Not one single person thought the Grand Jury decision in Ferguson was incorrect, wrong or unjust!! As I listened to the talk, people were saying how they thought it was totally crazy of those people back there to pillage and burn in their own town. The law is the law ... you do what law enforcement tells you to do or you suffer the consequences. Course none of us were there and the Grand Jury is the only one who has seen and heard all the evidence. Most of our players were proud of the Grand Jury for not caving in to the wishes of those rioting, the rest were just glad it wasn't THEM on the jury.
I was not expecting to hear this. For once, it made me proud to be from California. On my recent trip to Maine, we passed very near Ferguson, and from what I saw, the Civil War is NOT over, no matter what the history books say. Even the plaques and monuments lay blame on the "other side" for just about everything. The Westerfields and I checked out many of the statues, museums and local history, to find the finger pointing and blame still raging in the midwest, so I shouldn't be surprised to see this kind of behavior. But here's the deal folks ... the law IS the law, and if you're breaking the law or acting in a threatening way toward the people who are charged with enforcing the law ... the outcome is all on you. You can stop what you are doing and act like a reasonable person, or you suffer the consequences. To then riot and burn businesses in your town because you don't like the decision your peers made regarding the lawfulness of the consequences, is only hurting yourself, resulting in disgust in the minds of most, as well as lessening the sympathy you might have received otherwise from across the U.S.
I just don't understand their motives behind all this ... and I don't think they do either!! Will this change the laws? Will rioting change how they are treated? Will this get them a big money settlement? What about all the innocent people they are hurting in the process? Just what ARE they thinking???
Very hard to understand.... I lived in the midst of it for 22+ years in Arkansas. Had a older White guy come in my office and tell me that "enough is enough". Asked what he was talking about and he said, "I understand that you needed to buy some books for them people, but enough is enough." I reminded him that I was the Librarian for the entire population, and that I would continue to buy books for the entire population. Had another guy come in, a Black man this time, tell me that "55% of the population was black and that 55% of the books had to be for the blacks. " I asked him that when I bought something such as the Britannica Encyclopedias, was I buying them for the "Whites" or for the "Blacks". He said, "Well, Britannica is English, so that would be considered for the "Whites". So I responded, (this was pre-Internet days), "What do I tell all the young Black kids that come in after school to do school reports and use the Britannica to find the answers to their school homework? Do I tell them that they cannot use the Britannicas because YOU said they were bought for the "Whites"? Yes, Racism exists, and it is a two-sided coin, not a one-sided coin. I could go on with many more stories.....but I will get off my box and just say, "Good post Nancy".
ReplyDeleteI guess it just amazes me that people still think that way Dave .. on both sides. I thought we were past that, but apparently that's not the case. I suppose it has a lot to do with how and where you were raised, but we're all human beings and should respect each other, and not play the racism card when we don't get our way.
DeleteYou must have been eavesdropping when Bill and I were talking about it. Good blog.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jan ... I'm sorry for the family that lost a son, but screaming racism and rioting isn't the answer.
DeleteWe were in Kentucky when President Obama was running and we found out how bigoted both the whites and blacks are. It's really too bad people can't get along.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure babies aren't born with bigotry ... it's learned from family and friends, passed down through generations, as is the demand for living at someone else's expense!!
DeleteHi, Nancy, I love reading your blog, and I just wanted to comment that I grew up in KS, near the Missouri border. I saw racism on both sides. It amazes me that now, 50+ years later, when I go back to see family, I see the very same things I saw as a child, the same racism, both sides. It does not end, and I don't know how it ever will. I, too, am sorry this family lost their son, it's so sad. But this rioting and violence will not bring him back.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you enjoy the blog ... it's fun for me to write about my mishaps and occasional successes!! It's good to hear from someone who lived in Kansas also ... I just had no idea anything like this existed. This last trip sure opened my eyes!! It seems to be a generational thing ... it gets passed down over and over again. What a shame those people will never know how wonderful it is to get along and enjoy life. Instead, they would rather live in anger and resentment, making everyone around them feel the same, not to mention the thief's and robbers taking advantage of the situation by stealing and burning. What's their justification for that??
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