There are times when we must come to accept the system is not ready to change and move to the next stage and that while laws are written universal they are not always applied that way. The power for change is not enough to overcome those who are against change. The Constitution and Bill of Rights are written on paper but have not been fully implemented within our communities and hometowns where racial, religious, and social networks often take precedence over abstract "laws of the land". Democracy is still shifting toward a higher state and while we have begun that transition we are at risk of further defaults.
I am not so arrogant to admit when I'm wrong and my greatest attribute is that I have been wrong a lot and know it. I believed whole heartedly we would overcome this challenge and do so within a way that was helpful to the deeper needs of the root causes of rage the perpetrators displayed. We should do so in a way that ensures the system adapts to become stronger. In many ways I overestimated the capacity of the system and did not factor in how deeply rooted such "just like us" biased beliefs lay and how they impact entire chains of legal, moral, and logic/truth thinking.
Just like those who engaged/coordinated knew they were immune from account (based on their association and support for cleansing of some law enforcement officials) and confident in that immunity, I was hoping to create a level of helpful accountability in a way that doesn't harm and sets in place a stronger adaptable system more aligned to modern thinking and needs. Don't blame me for being skeptic because if you have Muslim sounding name and mixed race children you will realize throughout your life that what is stated officially (explicitly) and how things turns out (tacitly) are often different in a way that creates shared knowledge (implicit) among those deemed as having less value in society. This is also why social turmoil is happening at perceived or real injustice (Sometimes the calls are fair and sometimes they are biased but its hard to decipher the two. What is more true is there a general distrust of the decision making of those who are supposed to be supporting justice based on historical failures that continue on into the modern era.)
There is usually a silver lining to embedded hate and what we can learn from hometown extremism. What was a pleasant surprise was that most of the community has provided positive reinforcement that my kids do have value, that we are part of the same community, and that despite this highly aggressive group's behaviors their values haven't spread to everyone. There is still hope for democracy through the moral conscious rooted deeply into our human-to-human affairs. The power to pervert our institutions is often checked by the power of togetherness (I hope for everyone's sake I'm not mistaken again. I'm on a roll of misjudging the system's capacity but at least I can create a feedback loop for our leaders; not that they will listen to people outside their social groups. Chances are based on politics they will ignore it but someday it might be very important and I have an obligation to the next generation beyond blind politics to state what I see as the truth even when doing is likely to end in retaliatory justification.).
Thus while some institutions run against the grain of the needs of the people and their stated missions they exist within a social context and in turn I believe will eventually be checked and brought into line through the power of our collective consciousness (People know when things are wrong and they know that short sighted pro clan decisions have serious long term consequences.). That would be natural as these local institutions are expected to be projections/mirrors of society as a whole and not the extensions of the wishes of a particular ethnic, racial, homogeneous sports group, or "just like us" good old boy network.
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| Aristotle is Challenged. Rights go through cultural transitions. Universalization is just another stage in democracies development. Culture versus Reality |
Such distorted values have an impact on our youth and our nation as seen as a growing distrust of such institutions as we have seen as a trend in other nations that were pushed to radically adjust based on social, political, and economic necessity. For example, we see currently in the news that our military may threatened by obesity, drug use, and other problems our youth are facing. Yet when it comes to kids that are seen as minorities there are no/few protections when they are put in harm's way even though they are important for our futures. Instead of embracing one of our most sacred duties as a human species we allow the devaluing of kids simply because they are "not like us". Protecting your kids leads to all types of double down aggression by the initial group, their law enforcement supporters (Again just a minority of officers and what potentially appears to be a local judge. i.e. third defaulted institution. That does not apply to the many very good local offices who have a value system and follow the Constitution.) (Half of U.S. children are now minorities and it is important to ensure all of our most cherished human capital assets, highest calling of democracy, and very soul as a nation are protected. The problem with hate is it is irrational and destructive. "To cut off one's nose to spite one's face".)
On a deep intuitive level we know that we cannot serve two masters at the same time and the Constitution/Bill of Rights (Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Speech) and our moral conscious must be our guide (Free passes for hate and embedded bigotry do have long term national consequences even if they occur on a local level. I believe these problems are likely happening in a lot of place and just like this no accountability or safety mechanisms are in place to ensure accountability.). Universal laws must also be applied universally through universal institutions to ensure that we are solving the most problems in society through greater human capital development and alignment of natural law with societal law (i.e. the purpose of democracy).
When and where that large correction will happen I cannot say but I can say as a nation we have become increasingly aware of it and thus it is only a matter of a short time before the wrong circumstances present themselves. That is the danger of intentionally free passing hate at various places and times. Perhaps in the next 10 years as people consciously define these violations of Constitutional and moral guidance more clearly for mental consumption and understanding. Thus one door will lead to national adaptation and the other will lead to dissolution similar to nations that break down into ethnic, racial, religious, and Good Old Boy strife.
My belief is and always has been that there are solutions to these problems and those that continue on in poor behaviors put the rest of us at risk through their selfish immaturity. Thus what happens on a local level impacts the health of our entire nation; especially if commonly experienced. Thus I always encouraged our leaders to take on the position of positive engagement, looking over the horizon, forgiveness, positive pressure to change, polite but not passive, community engagement, and general ability to rectify problems at their lowest common denominator. Encouraging them to do the right thing of course doesn't always mean they will. Many times they wont because that may require them to be insightful and change.
Unfortunately, as a person with a Muslim sounding name and mixed race children I'm an "outsider" defined not by genetic longevity in the region but simply by superficial markers of those who engage in hate. History is full of people who have challenged poor behaviors, have been retaliated against for having a value system (I do not pretend I'm a perfect person but that I'm a good person) and in turn were proven correct in history (Consider the examples of our more well known preserved histories of philosophers and religious figures. I'm not that worthy to be put in that light but only that they are examples. How quickly we discard their lessons when they are inconvenient or don't flatter our sense of self. )
“I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do! That is character!” – Theodore Roosevelt
(As a side note. I will continue to support my community and help people where I can. I do not feel the local system is designed to protect what is seen as "outsiders". Unlike others, I can't say what happened was acceptable and appears to me to be deeply and inherently corrupt. In protest I will not call 911 if I am targeted again {unless something changes} because I do not believe it functions to protect me or my children. We are just too different than the local institutional decision makers. If my children are targeted again I will document such behaviors by making a call and doing what I can to protect them but cannot place my trust in that system. That does not take from my duties to help others nor the encouragement of the majority of good officers that are trying to do the right thing. The problem is that the proof is in the pudding and a free pass for any cleansing behavior is not acceptable and a sign that the top of that system is not making accurate decisions. So if we are going to give a free pass we should let that group know that I will no longer utilize the local system as a protection and as a deterrent. Personally, I believe the local system should be removed from having any decision making influence on the subject/situation. They have shown they do not cherish our American values. That does not take away from my responsibility to positively engage, help my community, volunteer, encourage healthy behaviors and do the very best I can to draw resources and opportunities. Yet I will not sugar coat the dangerous behaviors or the need for major overhaul of a defaulted local system that appears to seek to please its aggressive racially-religiously leaning Good Old Boy networks. Of course I could be wrong and likely there are many more things going on than I'm aware but at present it seems untrustworthy to me. At this point I'm not seeing where I could logically say what happened was ok or acceptable. No matter which way I slice the bread it seems dishonest, aggressive, racially-religiously charged, coordinated, self-enriching, and dangerous. Those institutions that intentionally defaulted should have been held to account and forced to improve their system to avoid such defaults in the future.)
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