The Racial Mess in America

When it comes to the racial mess in America, a few things can be said.  First,  it depends on the location.  Many, if not most, places in America, do not have a race problem.  Second, the fact that an ethnic group is not adequetly represented on a particular police force does not have to result in the situation we see playing out in Ferguson, MO.  And, thirdly, we see in this situation a lot more people running around with lit matches than we see firemen.

As to the situation, we know little other than that a white policeman shot and killed a young black man.  Policemen, as we well know, do shoot and kill men -- both whites and blacks, and on occasion, I presume, women.  That's why they wear guns.  And, in most instances, the use of the policeman's gun is more than justified.

So what's going on in Ferguson?  This crime is just now being investigated, but the community has already reached the conclusion that the officer is guilty of unjustifiably killing a black youth.  They want "justice."  So what is justice?  Is it looting small businesses in downtown Ferguson?  Sure, not each and every black person participated in the looting.  But, where were the black voices trying to stop this looting?

I see black people on TV telling their children to be extra careful when being stopped by a patrolman.  As a kid I never had to be told this, and it wasn't because I'm white.  It was because I had observed my dad when he was stopped by a patrolman.  In that situation, a more subservient individual would have been hard to find.  This wasn't my dad's normal demeanor.  But, he knew not to get wise with a cop.  I think this is not so different from other ethnic groups.  Are blacks an exception?

There is every possibility that the policeman in this case was guilty of murder.  It's equally possible that he was not -- that he was acting in line with duty.  Apparently, blacks have no confidence in the American system despite America having put a black man into the Oval Office.  This does deserve examination.  In the meantime, I would suggest that Al Sharpton put his cigarette lighter back into his pocket.