The Murder of George Floyd & Subsequent Protests/Riots

[ceecee]

A lot of the violence at these things has been alleged to have been instigated by inflitrators. The Boogaloo Boys, for instance.

I'm sure right wingers and Trumpies will just dismiss this as a far fetched conspiracy theory. Normally I might give them that, but considering some of the unsubstantiated shit they've taken as fact from Trump and Fox News, without an ounce of the skepticism the right claims to hold being applied to said shit, I just have to laugh when they have the nerve to pick and choose what they're accepting as fact versus conspiracy theories.

It's all about serving a narrative with the right. And lefties, don't think you're off the hook either. Ultimately everyone just seems beholden to their own narratives, and they just cite or dismiss facts when it's convenient to those narratives. There are few true skeptics remaining anywhere.

All true. But most of the people protesting are protesting police violence. Then the violent police show up and I don't see the narrative mentioning that. Or the oddles of right winger that will infiltrate.

The Auto Zone in Minneapolis is an excellent example. Or the guy that drove into a crowd then got his ass hauled out and beat.

I suggest anyone that still thinks this is just riots and looting to actually go to a protest. They're generally called vigils and they are in almost every major city. Go talk to the groups, there is much more than BLM. But that would require empathy and yanno, effort.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

All true. But most of the people protesting are protesting police violence. Then the violent police show up and I don't see the narrative mentioning that. Or the oddles of right winger that will infiltrate.

The Auto Zone in Minneapolis is an excellent example. Or the guy that drove into a crowd then got his ass hauled out and beat.

I suggest anyone that still thinks this is just riots and looting to actually go to a protest. They're generally called vigils and they are in almost every major city. Go talk to the groups, there is much more than BLM. But that would require empathy and yanno, effort.

Oh I wasn’t saying that I don’t believe it’s infiltrators from the right.

I know for a fact we’ve had infiltrators in my city, as well as neighboring cities. One was a boogaloo boy who had been screencapped posting racist comments mere months ago, only to put out a recent video claiming unity and that he’s changed. Some of the local BLM members bought it but I think he’s full of shit.

And I think any real looting that’s happened has been opportunists unaffiliated with the protests, knowing a) police are too busy confronting peaceful marches to respond to every burglary/looting, b) it would be blamed on protesters anyway

If I were a legit career burglar looking for an easy score, that would certainly be my thinking. And were I a right wing infiltrator, I’d probably be trying to cover my tracks as many infiltrators have done

 

[anticlimatic]

Trying to defend the false narrative of systemic american racism, and the inherently toxic mentality of the radical left, that has lead to 32 dead and millions of dollars in damage by blaming "right wing fringe groups" is about the most stunning level of ideological and ego self deception I've ever seen. It's so bad, it's almost funny. "Who are you going to believe? Our narrative or your own eyes?"

This Is How Biden Loses - The Atlantic

The day before, on Monday, the Republicans began their remote convention. The simultaneous mayhem in Kenosha seemed like part of the script, as it played into their main theme: that Biden is a tool of radical leftists who hate America, who want to bring the chaos of the cities they govern out to the suburbs where the real Americans live. The Republicans won’t let such an opportunity go to waste. “Law and order are on the ballot,” Vice President Mike Pence said on Wednesday night. Other speakers were harsher.

It’s no use dismissing their words as partisan talking points. They are effective ones, backed up by certain facts. Trump will bang this loud, ugly drum until Election Day. He knows that Kenosha has placed Democrats in a trap. They’ve embraced the protests and the causes that drive them. The third night of the Democratic convention was consumed with the language and imagery of protest—as if all Americans watching were activists.

 

[Jaguar]

Statement by President George W. Bush

June 2, 2020

Laura and I are anguished by the brutal suffocation of George Floyd and disturbed by the injustice and fear that suffocate our country. Yet we have resisted the urge to speak out, because this is not the time for us to lecture. It is time for us to listen. It is time for America to examine our tragic failures – and as we do, we will also see some of our redeeming strengths. It remains a shocking failure that many African Americans, especially young African American men, are harassed and threatened in their own country. It is a strength when protesters, protected by responsible law enforcement, march for a better future. This tragedy — in a long series of similar tragedies — raises a long overdue question: How do we end systemic racism in our society? The only way to see ourselves in a true light is to listen to the voices of so many who are hurting and grieving. Those who set out to silence those voices do not understand the meaning of America — or how it becomes a better place.

America’s greatest challenge has long been to unite people of very different backgrounds into a single nation of justice and opportunity. The doctrine and habits of racial superiority, which once nearly split our country, still threaten our Union. The answers to American problems are found by living up to American ideals — to the fundamental truth that all human beings are created equal and endowed by God with certain rights. We have often underestimated how radical that quest really is, and how our cherished principles challenge systems of intended or assumed injustice. The heroes of America — from Frederick Douglass, to Harriet Tubman, to Abraham Lincoln, to Martin Luther King, Jr. — are heroes of unity. Their calling has never been for the fainthearted. They often revealed the nation’s disturbing bigotry and exploitation — stains on our character sometimes difficult for the American majority to examine. We can only see the reality of America's need by seeing it through the eyes of the threatened, oppressed, and disenfranchised.

That is exactly where we now stand. Many doubt the justice of our country, and with good reason. Black people see the repeated violation of their rights without an urgent and adequate response from American institutions. We know that lasting justice will only come by peaceful means. Looting is not liberation, and destruction is not progress. But we also know that lasting peace in our communities requires truly equal justice. The rule of law ultimately depends on the fairness and legitimacy of the legal system. And achieving justice for all is the duty of all. This will require a consistent, courageous, and creative effort. We serve our neighbors best when we try to understand their experience. We love our neighbors as ourselves when we treat them as equals, in both protection and compassion. There is a better way — the way of empathy, and shared commitment, and bold action, and a peace rooted in justice. I am confident that together, Americans will choose the better way.



The entire statement from the "radical left" President George W. Bush can be read here:

Statement by President George W. Bush | Bush Center

 

[Jonny]

Here is a Fox news article that mentions several incidents, described as "riots and lawlessness", occurring in various U.S. cities.

US protests: More riots and lawlessness in cities across nation | Fox News

I decided to compile a list of the 60 most populous cities (chosen as a nice round number that includes each of the cities mentioned in the Fox article). I noted the population of each, along with the mayor and his or her political affiliation. Finally, I calculated the % of cities flagged by the Fox News article by political party and calculated a t-statistic to determine whether or not that % was different by political party. The answer is clearly no.

 

[Jaguar]

Pence disinvited from Wisconsin Lutheran commencement speech amid Kenosha unrest

Vice President Mike Pence is no longer invited to deliver a commencement address to the graduates of Wisconsin Lutheran College amid ongoing unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, after Jacob Blake was shot in the back seven times by police.

"After further review with careful consideration of the escalating events in Kenosha, the WLC Board of Regents and the College's Administration have jointly decided to present a different speaker instead of the Vice President of the United States, Michael R. Pence, at the Saturday, August 29, 2020, commencement," the college said in a statement Thursday.

“Vice President Pence understands and supports Wisconsin Lutheran College’s decision to prioritize the safety and well-being of their students and wishes the students well as they celebrate the accomplishment of graduating from college and as they embark on their next journey," said Devin M. O'Malley, Pence's spokesman.

 

[Jonny]

Biden condemns riots over George Floyd death, calls for end to '''needless destruction''' | Fox News

A Fox News article from May 31st, with Biden condemning riots.

Transcript: Joe Biden's remarks on civil unrest and nationwide protests - CNNPolitics

CNN transcript of Biden's public remarks in early June:

The country is crying out for leadership. Leadership that can unite us. Leadership that can bring us together. Leadership that can recognize the pain and deep grief of communities that have had a knee on their neck for too long.
But there is no place for violence.
No place for looting or destroying property or burning churches, or destroying businesses — many of them built by people of color who for the first time were beginning to realize their dreams and build wealth for their families.
Nor is it acceptable for our police — sworn to protect and serve all people — to escalate tensions or resort to excessive violence.
We need to distinguish between legitimate peaceful protest — and opportunistic violent destruction.

​

The only thing Trump has is fear and falsehood. He is truly one of the worst presidents our country has ever suffered through, and I can only hope that enough people recognize that fact.

 

[Z Buck McFate]

The only thing Trump has is fear and falsehood. He is truly one of the worst presidents our country has ever suffered through, and I can only hope that enough people recognize that fact.

I just read some opinion piece (in the Atlantic I think?) about how Trump is trying to score votes by making his potential base fear the part of the population that will never vote for him. The unspoken platform is "you undecided people need me to protect you from the people who will never vote for me", in so many words. It seemed spot on to me. That's just phenomenally shitty leadership. eta: I mean, in contrast to what was posted about Biden's position for the protesting - making one part of a population afraid of another part of the population to secure votes: that's super shitty leadership.

 

[Jaguar]

Pro-Trump car rally heads to downtown Portland, several arrests made

Trump supporters shoot paintballs and pepper spray at demonstrators
Pro-Trump whippersnappers gather to show support of President heading to prison after leaving office

1 killed as Trump supporters, protesters clash in Portland

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

Video of the execution of a Trump supporter.

https://twitter.com/MrAndyNgo/status/1299983990351257600

There will only be more blood.

Shooter ID'd as Michael Reinoehl

 

[ceecee]

Just in case anyone needs a wee bit of context....

Patriot Prayer - Wikipedia

And that pile of lying shit Andy Ngo..

Andy Ngo - Wikipedia

And I didn't hear these people crying about the two people executed by the teenage murder last week so I'll ignore your bullshit rage. But keep clutching those pearls.

Must be a real wake up call for the right to see armed leftist. But after all Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels did say - ‘Under no pretext should arms and ammunition be surrendered; any attempts to disarm the people must be stopped, by force if necessary". Unfortunately it wasn't Ronald Reagan no matter how many chuds like a FB post saying he did. This always makes it glaringly obvious out little reading is done on the right.

Marx, Engels Quote Falsely Attributed to Reagan - FactCheck.org

 

[anticlimatic]

Another mostly peaceful evening in Portland.

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

The concept of self defense seems to escape some.

 

[anticlimatic]

Rand Paul blasts ’idiots’ who ’attacked’ him near White House

Video posted to twitter of the incident shows Paul walking down a street surrounded by people yelling "say her name," "her name is Breonna Taylor" and "she can't sleep so neither will you."

On June 11, Paul introduced the Justice for Breonna Taylor Act to end no-knock warrants. The act would require federal law enforcement to provide notice of their authority and purpose before they could execute a warrant.

Remind me again what the protests are for?

 

[Tellenbach]

I'm guessing that the majority of BLM "protestors" are paid hooligans. Basically, you can get some people to do anything if you give them a buck. This is why you'll never see a libertarian mob; we actually have moral standards.

 

[Grand Admiral Crunch]

Most say ‘protests’ have become ‘riots,’ new high in support for police





Well that's not good. Biden better get his pandering ass in gear and--

Biden: 'Burning down communities is not protest' | TheHill



About fucking time. Portland has been burning for months now. I'm not sure why anyone thought that looking the other way on this was going to be good for them politically. Hopefully its not too late for Biden. It's hard to be the "return to normalcy" candidate when you're justifying riots in the streets. Thanks to all of this, Trump is the one that looks like the stable voice of order and reason to anyone center/center-right.

Biden should've also asked peaceful protesters to stay home for their safety, and to allow the police to more easily prevent violence and vandalism.

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

The scars have gotten too deep for the civil war to stop regardless who wins in Nov', despite the almost implied "give us the presidency and the riots will stop" ultimatum.

The scars run too deep, the seeds of escalation have been sown. Everyone has a taste for blood and likes it.

For those of you in large embattled cities I'd get ready to stay off the streets for a while.

 

[Jonny]

The scars have gotten too deep for the civil war to stop regardless who wins in Nov', despite the almost implied "give us the presidency and the riots will stop" ultimatum.

The scars run too deep, the seeds of escalation have been sown. Everyone has a taste for blood and likes it.

For those of you in large embattled cities I'd get ready to stay off the streets for a while.

What scars? What exactly has become so irreconcilable? Why is a civil war inevitable?

Most of us don't want violence. Most of us want our country to work together to solve the problems facing us.

Before the 2016 election you talked about a civil war, though that talk evaporated when Trump was elected. What, specifically, are the major issues?

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

To wit: https://twitter.com/EmilyValdezKNX/status/1300184268312686592

Breaking: SWAT Called out in Woodland Hills after someone from an apartment on #VenturaBoulevard shoots at pro-Trump caravan of cars. Tire on vehicle was shot out. No injuries. Suspect barricaded in apartment, per LAPD. ⁦
@KNX1070

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

What scars? What exactly has become so irreconcilable? Why is a civil war inevitable?

Most of us don't want violence. Most of us want our country to work together to solve the problems facing us.

Before the 2016 election you talked about a civil war, though that talk evaporated when Trump was elected. What, specifically, are the major issues?

A ratchet only goes one way.

A war doesn't take most of us, just a few. Of those not willing to engage many are more than happy to cheer and signal boost from the sidelines. And no I no longer think 'most' of us want to work together. Each sides vision of what they want the country to be has become a venn diagram where the circle's no longer overlap. Coexistence is no longer the goal, but victory and humiliation. Barring a large scale attack seen as an act of War on the US from a foreign actor nothing will keep us from viewing the opposition as the enemy. Views are now antithetical to one another.

It didnt evaporate after '16 it got worse. Id say the first and second Amendments are a good place to start as to issues.

Stack ammo and pull up a lawn chair with some cold brews and watch, we live in interesting if no longer fun times.