BRUTAL HONESTY: Blacks Are Victims of J. Edgar Hoover and Capitalism
Republished from 7/12/16:
Let's be BRUTALLY HONEST; lay aside any emotions and take a good, hard, rational look at what led up to the Dallas massacre. I've been thinking about it a lot and this is my second blog post on the matter in the five days since Private First Class (E3) Micah Xavier Johnson shot 12 Dallas law enforcement officers, killing five. In the minds of some -- but not all -- people he went from being a military hero to being a criminal zero when he transitioned from shooting at foreigners in Afghanistan to shooting at cops in America. Now some people are wondering why Private Johnson chose to shoot cops in a city that has not been in the national media for its police brutality and killing of unarmed Black men. I assure you that there are many in Afghanistan who still don't know why we decimated THEIR country when we didn't find any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, when Osama Bin Laden was hiding in Pakistan and when most people in that country neither know nor care what the World Trade Center IS or that it was attacked. So, why is it that we glorify violence when it's perpetrated upon other countries by the U.S. military but we ostracize our soldiers when they return to stateside and kill the pillars of capitalism -- an oppressive and exploitative system that permeates the world??? (BTW, militarism is one aspect of Fascism.)
We ask "Why?" when Americans are killed; but, we blindly accept it when our military is given orders to destroy another nation in the name of American security. We call it "patriotism". Many soldiers have come back to America and spoken of the atrocities they were made to perpetrate upon innocent people (or to witness) and about how they found out that the war was not for the reasons stated by our American politicians. Private Micah Johnson's mother told media that her son had indeed made the latter claim.
Now the media is inclined to try and prove that Private Johnson was mentally ill in order to discredit his claim in an attempt to hide the ugly truth about our government's motives for going to war. While I can't speak to the issue of his mental state, it stands to reason that any mental illness that he might have suffered from began to manifest while he was deployed and possibly even as a direct result of that deployment. After all, there is documented proof that military service drives many people crazy -- making the U.S. Government something in the way of a "Frankenstein Factory" that is mass-producing monsters -- some of whom get "treatment" by way of a cop's service revolver or heavy artillery afforded to police by the military. (Hey, we can't let a perfectly good tank go to waste!!! The silver lining here is that they aren't using these tanks on FOREIGN civilians.)
If Private Johnson was indeed the military-manufactured "monster" that the media is portraying him to be, I'd have to say that he was a monster with a mind and a good point. He spoke to police negotiators for several hours. The public doesn't know the majority of what he said, though we have the DPD's biased, slanted summation. We DO know that Private Johnson was angry about the unjustified deaths by police of Alton Sterling, Philando Castile and others -- MANY OTHERS. We DO know that, even if he didn't actually read THIS BLOG POST of mine, he used the sensibilities mentioned therein. After all, he spent several months preparing for July 7th. We DO know that racial tensions that have been building up for centuries and were never adequately dealt with after Jim Crow have come back to haunt us. We DO know that, even in death, Private Johnson is forcing the conversation that should have been taking place decades ago -- forcing the much-needed, difficult and long overdue conversation about racial inequality and the negative effects of Capitalism (particularly on Black Americans).
I've spoken to a number of people since the shooting and have been ever so slightly surprised at some of what I've heard. As indicated in my previous post, some people (including at least one preacher) have said, "I don't condone it; but, I understand it". People have expressed how angry they are that the media is doing so much coverage of the police officers that were killed while seeming to have forgotten about the unarmed Black men whose deaths by crooked cops were, in fact, the reasons for the Dallas Shooting. I've even heard a Caucasian man say that he had absolutely no sympathy for the police officers who died; insomuch as, they're part of a corrupt system (sometimes, I might add, falling victim to THEIR OWN carelessness and stupidity.). And, finally, I've heard folk say that a person who becomes a police officer should know that the possibility of dying in the line of duty goes with the territory -- as Ofcr. Ashley Guindon learned when she was killed by Army Staff Sergeant Ron Hamilton on her first day on the job. I'm not surprised that people are thinking this way; but rather, that they're throwing off the constraints put on our freedoms by the Patriot Act (and other incremental policy changes that somewhat underhandedly remove our freedoms) by voicing their BRUTALLY HONEST opinions.
While I agree with all of the people whom I quoted above, I'd like to notice what those whom I don't agree with have said too. Let's bear in mind that the "Right" can be wrong and most often is, as indicated by the 2016 presidential campaign. Our most learned right-wing politicians and pundits are the ones saying that Obama instigated the Dallas massacre, that members of the Black Lives Matter Movement are like the KKK and that BLM is putting targets on the backs of police. If this is the best that the right has to offer, I'd hate to see their worst, as the Dallas massacre probably would pale by comparison.
I won't belabor the topic any longer of how hyperbolic and irrational American capitalists are; as, one needs only to watch Donald Trump or Fox News in order to get a feel for that. However, I'd like to remind people of a capitalist tactic that was used against Blacks 50 years ago and is still reaping results. The Black Panthers formed in response to police brutality in Oakland, California in 1966. Again, there was police brutality in Oakland in 1966. Then, much like Hezbollah, Fatah and other groups that have been labeled "radical" by the U.S. Government, the Black Panthers transitioned from defending an oppressed people to offering social services and programs of social uplift -- namely the "Free Breakfast for School Children" program. The Black Panthers realized that Black children weren't doing well in their studies because they weren't eating well. However, in addition to feeding the children, the Panthers were also teaching about the science of society and the negative impact of U.S. capitalism on Black Americans. J. Edgar Hoover didn't like that Black children were being taught to think critically about our society and how it holds poor people and Blacks in low regard. So, he did various things to stop the Black Panthers. J. Edgar Hoover didn't want the children to eat up the truth and the views of the BPP along with their breakfast. So, the head of a law enforcement agency began pushing for the creation of a federal school meal program. I often put forth J. Edgar Hoover's promotion of school meals sans the ideology as the worst thing to ever be done to Black Americans. Sadly, some of us continue to accept sustenance without the critical thinking -- even refusing to join a rally or protest that is meant to make known the plight of Black Americans, foster understanding and move us toward society-wide solutions. It's because people might lose their HUD housing voucher or food stamps which are being diminished anyway. They're like frogs in a pot of water that's being brought to a boil very slowly. Sad. (Exploitation evidently yields a high ROI.)
So while Dallas indeed has NOT been the scene of any high-profile killings by police in recent history, the city IS still a part of the capitalist scheme of things, not to speak of the fact that it is in proximity to Private Johnson's home. It's also safe to assume that Micah Johnson understood that all U.S. police -- even the ones who haven't murdered Black men -- are part of the corrupt system of capitalism.
Let's be BRUTALLY HONEST; lay aside any emotions and take a good, hard, rational look at what led up to the Dallas massacre. I've been thinking about it a lot and this is my second blog post on the matter in the five days since Private First Class (E3) Micah Xavier Johnson shot 12 Dallas law enforcement officers, killing five. In the minds of some -- but not all -- people he went from being a military hero to being a criminal zero when he transitioned from shooting at foreigners in Afghanistan to shooting at cops in America. Now some people are wondering why Private Johnson chose to shoot cops in a city that has not been in the national media for its police brutality and killing of unarmed Black men. I assure you that there are many in Afghanistan who still don't know why we decimated THEIR country when we didn't find any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, when Osama Bin Laden was hiding in Pakistan and when most people in that country neither know nor care what the World Trade Center IS or that it was attacked. So, why is it that we glorify violence when it's perpetrated upon other countries by the U.S. military but we ostracize our soldiers when they return to stateside and kill the pillars of capitalism -- an oppressive and exploitative system that permeates the world??? (BTW, militarism is one aspect of Fascism.)
We ask "Why?" when Americans are killed; but, we blindly accept it when our military is given orders to destroy another nation in the name of American security. We call it "patriotism". Many soldiers have come back to America and spoken of the atrocities they were made to perpetrate upon innocent people (or to witness) and about how they found out that the war was not for the reasons stated by our American politicians. Private Micah Johnson's mother told media that her son had indeed made the latter claim.
Now the media is inclined to try and prove that Private Johnson was mentally ill in order to discredit his claim in an attempt to hide the ugly truth about our government's motives for going to war. While I can't speak to the issue of his mental state, it stands to reason that any mental illness that he might have suffered from began to manifest while he was deployed and possibly even as a direct result of that deployment. After all, there is documented proof that military service drives many people crazy -- making the U.S. Government something in the way of a "Frankenstein Factory" that is mass-producing monsters -- some of whom get "treatment" by way of a cop's service revolver or heavy artillery afforded to police by the military. (Hey, we can't let a perfectly good tank go to waste!!! The silver lining here is that they aren't using these tanks on FOREIGN civilians.)
If Private Johnson was indeed the military-manufactured "monster" that the media is portraying him to be, I'd have to say that he was a monster with a mind and a good point. He spoke to police negotiators for several hours. The public doesn't know the majority of what he said, though we have the DPD's biased, slanted summation. We DO know that Private Johnson was angry about the unjustified deaths by police of Alton Sterling, Philando Castile and others -- MANY OTHERS. We DO know that, even if he didn't actually read THIS BLOG POST of mine, he used the sensibilities mentioned therein. After all, he spent several months preparing for July 7th. We DO know that racial tensions that have been building up for centuries and were never adequately dealt with after Jim Crow have come back to haunt us. We DO know that, even in death, Private Johnson is forcing the conversation that should have been taking place decades ago -- forcing the much-needed, difficult and long overdue conversation about racial inequality and the negative effects of Capitalism (particularly on Black Americans).
I've spoken to a number of people since the shooting and have been ever so slightly surprised at some of what I've heard. As indicated in my previous post, some people (including at least one preacher) have said, "I don't condone it; but, I understand it". People have expressed how angry they are that the media is doing so much coverage of the police officers that were killed while seeming to have forgotten about the unarmed Black men whose deaths by crooked cops were, in fact, the reasons for the Dallas Shooting. I've even heard a Caucasian man say that he had absolutely no sympathy for the police officers who died; insomuch as, they're part of a corrupt system (sometimes, I might add, falling victim to THEIR OWN carelessness and stupidity.). And, finally, I've heard folk say that a person who becomes a police officer should know that the possibility of dying in the line of duty goes with the territory -- as Ofcr. Ashley Guindon learned when she was killed by Army Staff Sergeant Ron Hamilton on her first day on the job. I'm not surprised that people are thinking this way; but rather, that they're throwing off the constraints put on our freedoms by the Patriot Act (and other incremental policy changes that somewhat underhandedly remove our freedoms) by voicing their BRUTALLY HONEST opinions.
While I agree with all of the people whom I quoted above, I'd like to notice what those whom I don't agree with have said too. Let's bear in mind that the "Right" can be wrong and most often is, as indicated by the 2016 presidential campaign. Our most learned right-wing politicians and pundits are the ones saying that Obama instigated the Dallas massacre, that members of the Black Lives Matter Movement are like the KKK and that BLM is putting targets on the backs of police. If this is the best that the right has to offer, I'd hate to see their worst, as the Dallas massacre probably would pale by comparison.
I won't belabor the topic any longer of how hyperbolic and irrational American capitalists are; as, one needs only to watch Donald Trump or Fox News in order to get a feel for that. However, I'd like to remind people of a capitalist tactic that was used against Blacks 50 years ago and is still reaping results. The Black Panthers formed in response to police brutality in Oakland, California in 1966. Again, there was police brutality in Oakland in 1966. Then, much like Hezbollah, Fatah and other groups that have been labeled "radical" by the U.S. Government, the Black Panthers transitioned from defending an oppressed people to offering social services and programs of social uplift -- namely the "Free Breakfast for School Children" program. The Black Panthers realized that Black children weren't doing well in their studies because they weren't eating well. However, in addition to feeding the children, the Panthers were also teaching about the science of society and the negative impact of U.S. capitalism on Black Americans. J. Edgar Hoover didn't like that Black children were being taught to think critically about our society and how it holds poor people and Blacks in low regard. So, he did various things to stop the Black Panthers. J. Edgar Hoover didn't want the children to eat up the truth and the views of the BPP along with their breakfast. So, the head of a law enforcement agency began pushing for the creation of a federal school meal program. I often put forth J. Edgar Hoover's promotion of school meals sans the ideology as the worst thing to ever be done to Black Americans. Sadly, some of us continue to accept sustenance without the critical thinking -- even refusing to join a rally or protest that is meant to make known the plight of Black Americans, foster understanding and move us toward society-wide solutions. It's because people might lose their HUD housing voucher or food stamps which are being diminished anyway. They're like frogs in a pot of water that's being brought to a boil very slowly. Sad. (Exploitation evidently yields a high ROI.)
So while Dallas indeed has NOT been the scene of any high-profile killings by police in recent history, the city IS still a part of the capitalist scheme of things, not to speak of the fact that it is in proximity to Private Johnson's home. It's also safe to assume that Micah Johnson understood that all U.S. police -- even the ones who haven't murdered Black men -- are part of the corrupt system of capitalism.
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