THE BELL CASE: SHARPTON WANTS TO SHUT DOWN NEW YORK - I HAVE A BETTER IDEA, SHARPTON OUGHT TO SHUT DOWN HIS MOUTH
THE BELL CASE: SHARPTON WANTS TO SHUT DOWN NEW YORK - I HAVE A BETTER IDEA, SHARPTON OUGHT TO SHUT DOWN HIS MOUTH
By
Ken Eliasberg
Few people have been as racially destructive as Al Sharpton — using race-baiting at the drop of a hat. Of course, this is understandable since Sharpton makes a living on the backs of his people. How? By constantly reminding them of their status as victims, blaming (at least inferentially) that status on an unjust racist society, and, in the process, doing everything he possibly can to make certain that they never rise above that status (after all, his livelihood depends on it). To be fair, he is not alone in this occupation; he shares this ignoble status with a couple of other charlatans and shake down artists, to wit Jesse Jackson and that most loathsome of all racist phonies, Louis Farrakhan (a.k.a. Calypso Louie). And then of course there is the most recent additon to the ranks of the racial grievance peddlers, Jeremiah A. Wright (soon to use his status as a race hustler to move into his multi-million dollar house — you see, the victim industry is not without its rewards). But this column is not about these other race demagogues; we’ll come back to them later when we have that dialogue on race that Obama is calling for. This column is about that clown, that buffoonish caricature of a man — the Reverend Al Sharpton, charlatan, liar, provocateur, and shake down artist extraordinaire. Specifically, it is about his latest farcical effort to incite a riot in New York over an alleged miscarriage of justice (which, knowing Sharpton as you must, is just a routine incident of complete justice).
Bell involved a situation in which what started out as a bachelor party at a crime- ridden strip joint in Queens, New York, evolved into an altercation inside the club that spilled out into the street. It appeared that one of the parties to the argument had a gun, resulting in a member of Bell’s party suggesting that they too might require a gun. This suggestion was overheard by an off duty policeman. When things appeared — at least to the policeman — to be getting out of hand, he and several fellow officers asked the occupants of Bell’s car to step out of the car with their hands visible to all. Some of the relevant facts might be in dispute, but most have pretty well been established. The occupants of the car not only refused to exit the car but tried to use it to run down the policeman giving the order — at which point some 4 or 5 policemen opened fire (some 50 shots) into the car, killing Bell, the groom to be.
Sharpton, sensing a photo op, immediately piled on, demanding JUSTICE — which to Sharpton meant a kangaroo court predetermining that this was just another instance of police brutality. The matter was put before a New York Judge — one with a reputation for being tough (but fair) — who decided that the police acted within the law. To decide otherwise the Judge would have had to determine, “beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officers did not reasonably believe that they were facing the imminent use of deadly force, that they did not reasonably believe that their own use of deadly fire was necessary to defend themselves,” see Heather MacDonald’s column, Justice Served, in the New York Post on April 26, 2008. Sharpton, never missing an opportunity to stir the racial grievance pot, issued a proclamation that he was going to shut down New York in protest of this decision. (An interesting side note, and an annoying distraction to Sharpton’s effort to produce a riot, occurred when Barack Obama appeared to be diluting his message by suggesting something to the effect that it was important “to respect the verdict that came down”).
Of course, this reaction is nothing new; Sharpton has done this on virtually every occasion when a black man who appeared to be acting inappropriately came to grief at the hands of the police. Sharpton was right there, screaming for justice (as if he and he alone was the only one with such concerns). But, again, this is par for the course with Sharpton — the most dangerous place to be is between Sharpton and a T.V. camera or a microphone. He is nothing more than a buffoonish race-baiting grievance peddler — in addition to being a liar, a trouble maker, and a complete phony, e.g. recall his participation in the Tawana Brawley episode or his despicable role in the Crown Heights riot (resulting in the death of Yankel Rosenbaum, a visitor from Australia).
Heather MacDonald makes a very interesting and, in my opinion, telling observation about the nature of Sharpton’s real concerns. She observes:
“The sad fact is, had Sean Bell been killed by a fellow club-goer, Al Sharpton and Charles Barron [a NYC councilman and another race hustler] wouldn’t have taken the slightest interest in him. The world knows about him only because he was killed by police officers.
Need proof? A week after Bell’s death, another groom-to-be was fatally gunned down by some robbers in Brooklyn who had just pistol-whipped three other victims.
His name was Earl Williams — and no one ever protested his death. But New York’s police force worked to find his killer — and continue today to risk their own lives to safeguard ours.”
MacDonald is, of course, absolutely right. Al Sharpton doesn’t give a damn about Sean Bell — Bell is nothing more than a photo op for Sharpton, a silly and meaningless gesture at demonstrating that he, Sharpton, is still relevant. Relevant to what one might ask? Keeping the lines of racial division open, of course. The Diversity Industry is big business today in America, and it needs phonies like Sharpton for its public relations effort. And, as noted, it is extremely profitable — just take a look at Jeremiah Wright, the latest incarnation of the race-baiting black leader; he’s got it so tough that he’s moving into a 1.6 million dollar home — you see, as noted, the racial grievance industry pays well.
With regard to both racial issues and the state of policing in New York City, I recommend Heather MacDonald’s impeccable scholarship in this area, see, e.g. Time for Truth About Black Crime Rates — The lessons of the Sean Bell Case, City Journal April 2, 2007 and New York Cops: Still the Finest — Bucking a national trend, Gotham’s crime rate keeps dropping. Here’s Why, City Journal, Summer 2006. I have just 2 or 3 concluding observations. First, thank God for cops — the thin blue line is all that stands between us and anarchy and chaos. And they are great! How do I know? Because I grew up around cops; my father was the attorney for New York City’s Patrolman’s Benevolent Association for well over 40 years. I found them to be a dedicated and outstanding bunch of guys (there were few, if any, women in those days). Are there bad cops? Of course, cops are only human. But let me say this there are far fewer bad apples in that barrel than in just about any other human barrel that I know of (particularly the social studies barrel of our Universities these days). Second, the problem of race is not likely to find a solution in the hands of someone like Al Sharpton (or, for that matter, Jesse Jackson, Louis Farrakhan, or Jeremiah Wright); it is much too important and sensitive a matter to be entrusted to people of his ilk.