Cut programs

Whenever republicans suggest cutting social programs the democrats quickly point out the need for police and fire protection thus hoping the thwart any cuts. Now the democrats are proposing cuts to police.

Cut sooner

When solutions are found to problems people can always ask why wasn't it done sooner. Trump solutions to the virus are subject to this criticism. Today on the news Nancy Pelosi said that the race problems in America started with slavery and continue to this day. She then announced a new law containing six main changes that will start to solve this problem. The six changes could have been made anytime and she has been in congress for 35 years. So the question arises, why didn't she do this sooner?

Furgeson

Most of the news shows today started out with the exclamation, ten days of protest, as if that were a world record. As a reminder recall the last time we had a racially activated protest. The unrest that happened after Michael Brown, a black man, was killed by white officer in Ferguson, MO went on in stages. Date First wave: August 9, 2014 – August 25, 2014[1] Second wave: November 24, 2014[2] – December 2, 2014[3] Third wave: August 9, 2015 – August 11, 2015 Even the first wave lasted 16 days.

Police training

As a result of the recent slaying of a black man by Minneapolis Police certain reforms are recommended. These include bias training for police, more federal oversight, appointment of special prosecutors for police crimes, police should avoid actions that escalate the problem, hold officers accountable, incentives for officers to change and better pay for police. Governor Cuomo of New York says these things are needed. He has been governor since 2011.

Viet Nam

As the protest enter the ninth day, most of the press covering the current protest/riots are not familiar with the activities that went on for almost fifteen years during the Viet Nam War. People were in the streets on a regular basis over this time period with crowds often exceeding 100,000. One of the more serious incidences occurred at Kent State when four student protesters were shot and killed by National Guard Troops.

Riots are gone

When the riots subside and disappear into the trash heap of yesterdays news, when the celebrities who decry injustice go back to their gated homes and when the politicians who use these events to get reelected, when the news people see the ratings drop and move to the next big disaster, the poor people who live in low income areas like the Phillips district in Minneapolis will look around and not believe what they see. Neighborhoods which are already referred to as food deserts will see their stores and businesses destroyed and their jobs gone. In every riot the poorest end up losing the most and after the next election they will be forgotten.

Riots

There are two terrible unrelated events that keep reoccurring and they have some important similarities. First is the periodic riots over while police officers killing black civilians and the second is mass school shootings. At the end of each episode experts come on TV and tell us what they are going to do to prevent this from ever happening again. After a couple of weeks things die down and nothing much happens until the next incidence.