching a casual murder of a black man by police?

 

[kaz7]

You're not listening to what he is saying, he is quite distinctly saying that racism is the only disease we are fighting. This virus stops for no man and he's been irresponsible in the words he used, while everyone else is hibernating playing by the rules to try to stop the spread of the disease this mob are asking for a second wave.

It's abhorent.

Oh give over ffs

 

[kaz7]

He said it bud, clear as day he even hinted that what he was about to say was ridiculous, then he said that racism is the only disease we are fighting today. There was no explanation as such, no caveat, just that.

We as in black people not we as in everyone

 

[kaz7]

I can't believe Raheem would say that.

Look at my link a few pages back to the video interview on the bbc,he sounds to me he is meaning racism is the only disease for those protesting as it has gone on for years and has to change ,he then referenced the pandemic wel!

 

[I'm With Stupid]

Seems like the protests have worked in Minneapolis at least:

 

[FogBlueInSanFran]

Seems like the protests have worked in Minneapolis at least:

Is the reason they’re doing this to break the union?

 

[idahoblues]

Are they open up there?

Yes but not getting their usual amount of business

 

[Oyster28catcher]

I started a reply then blogged instead.

I’m in China. The net-based citizens here are laughing and joking about freedom being dead in America. From Sina Weibo to Wechat to QQ, it is out there: America’s freedom is falling. After all when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Act like a donkey and be treated like one. Act with compassion and understanding, and…

“Oh Johnny, did you back thewrong horse! Will you hose him please?!” – Bill Murray as Peter Venkman, Ghostbusters II

Conducting the leadership over social media channel President of the U.S.A. (well, the white part, at least), Trump of the White House is now using the military against his own people. Well, if he identifies with them, that’d be a positive start. But this is a man telling state governors that, “you have to dominate”. The top brass is needed, this is a job for the A-Team. Step forwards General Milley, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. Trump and his massive cahunas were seen spotted at Lafayette Square (outside the White House) and heading into the slightly burnt St. John’s Church. Right Reverend Mariann Budde told the Washington Post, “I don’t want President Trump speaking for St John’s.”

Instead, like many nations, we have to watch America erupt into flames, panic and division as we await the court proceedings of the fired and disgraced police officer. But, remember this, this isn’t about just one policeman or one victim. This is about institutionalised racism – and that’s now evidently in the hands of the U.S. leader – a man who was the focus of The Apprentice, filmed by Trump Productions at Trump Tower, N.Y.C. Trump this, Trump that, Trump, Trumperty-fecking-Trump. The dirty selfish Trump.


From my blog (full post there) - please click and read as I'm lonely.

 

[I'm With Stupid]

Is the reason they’re doing this to break the union?

Presumably. The union have shown themselves unable to accept reasonable reforms, and the current blatantly racist union chief was voted in by a comfortable majority of officers, so it's clear that it's not just 'a few bad apples'. The union is one thing, but I think another big problem is the sheer percentage of a city's budget policing is taking up. And while it's important to fund the police well enough that they can do their jobs (god knows we know that in the UK after 10 years of austerity) it can't be at the expense of the sort of social programs that will reduce the amount of work the police have to do in the first place. It seems like in a lot of places in America, police seem to have been the only strategy for reducing crime. If it's a choice between kitting out every officer like Robocop or funding social programs in poor neighbourhoods, I know which I'd prefer.

There was a famous story in Georgia (the country) in 2005 where the president warned the traffic police to sort out corruption and said that any police taking bribes would be fired. He then went on to fire all 30,000 traffic cops in the country and ironically the US were drafted in the help train all of the new recruits.

 

[FogBlueInSanFran]

Presumably. The union have shown themselves unable to accept reasonable reforms, and the current blatantly racist union chief was voted in by a comfortable majority of officers, so it's clear that it's not just 'a few bad apples'. The union is one thing, but I think another big problem is the sheer percentage of a city's budget policing is taking up. And while it's important to fund the police well enough that they can do their jobs (god knows we know that in the UK after 10 years of austerity) it can't be at the expense of the sort of social programs that will reduce the amount of work the police have to do in the first place. It seems like in a lot of places in America, police seem to have been the only strategy for reducing crime. If it's a choice between kitting out every officer like Robocop or funding social programs in poor neighbourhoods, I know which I'd prefer.

There was a famous story in Georgia (the country) in 2005 where the president warned the traffic police to sort out corruption and said that any police taking bribes would be fired. He then went on to fire all 30,000 traffic cops in the country and ironically the US were drafted in the help train all of the new recruits.

Thanks for that. I have to do some reading up on this and movements generally to defund police. Interesting that in my exceedingly liberal city with an awful homeless issue seemingly a central complaint, the hue and cry has been for more police and a lot of criticism directed at the city’s AG as well as social services. Curiously our demonstrations here were comparatively tame and peaceful too. We’re a funny little island out here sometimes; I often think of the Bay Area as its own country.

 

[Bigga]

Introducing this sort of law would be a start. Completely backwards this sort of thing still doesn’t exist in what many consider the leading country of the ‘free world’.

Indeed.

It's rather like the vid post I put up with Rand Paul being the only one to hold up the 'Lynching Ban' Bill as he disagrees with the definition!

What a tool!

 

[Bigga]

Maybe a tad dramamtic

I kind of agree, but when the murder rate of Black men by cops is 13x that of White, what's the option??