“If you can not measure it, you can not improve it.” — Lord Kelvin
Police shootings have generated a lot of talk here on OJ. But now you can do something about it without leaving your keyboard.
Deadspin is crowdsourcing every police shooting in America. It’s easy allow us citizens to determine the true scope of the problem.
We should do this. A easy place to start is the OC Weekly Archive.
I am leaving for Burning Man for 10 days, so unfortunately I can’t start this off. However, I will personally deliver a Great Park coffee mug of my design or a DVD of an Irvine City Council Meeting — Winner Chooses — to the first OJer to enter ten shootings into the DeadSpin database.
How about crowd mobbing city council meetings to demand body cameras on all cops at all times. We cant start with Fullerton then Anaheim, then Santa Ana, then Orange to kick it off.
*The militant attitude of most police comes from years of erroding their rights to use force and intimidation when necessary. Since the 70’s things have gone down hill. If you notice most police are now overweight. This is a tell tale sign that stress on the job is endemic. Our hearts go out to many cops……that try to do a good job, are intelligent, kind, caring and devoted……however, with the great amount of turnstyle criminals that have great attorneys and get off….no matter what they do……the whole concept can become very depressive. Many cops do commit suicide and have suffered from manic depression for years. Waking up every day and facing life and death stress…..even for a simple traffic stop wears folks down. So, the old concept of lawyers, doctors and most professions that “the dump civilians can’t hit their backsides with a miner lamp and an Indian Guide”….become typical. Too many civilians and cops on psychotropic prescription drugs…….to deal with…add the bad food and we have created an ideal toxic cocktail…..for violence…..on almost any occasion. One thing is sure: This is not just a Black or Brown or Yellow problem. When the cop stops you…try to forget about “your rights” and start thinking about how to get home without getting arrested or harmed……..by mistake! Just be nice to the cops….and prey!
Fear of cops is just irrational.
*Yeah….Cook….just put on that smiling yellow Liberal Happy Face and pretend the whole world is safe for democracy!
Right, but fear of communists homosexuals sneaking into your home and shoving bales of marijuana up your rectum is rational. Have I got that right?
Sounds like a draft of a new horror movie.
Everyone needs to see the latest video of St. Louis cops gunning down a black man:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/20/kajieme-powell-shooting_n_5696546.html
Whatever happened to shooting someone in the leg to disable them?
Hey Cook, fear of cops just became rational!
*Anon….don’t live in a cave either……Once you commit to pulling your firearm and firing the first shot……the disabling drill …..is way over. Everyone now just becomes another CUJO dog……to the cops! We would strongly advise that if you are protecting your own property……you might follow the same advise. If not, don’t be surprised if the bad guy that is shot twice comes over and takes your gun away and kills you and your family. If you want to disable the bad guy use a taser or stun gun and prey that it works…..many times it does not.
R & A… how do you know a stun gun or taser doesn’t work? Have you tried it? I prefer a can of wasp spray… shoots far away and hurts like bloody hell… that’s what I hear anyway 😉
Police want us to believe that “criminals” are a superhuman monster species of some kind. (“The greater our enemies, the greater we are”, dontcha know.)
Do you seriously believe that getting shot ONCE, ANYWHERE wouldn’t stop most people in their tracks? Or that, failing that, a second shot wouldn’t surely do it? Yet police seem to have a habit of emptying their guns into the target on any excuse. “No living witnesses” wouldn’t have anything to do with that, would it?
It’s a city full of Scarfaces out there, Mudge!
*OK……guess we have to respond. Any normal 14 or 15 year old who is not on any psychotropic prescription drugs or not so legal whites and the like – can probably be subdued with a tazer. Some could even be slightly deterred by a stun flash of 50,000 volts or more. Now, you take the others in society that are either big or mean or embellished by high potency drugs….meth…et. al. If this person was attacking any of us with say a knife……who wants to get close enough to use the Stun gun? If you dare to use the Taser without lots of training……you may typically miss one out of three times. If you do subdue someone, do you have those plastic cuffs to professionally tie this perp up? And if they do revive themselves in your home….what is to stop them from kicking down the door or kicking in your head when they wake up? All too iffy……..for home safety and the hope that the police will arrive in 7.2 minutes response time. We advise that you leave your home, do not touch the perp and wait outside for the cops…..somewhat hidden, so that the perp doesn’t find you when you wake up. Camel Spray….is worthless. Yes, it does or can blind someone momentarily – if you hit them directly in the eyes……but if not……you now have a Raging Bull on your hands. If the perp in question is armed….by the way, have your baseball bat handy and be sure to disarm them without touching the firearm or knife. Use a stick or whatever….but do not touch any persons weapon – or they will claim….it was yours. They still may do so and things can get very complicated when the police arrive.
Anyone that thinks or believes in the Single Bullet Theory…or the Magic Bullet Theory……..has never fired any firearm, let alone had to defend their own life or the life of their loved ones. Most times, bad guys do not even know they have been hit. Remember one good guy:
Ronald Reagan…when he was shot…..thought someone had banged him with an elbow….nothing more. Stopping the heart or the brain takes a lot of firepower. Mike Brown is a fine example…….it took a concerted effort on the part of Officer Moore…….to count Mike out.
The term to remember is: “With Exteme Prejudice”……….Officer Moore responded to whatever Michael Brown did…..either on the street or when Moore pulled him into his car.
Who is Officer Moore?
Is it just me, or was all the gravitas of this subject extinguished when the author commands us readers to research and compile data while he goes to BURNING MAN for ten days?
Dude-10 days?
I thought Burning Man starts this Monday… http://www.burningman.com/
Is “hyperbole” the new word for hipsters trying to make their point? It gets thrown around a lot on this site.
About 10,000 Burners are allowed to come in early so that there is something to be opened on Monday morning. The core team for the Temple of Grace arrived Augst 9th, for example. The truly hard core burners, DPW, can be out there busting their butts as early as late july.
I’m not that hard core.
Half a day to travel there. About 3-1/2 days there. Six days to find his way back.
Yes, 10 days.
I was on playa for 8 full days. Add in over a day of travel time in each direction because of off-playa co-ordination for the build projects I participate in, and it adds up to 10 days.
I have no idea where the “gravitas” in my post resided, but surely you see the link between being part one of the world’s largest intentional communities and supporting a crow-sourced data project.
In Santa Ana this week there was a small protest targeting the “heavy handed” tactics of police in that city. You can read about it here:
http://www.voiceofoc.org/countywide/article_a12a33e4-2a07-11e4-b914-001a4bcf887a.html
This article has had three different headlines in 24 hours. One must wonder what the website and activists are trying to convey.
In this case a four time loser (my term for someone convicted of multiple felonies), who is living illegally n this country, who is reportedly 27 years old, but has a sixth grade education was arrested and is facing deportation.
I suppose my first question would be, the entity who arrested him on his latest violation was ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement). If a person who has been arrested and convicted on four felonies, lacks an education, has a severe chemical dependency issue should not be deported, who should? Secondly, why did this take so long?
I certainly run the risk of sounding like Skallywag/Junior/Tardif/Hil/Nipseyl or what ever he calls himself but if this was his argument I would have to agree.
The neighborhood in which this character lives is under scrutiny by the SAPD and District Attorney for being a hot bed of violence. “Activists” dispute that.
Even the Sitting City Councilmember has had his home shot up. He related that several times.
Let’s look at some real PROGRESSIVE solutions. I am not talking about failed experiments like Social Justice or Restoritive justice, but rather REAL steps like withholding education and social service funding. Providing money for “self policing” services.
I say cut one check to Casa Bonita, let Benavides, Renya and Men of Color run this thing they way they want.
If a FOUR TIME CONVICTED FELON METH ADDICT BURGLAR is the guy they want to save, let them. Veronica Rubio, the four year old that likes science can start pounding tortillias and giving hand jobs to Tio,
I understand this is a long way from Brea, HB,NB, Villa Park and the fancy corridors that we like to stab at. So as my Mom said: “sex is messy”.
Who is gonna get messy?
Is your mom a soccer fan? Maybe she was trying to tell you that Messi is sexy.
Cutting through the blather and frou-frou (and the frou-blather), it seems that you’re saying that we should adopt draconian cuts in social services, but should call them “progressive.” I’m sure that posting such a message here excites and pleases you; I just hope it’s not, uh, messy.
The guy who posts six thousand word essays talking about …….Blather.
*Dr. D., Officer Darren Wilson…in drag…is Officer Moore….or Less – of course!