Football Player Writes Memorable Post Regarding Ferguson

[XLFD]

You may have seen the Facebook post of a New Orleans Saint's football player whose view regarding the events of Ferguson, Missouri over the last week went viral but if you haven't they are reproduced below.  Benjamin Watson plays a tight end on the field, but shows that his top end is as good and his arguments are as tight as any commentator of philosophy, and he just may aptly be named a Saint. 

"At some point while I was playing or preparing to play Monday Night Football, the news broke about the Ferguson Decision. After trying to figure out how I felt, I decided to write it down. Here are my thoughts:

I'M ANGRY because the stories of injustice that have been passed down for generations seem to be continuing before our very eyes.

I'M FRUSTRATED, because pop culture, music and movies glorify these types of police citizen altercations and promote an invincible attitude that continues to get young men killed in real life, away from safety movie sets and music studios.

I'M FEARFUL because in the back of my mind I know that although I'm a law abiding citizen I could still be looked upon as a "threat" to those who don't know me. So I will continue to have to go the extra mile to earn the benefit of the doubt.

I'M EMBARRASSED because the looting, violent protests, and law breaking only confirm, and in the minds of many, validate, the stereotypes and thus the inferior treatment.

I'M SAD, because another young life was lost from his family, the racial divide has widened, a community is in shambles, accusations, insensitivity hurt and hatred are boiling over, and we may never know the truth about what happened that day.

I'M SYMPATHETIC, because I wasn't there so I don't know exactly what happened. Maybe Darren Wilson acted within his rights and duty as an officer of the law and killed Michael Brown in self defense like any of us would in the circumstance. Now he has to fear the backlash against himself and his loved ones when he was only doing his job. What a horrible thing to endure. OR maybe he provoked Michael and ignited the series of events that led to him eventually murdering the young man to prove a point.

I'M OFFENDED, because of the insulting comments I've seen that are not only insensitive but dismissive to the painful experiences of others.

I'M CONFUSED, because I don't know why it's so hard to obey a policeman. You will not win!!! And I don't know why some policeman abuse their power. Power is a responsibility, not a weapon to brandish and lord over the populace.

I'M INTROSPECTIVE, because sometimes I want to take "our" side without looking at the facts in situations like these. Sometimes I feel like it's us against them. Sometimes I'm just as prejudiced as people I point fingers at. And that's not right. How can I look at white skin and make assumptions but not want assumptions made about me? That's not right.

I'M HOPELESS, because I've lived long enough to expect things like this to continue to happen. I'm not surprised and at some point my little children are going to inherit the weight of being a minority and all that it entails.

I'M HOPEFUL, because I know that while we still have race issues in America, we enjoy a much different normal than those of our parents and grandparents. I see it in my personal relationships with teammates, friends and mentors. And it's a beautiful thing.

I'M ENCOURAGED, because ultimately the problem is not a SKIN problem, it is a SIN problem. SIN is the reason we rebel against authority. SIN is the reason we abuse our authority. SIN is the reason we are racist, prejudiced and lie to cover for our own. SIN is the reason we riot, loot and burn.

BUT I'M ENCOURAGED because God has provided a solution for sin through the his son Jesus and with it, a transformed heart and mind. One that's capable of looking past the outward and seeing what's truly important in every human being. The cure for the Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice and Eric Garner tragedies is not education or exposure. It's the Gospel.

So, finally, I'M ENCOURAGED because the Gospel gives mankind hope."

Perhaps as memorable is his interview on CNN where he starts in on a topic which the anchorwoman and CNN found disagreeable as we enter the part of the year when a Bethlehem birth over two thousand years ago celebrates its anniversary.  Do you want the media to get off your back-- just start speaking of the gospel and they will recoil like Bela Lugosi!

[stump]

Praise the lord!!!!!!

[stump]

[Willy]

What a coincidence that he was cut of while commenting on his faith. If he were an atheist I'm sure that wouldn't have happened. I agree with a lot of what he says but It is very clear that he listens to the liberal media and he echos much of what he is spoon fed by them. He seems like a nice person but he has got to get away from the liberal poison that is spread by politicians and the media and which is contaminating this Country.

[XLFD]

The moderator's reaction is priceless.  In the extended version of the video, you can tell the woman is uncomfortable with what he's saying and her surprise at being cut-off looks as if it was mixed with some mirth.

Willy, Benjamin's outlook seems perfectly measured to me to strike a chord between the left and right and other opposing extremes, which is why it is well received by a wide variety of folks.  If he stuck to religious, conservative dogma throughout, it wouldn't have been such a profound post.  Let's not forget, he probably grew up in and works in places where liberal values are embraced by a vast majority.

[stump]

So Willy , you would rather hear Benjamin Watson ranting about that [so called ] poor innocent church going [ store robbing ] black kid that did nothing wrong [ store owner/police assaulting ] to get shot and killed? What he wrote sounded to me that he has his head on straight and looked at the facts. He has a problem in that he is black and doesn't fit in with some other blacks thinking. Maybe he's educated. I think it's kinda funny that the news cast shut him out for talking about God instead or racial crap that they though they were going to get.

[Willy]

Even though Watson's comments are eloquent and praise worthy, he is still trying to ride the fence on what actually transpired in Ferguson and why the aftermath of rioting took place. Anyone paying attention to more than the liberal media and the communist backed Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, knows what happened and why there were riots. Ferguson is not about the death of a black man at the hands of a white police officer. It is the focal point of the ideology of liberalism/progressiveness. This was a perfect opportunity for liberals to drive a wedge between blacks and whites, liberals and conservatives, law enforcement and the community and the citizens and their freedoms. After such a long and extended investigation ending in a Grand Jury decision which reflected the truth, there exits in Mr. Watson an obvious doubt as to what happened in Ferguson. As I said, I agree with much of what he said and I am pleased that he had the courage to put his opinion in print. He will now, most likely, become a target of the liberal media.

[Willy]

[Dave]

I think one of the saddest issues with the whole Ferguson incident is that it shows quite clearly that contrary to what the protesters try and infer by saying that "blacks do matter", suggesting that somehow they don't matter, it has become clear that at least in the media, blacks matter more then whites do. You'll never hear it in the mainstream media but bad things happen to white people at the hands of police officers and of course at the hands of criminals as well that are of various ethnicity.

Here's one example of where a police officer acted questionably... the case of Gil Collar, a U of South Alabama student that was naked when shot and killed by a campus police officer. While the student was under the influence of a drug it does seem a stretch to have shot and killed him, this case non-lethal means should of been used..... the officer though has been cleared in this case.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/gil-collar-shooting-naked-university-of...

A few years back there was also the case of Marley Lion, a 17 year old that had pulled into the parking lot of Famous Joe's Bar and Grill in Charleston, SC to get some sleep. While sleeping, 3 black men came up to his vehicle and while attempting to rob Lion, killed him. The 3 have since gone to trial and found guilty and sentenced.

http://www.abcnews4.com/story/24024597/sentencing-under-way-in-marl...

Earlier this year Dillon Taylor was shot and killed by an officer who was of Hispanic decent in South Salt Lake City, Utah, Taylor was unarmed. There is police video of the incident taken from a body cam, as with many of these types of cameras it is a bit tough to really see what's happening due to poor image quality and movement of the camera but according to the officer Taylor made a move with his hand toward the waistband of his pants and the officer shot. The officer in this case has also been cleared of any wrong doing.

http://kdvr.com/2014/11/29/watch-utah-police-cleared-in-shooting-of...

The thing that all of these cases and surely many others is that none of them were protested to speak of, at least in the scale of what we have saw in Ferguson.

[XLFD]

You can generally catch at least one cop behaving badly incident per day if you follow the various sites like PINAC, Copblock, etc., where you have concrete proof (video) of a policeman not following the law and/or their oath, yet the media and the race-baiters (often one and the same like Sharpton) always focus on what they claim are racial based shootings (like this and Treyvon Martin) where the facts are at best foggy. 

[Dave]

I believe most cops are good, decent people but there are definitely some bad ones out there too. The (not so) Sharpton's of the world are quick to judge based on the slimmest of facts or in the case of Ferguson, no facts, simply basing their judgement on the fact that the victim was black and the shooter wasn't. If there was any indication at all that officer Wilson had racial motivations in the shooting then I'd stand with his ilk but the only connection was simply that one person was white and one person was black... not enough to make anyone a racist.... ever. Simply put, the people that are protesting the Ferguson incident picked probably the worst case they could stand behind... and of course many of these people are to blind to see the truth and accept the fact that Michael Brown is the one person responsible for his own demise.... no one else made it happen but him. If Michael Brown had decided to live his life as a decent, upstanding person then he'd be alive but he decided to live the thug life which was a poor decision.

[XLFD]

Police officers are public servants and the way they act will largely depend on their masters.  They are effectively contracted with three entities:  their chain of command superiors in the police force, the civil command in their city and county boards and executives, and the people in general.  If they show deference and respect in obeying all three, they will be successful.

Some officers may get into the police force to compensate for their own sense of powerlessness or for sadistic motives, these are the minority, one would hope.  The problem typically arises that through their career experiences, their contact with most people are with the worst of those people, and so they lose sight of their contract with them, their subservience to them.  Other problems arise when they must enforce bad laws (by the civil command) or learn to work under a corrupted chain of command that punishes good behavior and rewards bad behavior by officers. 

So typically if all three masters are in good balance, the police activity will follow suit and be accountable to all three-- and be able to correct itself when it doesn't.

[stump]

No protest from the white race? can't be true.. I wonder why we don't get all upset about someone being beat on / killed by a cop? Is it I didn't know the guy, he must have done something real bad to get beat on / shot. Or is it I don't give a rats ass as long as there not bothering me.I do believe that most cops are on a power trip ready to show you who's the boss.