Violent protest erupts in Ferguson, MO over deadly police shooting

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**Eilif**

Frazzled wrote:
Eilif wrote:
Frazzled wrote:

It always matters when a fraudulent race baiter jumps into the mix.

Sharpton is no saint, but his purpose is to draw attention to situations of injustice, usually concerning African Americans.

His purpose is to make money race baiting -even using fraud to do it (Brawley case), and occasionally narc on other people to the FBI.

We agree that he's kind of a douche, but I don't think either of us expect public figures to be blameless these days.

However, bringing it back to Feguson... to be clear, is it that you think the issues he speaks out on aren't actually issues or that you just don't like the messenger?

**d-usa**

Oklahoma news are on the case!

http://www.reddirtreport.com/prairie-opinions/fierce-farce-fans-flames-ferguson

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Also interesting:

Didn't we have reports in this thread about the no-fly-zone because people where shooting at helicopters?

Looks like the police requested the no-fly-zone to keep the news from flying in there. Feel free to make your own decisions about why they don't want news helicopters.

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/08/12/3470567/why-theres-a-no-fly-zone-over-ferguson-missouri/

The reason? “It’s just for a no fly zone because we have multiple helicopters maneuvering in the area and we were having some problems with news aircrafts flying around there,” the dispatcher, who would only identify himself by his first name, Chris, said.

The effort to stop media from flying over the area to film is troubling, especially in light of reports that police have turned journalists away from the sites of the protests.

**easysauce**

d-usa wrote:
Oklahoma news are on the case!

http://www.reddirtreport.com/prairie-opinions/fierce-farce-fans-flames-ferguson

Automatically Appended Next Post:
Also interesting:

Didn't we have reports in this thread about the no-fly-zone because people where shooting at helicopters?

Looks like the police requested the no-fly-zone to keep the news from flying in there. Feel free to make your own decisions about why they don't want news helicopters.

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/08/12/3470567/why-theres-a-no-fly-zone-over-ferguson-missouri/

The reason? “It’s just for a no fly zone because we have multiple helicopters maneuvering in the area and we were having some problems with news aircrafts flying around there,” the dispatcher, who would only identify himself by his first name, Chris, said.

The effort to stop media from flying over the area to film is troubling, especially in light of reports that police have turned journalists away from the sites of the protests.

well, thats what the person named "chris" the article interviews says is the reason, hardly concrete evidence.

especially considering the "source" isnt too far off from posting articles about bat boys it would seem... wow... some of those other article titles,

can you FEEL the bias on that site?

the police maintain a different story, im sure that the mob will "draw their own conclusions" and assume its just more of "the man" keeping everyone in line,

heck, why have verifiable sources on anything, just ask everyone what they think and what their conclusions are, most popular interpretation of reality wins!

**d-usa**

According to your own reasoning you shouldn't be posting here...

Edit:

You realize that "chris" is the police department right? So according to you we shouldn't be listening to anything the police department says because it is hardly concrete evidence while at the same time waiting on what the police department has to say.

Edit again: (seriously, do we need a mandatory 10 minute delay on replying to any of your posts so that you won't accuse me of misquoting something that you changed 3 times?)

can you FEEL the bias on that site?

Are you giving us permission to ignore anything you post with bias and promise never to post anything that is not from a neutral source?

**whembly**

Yeah... the restriction is in place until August 18th.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
For as much as I give Holdner a hard time, I'm giving him kudos on this.
http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2014/August/14-ag-854.html

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Hoo boy...

Police source tells me all Stl. County officers are on mandatory 12 hour shifts with no recreation days until further notice #ferguson
— Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) August 14, 2014

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Rand Paul weighed in...
http://time.com/3111474/rand-paul-ferguson-police/

Good read!

**Easy E**

Rand Paul is about the only* Rightie actually trying to win minority voters.

That fact is mind boggling to me.

*= Marco Rubio is actively trying to as well. Anyone else?

**whembly**

Easy E wrote:
Rand Paul is about the only* Rightie actually trying to win minority voters.

That fact is mind boggling to me.

*= Marco Rubio is actively trying to as well. Anyone else?

Ted Cruz too...

**watching my Governor Jay Nixon speech now...

**Ouze**

easysauce wrote:
When cops shoot unarmed white people, there is no rioting, and no insistence that its because all cops are racist

Do you think that's because white people are naturally calmer, or do you think it's a mixture of "unarmed white people being less likely to be shot by the police" combined with "white victims are more likely to actually get justice in our legal system"?

Since Canada seems to regularly have riots when the Stanley Cup is won, I'm going to lean towards the latter.

Canadians! The calmest of white people!

**Ensis Ferrae**

Easy E wrote:
Would it help to hav ea Federal 3rd Party organization look into the case?

Would that tap down some of the concerns of a cover-up/white-wash occurring?

Probably not... I mean, FBI, DEA, ATF etc, are all Law Enforcement agencies. NSA, CIA, etc..... well that'll get the tin foil hatters talking for a good long time

Parks/Recreation services? DoD?

I mean, the problem is that this is a situation where there's not been anything that's gone on that automatically jumps into the Feds domain. And of the Fed agencies, there's either a lack of purpose, or conflicts of interest, or legal issues, etc. that would prevent them from stepping in.

**Crablezworth**

The onion knocked it out of the park with this one.

http://www.theonion.com/articles/tips-for-being-an-unarmed-black-teen,36697/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=SocialMarketing&utm_campaign=LinkPreview:1

efault

Tips For Being An Unarmed Black Teen

INFOGRAPHIC • Civil Rights • Race • Violence • News • ISSUE 50•32 • Aug 14, 2014

With riots raging in Ferguson, Missouri following the shooting death by police of an unarmed African-American youth, the nation has turned its eyes toward police brutality, social injustice, and the continuing crisis of race relations throughout the U.S. Here are The Onion’s tips for being an unarmed black teen in America:

- Shy away from dangerous, heavily policed areas.

- Avoid swaggering or any other confident behavior that suggests you are not completely subjugated.

- Be sure not to pick up any object that could be perceived by a police officer as a firearm, such as a cell phone, a food item, or nothing.

- Explain in clear and logical terms that you do not enjoy being shot, and would prefer that it not happen.

- Don’t let society stereotype you as a petty criminal. Remember that you can be seen as so much more, from an armed robbery suspect, to a rape suspect, to a murder suspect.

- Try to see it from a police officer’s point of view: You may be unarmed, but you’re also black.

- Avoid wearing clothing associated with the gang lifestyle, such as shirts and pants.

- Revel in the fact that by simply existing, you exert a threatening presence over the nation’s police force.

- Be as polite and straightforward as possible when police officers are kicking the gak out of you.

**d-usa**

So no national guard, but looks like State Troopers might be taking over.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/14/us/missouri-teen-shooting/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

Another interesting article:

http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/14/us/missouri-ferguson-police-tactics/index.html?c=homepage-t&page=0

But some security experts say the police actions made things much worse.

"You're in trouble when your SWAT team is on the front line of dealing with a civil disturbance," retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore said Thursday.

In 2005, Honore was dispatched to New Orleans to lead recovery efforts after Hurricane Katrina, when the federal government said it was facing "urban warfare." Honore famously told police to lower their weapons and defused the tense situation.

"I've seen this done successfully in the past where you have your front line policemen on the front until people start throwing things. Then you have your riot control squads in the back," Honore said on "CNN Newsroom" on Thursday. "The tactics they are using, I don't know where they learned them from. It appears they may be making them up on the way. But this is escalating the situation."

"Any time we have policemen pointing weapons at American citizens, they need to go through retraining," Honor added. "And I think we are about 24 hours too late."

**mega_bassist**

Looks like some people in Congress are looking for Martial Law

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/14/john-lewis-ferguson_n_5679033.html

Civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) called on President Barack Obama to declare martial law in Ferguson, Missouri, where police and protesters have clashed after a police officer shot and killed unarmed black teenager Michael Brown on Saturday.

"It is very sad and unbelievable. It's unreal to see what the police is doing there," Lewis said in a Thursday interview with MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell. "First of all, Ferguson, Missouri, is part of the United States of America. People have a right to protest. They have a right to dissent. They have a right to march in an orderly, peaceful, nonviolent fashion. And the press has a right to cover it."

Lewis, whose skull was fractured by police during the 1965 march over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, told Mitchell that the situation in Ferguson reminds him of "the '40s, the '50s, the '60s," pointing to the dearth of black officers on the St. Louis suburb's police force.

"So my own feeling, right now, is that President Obama should use the authority of his office to declare martial law. Federalize the Missouri National Guard to protect people as they protest," Lewis said. "And people should come together. Reasonable elected officials, community leaders and address what is happening there."

He continued: "If we fail to act, the fires of frustration and discontent will continue to burn, not only in Ferguson, Missouri, but all across America."

**d-usa**

Give the state troopers a chance to see what they can do. It looks like there has been a change in command, so it would be premature now.

This is a problem that is fueled by race relations in the area and possibly the state. It would be better for future race relations if it can be solved internally without "the black president" taking sides.

**Ouze**

Man, there is absolutely no reason to declare martial law, and I have to say any politician who calls for it at this point just wants to be on TV.

**mega_bassist**

Ouze wrote:
Man, there is absolutely no reason to declare martial law, and I have to say any politician who calls for it at this point just wants to be on TV.

Completely agree. I cringed so hard when I saw this, especially when people thought that county cops were being too tough...

**whembly**

mega_bassist wrote:
Ouze wrote:
Man, there is absolutely no reason to declare martial law, and I have to say any politician who calls for it at this point just wants to be on TV.

Completely agree. I cringed so hard when I saw this, especially when people thought that county cops were being too tough...

I agree.

Then, he went back to his golfing game.

Anyhoo... there's a large peaceful (so far) protest going on right now:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/peaceful-ferguson-march-underway/article_0806541b-ed48-5d06-9267-323531ad6cf1.html

**Hordini**

I'm curious to see how the state police handle this. Hopefully it will be an improvement.

**whembly**

Here's a current pic:

**Hordini**

Did you take that? Hope you're doing alright and staying safe whembly, seriously.

**Tactical_Genius**

I know I'm 8 pages late, but I wanted to correct an earlier poster RE: Anonymous.
They aren't an organisation in any way. They have no leaders or unified motives.
They are just several groups of people who use tech to achieve aims they believe are in the public interest.
The problem is, the different groups will often disagree, and a lot of "members" are just there to have an excuse to troll and cause trouble.
A large number of them are active campaigners for positive things, but as always it's the few that spoil the reputation of the many.

**MeanGreenStompa**

The head of the State Police overseeing this, replacing the local robocops, seems to be making excellent headway in diffusing the situation and allowing peaceful marches, walking with the protesters. He ordered all police in the area to remove gas masks and face masks and no guns to be pointed at the civilians. The state cops all appear to be wearing standard uniform and far less heavily armed.

I would advise a looking over of this.

http://www.reddit.com/live/tdrph3y49ftn

**whembly**

Hordini wrote:
Did you take that? Hope you're doing alright and staying safe whembly, seriously.

Nah... following #ferguson on twitter timeline.

I'm good where I'm at.

**Hordini**

whembly wrote:
Hordini wrote:
Did you take that? Hope you're doing alright and staying safe whembly, seriously.

Nah... following #ferguson on twitter timeline.

I'm good where I'm at.

Good to hear!

And hopefully, if the State Police's softer tactics continue to improve the situation, maybe this can serve as a good example that might lead to a decrease in the stupid militarization of police trend we've been seeing.

**d-usa**

I know the rioting makes the news. But what is the actual ratio of protest/marches to fighting/riots?

**Hordini**

d-usa wrote:
I know the rioting makes the news. But what is the actual ratio of protest/marches to fighting/riots?

I'm curious about this as well.

**d-usa**

I'm also curious to see how tonight will turn out. Maybe we will see if not looking like an occupying army will result in them not being treated that way.

**Hordini**

d-usa wrote:
I'm also curious to see how tonight will turn out. Maybe we will see if not looking like an occupying army will result in them not being treated that way.

I'm tentatively hopeful that will be the case.

**d-usa**

It's still early, so there is always lots of time left for this to turn south. But so far...

@jonswaine
Revolutionary idea: the police are chatting to people

@mattdpearce:
This is your demonstration;

this is your police presence.

**Relapse**

d-usa wrote:
Oklahoma news are on the case!

http://www.reddirtreport.com/prairie-opinions/fierce-farce-fans-flames-ferguson

Automatically Appended Next Post:
Also interesting:

Didn't we have reports in this thread about the no-fly-zone because people where shooting at helicopters?

Looks like the police requested the no-fly-zone to keep the news from flying in there. Feel free to make your own decisions about why they don't want news helicopters.

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/08/12/3470567/why-theres-a-no-fly-zone-over-ferguson-missouri/

The reason? “It’s just for a no fly zone because we have multiple helicopters maneuvering in the area and we were having some problems with news aircrafts flying around there,” the dispatcher, who would only identify himself by his first name, Chris, said.

The effort to stop media from flying over the area to film is troubling, especially in light of reports that police have turned journalists away from the sites of the protests.

There was a no fly zone declared with the Bundy situation, also.

**whembly**

Still largely peaceful.

Still heavy police present... but, not all tacti-cool geared up.

EDIT: I want to clarify something... the Ferguson and STL County Police is still there. It's just that the Highway Patrol is in charge of managing the protesting in this area.

Also, I haven't seen anything of this sort: But, no protesters in the last few days has been serious injured, so that ought to count for something.