Genius Of The Day – GOP Senator Rand Paul

“If I had been told to get out of the street as a teenager, there would have been a distinct possibility that I might have smarted off. But, I wouldn’t have expected to be shot.”

“Anyone who thinks that race does not still, even if inadvertently, skew the application of criminal justice in this country is just not paying close enough attention.”

Never in a million years did I ever expect to nominate a GOP Senator as my Genius of the Day. Especially one who is a Tea Party darling like Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky.

But, Rand Paul wrote a thought provoking op-ed for Time Magazine on the situation unfolding in Ferguson, MO following the police shooting of unarmed 18 yr. old Michael Brown. In his op-ed, Senator Brown called for the “demilitarization of the police” in the USA. Here are some excerpts from his atricle:

The outrage in Ferguson is understandable—though there is never an excuse for rioting or looting. There is a legitimate role for the police to keep the peace, but there should be a difference between a police response and a military response. The images and scenes we continue to see in Ferguson resemble war more than traditional police action.

Glenn Reynolds, in Popular Mechanics, recognized the increasing militarization of the police five years ago. In 2009 he wrote:

Soldiers and police are supposed to be different. … Police look inward. They’re supposed to protect their fellow citizens from criminals, and to maintain order with a minimum of force.

It’s the difference between Audie Murphy and Andy Griffith. But nowadays, police are looking, and acting, more like soldiers than cops, with bad consequences. And those who suffer the consequences are usually innocent civilians.

The Cato Institute’s Walter Olson observed this week how the rising militarization of law enforcement is currently playing out in Ferguson:

Why armored vehicles in a Midwestern inner suburb? Why would cops wear camouflage gear against a terrain patterned by convenience stores and beauty parlors? Why are the authorities in Ferguson, Mo. so given to quasi-martial crowd control methods (such as bans on walking on the street) and, per the reporting of Riverfront Times, the firing of tear gas at people in their own yards?

(“‘This my property!’ he shouted, prompting police to fire a tear gas canister directly at his face.”) Why would someone identifying himself as an 82nd Airborne Army veteran, observing the Ferguson police scene, comment that “We rolled lighter than that in an actual warzone”?

Olson added, “the dominant visual aspect of the story, however, has been the sight of overpowering police forces confronting unarmed protesters who are seen waving signs or just their hands.”

How did this happen?

Most police officers are good cops and good people. It is an unquestionably difficult job, especially in the current circumstances.  There is a systemic problem with today’s law enforcement.

Given these developments, it is almost impossible for many Americans not to feel like their government is targeting them. Given the racial disparities in our criminal justice system, it is impossible for African-Americans not to feel like their government is particularly targeting them.

This is part of the anguish we are seeing in the tragic events outside of St. Louis, Missouri. It is what the citizens of Ferguson feel when there is an unfortunate and heartbreaking shooting like the incident with Michael Brown.

Anyone who thinks that race does not still, even if inadvertently, skew the application of criminal justice in this country is just not paying close enough attention. Our prisons are full of black and brown men and women who are serving inappropriately long and harsh sentences for non-violent mistakes in their youth.

Americans must never sacrifice their liberty for an illusive and dangerous, or false, security. This has been a cause I have championed for years, and one that is at a near-crisis point in our country.  Let us continue to pray for Michael Brown’s family, the people of Ferguson, police, and citizens alike.

Rand Paul

Governor Jay Nixon of MO apparently got the message as yesterday he removed the St. Louis County police from the streets of Ferguson, Mo., and handed oversight to the Missouri State Highway Patrol under the command of Capt. Ronald S. Johnson who grew up in Ferguson. Nixon had finally realized the St. Louis County police were “not going to do the right thing”  and would no longer be involved.

Last night, in Ferguson, with the Missouri State Highway Patrol in charge and an entirely new attitude there were only peaceful protests after five nights of unrest. Hopefully, that will continue and justice will be done.

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