The founding fathers reached a certain point where they finally said, enough is enough. One can read their formal statement wherein they made that specific declaration... enough is enough. Among their specific list of grievances is the subject of justice, or the lack thereof.
Thomas Jefferson writing on behalf of the 'founders' issued a statement of the colonists' right to rebel against the British government based on the now famous idea that "all men are created equal and have the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness".
The founding fathers said, "In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury."
Additionally, the founding fathers said, "Due to these abuses of power, we "are Absolved"... we are clear of guilt or blame.
Thomas Jefferson writing on behalf of the 'founders' issued a statement of the colonists' right to rebel against the British government based on the now famous idea that "all men are created equal and have the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness".
The founding fathers said, "In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury."
Additionally, the founding fathers said, "Due to these abuses of power, we "are Absolved"... we are clear of guilt or blame.
The country is not finished with the shooting of police officers in Dallas. The topic will be examined endlessly for a long time to come. Many of us will advocate for greater repression. Some will want to punish a whole race of people for the actions of one man. Many of us will target weapons and push harder for controls on guns or for the elimination of guns from our society altogether. Many of us will see the inequality of our society as the source cause of this out-break of violence. Some will want retraining for the police and some will want to reinforce the police.
There will be examinations of the mental condition of Micah Xavier Johnson. His entire life will fall under the microscope and every detail will be dissected. The motivation of our search is to say to ourselves that only someone who is 'crazy' could have done something like this. That thinking may give us comfort, but is not rational and would only hide that which should be exposed.
We have already discovered that while in the military, he was booted from a tour of duty in Afghanistan amid sexual harassment accusations. Will we ask ourselves about the relationship between accusations of sexual harassment and shooting police officers? Or, will it be sufficient to categorize him as 'crazy' and to just ignore any other factors?
There will be examinations of the mental condition of Micah Xavier Johnson. His entire life will fall under the microscope and every detail will be dissected. The motivation of our search is to say to ourselves that only someone who is 'crazy' could have done something like this. That thinking may give us comfort, but is not rational and would only hide that which should be exposed.
We have already discovered that while in the military, he was booted from a tour of duty in Afghanistan amid sexual harassment accusations. Will we ask ourselves about the relationship between accusations of sexual harassment and shooting police officers? Or, will it be sufficient to categorize him as 'crazy' and to just ignore any other factors?
We like to ignore those things that don't fit into our preconceived notions. Virtually all suicide bombers, 'terrorists' in our conception, have expressed their personal motivation for doing what they are doing... they are retaliating. They commonly leave messages of some kind to explain why they were willing to sacrifice their own life in the process of killing 'others'.
"What over 95% of suicide attacks around the world [are about] is not religion, but a specific strategic purpose - to compel modern democracies to withdraw military forces from the territory that the terrorists view as their homeland or prize greatly." It is becoming the victim of injustice that provides the motivation... It is the same thing that Jefferson explained as the motivational factor for the 'founders' in the 'Declaration'. It is a message that should be easy to understand... "Because of the injustice we suffer, I am taking this action"... and as Jefferson stated, because we are fighting against this injustice, we are absolved of guilt.
Nothing should be interpreted to mean that what Mr. Johnson did was right or justified. Nor is it right or justified that the police willfully murder black men. It should be understood that all of these instances of one human being killing another human being is wrong no matter where in the world it takes place.
It is really only murder and terrorism from a particular point of view. When 'we' do it, we define it as fighting for freedom and democracy, or maintaining law & order. It is only when 'they' do it, that it is murder and terrorism. When the 'founding fathers did it, we praise them and celebrate them claiming that they acted properly and with good cause. In all of these instances, those who are 'doing it' do so because they have had enough and they are fed up and they aren't going to take it any more... and they are making a statement.
It is really only murder and terrorism from a particular point of view. When 'we' do it, we define it as fighting for freedom and democracy, or maintaining law & order. It is only when 'they' do it, that it is murder and terrorism. When the 'founding fathers did it, we praise them and celebrate them claiming that they acted properly and with good cause. In all of these instances, those who are 'doing it' do so because they have had enough and they are fed up and they aren't going to take it any more... and they are making a statement.
Mr. Johnson was, like-wise, making a statement. His words were clear. He said he was upset about the recent police shootings of black suspects. And, he punctuated his statement with bullets. Had be been part of a larger group; had he been at the Alamo or Concord; and, had his mission succeeded, he might have been regarded as a hero... as it is, we will dismiss his message, declare his mission misguided, and spend our energy analyzing his mental condition.
The battle of Lexington and Concord was the first battle of the American Revolutionary War. The battle took place in April, 1775. In Massachusetts --- the 'patriots' were considered to be 'criminals' by the British
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