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The Shitshow Downstairs: My Thoughts on the Matter
5 years ago
General
FIDUS ET AUDAX
There is so much that is wrong with everything going on south of the border that I'm having a very difficult time reining in the anti-American sentiments I have, which includes hoping that the US as a whole destroys itself in a fireball of its own creation just to be done with it, as much as I'd rather it not come to that extreme for geopolitical and economic reasons.
While I'm getting too riled up over this state of affairs to heed advice to not make a statement like this, I'm going to do my best to curb my worst emotional excesses here and strictly appeal to reason - something I feel is extremely lacking on social media in general, and especially here on FA.
So where to begin...
I believe that the tragedy of George Floyd, and that of many other victims of police brutality, is an abused martyrdom. Black lives matter, and the problem of overt racism is as synonymous with the US as is its enshrined value of freedom, but insofar as I've been able to read into the matter, I'm rather convinced that this focus on racism dangerously oversimplifies the problem of bad policing, and focuses too much on one facet out of many in a much larger problem. Factors such as the Blue Wall of Silence, obstructive police unions more concerned with membership than job performance, qualified immunities, "war on crime" conditioning... these I feel are being swept under the rug, perhaps in no small part because they don't sell newspapers quite like racism does, but they are arguably more important to talk about with regards to coming up with solutions as a society.
I don't believe that abolishing the police is a viable or effective option. It's at best a childish, short-sighted goal with no clear follow-through or concern for consequences, which makes sense given the emotionally-charged state of affairs - I do not expect people in that mindset to be able to think ahead coherently (kudos to you if you can). Perhaps this is just me believing that the police are a necessary evil or a force that can be used for good, but I will sooner hammer on effective reforms than see public law enforcement go the way of the dinosaur, not least of all when the alternative is privatized (i.e. mercenary). If it does have to come to a full disbandment as part of the reformation, I expect there to be a plan detailing next steps, as demonstrated by Camden, New Jersey's restructuring of their police department from the ground up under the Nordic model.
Lastly, the protesters themselves. I get that these times are a strain on us all, leaving us with very little room to vent frustrations, but restricting yourselves to peaceful forms of civil disobedience really is your best course of action should you choose to take it. Actions speak louder than words, and if your intent is to make yourselves the moral victors then it would behoove you to behave in a way that makes the cops look bad by comparison.
This also means doing your best to clamp down on agitators within your own ranks. Regardless of your reason for taking part in the protests, that reason can and will be overridden by the groupthink of mob mentality in short order, especially when enough people with common cause engage in emotionally-driven violence, be it looting, vandalism, or arson, and all it takes are a handful of opportunists who are more than willing to throw that brick or molotov cocktail to light the spark. Please do your part in dissuading this kind of behaviour, because engaging in it not only provides the police - the very organization you're protesting against - justification for being as heavy-handed as they are currently being portrayed in the media, but also risks inflicting unnecessary harm on those who are unable or unwilling to get involved.
It's entirely possible I may be wrong on a lot of things I've just stated here, and I'm willing to be proven wrong if that is the case. I am therefore keeping the comments enabled for the time being, under the expectation that responses will be well-reasoned.
While I'm getting too riled up over this state of affairs to heed advice to not make a statement like this, I'm going to do my best to curb my worst emotional excesses here and strictly appeal to reason - something I feel is extremely lacking on social media in general, and especially here on FA.
So where to begin...
I believe that the tragedy of George Floyd, and that of many other victims of police brutality, is an abused martyrdom. Black lives matter, and the problem of overt racism is as synonymous with the US as is its enshrined value of freedom, but insofar as I've been able to read into the matter, I'm rather convinced that this focus on racism dangerously oversimplifies the problem of bad policing, and focuses too much on one facet out of many in a much larger problem. Factors such as the Blue Wall of Silence, obstructive police unions more concerned with membership than job performance, qualified immunities, "war on crime" conditioning... these I feel are being swept under the rug, perhaps in no small part because they don't sell newspapers quite like racism does, but they are arguably more important to talk about with regards to coming up with solutions as a society.
I don't believe that abolishing the police is a viable or effective option. It's at best a childish, short-sighted goal with no clear follow-through or concern for consequences, which makes sense given the emotionally-charged state of affairs - I do not expect people in that mindset to be able to think ahead coherently (kudos to you if you can). Perhaps this is just me believing that the police are a necessary evil or a force that can be used for good, but I will sooner hammer on effective reforms than see public law enforcement go the way of the dinosaur, not least of all when the alternative is privatized (i.e. mercenary). If it does have to come to a full disbandment as part of the reformation, I expect there to be a plan detailing next steps, as demonstrated by Camden, New Jersey's restructuring of their police department from the ground up under the Nordic model.
Lastly, the protesters themselves. I get that these times are a strain on us all, leaving us with very little room to vent frustrations, but restricting yourselves to peaceful forms of civil disobedience really is your best course of action should you choose to take it. Actions speak louder than words, and if your intent is to make yourselves the moral victors then it would behoove you to behave in a way that makes the cops look bad by comparison.
This also means doing your best to clamp down on agitators within your own ranks. Regardless of your reason for taking part in the protests, that reason can and will be overridden by the groupthink of mob mentality in short order, especially when enough people with common cause engage in emotionally-driven violence, be it looting, vandalism, or arson, and all it takes are a handful of opportunists who are more than willing to throw that brick or molotov cocktail to light the spark. Please do your part in dissuading this kind of behaviour, because engaging in it not only provides the police - the very organization you're protesting against - justification for being as heavy-handed as they are currently being portrayed in the media, but also risks inflicting unnecessary harm on those who are unable or unwilling to get involved.
It's entirely possible I may be wrong on a lot of things I've just stated here, and I'm willing to be proven wrong if that is the case. I am therefore keeping the comments enabled for the time being, under the expectation that responses will be well-reasoned.
It's not exactly easy to frame the Canadian identity without running it in contrast to that of the US. Ever since the American Revolution, there's been a long-standing opposition within Canadian society, both pre- and post-Confederation, towards what are perceived to be American ideas, and it's been a common sticking point between all three major political parties at one point or another (including the Conservative Party). Unfortunately, this opposition does lead to varying degrees of anti-American national elitism within the public discourse, which in the past century tended to rear its ugly head more often when a Republican was in office.
It's not a feature of Canadian society I'm particularly fond of, and I do make an effort to make exceptions for individual Americans with whom I have no quarrel with.
It's worth noting that anti-Americanism isn't a strictly Canadian thing, nor is it well-defined in broader circles beyond a general disfavour, but within Canada it has rather unique historical roots.
There's not much I can say about Biden other than that he's politically a limp noodle at the best of times, a useful idiot at worst, and that he couldn't be running for president at a worse time, both for his own health and that of the nation. I wouldn't characterize that as the kind of person that America needs in office right now, and as much as I like to rag on Trudeau for being inconsistent and self-serving throughout his time in office here in Canada I'd say he has more of a backbone by comparison.
Don't get me wrong - I want to see the US do well, because the alternative has far more ramifications than just the well-being of one nation and its people. For Canada, our economy and national stability are very much reliant on those of the US, as much as we like to distance ourselves socially proclaiming to be as un-American as possible. For the world at large, the concern is that the economic and diplomatic power the US is ceding are practically up for auction, and the highest bidder tends to be a certain totalitarian regime that has repeatedly demonstrated that it doesn't care about human rights.
It's just that the US's ability to curtail the worst aspects of its own decline requires effective leadership at all levels of government, and with how fractured and toothless the States are right now I'm not convinced that Biden being elected would be an improvement over Trump at all.
Duggan was, is and will continue to prove that he was the right man at the right time in the right place for Detroit.
It's going to take at least a decade to get the States back to where we were under Obama, and Barack is going to be very fondly remembered, much like Bill Clinton was and still is. The Obama Administration was a very good one indeed.
Much like you say about Duggan, Obama was the right man in the right place at the right time. On top of that, he was not only able to maintain his own voter base but also be able to appeal to a majority of Americans in a positive light. I have no doubt that, if someone of Obama's political acumen and statesmanship were running in this election cycle for the Democrats, Trump could very easily lose. Of course, it's worth bearing in mind that the circumstances that the newly-elected president will be in, and the actions they'll need to take in response to them, will never be a carbon copy of Obama's presidency.