11-21-2019, 06:27 AM
We may be approaching a meeting of the minds - not agreement, but at least understanding of opposing views.
First off, yes, “blue” as color-code for (U.S.) police can be obscure. It refers to the traditional color of police uniforms (indigo blue) which is now mostly restricted to formal occasions; municipal police today generally wear black with minimal reflective buttons, embroidered rather than metal badges, etc.. The last time I saw police wearing blue uniforms on patrol was in San Antonio some time during the 1990s. Other references to this legacy color are “back the blue” and “thin blue line.”
And on the issue of police policy, excessive concern for “officer safety” is indeed a problem. It manifests in handcuffing non-violent suspects, disarming citizens who are legally armed, and (execrably) forming a fearful gaggle outside an active shooter situation instead of going in. But (and contrary to the famous zoo sign) the police are not “vicious: when attacked, they defend themselves.”
Condescension is a good theme and tool for analysis; when applied to various situations and attitudes, it yields useful results. For example, “black lives matter” accusers condescend to the police from uninvolved superiority (“if I were the police, I’d behave fairly to everyone and they’d all love me, but you’re a racist throwback”) or involved aggrievement (“if you’d seen the trouble I have, you wouldn’t be causing me more trouble - I’m the victim here!”) The “I know better than you” attitude of condescension proceeds from encouraged attitudes of victimhood as well as academic presumptions of neutrality and superior intelligence. No doubt some police condescend to those with whom they come in contact (“I know the rules, why can’t you just follow them?”) - including, infamously, condescension to street cops by their office-bound/political managers.
As is apparent from the above, condescension is also a sharp tool that turns in the hand: offering an opinion means being either inside or outside the situation.
Two modes that have no or limited value are blaming “systems” and blaming politics. People who will not comply with the legal (and, within broad limits, social) system are responsible for themselves, and the hurts they suffer for it; to say otherwise condescends absolutely by depriving them of agency.
As for politics, since we’re naming names, recall that the “black lives matter” canard originated in the Obama administration - a very condescending and badly divisive one for all its (occasional) talk of bringing people together. The present administration tries to mend those exacerbated divisions; so far it has healed economic and foreign policy wounds, but the opposition refuses to rationally rejoin the nation or moderate its vengeful attitudes.
First off, yes, “blue” as color-code for (U.S.) police can be obscure. It refers to the traditional color of police uniforms (indigo blue) which is now mostly restricted to formal occasions; municipal police today generally wear black with minimal reflective buttons, embroidered rather than metal badges, etc.. The last time I saw police wearing blue uniforms on patrol was in San Antonio some time during the 1990s. Other references to this legacy color are “back the blue” and “thin blue line.”
And on the issue of police policy, excessive concern for “officer safety” is indeed a problem. It manifests in handcuffing non-violent suspects, disarming citizens who are legally armed, and (execrably) forming a fearful gaggle outside an active shooter situation instead of going in. But (and contrary to the famous zoo sign) the police are not “vicious: when attacked, they defend themselves.”
Condescension is a good theme and tool for analysis; when applied to various situations and attitudes, it yields useful results. For example, “black lives matter” accusers condescend to the police from uninvolved superiority (“if I were the police, I’d behave fairly to everyone and they’d all love me, but you’re a racist throwback”) or involved aggrievement (“if you’d seen the trouble I have, you wouldn’t be causing me more trouble - I’m the victim here!”) The “I know better than you” attitude of condescension proceeds from encouraged attitudes of victimhood as well as academic presumptions of neutrality and superior intelligence. No doubt some police condescend to those with whom they come in contact (“I know the rules, why can’t you just follow them?”) - including, infamously, condescension to street cops by their office-bound/political managers.
As is apparent from the above, condescension is also a sharp tool that turns in the hand: offering an opinion means being either inside or outside the situation.
Two modes that have no or limited value are blaming “systems” and blaming politics. People who will not comply with the legal (and, within broad limits, social) system are responsible for themselves, and the hurts they suffer for it; to say otherwise condescends absolutely by depriving them of agency.
As for politics, since we’re naming names, recall that the “black lives matter” canard originated in the Obama administration - a very condescending and badly divisive one for all its (occasional) talk of bringing people together. The present administration tries to mend those exacerbated divisions; so far it has healed economic and foreign policy wounds, but the opposition refuses to rationally rejoin the nation or moderate its vengeful attitudes.
Non-practicing atheist