I read with interest MS Brazile”s column (12/10) and found she offered some valid points. I agree with her that the public should reconsider the nature of the situations faced by officers simply trying to do their jobs and sometimes having no time to think rationally, only to react. I suspect there is enough panic, fright, and self concern to go around on both sides of the confrontation so that blaming either one, alone, is probably not correct.
And I think she is correct in that a closed Grand Jury may not be the best way to seek a solution. Much more transparency seems called for. Recall that the job of the jury is to examine the evidence to establish if there is enough to warrant the prosecutor to seek an indictment. In spite of the “media language,” the jury does not have the power or responsibility to “refuse to indict.” But the title of the article, “What will it take to rebuild trust” seems to me to be off-mark as her inference seems to place the seat of the problem on law enforcement malfunction. The vast majority of all comment seems to deal with “correcting” law enforcement, almost nothing dealing with parental responsibility and community values. It seems to me to be a triumph of emotional subjectivity over rational objectivity. The country needs to recognize that it is every one”s duty and responsibility to maintain order and civility in our streets and communities. Particularly so as it is the errant behavior of a citizen that initiates interest on the part of law enforcement.
Any “blame” has to be borne by all of us. Over the past, freed slaves have been subjected to rudimentary “profiling”-“If you black, you inferior.” One result was the gathering of blacks into communities for safety and comfort. It is possibly the worst thing a group hoping to assimilate into a majority population can do as it allows local customs and values to expand with no “outside” influences . Since our law system is based on the whole population, sometimes conflicts arise. I think it is the responsibility of all of us to recognize the laws of the land, act accordingly, and teach our children to do so. And to respond peaceably if called out.
Whether one is pink or purple, this is the responsibility of community, schools, and, most important, parents. One thing that bothers me about the Ferguson situation is that, while the population is (about 80 percent) black, there is little evidence that the power of the vote has been used to improve things.
Guff Worth, Lakeport
