An Open Letter To Sam About His Ferguson, MO Views

Dear Sam,

I have never met you in person so I don’t presume to know what’s in your heart regarding the tragic events that have unfolded recently in Ferguson, MO. However, I do know what you’ve written in your blog about this tragedy and I find your words to be extremely troubling and disturbing. This is especially so since you were a police officer in the Dellwod/Ferguson area for over 30 years. I respect that along with the fact you are a US military veteran.

So, when I clicked on your post of Tuesday, August 19th, I had to take shake my head and take a quick couple of sips of strong coffee just to make sure I wasn’t still sound asleep and only dreaming. However, I was wide awake so I continued to read what you wrote even though it could be construed by many as not only insensitive but far worse. But, we’re all different right? We all have our own opinions and deep-set beliefs. Gawd knows, lots of folks disagree with me much of the time!

Sam, here are direct quotes of what you wrote in your August 19th post:

"I know if you are like me I am really growing weary the rioting and bad press the St. Louis area as a whole is getting. The shooting of a young man ,not child as the press is trying to trumpet, Sorry 6 foot tall, over 200lbs and starting college, doesn’t fit my description of a child, a young man yes."

"I cannot believe the restraint our police have used in not returning fire after being shot at and the target of gasoline bombs."

Then in reply to a reader’s comment, you wrote:

Gypsy, for the 30 years I was a Dellwood Police officer, I retired as ass't chief, We had the reputation of a top notch City Police Agency, we set our standards high and you didn't get hired without a degree.

Today if you are black you have the press in your hands, and the police are sacrificial lambs.No matter what the truth is Officer Wilson,will be hung out to dry, to appease the black population. This is oh so wrong. again glad to be a retired LEO.

So Sam, after spending considerable time reading and re-reading your post, and debating whether or not I wanted to jump into the “Bear Pit” one more time and subject myself to probable anger and abuse, I decided that racial tensions will never be resolved, or even improved, until both side’s views are shared openly and discussed rationally.

Having said that, here are my comments and questions, Sam, re your post:

What difference does it make if Michael Brown was “a young man, not child” when the Ferguson police officer gunned him down with at least 6 bullets?  Does it really matter whether Michael Brown was 5 or 6 ft tall and weighed 100, 200 or 300lbs?  He was unarmed, so age and size make no difference when facing a police officer who has a gun.

Incredibly, you seem to suggest the police should have opened fire on the protesters, including women and children, just because some threw water bottles and in rare cases a Molotov cocktail and even a few bullets at the heavily armored and protected police. The facts are there have been no reports of police actually being injured by anything.

Do you actually believe the situation would have been better today had the police opened fire on black men, women and children who were protesting? It doesn’t take “restraint” not to open fire on civilians marching in protest, it takes “common sense, morality and training” all of which, thankfully, those police officers demonstrated.

Finally, the idea that any police officer would be “hung out to dry” to “appease the black population”  would be laughable were it not so tragic. This flies in the face of the entire history of blacks vs police confrontations in the US. If that’s what you truly believe then I suppose every black person near Dellwood/Ferguson should be thankful you are now a retired LEO and no longer active.

Your fellow blogger, Rick D.

Now, before anyone rushes to their keyboards to type out the tired refrain that “it’s Sam’s blog and he can write what he wants because he is entitled to Freedom of Speech” – I understand and agree with that completely.

But, Freedom of Speech does not protect what you say, only your right to say it. This means that you can say what you choose, as Sam has, but free speech by its very nature means that others, like me, are just as free to say what they choose as well, even if it means disagreeing with you.

And then there is the old blog canard that goes like this: “if you don’t like what he or she writes then why do you read their blog?”  My answer to that is too many folks drink the same Kool-Aid relying on only those they agree with to help form their own opinions. Changing Kool-Aid flavours once in a while is a good way to learn what other folks are thinking and maybe even understand their point of view. Once in a while, even right-wing wackos and nutbars, like Sen. Rand Paul, make some sense.

I realize that almost everyone will have an opinion on Sam’s blog post, both pro and con, while at the same time most will not want to comment publicly. That’s too bad because I don’t feel these serious problems will ever be resolved simply by ignoring them. As for me, I’ve already stated that I found Sam’s words to be quite disturbing, insensitive and 180 degrees from my way of thinking. How about you?

Thanks for visiting!