You may have already seen this video of former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani telling the President of the United States to "shut up," which will certainly make you nostalgic for the civil and direct tone he set during his time in office. More interesting to me is the "other lesson" he passes along here: "Shut up when a cop is asking you questions. You don't insult him, you don't scream. My father taught me that when I was very young." Fair enough; the guy obviously knew what he was talking about.
Friday, July 31, 2009
11
I love that this post in my browser is perched next to an ad for Newt Gingrich's free weekly e-mail.
Darn!
I thought someone was giving away efts and salamanders. I need to start reading the fine print.
Pure genius.
What is it with Sean's "parting the curtains" gesture. Right at the start of the video.
Sean's "Nathan Lane" is a sure-fire laugh riot.
This would be rated "R" by the New York Times for "Penis, penis!"
That was definitely the prevailing wisdom among me and my hillbilly brethren in the hillbilly town where I grew up: Cops are just Dicks here to Screw You, so you're best to Shut Up when they are Ego Tripping all over your Good Time. They'd harass us as teenagers when we were just doing highly suspect things like hanging out behind the Homeland grocery. They'd arrest you for things like disturbing the peace if you talked back, because who's going to stop them? If you stared at your shoes and muttered little other than a "yessir" they'd let you go with just a little pushing around or something. When I moved into the civilized world it took a while before I realized most people don't have this kind of mentality. In fact, most had rarely interacted with the police at all. So I don't know. It's radically unfair, but what can you do? We were white kids getting pushed around by white cops; I imagine it's worse for other people. But this always seemed to me like a problem of jerks with a badge, not necessarily a racial thing.
I don't think this Crowley was acting with a racial bias. I am sure he could have handled himself better, but I don't think his actions were racially motivated.
On the other hand, Gates appears to be acting from a bias -- that all cops are out to get him and that they are racist. Plus, it wasn't as though Gates was in any physical danger. There are channels citizens can use to lodge complaints against cops who overstep their bounds. Gates should have used those channels versus acting like an idiot.
I know that if I pulled this crap on a police officer in my hometown (and I'm a white suburban woman), I'd end up arrested too. Police officers put their life on the line each day -- even in Cambridge. If someone starts acting out and verbally harassing an officer, let's give them the benefit of the doubt.
of course Rudy Mussolini would say shit like that. The guy's entire MO is all about slavish submission to the authority of THE POLICE.
The thing about this Gates incident that I find most depressing is not related to race - I don't think there's anything revealing about race relations in America that came out of this. Rather, it's the fact that in today's America, it's pretty much a given that talking back to a cop will get you arrested, and that most people are seemingly cool with that. What kind of fucking country willingly submits to such authoritarianism in that way? Yea yea, I know cops have hard jobs and put their life on the line and all that - and believe me, I'm not anti-police. But come on! There's cops all over this retarded fat ass country who arrest people for looking at them funny, who tase people who mouth off, who abuse their goddamn authority simply because they fucking can and if you have a problem with that how about I stick this here tazer right up your asshole (look that up). And America, as usual, says nothing. Because you know, these people put their life on the line and stuff. Never mind that they choose to do so. Never mind that other people put their lives on the line every day but never ever get away with the kind of shit that cops do. Last time I checked, if an off-duty firefighter beats your ass outside Patty O'McGillicutty's he's still going to go to jail for the night. If the EMT guy who comes over to haul you to the hospital because you slipped on the tub and broke your leg decides to take your stereo as "a tip," he's still going to get charged with theft. But if Ociffer Friendly decides to beat your ass and taze you in the balls simply because you didn't show enough deference to the badge, then hey, he's a fucking hero and risks his life everyday for you, and if he wants to take out his frustrations on your silly civilian ass, then it's OK because in the USA (especially if we're White) we worship the police and we worship authority and we're scared little runts and we are throwing this goddamned country into the toilet and giving in to authoritarianism. God I fucking hate America sometimes.
And don't give me that shit about "a few bad apples." This tazering people for no reason business happens all the fucking time. The stories aren't even shocking anymore it happens so much. So spare me the histrionics and shit. Fucking cops. Assholes.
All this talk about cops gots me craving donuts.