Ive stayed silent on Ferguson so far, but I cant any longer. Cheltenham Township, PA, is a wonderful town that sits literally across the street from Philadelphia. They are close enough to the city that there is substantial spill over crime that just cross the street. Its a busy department, but one that takes its mandate seriously. Cheltenham has a culture of professionalism and honesty and they train their officers accordingly. If a Cheltenham cop tells you something about their case, you can trust them. Doesnt mean that they tell you everything, just that they are honest and forthright. The next town over from Cheltenham, Abington Township, is a bit more isolated from the city, and thus dont have too many better things to do. Consequently, they would frame their own mothers to get a conviction, and I dont trust them one bit. Cheltenham sees itself as an agent of justice; Abington sees itself as an agent of order — and they govern themselves accordingly. Police killings of unarmed African-Americans are at pandemic levels. There was another last night in LA, in fact. chicagotribune/news/chi-lapd-shooting-unarmed-black-man-20140813-story.html And Eric Garner in Staten Island; John Crawford in Ohio; and of course, Michael Brown of Ferguson, MO. And let us not forget Trayvon Martin — not killed by a cop, of course, but a vigilante, a self-appointed agent of order. What is George Zimmerman but a low rent Batman, armed not with cool gadgets or tragic backstory, but a Glock and an attiude. Being a cop is a hard and dangerous job. Every time you clock in for your shift there is an implicit understanding that you might not clock out. It was that understanding that caused the sergeant on Hill Street Blues to caution his officers after roll call to be careful out there. I wonder what the sergeant in Ferguson advised his officers to do. Too many cops today see themselves as separate and apart from the communities they serve. A military mentality prevails nowadays, and like soldiers in war they see the those who are not in their uniform as other. Suspects, civilians, the elected officials who theoretically oversee them, the courts, and even the law itself. I think back about Cheltenham — fair and honest Cheltenham, who treat defendants with respect, the system with dignity — and I wonder why they are so rare today. Agents of justice. And then I think about Ferguson — that unnamed cop who shot a kid with his hands up. The Dead Kennedys once sang You can get away with murder if youve got a badge, and they have been proven correct on too many instances. His shoots the kid, and then calls for backup to control the crowd. He never even mentioned the shooting — the department learned that from the news. One dead kid mattered less to him than the growing rage he inspired. Cartman, all grown up but with a real gun, demanding to respect my authoritah. Agents of order. Not justice. Not even law. Order.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 13:04:39 +0000
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