tsig
a carbon based life-form
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2005
- Messages
- 39,049
Why does the width of the street matter?
The narrower the street the more shots the cops get at unarmed teenagers in the street.
Why does the width of the street matter?
From this angle, it's a little over 4 Crown Vics wide.
http://media.kmov.com/images/Coppercreek-scene-080914.jpg
Easily 25 + feet ....
Has anyone asked why the width of the street matters? Ginger? Anyone?
Here's the street where I grew up. Note the lack of sidewalks and the lack of a double yellow line. We walked in the street, played whiffle ball, fuzz ball, kick ball, etc, in the street. If a car came by (likely doing 10 mph, tops), you moved out of the way.
https://www.google.com/maps/@38.503809,-90.304606,3a,75y,180h,90t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sVOJozd8uhR_MYgwk16my2g!2e0!6m1!1e1
Here's the road two streets over. Note the double yellow lines, and the sidewalk. No one in their right mind would have walked down the middle of this street, much less played ball. Traffic would have been going 35-40 mph. If you were walking on this street, the police would have told you to get the hell out of the way.
https://www.google.com/maps/@38.502311,-90.303927,3a,75y,270h,90t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1swtr-28ge-fLF1FVFpzpamQ!2e0
So the argument that it was somehow normal behavior for Brown and his friend to walk down the middle of Canfield Drive is idiotic.
It's just a teenager thing, walking wherever you want.
Though I don't know where the belligerence comes from; I didn't want any trouble (i.e. getting searched would have been a buzz kill) so when an officer yelled at me to get on the sidewalk I always said yes sir or ma'am and stayed appropriately low key.
That Michael Brown was a long way from being a model citizen,and that the Fergusion Police department is remarkably inept in dealing with the Black Communitry, could both be valid points is something a lot of people just cannot accept because it interferes with the ideologically motiviated narrative.
For a while even some mainstream Republicans (ie.not from the Rand Paul wing of the party) were saying we had to take a look at how police forces are using a lot of military gear they were getting, but that seems to have vanished in the usual bickering.

I have no doubt it was normal behavior for Brown et al. Other youths have done it to me, just moseying along, taking their half out of the middle, when there were sidewalks on both sides. I'm stuck behind them. They was dissing me fo sure. And you wonder why people can become racist. But I guess it was OK, they were almost home. I know that because it was a residential neighborhood.
So it's nothing personal? Well ****, I've been running them over for all the wrong reasons!
I think these are both valid points. I think that they go a long way towards explaining the shooting.That Michael Brown was a long way from being a model citizen,and that the Fergusion Police department is remarkably inept in dealing with the Black Communitry, could both be valid points is something a lot of people just cannot accept because it interferes with the ideologically motiviated narrative.
I wholeheartedly agree that we have to take a look at how police forces are using military gear. Thank you for taking the time to bring this point back out from the background noise of the usual bickering.For a while even some mainstream Republicans (ie.not from the Rand Paul wing of the party) were saying we had to take a look at how police forces are using a lot of military gear they were getting, but that seems to have vanished in the usual bickering.
Sure, it could have been "normal" behavior for Brown, but it's not normal behavior for civilized society.
That Michael Brown was a long way from being a model citizen,and that the Fergusion Police department is remarkably inept in dealing with the Black Communitry, could both be valid points is something a lot of people just cannot accept because it interferes with the ideologically motiviated narrative.
Seriously? This is what this thread has come to? Arguing over the width of a street?
Seriously? This is what this thread has come to? Arguing over the width of a street?
Seriously? This is what this thread has come to? Arguing over the width of a street?
A non-established bit of data being trumpeted uncritically as fact: police are not to be trusted, only thieves.
I remember being a teen. I deserved a lot more ass whoopings than I received!
Seriously? This is what this thread has come to? Arguing over the width of a street?
Maybe I wasn't civilized.
I cut through people's back yards, jumped fences (got bitten by two dogs), etc.