Bad Boys II

[hollodero]

(05-31-2020, 03:06 PM)Dill Wrote: Let's think about the meaning of "ok" for a moment.

Some would give the police officers a thumbs up on their treatment of Floyd. Granted most Americans would not.

I know there is a reprehensible Breitbart section. But everyone, including Trump, including all police, all politicians called it atrocious (or something like that) and murder. I saw no high-level defense of what happened there.

(05-31-2020, 03:06 PM)Dill Wrote: But many Americans, including famously the president, found Kaepernick's kneeling NOT ok, and many many more found it inappropriate on a football field. That suggests that the phenomenon of police violence--the object of K's protest--was either invisible or unconcerning to them, less important than decorum at an entertainment venue.

The latter part I agree with, but I don't hink it means the issue was "unconcerning" to them. That, to me, is a bridge too far. There might be many concerning issues one does not want to be confronted with while getting away from it and watching sports ggames. TZhis is not meant as a defense of said stances, but I just refute the conclusion that whoever disliked what Kaepernick is doing is in favor of police brutality and/or has no issue with murdered black people.

(05-31-2020, 03:06 PM)Dill Wrote: Pence is a special target here. His memes are thus "pre-framed" by his response to Kaepernick long before the Minneapolis riots.

No question, this is true and he did something spectacularly dumb back then.

(05-31-2020, 03:06 PM)Dill Wrote: And even if they emphatically do not approve, a lot of Americans still don't see anything systemic about the callous knee on the guy's neck while bystanders are yelling at the police to let him breath.

For one, I know that will not be received well, but there was really little time to see anything happen in response to this heineous deed. It only took place a few days ago. What could already have happened really.
But sure I do get that there were many similar instances before, nothing much has changed, although incremental things maybe have (like the idea of body cams gaining some traction). I do get that this is not satisfactory, and it wouldn't be satisfactory to me either.

-- as of your defnition of "ok", I doubt this was the "ok" the meme was going for. But I'm willing to drop that.

(05-31-2020, 03:06 PM)Dill Wrote: And we are heading into territory worked over back in the 50s and 60s, where people were forced to decide which was worse--segregation or the protests/riots it generated.  The current police violence issue does not at all equal the violation of segregation, but the terms in which civil rights protests are advanced or resisted seem to retain the same form--side A granting that segregation was "of course" bad but accusing side B of precipitating "unnecessary" violence and side B accusing side A of not listening and valuing order above justice.  It's the latter point, especially, that the memes in question are making.

OK, so what's the answer to that then? Because that is somewhat my take on these memes as well, they ask that question, and somehow they seem to reach a verdict. What's your verdict?