As I write this, people are protesting, marching and even rioting in the streets of America. The death at the hands of a murderous cop in Minneapolis of George Floyd, another unarmed black man....one more in the seemingly never-ending stream of Americans of color who have been killed by the police, may be the police murder that has finally proven to be the last straw, not just for people of color, but for Americans of all stripes, who have finally just had enough. There comes a point when too much is just TOO MUCH.
In the age of the smart phone, it is almost impossible for an event to occur in public and not be recorded by a bystander....as George Floyd's agonizing final moments were. Not only was a 17 y.o. woman recording Derek Chauvin's knee on Floyd's neck....for just shy of NINE MINUTES....but, as it became clearly apparent that Floyd was in dire distress, this young woman is heard pleading with Chauvin to remove his knee from his neck. And, the video shows him with his hand stuck almost casually in his pocket, face impassive...as he continues to squeeze the life out of his victim. It would almost be easier to accept his actions if his face was contorted in rage...but, no, his expression is devoid of emotion. I find it eerily disturbing at a very deep level.
Then it took four days for the Minneapolis DA to decide to arrest Chauvin and charge him with both 3rd degree murder, and manslaughter. As one watches the heart-rending video it is impossible to perceive that Chauvin is doing anything but willfully killing the man under his full body-weight. Why the DA chose to charge anything but 1st degree murder is hard to understand. Certainly, people across the country can clearly see that this is what is happening as the impassive Chauvin just keeps on squeezing the life out of Floyd. He actually did not remove his knee for almost 2 minutes AFTER FLOYD HAD GONE UNCONSCIOUS.
It's beyond merely outrageous. It is inhuman, disgusting and fucking EVIL. As the legal process around this travesty unfolds, perhaps we'll get some inkling of what was going through Chauvin's mind. But, this is a cop who has been cited 18 times for inappropriate treatment of a citizen, and has shot one and been involved in the shooting of another. So, it's not unfair or a stretch to assume that this is a man with issues around violence and perhaps people of color too. Derek Chauvin is the kind of cop that the nation's police departments NEED TO REMOVE. He and his ilk should not be wearing uniforms, carrying weapons and exerting authority over ANY-FUCKING-BODY. No. Police departments all across the country need to stop practicing arrogance and start hiring police persons who actually have a whole different set of skills and qualifications. Does anybody in the law enforcement field today really even mention the need for compassion or wisdom? I kind of doubt it.
So, here we are: barely past the critical phase of the worst pandemic to strike since the Flu pandemic of 1918, just over a hundred years ago, and now we are in full societal crisis.....it almost defies the imagination that such a toxic mixture of events and circumstances could be real, and happening to us RIGHT NOW. But, it is. And, now we need to make one of the most critical decisions in the history of this country: we need to decide WHO WE ARE, as a nation, as individuals, and as a society. We need to answer the burning question: Is this who we want to be?
And, if it happens that a majority of Americans don't want to continue on down the path that is presently unfolding at our feet.....then we need to really come up with some radical changes, in our attitudes toward others, and in our attitude toward the planet and the rest of the world. Because if we demure...if we wimp out and fail to make a firm decision...we risk becoming a nightmare society that is living out the wet-dream of a sick, piratical, idiot of a wannabe dictator.
This is not a 'police problem'....not by a long shot. What it is, is an American problem, having everything to do with the fact that racism is far from being expunged, healed, or just transmuted into something where respect and kindness are present. America is still...and has been for about 400 years....an essentially racist society. You are bullshitting yourself and you need to get out around the country more if you cannot see this.
I first hitched across the U.S. in the early 70s, and, yes, there are lots of good people everywhere you go. I met them. But, there is also a sinister undercurrent that has always been there and remains intact today. The fact that we elected...well, sort of....a president who is a racist himself should give you a notion that racism is much more prevalent and pervasive than most Americans are willing to acknowledge.
And, if you are one of the Americans who supports Donald J. Trump, who thinks his attitudes are just fine....all the lies, the deceits, the attacks, the unending greedy machinations, the total absence of anything even resembling compassion or some wee evidence that he even feels human emotions....then you are part of the problem. Oh, yes, you are.
So, change your attitude and join the human race. We are not destined to be a country like the one we presently are modeling. We ARE destined to wake-up and realize that we have a lot of work to do in learning how to take care of ourselves, each other and the planet.
And, if we can't do that.....then we really will be well and truly FUCKED.
So, what'll it be, America?
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