Thursday, August 21, 2014

TAKING THE LOW ROAD



The definition of prejudice is playing out in Ferguson Missouri, prejudice is an irrational pre-judgment  based on insufficient knowledge and biased assumptions. Prejudice and racism is not a mindset owned in exclusivity by any group whether in the minority or majority. 

The tinder box of angry unrest has been lit in Missouri by race baiters and victimhood apologists against their own police force based on sketchy information. What is known is that a man was fatally shot by a police officer in Ferguson Missouri. Was it an act of police brutality and unnecessary, or was it a justified shooting? The facts are not yet known and the evidence that leads to one or the other conclusion needs to be assessed by level headed unbiased truth seekers not riot instigators.

Should it matter that the victim was black? Should it matter that the police officer is white? If police in any town or city in the country uses unwarranted lethal force on citizens then we all expect them to be charged and prosecuted for the criminal act. Being a police or a federal law enforcement officer does not make you above the law, or grant you immunity if you break the law. Nor should being a police officer turn your rights upside-down and make you guilty until you prove your innocence. 

Americans know that as in any organization or group there are always some bad apples in the barrel and our police forces across the country have always contained corrupt cops. The problem becomes either the perception or the reality of the "Thin blue line" or the fraternity within the police force. The perception is that cops protect cops by either looking the other way or actively helping to cover-up corruption. 

However beyond corrupt policing there are also two other anomalies that show up in any police force. One is ineptitude and the other is burn out. Rookie police officers that are either poorly trained or lack experience  can react overly aggressive and be labeled "trigger happy".  While on the other extreme officers that have years of street policing experience can become jaded, arrogant and hostile given the high stress that comes with the job. These are not corrupt officers yet these are equally not the face of the finest peace officers patrolling the streets of our communities.

"There are lies, damn lies and then there are statistics" as Mark Twain suggests about how facts can be misconstrued to reach ignorant conclusions. Many race baiters suggest that statistics show that police shoot Black and Hispanic men more than white men and that statistic proves that there is a police prejudice against minorities across the country. That statistic is true but the conclusion is flawed.

Another statistic shows that minorities commit the larger percentage of crimes in this country. Therefore if police are confronting crime and crimes occur more often among minorities then as a consequence of their job, to arrest lawbreakers, they will have a higher percentage of encounters with minorities. It also means that a higher percentage of those encounters could end up being fatal, either by use of necessary force or unjustified and corrupt use of force.

In recent years a new term has been coined for people that ignore police commands and refuse to show surrender, we call it "suicide by cop".  It is interesting to note that these incidences have increased in our culture yet no one seems to be able to determine why. Are police too trigger happy today? Are people more belligerent toward authority?  Are more lawbreakers on mind and mood altering drugs?

The truth is that most Americans don't want our police force to shoot citizens and ask questions later. Equally most good police officers don't want to shoot and kill anyone on the street. They understand that they are not judge, jury and executioner and would prefer to keep their weapon holstered when making arrests.

Making this fatal police incident politically charged and racists is not just a mistake before the facts are revealed but a wayward mindset for a community that knows that there is another statistic to consider. That is that most of the victims of crimes reside in the urban minority areas. Some of these protesters will needs the help of law enforcement in the future. Will they be made gun shy, or confrontationally challenged and either stay in their patrol cars or not respond at all? 

Indeed in many cities the bigger complaint against police forces in America's urban areas riddled with crime and gangs, is that police avoid those neighborhoods and victims feel abandoned by law enforcement. Police can't be both the enemy and the protector.

The cynical destruction of minority urban areas is caused by three competing messages, hostility toward police, lack of witnesses because they are intimidated with fear by gangs and the arrival of political charlatans that use tragedies in their communities to gain votes and distract people from real solutions.
 
How many innocent minorities (children) are killed in drive by shootings in this country? Today's inner city gangs are no different than when mafia owned the city streets. One of their greatest weapons is intimidation. Yet unlike the witness protection program that was instrumental in prosecuting organized crime figures, we have few ways to protect victims and witnesses against gang violence in most of our urban areas.

Instead of listening to race baiters and leftists victimhood chanters, people should wake up and work with law enforcement to arrive at practical solutions to keep their neighborhoods safer, their children more respectful and prove that material poverty does not excuse moral poverty.         

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

FUNDRAISING ON FAILURE, CASHING IN ON CORRUPTION



The President has become a political caricature representing all that is empty, vacuous and vapid in the jaded game of campaign fundraising. It would appear that President Obama's sphere of messianic influence has shrunk considerably, while his arrogant partisan doubletalk, has reached new heights of lowbrow barking. 

Since his election in 2008 this Democrat President has been consistently competent and tirelessly wedded to one role above all other duties as leader of the free world ; party politics.

His constant fundraising and campaigning has been one long nightmare for those seeking the leader of the free world to put away the teleprompter and lead. President Obama's political partisanship is so ubiquitous in his administration, that even his supporters realize that he places his Party and ideology well before America's wellbeing.
 
His cynical promises, out-right lies and arrogant taunting of conservatives, that never let up, before, after, and in the years between elections has finally caused his supporters to cry uncle. His partisan bashing at the teleprompter has been so unrelenting, it has caused sane voters to question whether the President leads the nation or the Democrat Party.

Prior to Obama's presidency Americans believed that once a politician, especially a president, was elected, then campaigning and fundraising would be put aside, for the oval office demanded a leader to make non-partisan decisions to serve all citizens of our nation. Yet instead, this President and his progressive Democrat Party have fused political power and ideology into a new cultism. The agenda for this progressive Party is but one agenda; to sell their ideology tirelessly to the American people until all capitulate to their view. 

However, the ideology of Obama's leftist Party is not just a delusional denial of history, (socialism creates a diminished enslaved society at best) its practical implementation under his pen and phone directive has proven to be not just a failure, but a regression. A surprise to his loyal followers, perhaps, (not for conservatives) that their progressive regulatory crony capitalism has caused a stagnant economy. Obama and the Democrats  continue to call it a recovering economy, but most recognize it as a contracting economy, especially the current  generation of educated but underachieving youth, struggling to claim their financial independence.

The ideology of diplomacy and concessions to our enemies on the world stage, fairs even worse, as America's power and prestige among allies and enemies continues to degrade, leaving a void of deterrence and emboldening sadistic aggressors. Like a toothless lion sitting on the outside of a pride's territory, no longer growling, absent the ability to bite, America's foreign policy under Obama has devolved into a bystander nation that shows disinterest while the world rightfully ignores us.

The poll numbers reflect that finally Democrat voters are waking up and are no longer willing to give the President and his Party a pass, as they once did. They understand that the Party's excuses from blaming Bush, to the market meltdown amid their constant finger pointing at Republicans, does not answer why, the oval office has moved onto the putting green.      
        
In fact, with Obama's ratings so low the Democrats must find something more than the "War on Women" to rally voters to support their Party in the November elections. Cynically Obama's new campaign strategy is to claim that Republicans are going to try and impeach him for "doing his job." Those in the know realize it is a political tactic straight out of leftist manifesto.
 He is using Alinsky rule for radicals number 10 below; 

  “If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive.” Violence from the other side can win the public to your side because the public sympathizes with the underdog." (Obama has co-opted impeachment talk to become the victim, falsely suggesting that there is no wrongdoing while he dares and taunts Congress to go up against media and public opinion.)

Obama and the Democrats are extorting money from their donors claiming phony victimhood. Amazingly there are fools opening their wallets to the Democrats under this incredibly arrogant administration that mocks our foundational system. Obama now wants to play the poor besieged underdog while he has bashed his political opponents unrelentingly since taking office? Of course, because any good progressive Democrat politician knows about radical rule number 8.

  “Keep the pressure on. Never let up.” Keep trying new things to keep the opposition off balance. As the opposition masters one approach, hit them from the flank with something new. (Bash conservatism continually as the reason for all American woes, regardless of facts and truth forcing conservatives to always start a debate from a defensive posture.)

The progressive Democrats have insinuated themselves into the three most powerful places of influence in American culture, our schools, the media and in the public unions that operate our state and federal government. They have been controlling the dialog with a strange elixir of half truths, exaggerated ideology and false humility.    

We have been told that America is in a culture war between liberal ideology and conservatism. However, the problem is that both liberalism and conservatism have been incorrectly defined by the progressives elites causing millions of Americans to line up on the wrong side and millions more to refuse to line up at all. 

From the problems at the border to our local school's curriculum and all the regulatory big government interference in-between, Americans know that the problems are caused by politicians and money, that have failed us.

But we also know that the solutions are not elusive, instead they are already baked in America's apple pie recipe, the Constitution. Our Constitution served us well before progressives infiltrated Washington and stacked the judicial branch with jurists loyal to liberalism transforming this nation into a perverse classist elitism of big government with federal nanny control freaks.

We as citizens have the deed to Washington, we own the capital outright but just like those that have crossed over our border ignoring our laws, Democrats led by Obama defy and taunt us as they ignore their oath of office. November will be another chance for Americans to support their country and Constitution by taking the Senate away from this corrupt and cynically shameless political party.