Hundreds Turn Their Back on de Blasio at NYPD Officer's Funeral

[inanna]

Source: ABC News

Hundreds of police officers turned their backs on a screen showing New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as he spoke at the funeral of one of two officers killed last week in what has been called an "assassination."

<snip>

A block from the church, though, retired NYPD Officer John Mangan held a sign that read: "God Bless the NYPD. Dump de Blasio."

In his speech, the mayor seemed to try to reach out to police, honoring not only Ramos, but the entire NYPD.

After directing his remarks to the Ramos family, he said he wanted to "extend my condolences to another family -- the family of the NYPD -- that is hurting so deeply right now."

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/nypd-officers-turn-back-de-blasio-cops-funeral/story?id=27851746

[Roy Rolling]

1. Drama Queens

Morons acting for the cameras. I am a lifelong union member and that police union leadership is weak, stupid, and dangerous.

[inanna]

3. What a shitty time to play politics. n/t

[freshwest]

68. They may not have noticed, but they also turned their backs on the 2 officers who died.

The mayor's eulogy doesn't disrespect the police, he is trying to bring all sides together, like a leader should. The fact there are 'sides' being created by Lynch is a problem.

Public order comes from mutual respect. That is the authority people pay the police to implement. If Lynch really cared about their fallen, he would not have politicized the deaths and encourage disrespect for public order which will cost the lives of officers.

He is playing to the Infowarriors and Clive Bundies of this nation just as surely as Adam Kokesh and others did when the supported the killing of 2 police officers in Nevada.

Where was he when this happened?



http://www.commondreams.org/views/2014/12/23/conservative-media-and-cop-killers-different-color

to napkinz:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017234366

People with their weapons aimed at law enforcement. Something the NYPD would kill people for. Where was Lynch on this?

Remember when conservatives CONDONED threats against law enforcement officers?



Yes, the shooter was black this time. Is it okay to kill or threaten LEOs is one is white, or destroy public order?



What does Lynch have to say about G.Gordon Liddy?



"Now if the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms comes to disarm you and they are bearing arms, resist them with arms. Go for a head shot; they're going to be wearing bulletproof vests." ... "They've got a big target on there, ATF. Don't shoot at that, because they've got a vest on underneath that. Head shots, head shots.... Kill the sons of bitches." ~ G. Gordon Liddy on his radio show, August 26, 1994

to napkinz:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025989740

I contend that Lynch and his tribalist rantings are more of a danger to public order than the shooters. It is only the 'us versus them' mindset that allows this to continue.

[treestar]

104. +1

[Dustlawyer]

53. My firm represents many unions around the country, including one police union.

The men and women of NYPD and their union leadership, who are turning their backs on the Mayor are just like you have described them. You left out childish as well!

[RKP5637]

58. Exactly! And they think they demand respect. Respect needs to be earned! n/t

[adigal]

71. Me, too...longtime Union member and Lynch is doing harm to the police

Any thinking person knows DeBlasio isn't responsible for the deaths of the two officers. The NYPD are acing like spoiled brats. I can't wait for these funerals to be over so they can stop showboating.

[AzDar]

2. Insubordination. Fire these Fascist Fuckwits.

[randys1]

27. NO kidding, every single last one of them

[MadDAsHell]

69. Wow times have changed.

50 years ago turning your back in protest on one of the most powerful mayors in the world would have been supported by the vast majority of progressives as a tremendous sign of fighting "the man".

Do the same today and they call for your head for insubordination.

Since when was bowing down to power on the party platform?

[niyad]

81. maybe because they are acting like entitled, spoiled brats who can kill with impunity?

[ohnoyoudidnt]

82. Apparently, the reason for their actions matter. nt

[tabasco]

86. Your post indicates

a lack of critical thinking skill.

[crim son]

92. +1

It also seems to lack any understanding of the issue at hand. How is that even possible?

[Raine1967]

94. You're good. Welcome to DU.

Also, thanks for missing the point entirely.

[leftynyc]

116. Progressives would have supported

authoritarian fuckwits? I don't think so. Seems the power you want to bow to is wearing a uniform that many in this country has zero reason to trust.

[branford]

122. I believe you missed the irony.

Sometimes the "authoritarian fuckwits" are the progressives when they are in power, or at least perceived to be so by many, particularly when their actions often do not meet the expectations of the public.

In fact many progressives are apparently quite willing to compromise their ideals to certain authority figures. Isn't that the basis for many a discussion on DU concerning matters like drones and torture involving President Obama?

[Reter]

98. Take a wild guess what happens if they're fired

Hint: The union would go ballistic and order the entire force to turn their backs, or worse yet, walk out.

[global1]

4. Help Me Here - What Did De Blasio Do To Deserve This Treatment?......nt

[NutmegYankee]

8. He sympathized with the Garner Protestors.

And noted that he had to give his own (black male) son the "talk" about how police view him as a threat and he has to be extra careful around them. The NYPD reacted badly.

[Raine1967]

96. +1 I would add the people in the NYPD that follow Patrick Lynch lock, stock, and barrel

Peter Lynch is a hot mess IMO.

Has been for a while. There are more good cops in the NYPD than people realize, but right now, the PBA has this face to represent the entire NYPD: http://gawker.com/nypd-union-president-patrick-lynch-is-completely-nuts-1674178970 (please read that link)

The NYPD has a really awful PBA union president. Please note, he didn't really have a problem with Bloomberg or Mayor 9/11. He has a problem with people saying that maybe the NYPD might wanna gentle down. For goddess' sake, NYC is NOT the damn 80's.

Lynch wants no discussion of the *talk* he has a serious problem with that.



IMO, when the members of the NYPD turned their back on Mayor DeBlasio, they also turned their back on the people who are calling for police accountability. THAT is what we are looking for. Accountability for rogue and violent police.

We can mourn the loss of two in blue, but we should be able to continue to acknowledge that there is a problem.

Not all police are violent.

The ones that are need to have a light shined on them. 1 corrupt cop; one violent cop is too many. LEO should not be held to the bare of the people they are suppose to remove from the streets.

If that is the case, then we are a lawless society.

We are always going to have criminals.

Police killings are becoming FAR FAR too common.

[still_one]

9. There are a 3 reasons. 1. He has a biracial son. 2. He is a Democrat. 3. The so-called

"police" who did this are bums

[JustAnotherGen]

29. 4th - Married to a black woman

They no likely that.

[Moliere]

21. Actually the fight started

When it came time to renegotiate contracts and de blasio didn't pay out enough.

[JackRiddler]

50. Untrue.

The propaganda campaign tarring De Blasio as anti-cop and soft on crime started during the Democratic primary because of the commercial in which he implied that his AA son might have a reason to worry about the precious wonderful police. The Republican campaign was all about how even daring to question let alone ending stop-and-frisk would instantly bring back the 1970s (movie version).

[SummerSnow]

38. He didnt coddle the NYPD. They have been so accustomed to not being told ..

they are wrong by a history of NYC mayors

[JackRiddler]

49. He has not authorized police riots against the protesters.

There hasn't been enough pepper-spray, mass arrest, billy-clubbing, curb-stomping, use of ear-piercing Pentagon crowd-dispersal weapons, etc. Not that there hasn't been some of the above, just slightly less than under Bloomberg. The openly fascist leadership (and apparent majority) of the NYPD, like Lynch, have this idea that Bloomberg or Giuliani would have allowed them to do a lot more stomping on the protesters, whom they see as lawless anarchist cop-hating criminal dangerous un-American foreign sub-human etc. To them, anything less than a heartily-endorsed police state and utter demonization of the protests is capitulation to communism. Long before the protests got big, De Blasio actually held a press conference in which he allowed the cops to mock-arrest him -- with real handcuffs -- in showing how an obedient citizen never "resists arrest" (as if the coppers always give you a choice -- in reality, they're stomping people long before there is any chance of "resisting arrest," like with Garner). So there it was: The Mayor, cuffed, being put into a paddy wagon. Not even this symbolism is enough for the pig majority among the cops, however.

De Blasio could march out in front of the cops swinging the lead billy club and they'd still think him soft. Cops are hands-down the most fascist demographic employed in New York City. Not that most of them actually live in New York City, since they do not. They commute to a job they perceive as keeping the lid on a zoo of violent, dangerous animals. They think they're universally hated -- not quite true, though they try hard to alienate everyone they deal with -- despite the endless propaganda telling them how they are the greatest bravest most wonderful people doing the most important service in the world, etc. etc., and despite about fifteen hours of prime-time programming every week devoted to the same message, espcially about NYPD. Still they think you hate them and they hate you. And you voted for De Blasio instead of some guy who was more obviously a bootlicker.

[still_one]

5. They are an insult and a disgrace to New York, and the NYPD, and are insulting the

families of the officers killed in duty

In my view they are no different then that supposed "reverend" who goes to fallen soldier's funerals, and condemns gays.

Unfortunately, this is a reflection of what the country is becoming. A bunch of racist, ignorant, idiots, without any common decency

[RKP5637]

59. And, they are indicative of what is wrong with some cops! Emotions of

children on the playground. Not all cops are bad, but the profession sure attracts a lot of bad cops IMO.

[RosieS57]

6. He supported the protesters

.....as if this is some zero sum game.

It is not. The protesters had the right to peacefully protest. Only those ignorant of the U.S. Constitution would think that support of peaceful protest is not having the backs of the cops.

Regards from Rosie

[still_one]

10. Sure they have the right to protest, but at a memorial service? What kind of class is that?

[niyad]

33. no class.

[still_one]

37. Thank you

[JackRiddler]

52. Why are you inventing this falsehood?

No one protested the police at any memorial service for the slain officers.

Please show otherwise or, if you have a shred of decency, retract and apologize for this falsehood.

[Exultant Democracy]

78. The police at the memorial protested his support for previous protests.

English is terrible in its ambiguity sometimes, but I submit this was the posters intent.

[still_one]

84. That is exactly what I thought I said, thanks

[JackRiddler]

123. Read the thread and figure out the confusion.

You were replying to someone who referred to "protesters" meaning the justice movement, not the police at the memorial service. Anyway, good to see you didn't mean what I thought you meant.

[still_one]

124. We are on the same page, thanks

[Exultant Democracy]

77. I agree the police showed no class doing this at the memorial.

It is hard to believe we give this thugs guns and the right to throw people in jail.

[heaven05]

7. idiot RW drama queens

actually with a lot of help from the complete political spectrum of amerikkka.. How about dumping the killer cops, johnnie boy?

[earthside]

11. Total Selfishness.

The behavior of those police personnel who turned their backs shows their complete disregard and disrespect for the slain officer. They apparently thought the funeral was supposed to be about them and not honoring Ramos.

Any officer that self-centered and that cravenly political is not one that I would want 'serving and protecting' me. There definitely should be some 'house cleaning' at NYPD.

Frankly, this kind of display tends to reenforce my personal opinion that a great many people attracted to the occupation of policing and soldiering are callow, not especially bright and have 'authority' issues.

[Iliyah]

12. R.I.P. for the officers who were killed because of a mentally illed person

but enough is enough. Seems like the police officers are turning their backs on Democracy.

[uberblonde]

13. Three-year-olds having a tantrum.

"If you don't give me everything I want, I'm not going to talk to you!"

[oldandhappy]

14. Not a good way to engage.

Respect is an important part of rapport. Hard to get what you want if you are not talking! This mayor is an activist and could be good for the NYPD if they decide to let him be good for them. Sad all the way around.

[niyad]

15. and to think that these temper-tantrum throwing, whining brats have GUNS! enough to make`

one fear for one's well-being on the streets of NYC.

[The Wizard]

70. The Mayor challenged

their misconception that they have carte blanche to commit murder without consequences. Kop Klux Klan.

[niyad]

80. I am stealing this--kop klux klan!

[project_bluebook]

16. Very sad day for the family and friends of the slain officer.

Too bad these officers made it worse with their self serving demonstration.



"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." - Martin Luther King, Jr

[BumRushDaShow]

17. They had done the same kind of crap with Dinkins

urged on by Giuliani, where Dinkins had been the the last Democratic mayor before de Blasio.

[riderinthestorm]

18. K&R #5 to get this to the greatest page for more eyes on the disgraceful NYP action

[AngryOldDem]

19. Not the time nor the place.

They were there to honor one of their own. Not to further escalate the pissing match with de Blasio.

And I think it totally debunks the garbage I've been hearing all morning that the protesters are responsible for, and are cheering, these deaths. I saw not one sign (other than the "dump Di Blasio" one) nor heard one person yell anything in protest.

I'm sure both officers were fine, upstanding men who deserve all of the tributes being paid. That said, that should be even more of an incentive for police departments to take a good, hard, long look at their procedures and weed out those cops who are giving police in general a bad name, rather than going after and wanting to silence those who are sick and tired of being police targets.

[muntrv]

20. Memo to NYPD: You work for the mayor, not the other way around.

[niyad]

34. now see, I thought they were supposed to be working for us!

[lark]

60. Memo to Mayor

If this happened, fire those that showed disrespect to the memory of their fallen brothers. Marchers had nothing to do with this travesty, it was a sick criminal not a protester who killed those cops.

[branford]

87. The NYPD does not work for the mayor.

They work for the City, and answer to the police commissioner. They are public employees, like any other, and maintain full free speech and related rights.

In any event, the police turning their backs at the funeral was foolish and unnecessarily provocative, albeit entirely legal and permissible.

I'm actually curious if the family of Officer Ramos supports the heated union rhetoric. It is my understanding that the family's statements have thus far been entirely apolitical.

[SunSeeker]

106. If the family had no respect for the mayor, they would not have let him speak at the funeral.

The cops turning their backs to the mayor turned their backs on the fallen officer's family as well.

[branford]

107. I'm not prepared to go that far.

No one turned their backs in the church, the protest was entirely political and for the cameras outside.

Moreover, not allowing the mayor to speak would have caused a whole lot of other problems at a very difficult time for the family.

That said, I still really have no idea about the family's opinions.

We also do not yet have the date or plans for the funeral for Officer Liu.

[SunSeeker]

108. The protesters were supposed to be there as mourners--that is why they got the time off.

Instead, they used the opportunity to make a no class play to the cameras and upstage the funeral of the officer they were purportedly there to respect.

And please explain what you mean by "a whole lot of problems" for the family if they had asked the mayor not to speak. For someone who purports to be "unprepared to go that far," you sure went far with that line.

[branford]

110. I'm not willing to state that the officers actions necessarily disrespected Officer Ramos.

I already stated that I though the back-turning was stupid and provocative.

Moreover, if the family actually objected to the mayor speaking, they would be embroiled in a loud and acute political controversy while they were mourning and planning a funeral. The fact that the mayor spoke at the funeral is not conclusive, good or bad, as to the family's opinions about the mayor. That is one of the reasons why I'm curious as to the plans for Officer Liu's funeral.

[SunSeeker]

113. If the family had asked De Blasio to not come, he would have shown class, unlike these cops.

Certainly it would have been understandable if they did not what political figures there. But the fact is, the family said they would welcome the mayor at the funeral. SO, if the family welcomes the mayor, but these cops do not, how is that not disrespecting the Ramos family?

And if the cops upstage Ramos' funeral service with their petulant political protest, how is that "not necessarily" disrespectful of Ramos--and Ramos' family?

[SunSeeker]

109. P.S. The Ramos family explicitly said they would welcome the mayor at the funeral.

On Friday, the mayor briefly attended Ramos’ wake at the church in Queens. There was no noticeable reaction from officers upon his arrival, and Ramos’s family said they would welcome the mayor’s presence at the funeral.

The same day, an anonymous person paid for a an aerial sign to be flown over New York City. It read: “de Blasio, our backs have turned to you.”

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/dec/27/funeral-nypd-officer-rafael-ramos


The Google is your friend.

[branford]

111. The article does not indicate the family's opinion about Mayor deBlasio generally

or offer any indication whether they support the PBA's comments or back-turning prtests.

Maybe you vast and expert Google skills can offer an answer to these more relevant questions.

[SunSeeker]

112. OFFS. If the family said they would welcome the mayor, that means they welcome the mayor.

If you welcome someone, it means you respect them...or at a minimum do not want them disrespected.

[Ash_F]

22. Time for New Yorkers to clean out their police force

Many cockroaches in the rafters.

Those jobs pay too much for this behavior.

[easychoice]

28. Ha,Kill overtime,drug test all of them and

start interviewing family members for lousy domestic behavior.
I bet they would crap from the pressure.

[Ash_F]

36. Look at this compensation plan

http://www.nypdrecruit.com/benefits-salary/overview

After 5.5 years, they are making 45 dollars an hour. That doesn't even include the suite of benefits that they enjoy.

Meanwhile New Yorkers must cope with an 8 dollar an hour minimum wage.


Fuck these people. Tax leeches.

[MadDAsHell]

72. Sounds pretty labor friendly...

Now DU is complaining about Union wage scales being too high?

What site am I on?

[Exultant Democracy]

76. Same site it has always been, we try to hold assholes accountable here

Last edited Sun Dec 28, 2014, 02:38 PM - Edit history (1)

So while we are pro union we can also see the big problem the NYC and many other police union present to our civil rights. Just like we can call out bad democrats like Rahm when he attacks the teachers union. A less nuanced approach would be dishonest or stupid.

[Reter]

99. They have been drug-tested for years

n/t

[easychoice]

23. A criminal gang turns it's back on him? That isn't an insult.

3 year old's will have horrible manners when they can't manipulate their parents.

[LiberalElite]

24. Disgraceful. nt

[ellie]

25. Children.

[Fred Sanders]

26. The "two armed camps" theme the media uses to easily keep score is a disgrace to democracy.

[onecaliberal]

30. Remove them for insubordination immediately.

[SwankyXomb]

66. Better idea:

transfer them all to the worst duty stations the NYPD has, graveyard shifts, 2 hour commutes, etc., until they quit.

[onecaliberal]

83. Yes, I love your idea much better.

I just worry that the mayor and his family could be placed in danger because of these asshats.

[branford]

88. Altering terms and conditions of public employment in retaliation for political activity

would be a constitutional First Amendment violation and possibly other federal, state and city laws. It would also be in violation of all NYDP collective bargaining agreements.

If you suggestion was attempted, it would be stopped almost immediately by the courts, and would likely result in civil damages awarded to the affected officers, all paid for by the taxpayers.

It's often frightening how when it comes to the police, purportedly liberal members of DU become authoritarian, anti-union and anti-public employee.

[onecaliberal]

100. It's even more frightening when so called liberal members

Of this board condone gross insubordination by so called officers of the law.
Forgive me if I couldn't care less that I don't meet your standard of liberal. You don't even know me or the causes I've fought for and contributed to, how many hours I've spent knocking on doors and driving people to the polls. but do enjoy the dust bin.

[branford]

103. This may come as a shock,

but you can both oppose the content of the speech and actions of the officers (which I've done numerous times in this thread and others), and yet fully realize and acknowledge that their conduct was legal and permissible.

Democrats and liberals historically fought long and hard for free speech, unions strength, support for public employees, and broad federal and state labor protections. These rights do not magically disappear because the union and individuals asserting them happen to be conservative or their message distasteful or politically damaging to a liberal mayor. If you believe they do, you really don't understand the nature of those battles, or the implications of what you propose, particularly to other liberal public employees and their unions.

Regardless, the mayor and others in his administration are obviously fully cognizant of the clear law and politics, and that is why they have not even anonymously suggested nor implied that any discipline or retaliation is appropriate or forthcoming.

If you've fought hard for liberal causes, good for you. Just remember that those liberal rights and interests can be asserted even by those you do not like or agree with, including the police.

[PatrynXX]

31. as far as I know the more these brain dead NYPD do this

the lower their approval numbers get. They might as well leave the funeral because they are disrespecting the the cops who were killed.

[KingCharlemagne]

32. NYC Freikorps - nt

[bigdarryl]

35. Punk ass cops

[DallasNE]

39. The Double Standard Is Glaring

A few years ago Sarah Palin put out a map with bulls eye's on several congressional districts, including the one Gabby Giffords represented. A few months later a mentally deranged guy gunned her down in cold blood, killing 6 bystanders including the 9 year old granddaughter of baseball notable Dallas Green. Sure, she received a little flack for that but nothing in comparison to what is happening in NYC and de Blasio's words were restrained.

What we are seeing in NYC is just how much the head of the Police Union is the real power figure in city operations across America. It is nuts that a non-elected official has this much power. Wayne LA Pierre is another non-elected official that exerts way too much power. None of this makes any sense and can only lead to anarchy down the road.

[Jake Stern]

41. If I treated my boss the same way these guys treat theirs, I'd be out of a job

Why should they be any different?


Never thought I'd speak out against a union, but maybe it is time for police unions to go.

[KingCharlemagne]

42. Technically speaking, de Blasio is not their 'boss'. I suppose their 'boss' is

William Bratton, although I'm not sure how police department chains of command are structured.

The progressive labor movement in this country needs to suspend all connections and solidarity with police unions, imo.

[alcibiades_mystery]

43. de Blasio needs to tell Bratton to get his people under control or pound sand

It's a leadership problem, alright. In the police brass.

[KingCharlemagne]

44. I honestly do not know in New York City whether Bratton serves at the Mayor's pleasure or

whether he reports to some other entity. If he does report to de Blasio, then absolutely I agree with you. If Bratton reports to some other entity (like the New York City Council, for example), they need to land on Bratton like a ton of bricks.

[alcibiades_mystery]

51. The City Council would shitcan his ass faster than the Mayor...he serves at the Mayor's pleasure

[branford]

90. The police commissioner is a political appointed position that can be terminated without difficulty.

I don't recall if it would require NY City Council approval.

In any event, Bratton is respected by both the rank-and-file officers and politicos, and his involvement and intervention is probably keeping the political problems from becoming much worse. Bratton's job is currently very secure. He has received no substantive criticism from either the unions or mayor, and has publicly spoken well of both, and called for moderation and calm. Additionally, do not forget that the PBA and City are currently engaged in bitter contract negotiations, and about to enter mandatory arbitration, which is undoubtedly aggravating the routinely tense relationship between the union and mayor.

[Vinca]

45. This is totally disgusting.

Maybe if the police didn't murder so many unarmed black men the Mayor wouldn't feel the need to caution his son about how to deal with police. If I had the power to fire all of these cops, they'd be gone.

[gregcrawford]

46. THe NYPD is now officially OUT OF CONTROL!

De Blasio cannot allow such insubordination to persist. If he doesn't come down HARD on the assholes behind this - and I'm talking about the brass at the top of the food chain - the NYPD will metastasize into mob of psychopaths answerable to no one. And New York City will be well and truly FUCKED.

[MrScorpio]

47. My guess is that the NYPD will be launching its own riot in the future

They've done it before.

[Jeff Murdoch]

97. To all the peaceful protesters:

Make sure you photograph all the troublemakers that are violent/looting to give to the appropriate parties later. Make sure you get their footwear as well, as there are sure to be agents provocateurs among these asses, some even dumb enough to wear police issue riot gear boots.

Beware of Kettling---I can't think of any reason for using this tactic other than to cause panic and chaos in the crowd--thus giving them the excuse to wade in swinging.

[TeamPooka]

48. The NYPD can go frisk itself. nt

[billhicks76]

54. Pathetic

Pathetic, racist, petty, childish...and when a Democrat does anything political at a funeral they get chastised by corporate news outlets. Everyone who sees this wants to throw up yet these idiots think they have support for their views. It's a joke. Drug test them all. Then fire them all and hire non-political "peace" officers.

[BeyondGeography]

55. Ramos was their prop

This day should have been about the Ramos family, but they came in a distant second to their hissy fit with the mayor.

[old man 76]

56. There is always some fool

I thought that some reform might be in the works and the people were on board. Then some fool comes along randomly kill two policemen and derails all that might be gained.

[ejbr]

57. Because

they find it acceptable to kill an unarmed black man with an illegal choke hold over selling untaxed cigarettes; even if that said black man said he couldn't breathe 11 times while 5 other officers were on top of him to control him.

[olegramps]

61. To me it shows the disrespect that they have for civil authorities and the constitution.

They are demonstrating that they are solely to be the judge and jury and they are above the law. They alone know what is right and are not to be questioned by the citizens or their elected officials.

They are in essence acting like fascist jackbooted thugs and are not a hell of a lot removed from the Brown Shirt Nazis. They can not even phantom that it was one of their own who is the primary cause of the massive disruptions and most importantly it is one of their who is far more culpable of the two officers deaths than the mayor or the citizens.

Their very attitude should be enough to make the citizens realize that we have allowed a dangerous situation to develop. It is not limited to NYC but is a national crises when officers we have ben entrusted with special powers become a major threat to the citizens they have sworn to protect.

I don't want to hear the long ago discounted notion that it is only a handful who are corrupt. This demonstration clearly says to me that every damn one of them is part of the problem. They are acting more in keeping with vigilantes and lynch mob than trusted keepers of the peace.

[KingCharlemagne]

74. Charles Pierce of Esquire recently published a great essay whose thrust

mirrors yours here:

For the past two weeks, on two different fronts, we have been confronted with the unpleasant fact that there are people working in the institutions of our self-government who believe themselves not only beyond the control and sanctions of the civil power, but also beyond the control and sanctions of their direct superiors. We also have been confronted with the fact that there are too many people in our political elite who are encouraging this behavior for their own purposes, most of which are cheap and dangerous. In Washington, John Brennan, the head of the CIA, came right up to the edge of insubordination against the president who hired him in the wake of the Senate report on American torture. Meanwhile, in New York, in the aftermath of weeks of protests against the strangulation of Eric Garner by members of the New York Police Department, two patrolmen, Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos, were murdered in their squad car by a career criminal and apparent maniac named Ismaaiyl Brinsley. In response, and at the encouragement of television hucksters like Joe Scarborough, police union blowhards like Patrick Lynch, political zombies like George Pataki, and comical fascists like Rudolph Giuliani, the NYPD is acting in open rebellion against Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York, and the civil power he represents over them. This is an incredibly perilous time for democracy at the most basic levels.

http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/Insubordination?src=spr_TWITTER&spr_id=1456_124783503 (Emphasis added)

[olegramps]

114. Thanks. The police demand respect yet don't believe they have to respect civil authority.

They are a law on to their own and I fully agree that they are "an incredibly perilous" threat to our "democracy at the most basic levels."
If the police forces believe they have legitimate grievant issues they should take them up with the authorities rather than demanding that we can not question any of their actions.

In respect to the current situation, the present system in which the DA is empowered to bring an indictments that are investigated by the police makes it virtually impossible for them to bring changes against an officer. It is hamper by necessity of the police to investigate their own officers and for the DA who must maintain relations with the police to function properly. The situation demands that the investigation must be lead by a special prosecutor with not connection to the police under investigation.

[n2doc]

62. No one is forcing them to be police

If they can't stand their boss/Mayor so much, quit and go elsewhere. I am sure a mall somewhere is hiring.

[closeupready]

63. Get the names of every single one and fire them.

Signed, a New Yorker.

[First Speaker]

64. This isn't disrespect...this is a threat. This is an attempted coup in the making.

Fire every one of the fuckers who turned their backs. Police the city with the National Guard if necessary, or even the goddam 82nd Airborne. Do it no matter what the cost, or else we're entering Weimar territory.

[closeupready]

65. Yes. Call in the National Guard if the NYPD Union strikes.

End of story.

[MadDAsHell]

73. My god...we're going from complaining abt the militarization of the police...

then to calling for the National Guard and Army to take over for them, all within a few weeks of each other??? WTF is going on around here...

[First Speaker]

79. If US troops publicly turned their backs on the President of the Unites States...

...would there be any doubt that we were in a constitutional crisis? Even a pre-coup situation? This is something new, and different, from the militarization of the police, which is happening in many locations. This is the police openly expressing contempt for the whole idea of civilian control. This is the police more-or-less openly trying to intimidate their democratically-elected authority. What *do* we do in a situation like this? If I were De Blasio, I would begin by firing every single cop who turned their backs, now, immediately. And if that led to escalation of the situation, it would be on their heads.

[KingCharlemagne]

75. As is so often the case, Charlie Pierce of Esquire's "The Politics Blog" nails

this in words that pre-figure yours in large measure:

It is very simple. If the CIA is insubordinate to the president, whom the country elected, then it is insubordinate to all of us. If the NYPD runs a slow-motion coup against the freely elected mayor of New York, then it is running a slow-motion coup against all the people of New York. There is no exemption from this fundamental truth about the way this country and its system is supposed to work. The military -- and its civilian analogues in Langley and in the precinct houses -- always is subordinate to the civil power which, no matter how much it may chafe them, means that they always are subordinate to politicians. If we render our torturers superior to the political institutions of the government, and if we render the police superior to the civil power of elected officials, then we essentially have empowered independent standing armies to conduct our wars and enforce our laws, and self-government descends into bloody farce.

http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/Insubordination?src=spr_TWITTER&spr_id=1456_124783503

[closeupready]

67. Also, what they are forgetting is crime is at an all-time low.

If the NYPD union struck, it's like that Helen Keller joke - would anyone notice?

[TerrapinFlyer]

85. Fire all the cops who turned their backs

And if they cops strike, do as Reagan, fire them all.

Bring in the National Guard until all replacements have been hired.

[VA_Jill]

89. What an appalling, juvenile display!

And THEY want respect? Gotta give it to get it, boys.

[crim son]

91. Hundreds of short-sighted morons. n/t

[mainer]

93. Are the police trying to stage a coup? The mayor is an elected official

And the police want to overthrow him?

Seriously, folks this is terrifying. That the police believe they can overturn the will of the voters because they're, well, THE POLICE.

[branford]

95. Turning their backs to the mayor, a time-honored peaceful tactic often employed by liberals

to demonstrate political opposition to authority figures, and entirely legal and permissible, is the equivalent to a "coup" to "overturn the will of the voters?" Hardly.

The police action was undoubtedly foolish, short-sighted and provocative, but such ridiculous hyperbole about it adds little to the discussion and makes the police look reasonable in comparison.

Nobody is "overthrowing" anyone, and the conduct was probably more related to gaining advantage in the upcoming PBA contract negotiations than a real personal commentary on the mayor.

All the rhetoric has to be viewed in the context of NYC labor politics.

[Odin2005]

120. Your sticking up for Fascist pigs is disgusting.

[branford]

121. I'm sticking up for the officer's right to free speech and public labor and contract protections,

and pointing out that ridiculous hyperbole, such as the suggestion that officers' conduct amounted to a near "coup," is foolish, politically counterproductive, and in the history and context of NYC labor politics, not even that notable.

That the thing about free speech, even your opponents and political enemies have it and they can say things you disagree with or find offensive. It's a fundamental value and right that liberals and Democrats fought long and hard legal battles to guarantee and protect. Ironically, these battles were originally in defense of groups like communists who faced government discrimination, but the jurisprudence applies equally to conservatives and their messages.

As I stated in my post, I most certainly did not agree with the officers' conduct or message, but since I'm not a hypocrite or blind ideologue, I readily acknowledge their right to espouse it, even when they adopt a tactic like back turning to authority figures commonly employed by liberals.

[bluestateguy]

101. Says a lot more about their character than anything about the mayor

Reflects more upon them than anything else.

[Ken Burch]

102. They want another Giuliani or Koch...someone who defended them every time they murdered blacks

Even when they murdered Eleanor Bumpers, a 66-year old housebound grandmother in poor help who the cops were trying to evict and make homeless in order to let a scumbag developer turn the building she lived in into soulless yuppie luxury condos.

She'd probably have been dead within a year of natural causes, but that wasn't good enough for the NYPD and Koch, both of whom ruled solely for the rich.

[SoapBox]

105. They Serve to Protect...their Own...only.

These Police Militias have taken on a very creepy life of their own.

All paid for with our tax dollars.

[Earth_First]

115. How Westboro Baptist Church of them...

Staging a protest at a funeral?

Morans.

[inanna]

117. Police boss: Turning backs on mayor inappropriate (AP)

Dec. 28, 2014 11:37 AM ET

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City's police commissioner says it was "very inappropriate" for officers to turn their backs on the mayor in a sign of disrespect as he spoke at an officer's funeral.

Commissioner William Bratton appeared Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation" and defended Mayor Bill de Blasio (dih BLAH'-zee-oh). He says de Blasio is "totally supportive" of officers.

On Saturday, hundreds of police officers standing outside the church where Officer Rafael Ramos' funeral was held turned their backs as de Blasio eulogized him.

Link: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2014-12-28-US--NYPD%20Officers%20Shot/id-7cb36e64037c4725923d49296d63e83c

[Calista241]

118. So apparently, they turned their backs today because de Blasio

showed up late for the wake of Officer Ramos.

The Governor, several Representatives, and several former mayors showed up earlier and spent time with the family, but de Blasio showed up 15 minutes before the wake ended at 9:00 pm. In total, the wake lasted over 8 hours.

This was also the first day since de Blasio became mayor that he did not release his public schedule.

[Odin2005]

119. The NYPD is showing itself to be an out of control gang...

...answerable to no one. They are no different than the Mafia.