Bjorn Posted August 18, 2014 This is from a few days ago, but it's an Al-Jazeera report, and at the end of it they are shooting background footage of abandoned land and a street sign miles from the protests. A cop shows up and starts barking orders at them, threatening to "bust their ass", and threatens to confiscate their footage. I've got some people on Facebook claiming that any reporters who get in trouble only did so because of something they did. Hard to argue with this, when there's literally no one in sight other than the cops, the reporters and a cabbie. On Facebook, I'm focusing on sharing the shit that is happening to journalists for now, because as has been said earlier, if this is how the cops treat reporters on camera, what the fuck has been happening off camera for years. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 18, 2014 But the injustice dealt to Brown is still the prevailing cause of the actual protesting. If that is addressed, I really think that many people wouldn't be out there putting themselves at risk of being attacked by the police. There's no doubt in my mind that there are more crimes that need to be addressed, but the active cause of people wanting to be out there head to head with police is wanting justice to be served. I'm not positive that this is entirely true. It was the prevailing spark, and it is still a rallying cry. But the situation and the crowd is a lot more complex than that. In December, the largely white Ferguson-Florissant school board fired Art McCoy, the superintendent, who is African-American. Those who were gathered at the QuikTrip parking lot on Saturday were as inclined to talk about the underlying political issues as they were about the hail of bullets that ended Brown’s life. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dewar Posted August 18, 2014 This entire clip was put up as a youtube post-roll commercial. It's incredible. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JonCole Posted August 18, 2014 I'm not positive that this is entirely true. It was the prevailing spark, and it is still a rallying cry. But the situation and the crowd is a lot more complex than that. No doubt, but this Vox interview with MSNBC's Chris Hayes suggests that a majority of people he talked to really want justice for Brown first and foremost - http://www.vox.com/michael-brown-shooting-ferguson-mo/2014/8/18/6032891/chris-hayes-ferguson-interview Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 18, 2014 No doubt, but this Vox interview with MSNBC's Chris Hayes suggests that a majority of people he talked to really want justice for Brown first and foremost - http://www.vox.com/michael-brown-shooting-ferguson-mo/2014/8/18/6032891/chris-hayes-ferguson-interview It's probably absurd for us to debate it either way. Clearly there are people motivated by a variety of issues and getting justice for Brown is a big one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
itsamoose Posted August 18, 2014 I just came across this on facebook http://www.vox.com/2014/8/15/6005587/ferguson-satire-another-country-russia-china Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Badfinger Posted August 19, 2014 There's been heartbreak and insanity and heroism and terror in Ferguson for more than a week now, but the fact that Nelly is in the crowd marching with them tonight has also added absurd. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 19, 2014 Another journalist was also arrested today, a photojournalist and former marine. People seem to now be referring to those arrested as political prisoners, which does not seem inaccurate at this point. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henroid Posted August 19, 2014 I think they're starting to try to invoke the "Free speech zones" concept, which is a huge load of shit because I thought all of American territory was a free speech zone. Or a Sonic the Hedgehog level. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chummer Posted August 19, 2014 There's been heartbreak and insanity and heroism and terror in Ferguson for more than a week now, but the fact that Nelly is in the crowd marching with them tonight has also added absurd. But what does Ja Rule have to say about this? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henroid Posted August 19, 2014 Can we embed Tweets on here? I forget. Oh well. This: https://twitter.com/ryanjreilly/status/501515140349853697 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 19, 2014 Had anybody linked to Kareem Abdul-Jabar's piece on Ferguson? I've spent the last 45 minutes reading through his column. I feel like I've been missing out not reading his views on things. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 19, 2014 I just came across this on facebook http://www.vox.com/2014/8/15/6005587/ferguson-satire-another-country-russia-china I just got around to reading that. Fantastic. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
James Posted August 19, 2014 The BBC News website has an article about this poll of reactions to the events in Ferguson. I'm kind of alarmed how many people either "don't know" whether the police response has gone too far, or are confident that it's "about right". I'm as woolly and look-at-things-from-both-sides indecisive as anyone, but I cannot comprehend how people can look at what's going on and see it as anything short of madness. Are they not seeing the same thing? What's going on? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JonCole Posted August 19, 2014 White people just don't care about black people nationally here in America. Seriously. White people say a bunch of racist shit, black people get on MSNBC and CNN and talk about how shitty that shit is, and then the one white pundit on the panel talks about how the comment was actually a substantive question about ethics, politics, etc. Multiply that by whatever number you want. Black people beaten and tear gassed in the streets. Oh, lots of the reporters are wearing glasses? Liberal. Black? Biased. Al Jazeera America? Arab fucks we already decided to hate. Liberal media is biased and law-and-order is always right. Police are getting thrown under the bus because they're making some small mistakes. Liberal media is continuing an anti-gun agenda. Oh, months later black people are going to the polls to vote some of these political scumbags out of office? Let's suppress their voter rights because we care about "voter fraud" that takes place nationally in the low thousands. It's systematic, it's hateful, and it clouds the vision of pretty much all white people even when a few white people are pulling those deceptive strings. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
prettyunsmart Posted August 19, 2014 This survey of responses to the situation in Ferguson, broken down by race, just makes me feel awful. I'm not surprised that a huge number of white people think that the amount of force used by the police is appropriate or that "too much emphasis" has been put on race in the media coverage of the event, but that doesn't make me any less angry about it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
itsamoose Posted August 19, 2014 This survey of responses to the situation in Ferguson, broken down by race, just makes me feel awful. I'm not surprised that a huge number of white people think that the amount of force used by the police is appropriate or that "too much emphasis" has been put on race in the media coverage of the event, but that doesn't make me any less angry about it. Man, that kind of logic makes my blood boil. It is insane to me that a reasonably educated, well adjusted human being hasn't moved past the out of sight-out of mind stage of their development. It represents this not in my backyard kind of philosophy where problems are only relevant based on one's proximity to them, or even don't exist if they themselves haven't perpetrated them, as evidenced here. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henroid Posted August 19, 2014 So there's a protest going on outside CNN's headquarters over their smear campaign of Mike Brown. https://twitter.com/LeSeanThomas/status/501575469913755649 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 19, 2014 Also a CNN anchor suggested that perhaps using water cannons was a good idea. There are better videos than this one, but it's the first YouTube one I could embed that I could find: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henroid Posted August 19, 2014 Jesus jumped up Christ, did I wake up in 1960?! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stuart Posted August 19, 2014 They way the dude turns to look at her when she does that suggestion. Says it all. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted August 19, 2014 Ferguson mayor claims his city is a "model community" for the transition from a mostly white to mostly black city population, 95 percent of the people support the mayor and police and there is no "racial divide" there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
feelthedarkness Posted August 19, 2014 With recent supreme court decisions regard corporate money and speech, and I'm baffled (not really baffled) that FREE SPEECH ZONES for reporters has been run up the chain. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BobbyBesar Posted August 19, 2014 With recent supreme court decisions regard corporate money and speech, and I'm baffled (not really baffled) that FREE SPEECH ZONES for reporters has been run up the chain. Nah, it's fine. Remember that money is speech. If those reporters want to stand there, they just need to buy the property first. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
feelthedarkness Posted August 19, 2014 or like, if you're a woman trying to see an OBGYN, remember the supreme court overturned that law so some maniac can get up in your face all the way the door of your clinic. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites