Protesting Violence with Violence

As I sit on the sidelines and watch the visions of angry rioters looting and burning businesses I have to ask myself what it' all about.  I mistakenly thought that we had come much further and had learned lessons from the race riots in the 60's or the Rodney King beating in the early 90's.  The differing reports on what happened in Ferguson, Missouri on August 9th are confusing--it is hard to say what actually happened and who to believe.  It is amazing to me how the press sways  public opinion depending on how they want to spin the story.  They want to sell papers, so sensationalizing any story is a win-win situation for them.  They may incite violence with their words, but violence breeds more stories for them to cover.  The killing of Michael Brown was the result of several decisions made by both Brown and Wilson.  Somehow their actions at that particular moment in time brought a less than ideal outcome out of what seems to be a very bad situation.   Was extreme force warranted?  I don't know, I wasn't there.  I don't put my life on the line every day.  I can't say what was going on in the minds of either of them.  I  know that officers are trained to shoot to kill.  There are times when it is necessary.  I'm not sure that this is one of those times.  I often wonder why suspects can't be shot in the leg or better yet shot with pepper spray.  I can honestly say that I don't believe that race had anything to do with it.  I also believe the ensuing  riots have anything to do with Michael Brown anymore, at least not the majority of them.  I have seen coverage of peaceful protests who actually are thinking of the family and wanting justice.  But most have other agendas in mind.

In trying to give our children a better life have we raised a generation of young adults who believe they are entitled to certain things?  What happened to respect for others?  I know there are some bad officers out there, but the majority of them are awesome people who put their lives on the line daily to keep us safe.  Officers are killed daily.  There are those who target police officers including hate groups who like to feed the fire when an incident like Ferguson happens.

Prejudice goes many ways.  When we hear it we think of whites being prejudiced against blacks.  There are just as many blacks who are prejudiced against whites.  We have people who are prejudiced against the police, against immigrants, against women.  It is a cycle of mistrust and hate that needs to be broken.  There are peaceful ways to go about creating change.  Using violence to protest against violence is counter productive.  I believe many of the protesters are anarchists who just want to add fuel to the fire and cause major disturbances.  The looting of stores and burning of businesses in their own community is ludicrous.

I realize that people are disillusioned with the justice system; that politicians have become puppets to big corporations and that America has lost its identity. Change is needed, but the rioting across the country right now isn't solving anything.  It is taking the focus away from the major issues and leaving us to clean up messes made by angry masses caught up in the mob mentality.

I'm not political enough.  I try to just live and let live.  I am disturbed by what I am seeing though.  Change starts from within.  We need to think before we speak, try to see things from all angles and remember that the media is not always accurate.  We may never know the facts.