What happens in Vegas.....

    I honestly wasn't going to blog too much about the domestic terrorist who killed 58 people last night in Las Vegas.  At some point you get tired of beating up on a horse that will never die. A lone blogger and his few thousand followers  cannot muster enough outrage to get one of the the most powerful organizations with one of the most influential lobbying apparatus to reconsider their position.

It seems that every few months there is another one of these mass casualty events.  Each one is more horrific than the other. Every time there is more shock and outrage than the time before, and then a troubled and grieving nation struggles for answers.  I am hearing some folks say that this is enough, and that we have finally reached our tipping point. Sadly, nothing could be further from the truth. If the slaughter of 20 innocent children while they were in school, or nine church goers while they prayed, didn't change the hearts and minds of the 2nd Amendment crazies; nothing will.

And let's address the elephant in the room:  the race of the shooter, and Americas's readiness to call this just some lone wolf wacko with issues. (Bill O' Reilly said that living with these kind of psychos is the "price of freedom" for crying out loud.) Sorry America, this was a terrorist act plain and simple. Shooting an automatic (or semi-automatic) weapon from a high- rise building into a  mass of people is terrorism. I don't care what his motive was. Ask those people who survived this horrific event if they weren't terrified.  Every person of color was praying that the shooter wasn't one of them. Why?  Because we all know that the narrative would have been different if it was. Just listen to the president today as he read from that teleprompter and talked about unity,  prayers, and coming together.  Had the shooter been a person of color he would have been tweeting about what a "loser" the killer was and how America would revenge the deaths of all those innocent people.  That's not just hyperbole or magnification from The Field Negro; that's a fact. We have been down this road before.

When Donald trump talks about his "wall", please remind him that his wall would not have kept out Stephen Paddock . Stephen Paddock was already here. He was one of us. 

*Pic from  abcnews.go.com

It's never too late to have "the talk".

 *A few years ago, before I got  married and settled in, I was driving a little sports car in a small town on the Main Line (Philly's equivalent to Beverly Hills), when a local police cruiser came out of nowhere with its lights flashing behind me.

Even back then, before the focus on racial profiling, I knew that I had been pulled over a time or two for no other reason than DWB. So I pulled over, got my papers in order, and politely asked the officer what I did wrong.

He was very polite as well. And after going over my papers, making eye contact, and exchanging a few words, he told me that I was driving rather "aggressively" and to be more careful down the road.

Of course I knew why I was really stopped; knew that he was lying, but I sucked it up and kept it popping.

That little anecdote is a perfect segue into the following story:

"FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) — Twelve people have said they witnessed a local police department's fatal shooting of a black motorist over the weekend, but none has stepped forward to say what they saw, a Florida sheriff investigating the death said Monday.

St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara said he and his detectives passed out cards, but no one has called.

"We need our community's help," Mascara said. "We aren't interested in rumors or gossip; we are looking to find the truth."

Fort Pierce Police Chief Diane Hobley-Burney asked the sheriff's office to conduct the investigation into Saturday night's shooting of 21-year-old Demarcus Semer so that it would be impartial, Mascara said.

The sheriff said Semer had just begun work at a tech company after working as a bank teller, had no criminal record and was "well-respected in the community." Semer also played quarterback and receiver at Fort Pierce Central High in 2012 and 2013.

Mascara did not identify or reveal the races of the two officers, but described them as well-respected veterans. He said they would be interviewed by Wednesday. He said the officers were not wearing body cameras and their cars were not equipped with dashboard cameras.

The confrontation began after an officer tried to pull Semer over for a traffic violation and he wouldn't stop until a second officer arrived, Mascara said. While stopped and talking to the officers, Semer began pulling away, clipping one officer in the leg and dragging the other in the car window, he said.

Semer eventually pulled over again, got out of the car and tried to flee, at which point both officers opened fire, Mascara said. Semer died at the scene. The sheriff said he didn't know why Semer would have tried to flee. He said no weapons or drugs were found on him, but investigators are getting a search warrant to inspect the car, hoping that will provide some explanation for Semer's behavior. Autopsy results are also pending, he said.

Mascara said his detectives will conduct a fair, open and thorough investigation. He said the results will be turned over to local prosecutors, who will decide whether to bring charges against the officers to a grand jury.

Josh Shaffer, the Fort Pierce Central football coach, was quoted by Treasure Coast Newspapers as saying Semer was "a brilliant young man who was so personable."

"He was a real leader who could make a connection with about anyone," Shaffer said. "He cares about everyone."

Semer's grandfather, Elijah Smith, of Fort Pierce, was quoted by the newspaper as saying that Semer had been with a group of friends practicing rap music before the shooting.
"He was a nice, good young man," Smith said." [Source]

No one knows exactly what happened to Demarcus Semer in Ft Pierce, Florida Saturday night. And as was the case with another Florida teen in the news recently, only his killers are alive to tell their side of the story.

Stories like this is why, in spite of my background (no criminal record, officer of the court, active member of my community), I was probably just as scared and as apprehensive as Demarcus Semer was Saturday night. But I was lucky, I knew the rules a little better than he did. I knew about "the talk". 

If you don't know what the talk is and you are raising an African American male, you might want to learn about it really fast. It might save you a lot of grief down the road.

*Pic from washingtonmonthly.com

Refreshing the tree of liberty.

I have to talk about this shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada, because I am quite sure that outside of social media and blogs such as this one you will not hear any serious commentary about it.


It comes on the heels of a shooting in Atlanta where another one of these nut- jobs wanted to show us that "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."  Anyway, once again these domestic terrorists are showing us why we should be just as afraid of them as we are of those evil Mooslims.


These two individuals hated their government and authority. (Sound familiar?) And according to their neighbors ---and their Facebook page--- they were supporters of tax cheat, Cliven Bundy, as well.


We should get used to it, because I suspect that there is going to be a lot more of this type of deranged behavior coming from certain types of people in American society.


You can only foam at the mouth for so long over your computer keys, and shoot beer cans in your backyard before you want to act out on the hate that has been building up for years from listening to white right wing hate radio, and conspiracy nuts like Glen Beck and Alex Jones. (BTW, Alex believes that this shooting was set up as a "false flag" operation by the evil government. Ok then,  Alex.)


But Field, what about all the killings in Chicago over the weekend? Why aren't you blogging about that?


Well, for starters, I don't believe that any of those gang- bangers shot two police officers to death. Or, for that matter, that they ran into a huge box- store and shot an innocent person to death just for the heck of it.


Killings in urban America are horrible, and something must be done about them. But these killings are fueled by gang alliances and conflicts, as well as the urban drug trade which thrives due to lack of employment and a stable family environment for these knuckle heads.


But I am not afraid of these urban street gangs rising up and trying to overthrow our government anytime soon. The white supremacy and sovereign movement on the other hand give me cause for pause.  


"The newspaper's report also said the shooters covered the officers' bodies with something featuring the Revolutionary War-era Gadsden flag. The yellow flag, which contains an image of a coiled snake and the words "Don't tread on me," is associated with the conservative Tea Party political movement."


A flag like this one ? Oh yes, I have definitely seen that before.














 

A "drive-by" in Santa Barbara.

I wonder if Mark Cuban is going to cross the street if he sees a wealthy young white dude who just got out of a German sedan coming towards him.




Seriously dude? You drive a Bob Marley Wagon in Cali, your dad is a Hollywood director, and yet you kill six people because you have a hard time getting a date? Unbelievable!

"Authorities searching for a motive were looking into a video posted on social media that contains a man's tirade against women who supposedly rebuffed him, Brown told the station. Hoover said the suspect has been preliminarily identified but his name won't be released until "a positive identification is made."

Part of that evidence appears to be a chilling YouTube video titled "Retribution" posted by a young man who rants for nearly seven minutes against women who he says ignored and rejected him.

"Tomorrow is the day of retribution. The day in which I will have my revenge against humanity, against all of you," the man said.

In the video, the man lays out a play to kill blond sorority girls." {Source}

"Blond sorority girls? Lord have mercy! No one is safe these days. I mean if you are a "blond sorority girl" you are a part of the safest group in America.

"Witness Robert Johnson told CNN he was standing on a corner when he heard what he thought were fireworks. Then a black BMW with tinted windows drove by and either slowed down or stopped outside a deli where as many as eight people were eating outside."

A drive- by in Santa Barbara. Man that's a long way from South Central.

At least it is in terms of geography.


Finally, I swear these Tea Party folks will do anything to get to Obama.


Did you hear the one about the naked guy at the White House gate?


"Police have arrested a man in front of the White House after he reportedly got naked and tried to hop the fence, reports say.


Photos of the arrest show at least four Secret Service agents pinning the nude man to the sidewalk after he tried to get by security and assaulted an officer on Friday afternoon.


The unidentified man left nothing to the imagination as he stripped all the way down to his socks at one of the security gates at about 3 p.m. after he was denied entrance to the White House, according to the Daily Caller.


The man was adamanat that he had an appointment with the President Obama as he yelled and removed his boxers, the Caller reported. That was seconds before his naked body was tackled to the ground.


The officers clothed him with a simple blanket and packed him away into the back of a van." {Source}


Hey at least he wasn't shot to death like this poor lady. She also thought that she had an appointment with the president. He will live to tell us all what he was high on. Sadly, we will never know her true story.

More questions about a shooting in Texas, and Donald is caught on tape again.

Last night at the end of my post about the 93 year old woman, who was shot to death in Texas, I reserved judgment until I heard more about the case.


Well, I have heard more, and Officer Stephen Stem has some explaining to do.


This is a police officer with a bad history, and when I look at the totality of the circumstances I just don't see where deadly force was justified in this situation.


This comment from someone commenting on the New York Daily News website pretty much sums up my feelings:


"She's 93, probably suffering from dementia to some degree. Someone that old could also have other infirmities such as deafness or impaired sight.  She never shot at him but Stam shot her anywhere from 3 5o 5 times when she wouldn't stop waving the gun.  I wonder if this cop would have shot an elderly 93 year old white woman."


I wonder as well.


Finally, someone should just tell my man Donald Sterling to leave bad enough alone and quit with commenting on racism.


In mean this latest staged   "leaked" phone call between him and an alleged friend is beneath whatever dignity he has left. The only thing worse than a racist is a cowardly racist who won't even man up and embrace his racism.


You have to give it to the Stormfront folks and those of their ilk; at least they embrace their ignorance and wear it proudly on their sleeves. You would never hear them trying to spin their racism like old man Sterling.

"You think I’m a racist?" Sterling asks the friend in the recording that was obtained and posted by RadarOnline on Thursday. "You think I have anything in the world but love for everybody? You don’t think that! You know I’m not a racist!"

The other voice responds, "I know I, but, I but .. what about when I hear that tape though, that tape of her..."

"I grew up in East LA!," Sterling retorts. "East LA! You’d die to get out of there — I got out of East LA. I was the president of the high school there. I mean, and I’m a Jew! And 50 percent of the people there were black and 40 percent were Hispanic. You ever been to Boyle Heights (a working-class Mexican-American neighborhood in LA) ... So I mean, people must have a good feeling for me."

So he goes the some of my best friends are black route. Really?

"It breaks my heart that Magic Johnson, my — a guy that I respect so much, wouldn’t stand up and say, ‘Well let’s get the facts. Let’s get him and talk to him.’ Nobody tried". [Source]

Donald, Magic has heard all he needs to hear from you. And I am pretty sure that most of the folks in America feel the same way.

The Apartheid president.

Congrats to The Butler for being the number one movie at the box office this past weekend. As I wrote earlier, it was destined to be a hit. I won't be seeing it, but apparently conservatives have been watching it and they don't like what they see.

"Ronald Reagan biographer Craig Shirley appeared on Fox News Monday afternoon to criticize Lee Daniels’ The Butler an Oprah Winfrey-produced biopic of the White House butler who served under numerous presidents, a film that is drawing heat from conservatives over its portrayal of Reagan.

Most objectionable to Shirley and others is the film’s take on Reagan’s refusal to sanction South Africa over Apartheid. “It’s a very complex issue, and it was presented in a very simplistic fashion,” Shirley said. “It’s accurate to the extent that Reagan opposed the sanctions, but not accurate as to why he opposed the sanctions.”

Shirley argued that Reagan was constrained by Cold War politics". [Source]

This is classic conservative speak. Rather than acknowledge that they were on the wrong side of history; they try to rewrite it.

Seriously, what could have been so "complex" about Apartheid? Ronald Reagan, the patron saint of the conservative movement, is the same guy who chose Philadelphia, Mississippi- a place where three civil rights activists were murdered- to give a speech on states rights, disparaged America's greatest African American hero, and tried to appeal to bigots in his base when he tried to paint African American women as "welfare Queens."

Nope, there was nothing "complex" about Apartheid. It was a racist policy("state sanctioned segregation") put in place by a racist government to hold down blacks in that country. Reagan knew that and he supported it. It's really that simple.

Finally, there is sad story out of Oklahoma. Three young thugs shot some poor dude from Australia to death just for fun and because they could. In case you Aussies didn't know, that's how we roll here in A-murder-ca. It's all about the guns.

There were a couple of killings last night in Philly as well, and three more in a little town 20 minutes from here called Chester. Just another typical summer night in Killadelphia.

Conservative radio and wingnuts in general are playing up the racial angle of the killing in Oklahoma, and there are even calls to label it a hate crime. Some idiot named Mike Gallagher was ranting on the radio about a white march for justice and a movement led by white people for this Aussie baseball player like there was for Trayvon Martin.

Not quite. Maybe, like Zimmerman, they thought that they could just kill someone and get away with it. But, unlike Zimmerman, they were all immediately arrested ---as they should have been--- and will be tried as adults for their alleged crime.

But still, I will be willing to march for justice with my white brothers and sisters, as long as we march against the NRA and their enablers as well.  

  

Mr. President, you have a daughter, and she looks like Hadiya.

This is crazy. I just blogged about all the killings in Chicago last night and sadly I learned that a beautiful young lady who actually performed for president Obama's inauguration, was taken from us by some low life thug who was dropped off by some sperm donor.

If hearing about the Newtown tragedies was the saddest day of Mr. Obama's presidency, hearing about this little girl should be the second saddest. Actually, given the fact that she was shot just a mile from his home in Chicago, and that she actually performed at his "coronation" ,you could argue that this little girl's death should hit home even more. He has a beautiful daughter who is almost her age. From all appearances this poor child represented everything that was good about being a young teenager: Honor student, volley ball player, and a majorette in the King College Prep High School band. Sadly, though, she is no longer with us.

"Police say 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton was shot in the back Tuesday and later died at University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital. An unidentified boy was shot in the leg and is being treated at the hospital. No arrests have been made." [Source] 

"If I had a son he would look like Trayvon." Mr. President, you have a daughter, and she looks just like Hadiya.

And the beat goes on. Not only in a hood near you, but in all of Americana. In Phoenix, Arizona today, some old dude shot up an office complex and is still on the loose. In Midland, Alabama, some nut case went on a school bus, took a six year old child, and shot the school bus driver to death. (The NRA now calling for armed school bus drivers in 5...4...3..2..) That genius is still hiding out in a Glenn Beck style survival bunker.  

All this on a day when the Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings in Washington on gun control. There was Gabby Giffords, who was lucky to survive a shooting herself making a passionate plea to lawmakers to use common sense.

And, of course, there was Wayne LaPierre. It's amazing that the cuffs on his white shirt stayed so clean with all the blood on his hands.



  



 

Crime and punishment.

Memo to all of you young black bucks in America: Always watch out for the head shot.

In case you didn't notice the trend, protecting the value of our property is more important than your life. It's the price you pay for living in a very dangerous and "color aroused" time in our nation's history.

Of course, when a seven year old can be killed by a murderous malevolent thug while selling candy from her home, can we really blame the po po for being a bit unnerved?

It doesn't matter if it's Trayvon Martin or Trevion Davis; there should have been a wakeup call for you black folks with your children a long time ago. You can't be too careful with how you raise them. If the mean streets don't get them those who are charged with protecting them will.

Speaking of "color aroused", those folks in the right wing blogosphere sure know how to let their "racist freak flags fly".

Check out these comments about the CBC:

"Every one of them has been accused, investigated or convicted of a crime.
[…]
Looks like a zoo exibit that got loose. Oh, you said criminals, I thought it said animals, oopsy.
[…]
I hope they keep walking — right out of the country. A swift kick to their white-hating asses would be in order too.
[…]
Which part of BLACK caucus don’t you understand? That’s racist to the max,
[…]
When you listen to these folks speak, please take note of the difficulty they each have constructing a single coherent sentence - the best and the brightest, to be sure.
[…]
It’s not what you think people! There was a pole smokers for pedophiles fund raiser just down the street……….. These spunk chuggers just wanted to get good seats.
[…]
‘Affirmative Action’: n***g**s new proxy.
[…]
They stand there, with their racism on full display, and not a single one of them realizes that they, themselves, are the racists/bigots. The old, ingrained plantation mentality blinds them all.
[…]
I hope we have a good election turnout to get these spooks out of office and get people in their that willwork for the people!
[…]
Blakks holding public office are traitors to our country. This example shows that blakks scoff at their oath of office because it forces them to obey whitey’s laws. They are through obeying whitey’s laws because Obama disobeys whitey’s laws. Obama has set them free to outwardly disregard our form of government and fight for a single purpose, to rob whitey to feed their own. Dammmmn our country, get revenge on it. That is their oath of office.
[…]
To bad there wasn’t a drive by or a runaway bus while they were gathered all together.
[…]
The leaves on the tree of liberty are starting to look a little dry.
[…]
Why are these blakks assembled as a gang showing the world they hate whites? Aren’t they racist? I don’t care if they are racist, I want them out of our white country, as they are destroying it.
[…]
pot calling kettle black, good one.
[…]
I think it’s time to bring back the old derogatory names which were used against these race baiters as they have not progressed beyond race and probably never will.
[…]
That be Rayciss! And I agree." [Source]

Rest in peace Andrew Breitbart.

Finally, for an excellent article on why conservatives run such a tight ship and are so united in their hate of all that is different, please read here.

Joe Brewer does a nice job of breaking down the differences between progressives and [right] wingnuts when it comes to political organizing, and why it is so hard for those of us on the left to get our stuff together.

"Sound familiar? In American politics, we see the top-down authoritarian worldview of Conservatives enabling them to fall in line and take marching orders. They form strong loyalty bonds through religious affiliation, old money networks, and various social clubs that give them an immense capacity for social cohesion.

And what about Progressives? We are divided into issue silos, unable to form lasting coalitions that bond us together under the same ideological flag, and easily kept on the defensive through the age-old strategy of Divide and Conquer. We have difficulty trusting each other and our funders are unable or unwilling to invest in talent for talent’s sake...."

Yep.

And I hate to contribute to the splintering of the progressive movement. But I am begging you folks over at Netroots Nation not to ever ask me for suggestions again.

Until you are ready to address urban issues and to make a concentrated effort to reach out to people of color, I won't have s**t to say to you.

     
   


 

Urban terrorist and the people charged to control them.

I will be the first to admit that sometimes a cell phone can seem like a deadly weapon. Like, for instance, when I am trying to relax in a public area or concentrate on what I am doing, only to be drawn into someones conversation who happens to be two city blocks away.

Still, I think it's a bit much to think someone is going to blast away and cause you serious bodily harm with their cell phone. Unfortunately, for 22 year old Woodrow Wilson Player, (What self respecting black person names their son Woodrow Wilson? The man was a flat out racist who segregated the federal government and praised the KKK. But I digress. ) the LAPD doesn't seem to agree. Pull a cell phone on the LAPD and that's your ass. I guess they hate cell phones as much as I do.

"According to a preliminary investigation, the incident began when sheriff's deputies from the Lennox Station responded to an alleged 'man with a gun' call. The suspect was allegedly driving a vehicle. The deputies made a 'felony' traffic stop, and the suspect got out of his car and ran, Thompson said. Deputies gave chase, and Player twice pointed a 'dark object' at deputies, causing them to believe he was armed with a handgun. When investigators searched the alley where the shooting occurred, they recovered a cellphone next to Player, not a gun, said sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore.'It appears the dark object was a cellphone,' Whitmore said. Player was declared dead at the scene."

Now before you go thinking that this is just another field painting the poor innocent black man as a victim of police brutality story, it is not. (Although this stuff is starting to get a bit much with LA's finest.) Shit like this happens every day. If that was the case I could do two or three posts a day with nothing but this stuff. No, what made me post this story was all the fascinating layers to it, and how it speaks to urban crime and violence.

This cat had beaten a murder charge before, and he was no angel. Like Snoop, he was a crip, but unlike Snoop, he was no rapper. Still, he should not have lost his life allegedly at the hands of an untrained police officer, or worse, a police officer determined to give out his own personal brand of justice. In spite of what scum like this would want. (Did I call these people scum? I shouldn't have. Scum deserves better.) If he was a bad guy (which by all accounts he was) he should have been charged with a crime, taken off the street, and left to the criminal justice system to handle him. If he was allowed to walk free because of poor prosecuting or policing, then maybe the people of Los Angeles County should vote out their District Attorney. Or maybe thy should revisit how their probation and parole department keeps track of some of these multiple offenders. And it's not only Los Angeles. As someone who has been in the belly of the beast a time or two here in Philly, --been in some of the worst holding cells in the district and in the prisons- I can tell you that incarceration is not a deterrent. To many, it's a badge of honor. You can almost see the pride in their eyes when you hear some of these young bucks talking about just "coming home" after doing time. It's as if they were home from college or some shit.

But back to my original story, because it gets even more bizarre:

"UPDATE: Four people were shot and injured this afternoon in Athens while standing in an alley where another man was killed Friday night by sheriff’s deputies.

Paramedics had responded to the shooting and were transporting the injured, three men and one woman, to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Sheriff’s deputies ordered a gathering crowd to calm down after what appeared to be a drive-by shooting.

Witnesses said that at about 2:30 p.m., an old model gray Buick with three men inside stopped in front of the alley and about a dozen shots were fired from the car, which then sped away."

This seems to be a new phenomenon. Just a week or so ago the same thing happened right here in Philly. Hell there have been shootings at funerals here in Philly, so I guess it's not so new after all.

Wow! We can't even let each other grieve in peace now. Is this is what it's come to? I would love to say that it will end and that we will get a handle on it soon. But when the people on the front lines who are charged with controlling these urban terrorist can't do their jobs, I really have to wonder.

"Sick twisted freak"

When I am 88 years old I hope to be enjoying my golden years by playing 18 holes every day in some exotic place and sipping exotic drinks until I pass out from boredom. Unfortunately, James W. von Brunn does not share my views about how to spend his golden years. After a life filled with hate and hateful rhetoric, this loon decided that he would rather be shooting niggers and Jews instead of relaxing on a cabana at the Golden Slippers Nursing Home.

Today, his miserable life took a sick and twisted turn. Armed with a 22- caliber rifle he walked into the Holocaust Memorial Museum and took the like of a young field Negro named Stephen Johns. But this is how it's been in A-merry-ca these days, violent extremist acting out their sick twisted fantasies. Abortion doctors; Army recruiting stations; and Jewish museums. What's next?

But we were warned. And except for the idiots on the right, (their toes were hurting from everyone stepping on them) we expected that it was just a matter of time before the hateful rhetoric swirling around us combined with the hard economic times would spur the "black helicopter" folks into action.

I have a suggestion for all you field Negroes and honorary field Negroes out here: Be vigilant; it is only going to get worse. There are plenty James W. von Brunns out there. And there are plenty more people willing to push their buttons.

To the family of Stephen Tyrone Johns, we feel your loss. To our A-merry-can family, we feel your loss as well.

Just another day in Killadelphia?

You all will excuse me if I feel like I am living in a modern day version of Dodge City. Consider the following story:

An off duty police officer is cruising down a busy city street at 3:30 PM yesterday. To his shock and surprise....I take that back, this is Philly, I am sure he wasn't that surprised. But anyway, right there on a busy street in the Logan section of town, he observed a group of young African Americans jump from a car and proceed to pump bullets into another young African American male who was standing on the sidewalk.

Of course the off duty officer did what any properly trained cop would do, he pursued the perpetrators. He followed them in his car until they jumped out and tried to escape. Then, tragically, one of the young men allegedly reached for a hand gun and was shot and killed.

So field, what's the big deal? You tell us about killings in Philly all the time. Yes, but here is where the story takes a little twist: It seems the perpetrator who was shot and killed is the son of two of Philly's finest, himself. Yes folks, in the city of "Brotherly Love", there just isn't that much love going around these days. Even the sons of those who are paid to protect us allegedly try to play Al. Capone. Sadly, for this family, this son won't be coming home, and they will have to live with the memory that one of their fellow comrades in blue had to take him out.

From all indications it was a justifiable shoot. But, as is always the case with these things, we will have to wait and see. What is it that Danish philosopher said about irony?

" Irony is a disciplinarian feared only by those who do not know it, but cherished by those who do.."?

Irony, I know you well.

Story here.

OAKLAND, WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

If you don't know who Oscar Juliuss Grant,III is, I am pretty sure that you will soon. Mr. Grant is the poor gentleman who lost his life at the hands of someone who was supposed to be protecting him. Mr. Grant was shot and killed by a Bay Area Rapid Transit Authority (BART) police officer who was allegedly trying to break up a fight. Shockingly, Mr. Grant, at the time, was unarmed.

Now I am going to answer the comments that I know I am going to get about what a tough job police officers have right now. Yes I know they have a tough and thankless job, yes I know that they are putting their lives on the line to protect us law abiding citizens, and yes I know that most police officers are good hard working people who want to do the right thing.

But.... (oh boy here comes field with the but) come on now, how can we blame folks for being outraged when an unarmed man who was in police custody, and clearly restrained, was shot to death? One of the beautiful things of living in the You Tube era is that we can see damn near everything that happens in the world right on our T.V. screens and computer monitors. And unless someone doctored the tape I saw, it was pretty clear to me that Mr. Grant was already subdued and the officers had the situation well in hand.

But as is always the case with these stories, the boyz in blue are rallying around each other, and cover ups and verbal deception rules the day. Now the authorities are claiming that Mr. Grant was not restrained at the time of the shooting, and there are still quite a few unanswered questions surrounding the incident. Yeah right, and Lark Voorhies could walk by me in the nude and I would never look at her. I mean am I missing something here? I SAW THE TAPE! Even if the man wasn't in handcuffs he was certainly restrained. I don't know about you people, but restrained to me means that the officers have the situation under control, and that the man is going nowhere.

"Several apparent witnesses have disputed that, saying Grant was shot in the back while in handcuffs.."

Oakland we have a problem. Well, actually, it's not only Oakland, seems right here in my hometown of Killadelphia we have this problem as well. So you will excuse me if I am not quite as shocked after watching this video and hearing about this story as you are.

I heard an expert on one of these news shows say that the officer clearly made a mistake and he thought he was reaching for his taser but pulled his gun, instead. If that's the case they need to just come clean and admit it. Yes, there will be a big fat law suit, and the man's little daughter and his family will get paid. But this is the price you pay for incompetence, or, god forbid, something worse . It's just sad that it had to cost someone his life.