Media politicalizes Police Shooting in Pittsburgh ...
There are some fundamental rules that apply to this situation.
Mentally-ill people, people with grievances and, in many cases, publicity-seeking nut-jobs out to become infamous, will use whatever weapons or methods at hand to achieve their means. Whether it is a baseball bat, knife, gun, poison, explosives or a motor vehicle – anything that can be used as a weapon can and will be used.
There is no protection from random or “blind rage” violence although you can take some measure of comfort that these acts are not as prevalent as you might think and it is statistically more likely you will die in an automobile accident or have a heart attack/stroke than die at the hands of a deranged killer.
In spite of all the political razzmatazz, politicians can not protect you from anything and make their political pronouncements from behind government-paid security measures. The police, however good they may be, simply can’t protect you because they can not be everywhere they are needed. A fact often overlooked by those who would disarm you to fulfill their ideological agenda.
And, you cannot protect yourself from random acts of violence without the means necessary to shelter yourself or take defensive action.
Random acts of violence are scary – think about it, this is the very basis of terrorism! Not knowing what may befall you when you leave the house and not being able to protect yourself from injury or death.
These acts are made more prominent and scary by the media whose mantra “if it bleeds, it leads” is still a working policy. Because of the 24/7 news cycle and the need to fill pages and airtime, local stories may achieve national prominence and be featured in heavy rotation coverage. Place ten stories that occurred in widely geographically-dispersed areas, some thousands of miles apart, and it appears, at least of the average citizen, that we are caught up in a crime wave.
This is good for the media – and doubly good for the politicians who know that a scared populace will not question new legislation which will seemingly trade faux-security for a little bit of your personal freedoms – along with the rise in taxes to accomplish their political agenda.
An example: let’s look at the politicalization of a crime story …
Look for the traditional news values: who, what, why, where, when and how – and then observe the political overlay.
From KDKA in Pittsburgh (via the Associated Press) …
Gunmen Kills Three Pittsburgh Police Officers
“A man opened fire on officers during a domestic disturbance call Saturday morning, killing three of them, a police official said.
Friends said 23 year-old Richard Poplawski feared the Obama administration was poised to ban guns.”“Three officers were killed. Police planned to release more details at a 3 p.m. news conference Saturday. Poplawski was arrested after a several-hour standoff. One witness reported hearing hundreds of shots.”
“The shootings occurred just two weeks after four police officers were fatally shot March 21 in Oakland, Calif., in the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement since Sept. 11, 2001.”
“Poplawski's friends at the scene described him as a young man who thought the Obama administration would ban guns.”
“One friend, Edward Perkovic, said Poplawski feared ‘the Obama gun ban that's on the way’ and ‘didn't like our rights being infringed upon.’"
“Another longtime friend, Aaron Vire, said he feared that President Obama was going to take away his rights, though he said he ‘wasn't violently against Obama.’”
“Perkovic, a 22-year-old who said he was Poplawski's best friend, said he got a call at work from him in which he said, ‘Eddie, I am going to die today. ... Tell your family I love them and I love you.’” Perkovic said: ‘I heard gunshots and he hung up. ... He sounded like he was in pain, like he got shot.’"
“Vire, 23, said Poplawski once had an Internet talk show but that it wasn't successful.
Vire said his friend had an AK-47 rifle and several powerful handguns, including a .357 Magnum.”“Another friend, Joe DiMarco, said Poplawski had been laid off from his job at a glass factory earlier this year. DiMarco said he didn't know the name of the company, but knew Poplawski had been upset about losing his job.”
“The officers were called to the home in the Stanton Heights neighborhood at about 7 a.m.
Tom Moffitt, 51, a city firefighter who lives two blocks away, said he heard about the shooting on his scanner and came to the scene, where he heard ‘hundreds, just hundreds of shots. And not just once - several times.’" Rob Gift, 45, who lives a block away, said he heard rapid gunfire as he was letting his dog out.
He said the neighborhood of well-kept single-family houses and manicured lawns is home to many police officers, firefighters, paramedics and other city workers.”
"’It's just a very quiet neighborhood,’ Gift said.”
An analysis …
There are approximately 2,800 miles between Oakland, California and Scranton, Pennsylvania. Notice that they mention gun bans, demonized weapons (AK-47, 357-Magnum), hundreds of shots and repetitively mention the possibility of gun bans.
In the scheme of things, this is just another event, as sad and shocking that it may seem, occurring in the United States. There is nothing that could have been done to prevent this act, not even a gun ban. I am willing to bet that you would be similarly shocked and dismayed about the number of killings in Oakland, Detroit, Chicago, South Central Los Angeles – and other areas which are plagued by poverty and blight while the democrats who run these cities line their own pockets and those of their friends. How convenient is must be to have some distraction that would re-focus the public’s attention from the tragedy wreaked by the political neglect of the inner cities – although they receive millions of dollars in state and federal taxpayer money.
The answer …
So what is the answer: First, you can never eliminate the possibility of random crime or mayhem. Second, your best defense against craziness is an armed population willing to defend themselves and their against aggressors. (as opposed to a feminized male population that seems to be reluctant to embrace personal responsibility and honor, except in an abstract sense). Third, one needs to separate the issues of crime control and gun control. They are not the same thing and there are those who earn a significant amount of money (from grants and contributions) pushing their anti-gun agendas. Fourth, and most importantly, we need to clean up the political cesspool which contributes to inner city rot and decay. Just see what our self-serving President Obama did for Chicago and the State of Illinois before supporting his policies. We need politicians who are not afraid to stand up to importing additional poverty, illiteracy, disease and foreign-cultural norms before attending to legal law-abiding, tax-paying citizens living in the inner cities of America. We need honest politicians who act for the public good – instead of lining their pockets and the pockets of their friends with taxpayer money.
What you can do …
Consider taking a gun class to learn about weapons. Then make an informed decision whether or not you want weapons in your life.
Support crime control, not gun control. People that use a gun in the commission of a crime should be heavily punished. No plea bargains to a lower charge, no early release for good behavior and no parole or pardons. We can make a dent in crime if we only enforce the rules that are already on the books. No new legislation required. No bloviating politicians. And no political weasels who implement crazy policies that do not identify and deport illegal aliens who have committed criminal acts.
We need to reduce the root cause of crime – especially in our inner cities. It’s a matter of taking the responsibility of what happens in our neighborhoods back from politicians.
But most of all, we need to curb crooked and/or complacent politicians. My opinion: elect your neighbor to public office instead of the professional politicians who says the right thing and hops from elected office to office while becoming more complacent or corrupt over time.
Take care of yourself and your family first. Be well and be safe.
-- steve
Reference Links …
Three Officers Killed In Stanton Heights Shootings on Fairfield Street - kdka.com
“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words
“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw
“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”
“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS "The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius “A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell “Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar “Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS