Breaking News Events

[MsDemeanor]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

Watching some news on this right now. Of course the risk of racial rioting in Oakland, CA are being thrown all over. This is a very emotionally charged case for Oakland residents, especially African American youth. But, I think this presumptive thinking is racist. Am I wrong to think this? It just feels to me that this is always the stereotypic reflex- all the black people are going to riot because the verdict is less than many of them may feel is due.

Just out of curiosity, were you watching the local Faux Newz station (KTVU 2)? I expect talk of protests, and given what happened before, of riots; San Francisco has a heavy population of professional protesters, and they all probably jumped on BART to head to Oakland the second they heard a verdict was being delivered. The presumption that it's going to be African Americans sounds likethe racist spin that I would expect from KTVU.

My resident criminal defense attorney can't understand why the involuntary option was even given to the jury. This is akin to an acquittal.

[Toughy]

I just got back from downtown Oakland. I have been involved in hundreds of protests and I have a good sense of how they go and of crowd energy. I know what the professional anarchist violence prone asshats look like.

Oscar Grant's grandfather spoke at the rally. He called for peace. This was a long planned rally to occur the day of the verdict. Oakland pastors and priests and community leaders have been holding candle light vigils and calls for peace since the trial started and it's stepped up since the jury went into deliberations on Friday. There are lots of families with children down there, Christian groups, Unitarians. The crowd is mostly black and brown, but plenty of white folk. I missed the little incident with the AC transit bus, but that was settled peacefully and the OPD backed off. They do have the entire area surrounded with police in riot gear, long batons, some with tear gas rifles.....I must have seen about 500 cops in the downtown area.........with hundreds more staged down towards Jack London Square (the cops are from oakland pd, state patrol, sheriffs dept, and surrounding communities). Some of those cops looked a little tense, but most looked and felt ok.

I left because it's getting dark and the number of anarchists (mostly young white men) with faces covered by bandannas and black men with faces covered started increasing. The feel of the crowd was starting to change and the families were starting to leave. Yes it's gonna get ugly down there tonight........probably really ugly because there are some rightfully very angry folks who are going to get violent and will be spurred towards it by the anarchists. I've seen plenty of peaceful demonstrations and civil disobedience actions turn to shit in a hurry once the anarchists start with their crap.

AtLast............you know.........what you said about 'racial rioting'........well that's just flat out racist. You might want to think about why you put the word 'racial' in that sentence.

I have no earthly idea how involuntary manslaughter could possibly be the verdict when the white cop shot and killed an unarmed black kid, in the back, while the kid was face down on the ground. This country just will not convict a cop of murder esp a white cop killing a black kid.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by MsDemeanor

Just out of curiosity, were you watching the local Faux Newz station (KTVU 2)? I expect talk of protests, and given what happened before, of riots; San Francisco has a heavy population of professional protesters, and they all probably jumped on BART to head to Oakland the second they heard a verdict was being delivered. The presumption that it's going to be African Americans sounds likethe racist spin that I would expect from KTVU.

My resident criminal defense attorney can't understand why the involuntary option was even given to the jury. This is akin to an acquittal.

SHIT! I had heard the verdict was going to be announced at 4 pm on my way home on the radio, so turned on TV when I got home. I just flipped to a station that was covering the verdict-it was Ch 2!!

It was just the regular news at that point (with the Breaking News cut in). I went back out again until now and haven't watched anything else yet and didn't listen to the radio in the car.

I was struck by the insinuations being just thrown out. But, I don't usually watch 2. Now I get it!

The involuntary man option did seem off. But, I really can't speak to how these things are put forth in a trial. My guess is that many people will take this as an acquittal. I am stunned with the verdict.

[Toughy]

I'm watching Channel 2 news right now......

Of the film they have shown of the 'riot' (which was apparently, the looting of a Foot Locker, a bunch knocked over newpaper racks and papers all over the streets and a whole bunch of folks playing 'catch me if you can' with police) all of the folks shown arrested with the exception of one black man, are white anarchists, probably from SF and Berkeley.

The thing that truly pisses me off about all the media is the inability to see where the violence that happens in organized peaceful civil disobediance/demonstrations/rallies comes from. It is always started by anarchists in my experience and the overwhelming majority of them are white.

It's 10:30 and for right now it's over.....they are re-opening some streets downtown.............however there are still a bunch of folks still on the street. And I am off to bed.


Oh yeah............the jury had no black folk on it, but was majority white, with asian and latino folk filling it out.

[MsDemeanor]

Originally Posted by Toughy

AtLast............you know.........what you said about 'racial rioting'........well that's just flat out racist. You might want to think about why you put the word 'racial' in that sentence.

I think you misread the post. AtLast didn't 'put' that word in the sentence...she was commenting on what the TV news story had focused on and questioning why Faux Newz emphasized 'racial' rioting....

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Toughy

I'm watching Channel 2 news right now......

Of the film they have shown of the 'riot' (which was apparently, the looting of a Foot Locker, a bunch knocked over newpaper racks and papers all over the streets and a whole bunch of folks playing 'catch me if you can' with police) all of the folks shown arrested with the exception of one black man, are white anarchists, probably from SF and Berkeley.

The thing that truly pisses me off about all the media is the inability to see where the violence that happens in organized peaceful civil disobediance/demonstrations/rallies comes from. It is always started by anarchists in my experience and the overwhelming majority of them are white.

It's 10:30 and for right now it's over.....they are re-opening some streets downtown.............however there are still a bunch of folks still on the street. And I am off to bed.


Oh yeah............the jury had no black folk on it, but was majority white, with asian and latino folk filling it out.

Not one black on the jury!!!?? WTF!

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by MsDemeanor

I think you misread the post. AtLast didn't 'put' that word in the sentence...she was commenting on what the TV news story had focused on and questioning why Faux Newz emphasized 'racial' rioting....

Yes, T, you did misread my post. I most certainly was talking about the news story and Ch 2/Faux news doing this.

Geeesssuuussss.......!!! Now I will probably get I'm a racist reps!! This isn't funny after the last couple of days with thread situations. Yes, I am upset by this, seriously. Look at some of the stuff that gets started on here due to misreading of posts and flat-out inaccuracy!!

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Toughy

I just got back from downtown Oakland. I have been involved in hundreds of protests and I have a good sense of how they go and of crowd energy. I know what the professional anarchist violence prone asshats look like.

Oscar Grant's grandfather spoke at the rally. He called for peace. This was a long planned rally to occur the day of the verdict. Oakland pastors and priests and community leaders have been holding candle light vigils and calls for peace since the trial started and it's stepped up since the jury went into deliberations on Friday. There are lots of families with children down there, Christian groups, Unitarians. The crowd is mostly black and brown, but plenty of white folk. I missed the little incident with the AC transit bus, but that was settled peacefully and the OPD backed off. They do have the entire area surrounded with police in riot gear, long batons, some with tear gas rifles.....I must have seen about 500 cops in the downtown area.........with hundreds more staged down towards Jack London Square (the cops are from oakland pd, state patrol, sheriffs dept, and surrounding communities). Some of those cops looked a little tense, but most looked and felt ok.

I left because it's getting dark and the number of anarchists (mostly young white men) with faces covered by bandannas and black men with faces covered started increasing. The feel of the crowd was starting to change and the families were starting to leave. Yes it's gonna get ugly down there tonight........probably really ugly because there are some rightfully very angry folks who are going to get violent and will be spurred towards it by the anarchists. I've seen plenty of peaceful demonstrations and civil disobedience actions turn to shit in a hurry once the anarchists start with their crap.

AtLast............you know.........what you said about 'racial rioting'........well that's just flat out racist. You might want to think about why you put the word 'racial' in that sentence.
I have no earthly idea how involuntary manslaughter could possibly be the verdict when the white cop shot and killed an unarmed black kid, in the back, while the kid was face down on the ground. This country just will not convict a cop of murder esp a white cop killing a black kid.

Re-read my my post Toughy- you are mistaken and misread it. IT WAS THE NEWS STATION THAT USED THIS TACTIC AND TERM- NOT ME! In fact, my post was exactly about what you are talking about- how the media was stereotyping African Americans by throwing out riot lines. READ THE DAMN POST!

[Toughy]

My apologies to you AtLast....I did misread your post.

The local stations this morning have all have clearly said the police understand the violence was a result of 'outside agitators'. Channel 2 seems to gloss that little fact over. They keep saying 'protestors turned violent'. OPD says about 80% of the arrests were of folks from out of town.

I must say I am impressed (for the first time) with the new OPD Police Chief and Mayor Dellums. The citizens of Oakland got to have their say in a peaceful way.........the police did not interfere in that at all. They had a good plan of action and carried it out.

[AtLast]

Thank you, T!

Usually, a misread would not bother me so much, but, lately, things have been rough.

Yes, Msdemeanor asked me what channel I flipped to- it was Ch. 2 (a Faux News affiliate). I was just searching for the verdict reading at the time. This morning, from other TV and radio reports, I am hearing that the violence was from outside agitators. Good that other media sources are getting this out! Oakland does not need more grief with this.

Yes, it looks like the OPD handled this well, thankfully.

Originally Posted by Toughy

My apologies to you AtLast....I did misread your post.

The local stations this morning have all have clearly said the police understand the violence was a result of 'outside agitators'. Channel 2 seems to gloss that little fact over. They keep saying 'protestors turned violent'. OPD says about 80% of the arrests were of folks from out of town.

I must say I am impressed (for the first time) with the new OPD Police Chief and Mayor Dellums. The citizens of Oakland got to have their say in a peaceful way.........the police did not interfere in that at all. They had a good plan of action and carried it out.

[Isadora]

What makes me sad it that the mainstream media chose to show the rioting not the many many many locals who went to their churches or to peaceful gatherings in protest.

When the media portrays nothing but violence, the media breeds destruction and deeper violent action.

[MsDemeanor]

My neighbors include two brothers that are both Oakland PD. I had a chat today with the younger one's girlfriend. She said that, out of 78 arrests, 19 were from Oakland, 28 or so from CA, and the rest from out of state.

[SuperFemme]

In all the L.A. Times pictures they show POC looting stores and in supposed conflict with police. It is more than ridiculous the way it is being portrayed.

[Toughy]

Kind of reminds you of Katrina when all the black folks were looting and the white folk were just trying to get supplies. Yep there were some black folk looting the Foot Locker......however it was brief and they didn't clean out the store...and that footage gets played over and over......

My question for Foot Locker is why in the hell didn't you board up your windows......everyone knew there was going to be broken windows and most of the stores downtown were boarded up. All the stores around the Fruitvale BART station were boarded up and closed by 3:00pm. That's the BART station where Oscar was killed. Nothing at all happened there.

My little sister called me this morning to check and see if I was OK...........she and her husband are in northwestern Oregon dredging and panning gold. The news she saw was all about riots and nothing about the 2000 or so folks who peacefully took over a small part of downtown Oakland.

At my work we have several firefighters and cops and county sheriffs who bring their precious dogs for daycare/boarding..........I got the same info from them MsDemeanor reported

---------
Susan.........I really am sorry I misread your post......it was entirely my fault.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Toughy

Kind of reminds you of Katrina when all the black folks were looting and the white folk were just trying to get supplies. Yep there were some black folk looting the Foot Locker......however it was brief and they didn't clean out the store...and that footage gets played over and over......

My question for Foot Locker is why in the hell didn't you board up your windows......everyone knew there was going to be broken windows and most of the stores downtown were boarded up. All the stores around the Fruitvale BART station were boarded up and closed by 3:00pm. That's the BART station where Oscar was killed. Nothing at all happened there.

My little sister called me this morning to check and see if I was OK...........she and her husband are in northwestern Oregon dredging and panning gold. The news she saw was all about riots and nothing about the 2000 or so folks who peacefully took over a small part of downtown Oakland.

At my work we have several firefighters and cops and county sheriffs who bring their precious dogs for daycare/boarding..........I got the same info from them MsDemeanor reported

---------
Susan.........I really am sorry I misread your post......it was entirely my fault.

We are cool.

UGH.. there is a lot of footage/talk of this incident and not much about the real heart of people demonstrating in a peaceful manner and what they were trying to get across.

I have heard some reports that are not even using the word riot, mostly demonstration- that is good (one was CNN). And reporting about the fact that so many of those causing problems were not even from Oakland.

But, yes.... there has been an awful lot of press focused on this instead of all of the issues this case represents. There is a conversation to have that never seems to get addressed.

[Zimmeh]

CNN just reported that Yankee's Owner, George Steinbrenner has passed away. The sports world lost a baseball icon.

My condolences to his family and all Yankee fans.

[Greyson]

Originally Posted by ZimmygLrL

CNN just reported that Yankee's Owner, George Steinbrenner has passed away. The sports world lost a baseball icon.

My condolences to his family and all Yankee fans.

I am not a die hard Yankee fan. I remember the 1977 World Series between the NY Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers. What a series! My team lost but I remember both George Steinbrenner and Billy Martin. Those two men and their charisma opened up some of the magic of baseball to this L.A. hometown kid. Thanks for the memories.

My condolances.

[The_Lady_Snow]

Disturbing New Report forAnti-LGBT Violence in 2009

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/waymon..._b_645977.html

[The_Lady_Snow]

Argentina Senate to Vote on Gay Marriage




http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/wo...tina.html?_r=1

[Pretty Woman]

http://www.pamshouseblend.com/diary/...survey-results