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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWhy Is No One Talking About the NYPD Shooter’s Other Target?
Why Is No One Talking About the NYPD Shooters Other Target?
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Whats equally predictable and disappointing is the near-erasure of Shaneka Thompson from the story of Ismaaiyl Brinsleys shooting spree. Thompson is the 29-year-old ex-girlfriend whose Maryland apartment Brinsley entered before shooting her in the stomach and leaving her to scream for help. I cant die like this. Please, please help me, she is reported to have shouted as she banged on a neighbors door. According to news reports, Thompson is a health insurance specialist with the Veterans Administration and an Air Force reservist. Brinsley took her phone with him as he headed north to New York, using it to post self-incriminating rants to Instagram before killing Officers Ramos and Liu and, finally, himself.
Thompson is hospitalized and was, as of Sunday, in critical but stable condition. She is also the latest in a series of women who have been brutalized by men whose violence only became notable when they took on targets deemed more important, more relevant to a national or international debate already in play. On Monday Muna Mire, a former Nation intern, noted on Facebook similarities between Thompson and Noleen Hayson Pal, slain ex-wife of Man Haron Monis. Monis is the gunman behind the sixteen-hour standoff in an Australian café that earlier this month left three people (including him) dead. He had a history of violence against women and at the time of the café attack was out on bail on charges including dozens of counts of sexual assault. He had also been charged with being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife, with whom he had a custody dispute. He allegedly conspired with a girlfriend, who then set Pal on fire and stabbed her eighteen times. To frame that hostage crisis as one simply driven by religious fanaticism leaves out a key element: Monis seems to have been quite sick and is alleged to have used womens bodies as a place to target that sickness. Monis had been charged with these crimes recently, but he wasnt due back in court until February. This past weekend, Baltimore police started tracking Shaneka Thompsons phone, which Brinsley had in his possession, around 6:30 am, less than an hour after she was shot. According to The New York Times, they knew Brinsleys whereabouts, but didnt contact New York police until after noon. They faxed a wanted poster to a Brooklyn precinct just after 2 pm.
There may well be legitimate reasons why law enforcement could not have apprehended Brinsley earlier, even though they knew his whereabouts as he traveled north from Baltimore to New York. But in both this case and the Sydney incident, there seem to have been assumptions that public safety was not at risk despite the allegations and evidence of violence against women. Why does the threat level and stoking of public fear skyrocket when a madman is thought to be tied to an ideology thats generally hated in the mainstreamanti-police sentiment or Islamic fundamentalismbut not when that madness has threatened a womans life or safety?
Salamishah Tillett raised a similar question during the trial of George Zimmerman, who had been accused of molesting a cousin as a child and of abusing a former fiancée before killing Trayvon Martin. As Tillett wrote, Zimmermans attorneys successfully argued that those acts were inadmissible or irrelevant. But these accusations offer us other truths: that violence against girls and women is often an overlooked and unchecked indicator of future violence.
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http://www.thenation.com/blog/193577/why-no-one-talking-about-nypd-shooters-other-target
Proud Liberal Dem
(24,406 posts)Pretty much the only explanation I can come up with offhand.
niyad
(113,253 posts)daleanime
(17,796 posts)third strike....she's out.
LiberalArkie
(15,709 posts)calimary
(81,209 posts)randys1
(16,286 posts)And then I will spend all day everyday laughing at the exploding heads around me
niyad
(113,253 posts)May not take that long...never know
Just have to wait till that white male contingent is a tiny minority
niyad
(113,253 posts)Unknown Beatle
(2,672 posts)gay liberal progressive woman as president? That would really have the right wingers knickers in a wad.
randys1
(16,286 posts)irisblue
(32,965 posts)dreamnightwind
(4,775 posts)You might get Condaleeza Rice.
randys1
(16,286 posts)dreamnightwind
(4,775 posts)Not my place to say really, but I thought it was more or less commonly assumed. She had moved several times with the same female roommate IIRC, maybe someone else will confirm or debunk...
MadDAsHell
(2,067 posts)It's the race of the shooter that mattered to the media here. The media does not care about black lives if they were taken by another black life; it's not nearly sensational enough for the sick vultures.
daleanime
(17,796 posts)dbackjon
(6,578 posts)She was young and pretty, but unless you are blond, it doesn't matter to the MSM
freshwest
(53,661 posts)uhnope
(6,419 posts)If we mentioned the fact that he shot his girlfriend first, it would be clear he was just insane and not a product of the public protest against the police, which is how it's being portrayed, which is what the more knee-jerk of the NYPD actually believe, which is what reactionaries in the USA want everyone to believe.
I can't stand it.
My hero since childhood, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, said it well:
SummerSnow
(12,608 posts)billhicks76
(5,082 posts)Just like many right wing commentators don't like that De Blasio is married to A Black woman and has Black kids. The problem once again is FOX news... Worse than any of the actual cops other than that messed up union leader.
joeybee12
(56,177 posts)librechik
(30,674 posts)and they pick on the easiest targets
NutmegYankee
(16,199 posts)Octafish
(55,745 posts)Corporate Owned News = CON.
Lurks Often
(5,455 posts)The media pushes the stories that will get ratings, internet hits or increase newspaper sales which lead to being able to charge more for advertising, which brings in more revenue for the company.
I do remember her name came up here and I believe in the news for a day or two after the initial shooting.
And when it comes right down to it, the murder or attempted murder of a spouse or significant other, unless it is either done in an unusual manner or is somehow more horrific then normal, rarely makes it past the local news level.
Jackpine Radical
(45,274 posts)While of course the media attempt to gain more eyeballs & sensationalize things to get them, there is another motive at play here, namely, that of pushing the authoritarian narrative.
The police exist primarily to protect the rich and their property from the poor and their desperation.
This often works out to the police protecting rich whites from the threats their guilt-ridden imaginations conjure up when they see poor blacks, particularly any black folks who are showing signs of "restiveness" or rebellion.
The media are agents of the rich, and therefore don't want distractions from their message of supporting the police.
Lurks Often
(5,455 posts)but to why the murder or attempted murder of a spouse or significant other so rarely makes the national news.
As for the rest, we're not going to agree.
Jackpine Radical
(45,274 posts)that have occurred more or less locally in the last couple of decades, but no cop killings.
The tragedy of the anecdote, I guess. One rare type of homicide gets reported nationally, so everyone thinks it happens all the time. Other, much more common atrocities, get local coverage at most, so nobody realizes how common they are.
Lurks Often
(5,455 posts)although I won't say I remember as many as you do. Sadly it is one of things that most of us see in the local news, think how tragic it is and then a week later have forgotten about it unless there was something unusual involved or one knew the people involved.
Adam051188
(711 posts)Only when it crosses certain lines is it considered a problem. Problem is people aren't wired to operate that way.
mountain grammy
(26,614 posts)Nye Bevan
(25,406 posts)compared to someone deciding to execute two cops.
But these accusations offer us other truths: that violence against girls and women is often an overlooked and unchecked indicator of future violence.
Why does the threat level and stoking of public fear skyrocket when a madman is thought to be tied to an ideology thats generally hated in the mainstreamanti-police sentiment or Islamic fundamentalismbut not when that madness has threatened a womans life or safety?
BlancheSplanchnik
(20,219 posts)Can't Relate.
niyad
(113,253 posts)BlancheSplanchnik
(20,219 posts)So we're hard to figure out. Because we complain. What's wrong with you that you can't appreciate a lovely lady? It's just natural...aesthetic appreciation. If only you knew your place. And once you're not tingly-in-the-crotch to Menz, go politely disappear. Thanks, that'd be great.
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[font size=0] fuck that bullshit [/font]
pocoloco
(3,180 posts)You have power!!
Nye Bevan
(25,406 posts)Any person is thousands of times more likely to be killed by their spouse or in a traffic accident than by an Islamic terrorist. And thousands of time more likely to be killed in the cab on the way to the airport than by a plane crash. But most people, helped significantly by the media, worry about the wrong things. Anyone who gives even a second thought to being killed by terrorism but does not wear their seat belt while driving is an absolute moron.
randys1
(16,286 posts)to them.
Hell, almost half of the country has reason not to trust any cop, ever.
You are right, shooting a girl friend, pfft, no biggie, but cops, huge biggie.
Not to mention that cops are seen by some as FAR more valuable and important people than some others.
progressoid
(49,976 posts)niyad
(113,253 posts)AtheistCrusader
(33,982 posts)"Because it doesn't fit the narrative/agenda"
BlancheSplanchnik
(20,219 posts)Is an accepted and even entertaining part of our culture!
It in no way points to any widespread attitudes or violence against actual women.
Actual Women who complain are All golddigging, unladylike, loudmouthed, screechy, lying ho's, who can't drive, are bad at math, sexually frigid, ugly, hairy and are unsubmissive. Also, no sense of humor. And women abuse men too, so why don't you care about all the men shot, killed, stabbed, raped, kicked, beaten, thrown off cliffs, cat-called, street-harrassed, stalked and had their pigtails pulled by women??!1!?
niyad
(113,253 posts)BlancheSplanchnik
(20,219 posts)mountain grammy
(26,614 posts)cus I'm laughing hysterically at yur post, but cant spel to gud. Also, that unsubmissive part.. now don't know whether to laugh or cry..
kind of like what being a woman is all about. Keep us on guard all the time..
BlancheSplanchnik
(20,219 posts)U spele gud enuf 4 mee.
SamKnause
(13,091 posts)She is the wrong gender.
She is the wrong color.
She is not a police officer.
She is not a 1%er.
She is not a politician.
She is not a religious leader.
The 'media'.
Calista241
(5,586 posts)And because it happens all the time, it's not newsworthy.
BlancheSplanchnik
(20,219 posts)niyad
(113,253 posts)SamKnause
(13,091 posts)covers that.
blackspade
(10,056 posts)tblue37
(65,312 posts)historylovr
(1,557 posts)demigoddess
(6,640 posts)JustAnotherGen
(31,810 posts)And ForHarriet.com has a story posted on their FB page that she has finally gone home. I hope she can find emotional and mental peace in light of what was done to her.
merrily
(45,251 posts)Boomerproud
(7,951 posts)It's the inconvenient truth that they can't fit into the narrative.
merrily
(45,251 posts)Chemisse
(30,807 posts)If this happened minus the cop killing, we would never have heard of it unless we lived in that area.
niyad
(113,253 posts)of coverage.
Chemisse
(30,807 posts)Frankly, people are not interested in reading about nondeadly wife/gf shootings that happen all around the nation every day.
People are only interested in what happens outside their local area if it is novel (like major weather catastrophes), if it resonates with an existing belief (the 2 year old shooting his mother, or another killing of an unarmed black man) or if it affects them in some way (politics, etc).
There is no point bemoaning that. Instead we should find ways to reduce violence against women.
niyad
(113,253 posts)Chemisse
(30,807 posts)And I recall a few years ago (maybe 8 or 10?), around Jan. 1, The Boston Globe did a huge spread on the numbers of victims throughout the year, with analysis, etc, and even a giant list of details about every single victim.
It was certainly an eye-opener.
niyad
(113,253 posts)how many more victims there have been since then.
QuestionableC
(63 posts)There are under a hundred officers shot and killed each year. Fewer still are as headline grabbing as two minority cops executed in broad daylight.
It's all about ratings.
niyad
(113,253 posts)Sunlei
(22,651 posts)In the hospital and still critical, my heart goes out to her to heal
ecstatic
(32,681 posts)and did nothing! Maybe if they had taken the shooting of his ex-gf seriously, those officers would still be alive.
niyad
(113,253 posts)McCamy Taylor
(19,240 posts)dbackjon
(6,578 posts)Nothing to see here.
Now if she was a blond. Now we are talking.
Chakaconcarne
(2,442 posts)creep toward militarization...
The movement is now justified...no?
Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are not enough to feed the beast.
Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)A fair media could turn this entire thing around in a heart beat.
bobclark86
(1,415 posts)MadDAsHell
(2,067 posts)Tsiyu
(18,186 posts)Very profound and thought provoking.
40% of cop homes experience domestic violence so I guess cops are immune to caring about it. But it only follows that someone who is violent in the home will be violent out of the home as well.
Legislators have made the sentences so light for domestic abuse, the people who abuse are out on the street before they serve any real time. They don't get their belongings seized, don't pay ridiculous fines.
Legislators and prison guards would rather lock up the nonviolent.
And then complain about violence in the streets.
It makes absolutely no sense, but it was never meant to.
Cha
(297,124 posts)sendero
(28,552 posts)... is to the last one a pack of liars and lies of omission are their favorite strategy.
maced666
(771 posts)And no longer in the hospital
Thompson's grandfather, James Delly, who lives in South Carolina, said Tuesday that Thompson was "doing fine," but declined to comment further.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-co-shaneka-thompson-update-20141230-story.html
niyad
(113,253 posts)those two officers might not be dead. I wonder how many officers realize that their own inactions might, in fact, have led to the deaths of those two officers.