Police shootings. Militarized police forces. Big government. Lots of mixed feelings here and they keep getting more and more complicated.
A lot of us are former or current military and/or law enforcement, so these types of issues strike a chord. Of course, we don’t want big government taking control of our precious freedom. Local police forces are intended to serve as militias did when our country was being founded, with more modern responsibilities of course. For instance, keeping the peace and enforcing local (and federal) mandates.
Recently, some nit-wit police officer in South Carolina shot an unarmed suspect , Walter Scott, for fleeing, killing him with multiple gunshot wounds. Walter Scott was an African American male around 50 years old. This is not what law enforcement is meant to be and all it does is get us further and further away from what we want – freedom.
To make matters even more polarizing, the entire event was caught on camera. This is actually very fortunate, because there was only a single witness (the person with the video.) At very least, justice will be served. Immediately upon seeing the video evidence, (former) Officer Slager was fired and arrested for murder. A well-received move by the Governor, no hesitation upon seeing the actual incident unfold.
This whole tragic event is only months after the Michael Brown shooting. With the Scott shooting, you can expect all of the same civil rights, anti-gun, anti-police, and reform extremists to come back out of the woodwork… and in a big way. This shooting was a much clearer event, with the police officer obviously not being in danger, shooting Scott in the back multiple times (after pulling over for a broken tail light), and then planting a “weapon” at the dying victim’s feet.
A few different things will happen:
- The legal system will be able to work as intended because this is a clear case of wrong doing
- Most people will feel as though justice has been served, not restricted by corruption
- Police reform will continue to be a huge topic, as officers in that area will now wear body cameras, a practice that will spread (slowly) across the country
- Civil rights conversations will still be relevant and heated – with liberals using this as another way to get votes, despite not providing any real answers or solutions to moving forward
- The bigger picture will be missed, yet again …
The bigger picture:
We need to stand together to maintain our freedoms as a country. That doesn’t mean let the government dictate our freedom. We control our freedom and our country/government is a tool we use. Not the other way around. In tragic times like these, we can’t turn against each other and use isolated incidents as case studies for “how things are.” There are countless positive interactions and good people in law enforcement. Before getting up in arms – benefitting the twisted intentions of big government by doing so – we must remember Abraham Lincoln’s first inaugural address:
“We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passions may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”
