Ho hum. Another person of color killed by the police.
Could be a man on the streets. Could be a woman in her bedroom. Could be a child in his yard.
And, after all the usual excuses are made for the police, we hear the refrain of "a few bad apples."
"A few bad apples." Over and over again. And yet, we never seem to throw those few bad apples away, which is what any competent grocer would do.
And what about the other apples? The ones we assume are "good".
Shouldn't they be offended by the presence of the bad ones?
They should. But it seems they rarely are. The "brotherhood of the thin blue line" and all that bullshit.
If you continually look the other way as the bad apples engage in whatever mayhem they please, up to and including murder, and then make excuses for their behavior, how "good" are you really?
Perhaps we should make every cop take a lengthy psychological evaluation to see if maybe, just maybe, they're racists with a strong tendency for violence. And summarily dismiss those who are.
But the police unions would never allow that, would they?
So here we are.
The people we pay to "protect and serve" all of us are apparently so terrified of some of us that they automatically reach for their guns under almost any circumstances.
Imagine what a person of color feels every time they see a policeman. Imagine living your entire life with that kind of feeling.
It's really very simple: If you give a "little" man (or woman) a badge and a gun, all of a sudden he's a "big" man (or woman).
And you better listen to him (or her), you better obey him (or her)...or he (or she) may kill you.
Of course, if you're black or brown, even if you listen, even if you obey, they still might kill you...because somehow, in their mind, you're a threat.
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