Black Lives Do Matter

September 19^th 2015

Our American society is entering a period of racial crisis from which we will only emerge if cooler and rational voices emerge to calm the nation. There is no doubt that a disproportionate number of our black citizens have been targeted, abused, mistreated and even murdered by some police. It is unfortunate however that the response has been a growing hatred towards all members of the police force. As a citizen I truly want police to honor their oath to serve and protect everyone from the criminal elements among us.

The job of our public servants in the police has been hugely complicated by the ease with which anyone In this country can obtain a firearm, especially with the growth of deadly automatic weapons designed to be efficient killing machines, The lax laws allowing guns anywhere and anytime have placed all our lives in danger and heavily impacted those who are trying to maintain the peace and protect us from those who wish to do us harm. Is it any wonder that many police are really nervous? Couple this situation with the underlying racist history that has stereotyped and vilified the black man as a danger to white society, and we have a tinder box waiting to explode. 

It will take a lot of soul searching and facing the facts to reach a new equilibrium in our society that provides free and peaceful coexistence of all our citizens. This philosophy has been part of our psyche since the dawn of America, yet today we seem to be moving away from it. There are hard decisions ahead, and I truly believe a first step is reducing the number and availability of guns in our midst.