My city is burning...

[geardaddy]

Last edited Fri May 29, 2020, 12:20 PM - Edit history (1)

My city is burning and I'm not surprised. People are outraged. People of color in Minneapolis have been treated horribly by the MPD for a long time. People are fed up. I completely understand. I support the protesters.

Cops used to live in the city they were supposed to protect when I was a kid. Now they mostly live in their own little bubble in some suburb or ex-urb, sometimes not even in the same county. For all the liberalism that Minneapolis is supposed to represent, we have a terrible record on race relations via redlining, etc.

Agents provocateurs were seen breaking windows. I'm outraged at the hubris of MPD and their police union head, Bob Kroll, a known Trump supporter. Police are openly attacking peaceful protesters and innocent bystanders with pepper spray. I fear for the safety of protesters and other folks in the areas that are seeing the unrest. I am literally losing sleep over this shit. All I can see in my mind is that video replaying of George Floyd's death.


Edited to add: And Mike Freeman, Hennepin County Attorney, sits idly by and watches it burn.

[CanonRay]

1. The cops wanted this to turn into a riot

to turn public opinion against the protesters. They incited the violence...not the first time this has happened. I hope Keith Ellison investigates the St. Paul cop who was smashing windows.

[geardaddy]

2. You are spot on.

I hope Keith takes over the whole investigation. Mike Freeman (Hennepin County Attorney) is not to be trusted in my opinion.

[Warpy]

27. The riots are usually started by men who came dressed for the occasion

People everywhere need to wake the fuck up. Our police departments have been supplied with military surplus hardware and turned into occupying armies and we are the enemy, no matter what color we are.

Thank Nixon for that one, too.

Individually, some cops are fine men, guys trying to do a tough job and facing people at their worst. As a culture, they're occupiers. That is what we've got to change, one department at a time, that "us vs. them" cop culture that makes them think anything goes, even murder, in order to pacify an occupied population.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Yes, and it's really depressing. But it isn't surprising.

Something like it happened along Plymouth Ave. in 1967 (I'm old enough to remember it), though that wasn't triggered by a single incident of police brutality as this was. The MPD has been a racist snakepit for years, at least since law-'n'-order asshole Charlie Stenvig, former cop and former union head like that dick Bob Kroll, became mayor in the '70s. I used to know a few MPD cops through friends of friends - 3rd precinct guys, actually - and they were unabashed racists. One of them was so infamous for beating up suspects that his nickname was "Thumper." I'm sure these particular cops are all retired by now but it's apparent that their shitty attitude survives. I recall one of them saying smugly that there are only two classes of people: cops and assholes. Decades of efforts by various mayors and police chiefs haven't changed anything. The current mayor is a good guy but there's not much he can do to change attitudes, especially with Trumper Bob Kroll in charge of the very powerful union. The cops have been beating on PoC for years, and sooner or later there was going to be a George Floyd.

[geardaddy]

4. I was three in 1967 so I don't remember that incident.

Thanks for your insight. I am at my wit's end.

[Laurelin]

5. Stay safe.

Minneapolis is so beautiful. My kids live there...

[geardaddy]

6. Thanks, we're pretty safe where we are in Uptown

Wednesday night there were some break ins to businesses, but nothing since then.

[roamer65]

7. If they don't arrest those ex-cops today, it will be worse tonite.

[geardaddy]

8. Yes, I know.

They need to be arrested now.

[demmiblue]

9. They just had a news conference saying they weren't pressing charges at this moment...

because there might be more evidence.




Edit: I'm not sure if it was from today. I was half paying attention because I was doing something else. Maybe someone can clarify.

[geardaddy]

12. Was that Mike Freeman's press conference?

Don't hold your breath. He won't prosecute.

[demmiblue]

14. Yes, it was.

Apparently, it was from yesterday.

What a clusterfuck.

[geardaddy]

16. He's completely useless.

It is indeed a clusterfuck.

[moondust]

10. Unrecognizable.

Whatever happened to Minnesota nice? Was it all a facade? Has the RW racism and craziness in other midwestern states like WI and MI spread to MN? I thought MN was full of peaceful Scandinavians.

Minneapolis is about the last place I ever expected to see scenes like this with "protesters" burning down a police station.

[geardaddy]

11. MN nice is a fallacy.

It's just passive aggression. There's a long history of bad race relations in this city and state.

[roamer65]

13. The whole country is pissed off right now.

The Minnesotans I have met are mostly nice folks.

This would have happened anywhere in the country if their police behaved this way.

If any positive can come from this, it may be a complete overhaul of the MPD.

Be safe, gear daddy.

[geardaddy]

15. Thanks roamer.

[roamer65]

17. My heart was heavy last night for all of you last night.

[moondust]

20. Did not know that.

Thanks. Be safe.

Gov. Walz now talking. Seems reasonable. DFLer.

[geardaddy]

22. Thanks moondust.

Walz has been fantastic about Covid-19. I hope he can maintain his strength during this unrest.

[IronLionZion]

23. There are legit nice Minnesotans, there are also racist assholes

There are plenty of people with Nazi-like attitudes who believe Minnesota is way too diverse and they want the twin cities to burn since they live comfortably out in the burbs.

The cop in question, Chauvin, lives in Oakdale which is outside St. Paul and quite far away from the urban Minneapolis neighborhoods he goes around harassing POCs.

Minnesota Nice is often passive aggressive. When I lived there, some folks knew how to make you feel bad while smiling fakely to your face.

[moondust]

24. Interesting.

It does often seem to be people out in the comfortable white suburbs and rural areas that grow up with little first-hand exposure to minorities and learning racist tribalism instead.

[geardaddy]

18. Kick

[cayugafalls]

19. Based on what I watched last night and the interviews Unicorn Riot had with

protestor/rioters, tonight will be more of the same only now they are much more emboldened.

My fear is that tonight the protesters will meet the National Guard. They really let the protesters/rioters have free run last night as if they were letting it happen on purpose - LIHOP.

Stay safe.

[geardaddy]

21. Yeah, it's out of control.

I fear that more people are going to die.

[lastlib]

25. I'm beginning to fear a Kent State massacre re-run.

--- --- --- --- --- --- ---

[geardaddy]

26. Exactly, but probably more than four will die.

[geardaddy]

28. Finally, Chauvin is arrested

I hope there are arrest warrants for the other three who were at the scene.

[geardaddy]

29. Kick