President Obama told reporters at a White House news conference on Tuesday that the media ignored peaceful protests in the city until violence erupted, and gave his views on the broader problems facing American cities.
“Frankly it didn’t get that much attention,” Obama said of the peaceful movement sparked by the death of black man Freddie Gray, who died in police custody. “One burning building will be looped on television over and over and over again. The thousands of demonstrators who did it the right way, I think, have been lost in the discussion.”
The President added that unrest in cities like Baltimore will not go away until solutions are found beyond law enforcement.
“This is not new, and we shouldn’t pretend that it’s new,” he said.
“If we think we’re going to send police to do the dirty work of containing the problems that arise there — without as a nation and society saying what can we do to change those communities, to help lift up communities, and give those kids opportunity — then we’re not going to solve this problem,” he added.
And the other side of that coin as well. Rioters on television will be seen as emblematic of all protesters, if not all blacks, but police who kill unarmed citizens are just individual bad apples.
Tens of thousands turn out peacefully and NOTHING appears on the 24/7 1% media. A handful of Teabaggers with guns on the other hand is played on a loop for days. Little wonder that journaminalists are so hated.
Geraldo, smiling away, shit-scared in the presence of someone who just wants to TALK to him in a non-threatening way, says it all. While Obama, who doesn’t mind blowing up children, wedding parties, or funerals with his drones, has done NOTHING to help his own during his 8 years in office. This is why politics doesn’t work to make anything better for common folk (any but the 1%) – it’s just another tool of the .01% and their vested interests.
Just wait til the food shortages and economic collapse get into full swing if you want to see chaos and calamity. The one thing that the police don’t realize is that they live among us! If things get all out of hand they won’t be able to leave their homes due to the threat of calamity to their own families. Same for the rich people – everyone knows where they live! How protected will they be once it all turns to shit out here in the streets? When people have nothing to lose (as Gerald Celente says) they will lose it! It’s just a matter of time.
The rich all think they can escape what’s coming because of their money. It won’t help when there’s no food.