Busted

Opening point: I have no love for the cops.

Although I am a law-abiding citizen, except that I am inclined to speed a little bit and sometimes perform unorthodox maneuvers while driving, I have been on the receiving end of police attention many, many times. And you know what? You always lose. Whether you are right or wrong, you  lose because the cops have the power.

Henry Louis Gates Jr was arrested.People who believe that he was arrested for breaking and entering his own home are the same people who believe that Bill Clinton was impeached for sex acts. Does no one read any farther than the headlines these days? People, please - have a little intellectual curiosity instead of falling back on ingrained knee-jerk reactions.

He was arrested but not because some racist cops responded to a complaint from a racist neighbor. He was arrested for sassing the cops. I understand you perfectly, Henry Louis Gates Jr. I often replay my police encounters in my head, rehashing what I should have said or practicing withering remarks for the next time. But when I get pulled over, I just sit silently until its over. Sometimes I cry. You can't make it better - you can only make it worse. In the end, the police have the power to make it worse for you and I sincerely believe it depends on how they feel at the moment.

There's a lot being written about this on the news outlets and on the blogs today about it but the most sensible commentary I've read about it was in the comments  on Gawker:

So now you know - I am an appeaser.  An appeaser with an inclination for sarcasm and an inclination for scathing putdowns. But I am an appeaser who never got cuffed because I know when to shut it.

UPDATE:  Charges against Gates have been dropped.

 Here's a picture snapped by one of the bystanders. Note the calm impassive expressions on the cops. They know they are in control. What's it to them how many citizens are upset?   Also note the black cop. So much for racism. Al Sharpton is already at Harvard Square Station waiting for a train back to New York.

I'm sure Gates pulled the old "Don't you know who I am?" thing. Now it seems its more like a case of elitism rather than racism. Hah-vad professor, doncha know?  Maybe he's one of those riches that are going to pay all of our taxes. They had to let him go so he could start writing out checks for our Obamacare.

Comments

[dogette]

I have no love for cops either, because every time I've been pulled over it's been suspiciously motiveless or the cop outright LIED. Trust me on this. It has made me very nervous, scared even, of the power they have. I think they like to pull over "attractive" women in sports cars (back in the day). And then fuck with them. I was seriously scared at least two different times because of the remoteness of the road and no cell phone back then. I would seriously consider driving on to a cop shop if I were pulled over today for any reason. Let them take it out on me once I reached the safety of the cop shop. I'll take my chances explaining why I didn't want to pull over for no reason in the dark for someone claiming I'd done something wrong when I hadn't.

I can't even joke about this. Too many weird personal experiences.

[Kitsch]

Seriously. This is a life lesson for all of us. Cops have no sense of humor.

Also, I once got pulled over at 5 a.m. by a police officer, after being tailed by a beat-up car with one broken headlight. I asked the cop why he pulled me over & not the tailgater with the broken headlight, and he replied that he wanted me to be safe from the car that was tailing me. Uh...what? I then told him that I'd make sure and let my friend, (who I named) a high-ranked officer in the city, know how thankful I was, and could I have his badge number, please? Cop-boy bid me a quick farewell and ran back to his cruiser. When I called my high-ranking friend the next day, he told me this was common amongst officers looking for cute women. Well now, made me feel all pretty. And creepy. Asshats!

[dogette]

Kitch, I had a very similar experience to that one; LA cops, one asked me out! Too creepy.

[Danielle B.]

This "respected professor" has been a pain in the public ass for a long time. Now he's declared that he's going to be an advocate for prison reform - a thought that never crossed his mind before this incident. Makes you wonder about his outburst. He's an ass.

[Suzette]

The point is that the police can do and do do whatever they want within the law. And you don't know what law they are going to pull out to cover their harassment. Not at all related to race or gender.

[Mr. Bingley]

i get all polite and yes-sir-ee with the cops. there's no point doing otherwise.