rubato wrote:Justice and fairness would be nice. Might even have a larger effect and a longer lasting one.
but you have to deal with reality to sort that one. Good luck.
yrs,
rubato
I agree that body cameras are a far cry from the fix(es) we really need, and that if anything the past six years has shown us how far we are from getting to those larger fixes in our current society. There is still so much active racial bias, it's very hard to imagine all parties coming to consensus on truly meaningful reforms.
Look how incredibly biased the death penalty system alone has been shown to be in study after study after study - it's not even a matter of debate anymore among the vast majority of lawyers, the ABA is behind a moratorium, a Republican governor commuted an entire death row based on those realities, we've had hundreds of prisoners exonerated including from death rows, and we still can't agree to stop executing people.
Good luck, indeed.
For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
~ Carl Sagan
Ding, ding. Seems pretty clear the connection, no matter what's written.
bigskygal wrote:
Like Pavlov's dog; Jim points out that rubato issued a gratuitous insult and;
Ding, ding. Seems pretty clear the connection, no matter what's written.
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Guinevere wrote:...why don't we actually acknowledge that there is still tremendous racial inequality in this country, and along with the growing economic inequality, its making people more and more despairing that they will get a fair shake. Why don't we try and address the problem as a nation, instead of becoming more and more balkanized (by race, economic status, political affiliation, and all the other ways more and more dividing lines seem to be drawn -- Lib's headline and opening comments are a perfect example).
Duly acknowledged (by most folks anyway). So what do "we" do? In one small area that seemed to provide a smidgin of help, body cameras for police, I heard on the radio the other day that civil liberties concerns are being raised against them. I don't really see it - traffic cameras are becoming more common - but supposedly there is an argument that innocent citizens will be recorded cheating on their spouses, skiving off work, whatever (and perhaps shown on TV etc.) any time that a tape is made public.
But that's a small step. What major steps might be considered to make this a more civil society?
That's not what I meant. I mean a society where our civil rights are respected and actualized, not a society where we are simply more polite. We need to continue to demand equal treatment under the law, and push back and speak up when any of us see or are the recipient of unequal treatment.
I had a chat about this with my favorite chief yesterday afternoon (one who happens to be a large black man-and also one of the most respected Chiefs in the Commonwealth). He tells me that while there is heightened awareness and alertness by the police (there was an incident in Boston on Sunday that the media spun as an unknown officer knifing - it was routine police undercover work), in reality all police have been on extra alert since August when the Ferguson incident happened. He says it's even more tense now for his officers, but not by much. None of which is going to help make anyone who is already feeling disenfranchised feel less threatened or less targeted.
“I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks.” ~ Ruth Bader Ginsburg, paraphrasing Sarah Moore Grimké
rubato wrote:Well, if you read what Guin wrote that would be a start.
Nothing to do with body cameras or traffic cameras here.
yrs,
rubato
Yes, I did read what Guin wrote and don't appreciate your rudeness. I asked what kinds of actions can "we" take. I thank you for the linked articles which I also read.
Guin - by "more civil society" I didn't mean "polite". I meant one that behaves in a more civilized manner in all aspects of life - which would include taking action to correct injustice etc. How is this to be done and what can each of us "do" to achieve right ends?
While I respect "push back" and "speak up" and "equal treatment", is that it? I thought more along actual practical political lines - such as those rubato linked, although I disagree with the proposed solutions.
For Christianity, by identifying truth with faith, must teach-and, properly understood, does teach-that any interference with the truth is immoral. A Christian with faith has nothing to fear from the facts
There are some things that we as a nation and society can do nothing about: We can not make people love each other and don’t know that we should try; if Yankees wish to hate and despise southerner; that is their right. People who work hard, save their money and plan ahead tend to do better that people that don’t. Should we have a law that forces people to work and save money? I say not; if a man wishes to be a bum that is his right as long as his bad decisions are not paid for by others. But what we can do is improve the legal system, Police, courts and prisons in the way it works. To that end I am making a proposal in another thread with a poll to be posted soon. I will see this time if there is any interest in my idea.
Soon, I’ll post my farewell message. The end is starting to get close. There are many misconceptions about me, and before I go, to live with my ancestors on the steppes, I want to set the record straight.
