Yeah, yeah, I know it's anecdotal, but still.

[mrkelley23]

read the whole thing, folks.

This is the kind of thing we need to avoid a civil war in this country, IMO.

[flockofseagulls104]

This would never happen in SSS's neighborhood.

[BackInTex]

Yep. I would love for someone to make a video of an "alternate ending to the Sandra Bland story" showing her being pulled over but instead of being instantly belligerent she was polite and courteous to the officer.

[flockofseagulls104]

BTW, Don't feel bad. Most of the stories the news media obsesses on are anecdotal. This one will never get a mention. It doesn't fit the narrative they are pushing.

[silverscreenselect]

Yep. I would love for someone to make a video of an "alternate ending to the Sandra Bland story" showing her being pulled over but instead of being instantly belligerent she was polite and courteous to the officer.

Well someone did just that. It was a man on a bike instead of a woman in a car, but it's pretty much the same thing (Caution: language):

[Estonut]

Yep. I would love for someone to make a video of an "alternate ending to the Sandra Bland story" showing her being pulled over but instead of being instantly belligerent she was polite and courteous to the officer.

Well someone did just that. It was a man on a bike instead of a woman in a car, but it's pretty much the same thing (Caution: language):

I don't see the part where he was polite and courteous to the officers. All I see is a guy who kept struggling and resisting until they finally got his hands cuffed.

[Bob Juch]

What happened after a black motorist made ‘direct eye contact’ with an officer

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morn ... e-contact/

[BackInTex]

Yep. I would love for someone to make a video of an "alternate ending to the Sandra Bland story" showing her being pulled over but instead of being instantly belligerent she was polite and courteous to the officer.

Well someone did just that. It was a man on a bike instead of a woman in a car, but it's pretty much the same thing (Caution: language):

I don't see the part where he was polite and courteous to the officers. All I see is a guy who kept struggling and resisting until they finally got his hands cuffed.

That's the thing. SSS and those like him don't understand. They think folks should be able to behave any way they want and those of us with at least an an ounce of moral understanding must just simply accept it.

[silverscreenselect]

That's the thing. SSS and those like him don't understand. They think folks should be able to behave any way they want and those of us with at least an an ounce of moral understanding must just simply accept it.

Here's what you don't understand. People have no duty to behave in what you feel is a respectful manner towards the police or you or me or anyone else. Now in many situations, we as private citizens don't have to "accept it." You or I have no obligation to socialize with the Sandra Blands or any of the other millions of jackasses in the world. However, if you work in a situation in which you deal with the public, like customer service or police work, you do have to "accept it" if you want to keep your job. If a retail clerk or waitress or customer service representative treated Sandra Bland the way that cop did, based on what she had said or done up until that time, they would have lost their job before the end of their shift. And that cop has even more of a responsibility to treat her fairly despite her surly conduct because he's sworn an oath.

But you feel that because cops wear a uniform, they are entitled to a free pass for conduct that would have gotten a Starbucks or McDonald's worker fired in an instant. And, quite frankly, the fact that cop flew off the handle the way he did indicates that there's no assurance Sandra Bland wouldn't have said or done something else he felt was antagonistic, like staring at him.

[ghostjmf]

Just for the record, a waitperson or clerk would have been right to tell someone to put out a cigarette, as smoking is generally not allowed these days in shared commercial spaces.


A cop telling a citizen in their own car to put out their cigarette is not right. If someone is actually under arrest, hopefully for an actual crime, not "I don't like your color", or "attitude", the cop can order their behavior. Not before.

[ghostjmf]

And having done some lowlier forms of customer service in my life, managers always tell the lowlier servers to politely suggest a customer stop breaking some site rule, explaining as gently as possible why the rule exists. Then if customer won't comply, get the manager. Believe me, they very seldom have to call police for enforcement. But by time police are called, customer has been politely asked several times.

[jarnon]

Here's an odd twist:

Arby's Apologizes After Worker Refuses to Serve Officer

[Jeemie]

I do find it curiously ironic that those who purport to be members of the party that is the one that defends individual liberties are usually the ones that argue for us knuckling under to authority whenever we encounter it (well, not "us" but certain individuals of a certain color...)

At any rate, that's bullshit.

Don't act like complete dicks- but stand up for yourself in front of authority as well....especially those who like to wield their bureaucratic power whenever they get a chance to do so. I know I am speaking from anecdote, but most cops I've encountered are actually not all that nice- the nice ones are the exception, not the rule. Most like the power they have over you, and you have to do everything you can to minimize their power plays.

I've gotten out of several tickets doing just that- if I feel the cop pulled me over in error, I let them know it. More than one time, they've tried to shout me down to get me to shut up- I have responded that I have a right to give my side of the story, and just because they're a police officer, they do not have the right to intimidate me into silence.

[tlynn78]

I do find it curiously ironic that those who purport to be members of the party that is the one that defends individual liberties are usually the ones that argue for us knuckling under to authority whenever we encounter it (well, not "us" but certain individuals of a certain color...)

At any rate, that's bullshit.

Don't act like complete dicks- but stand up for yourself in front of authority as well....especially those who like to wield their bureaucratic power whenever they get a chance to do so. I know I am speaking from anecdote, but most cops I've encountered are actually not all that nice- the nice ones are the exception, not the rule. Most like the power they have over you, and you have to do everything you can to minimize their power plays.

I've gotten out of several tickets doing just that- if I feel the cop pulled me over in error, I let them know it. More than one time, they've tried to shout me down to get me to shut up- I have responded that I have a right to give my side of the story, and just because they're a police officer, they do not have the right to intimidate me into silence.

I'll admit I've not been pulled over often, but my experiences are completely different.

[Jeemie]

I haven't been pulled over a huge amount either...maybe 10 times in 30 years of driving.

But I can only think of two times where the cop was really nice.

And one of those was just a few weeks ago...and I was completely in the wrong, AND I didn't have my license on me, to boot.

But I guess I told a good story, and I got off with a warning.

But most of the time, the cops that have pulled me over are complete jerks...even when they let me off, they made a big scene over letting me know how much of a favor they were doing me.

[ghostjmf]

Sometimes, though not often, traffic court officers actually believe the driver.


I was stopped at a trap where people were pulled over, one after another, because we had a green light but the sign that said "left turn on green arrow only" was obscured by vegetation. Didn't see the red arrow until you were into the turn, with people piled up behind you. And the arrow signal & its accompanying sign, unlike the actual traffic light, were mounted so low only the 1st car at the intersection could see it during the red light.


I asked for a hearing & the court officer (not a judge in this case) believed me.


I know one instance (I was passenger) where stating traffic laws actually got driver out of a ticket. Driver had made a U turn. Cop stopped us. Driver, not belligerently but in a non-groveling way said "the law in Mass says you can make a U turn unless a sign says not to". Cop thought for a minute, said "you're right" & let us go.

[tlynn78]

I haven't been pulled over a huge amount either...maybe 10 times in 30 years of driving.

But I can only think of two times where the cop was really nice.

And one of those was just a few weeks ago...and I was completely in the wrong, AND I didn't have my license on me, to boot.

But I guess I told a good story, and I got off with a warning.

But most of the time, the cops that have pulled me over are complete jerks...even when they let me off, they made a big scene over letting me know how much of a favor they were doing me.

I guess I've been lucky - no jerks (so far). I'm thinking I've been pulled over maybe 5 times in about the same time span. Trying to remember - I think all but one was here in MT. One in CO - because the snowstorm I drove through on my way through WY on the way to CO resulted in an obscured license plate. Come to think of it, he did kind of act like I'd done it on purpose. Guess he was having a worse day than I was - he didn't ticket me, and cleared it himself.