Heroes and Thugs!

It is all confusing.  This week we learned that thugs are heroes, cops are thugs and racists call people thugs.  What does all this mean?

Well, it started when a career criminal, Freddy Gray, died while in custody.  Freddy, it appears, has a robust criminal record.  Because Freddy died while in police custody, he somehow became an American hero - to some. It turns out that the investigation into Freddy's death shows that 6 police officers may have had something to do with Freddy's death, though it has yet to be proven in court.Amid all of this craziness, we have learned that using the word "thug" to describe the thugs burning down Baltimore is now racist.

Let's do some analysis...

First, Freddy Gray is a thug.  He has a long criminal background culminating with his arrest which led to his death.  Freddy Gray is not a hero, never was and never will be.  He is a criminal who faced an unreasonable punishment for his crime, but he is not a hero.

Next, the six police officers who have been charged with Freddy's death have not been tried or found guilty.  Until they are found guilty by a jury of their peers, they are considered innocent.  If they are found guilty, these officers are actually bigger thugs than Freddy Gray or the thugs who burned down Baltimore.  They are worse because they are entrusted with enforcing the law and expected to follow the law.  If we cannot trust the police, where does that leave us?

A developing story related to the charges filed against the police, is that black leaders in Baltimore are supporting the three black police officers, saying that they were not involved in Freddy Gray's death.  The assumption here is that while all 6 officers were present, only the white officers committed the crime.  In other words, because it would look bad to show that black cops can be bad, the community leaders are making excuses for them so the white cops can shoulder the blame.

Now about the term "thug".  This term has been used to describe bad people for decades.  It is a term which describes criminals.  It does not single out black people or Asian people or Hispanic people or white people, but bad people!  For a black leader to call anyone using this term, is arguably racist himself.  The leader said that the term, "thug" is the equivalent of the the "n" word.  It would appear that he believes all black people are thugs, or criminals, or have criminal leanings.  It's true the term thug does define black criminals, but it also defines Asian, Hispanic, white or any other criminals.

Finally, it's too bad that we have reached a point when we find it acceptable to burn down cities, kill innocent people and take away their livelihood, in the name of social justice.  The cops, if guilty of murder, are thugs.  The people who burned down Baltimore and injured innocent people and cops, are thugs.  The mayor of Baltimore, who set aside an area for those who want to destroy property, is a thug.  None of these people are heroes, none of the behaviors of these people is acceptable. 

We have changed our culture to the point that we have become tolerant of intolerant behavior.  We have reached a point where irrational actions have become rational.  We have turned criminals into heroes and heroes into criminals.  We have fallen so far in our nation that we can no longer recognize morality when we see it... and wonder if or when we may see it again.