Obama Vs. Common Sense

Gun enthusiasts, we have an issue. In the situation of Prof. Gates vs. Cambridge Police, do we side with the police, or the average citizen when the citizen is arrested on his porch? As a citizen, I'd be appalled if I were arrested on the porch of my home. But we need to look at why the citizen was arrested on his porch.

By the police report, we see that although the police were originally investigating a report of a possible break-in (Gates' residence had been broken into recently while the Prof was away on "holiday"), Gates was arrested for his "loud and tumultuous behavior," NOT, as media and the President might lead you to believe, for being a black man in a nice neighborhood.

There's no need to belabor the point that Gates' responded to the police inquiry with no respect for the authorities, except to say when the police showed up to protect Gates and his belongings from potential harm, Prof. Gates was a jerk. Had I been a jerk to police, I'd expect them to do the same to me.

So how do we wind up with the President of the United States using a split infinitive to berate the actions of a police department? I guess President Obama fell into the same trap other pols do when they act on less than complete information. See this exchange from his Wednesday night news conference.

Here's the exchange:

Q Thank you, Mr. President. Recently Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. was arrested at his home in Cambridge. What does that incident say to you and what does it say about race relations in America?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I should say at the outset that "Skip" Gates is a friend, so I may be a little biased here. I don't know all the facts.

(Intervening attempts at humor)

THE PRESIDENT: Now, I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that, but I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Cambridge Police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there is a long history in this country of African Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact.

-End of transcript-

So there we have it. The President admits he doesn't know the facts, but immediately finds guilt in the actions of police authorities. I know how most gun enthusiasts feel, "Stay off my property!" but in reality, here are some simple facts:

Prof. Gates has made his name, his career, his whole meaning in life based on racism.

Police are charged with investigating potential wrong-doing and protecting the public.

Prof. Gates demonstrated no respect for authorities (we can debate this later) and taunted them "stupidly" and walked outside his door.

Once outside his domicile, Gates was arrested for disorderly conduct (should have stayed in your house, dude).

Enough from me... what are your thoughts?