The Human Element

I’m going to break my own rule of keeping this blog light hearted and nostalgic and fun. I’m sure the feedback will be mixed on this one too but this is where I am at. I am not speaking for a nation or a state or a people. I am speaking for Joseph Shiver. We have all lived a unique life and wear our own glasses to view the world in which we live. I am not black or Muslim or a police officer so I can’t speak from any of those perspectives. Nor can I discount what any of those groups claim as their perspective. But, I am a human being. And I have to ask, “What the hell are we doing people?”

Let’s start with the simplest of statements. Don’t believe everything you see on Facebook! That goes for the news as well. If you haven’t figured out by now, “the right and the left” tailor their stories for their constituents. If you want to read about how Hillary should go to prison, go to the conservative sites. If you want to read about how Trump will destroy the country, which wouldn’t take a lot of effort considering the current state of affairs, check out liberal media. I find myself leaning more and more towards the middle.  
 

What’s the number 1 hot button issue in politics? Race. I’m not about to sit here and tell you it isn’t a real issue. I’ve been around long enough to know that it is one of the most volatile issues we face in our country. But here are my thoughts on how politics and race married, forming the unholiest of unions. It is used by both sides to further their own progress, to our detriment as a human race. The left is going to feed you news that infuriates their party and keeps the fire stoked while their candidate struggles through criminal charges for wrongdoing. The right is going to feed you news that does the same for their party while their candidate shoots off at the mouth every chance he gets about minorities or women or building a wall. They are both despicable in their own unique ways in my opinion. It’s true, there are more important things going on besides thousands of email breaches but don’t divide the country to prove your point.

 Keep in mind that I am not talking about the actual events at all. That’s where my comments above about not having the appropriate perspective come in. I don’t know what it’s like to be a black man pulled over by the police. I also don’t know what it’s like to be a police officer trying to get a suspect to comply. What I do know is the way the events are reported is screwed up. There is no other way I can explain how people have such staunch responses to a tragic event such as this. There are no winners or losers but the media makes it out that way. I’m telling you that everybody loses when something like this happens. We have one group sharing memes about the deceased being a convicted sex offender carrying a concealed weapon and the other shares memes about him being a family man. It works both ways too. The recently “convicted”, and I use that term loosely, college swimmer who brutally raped a girl after a campus party, was shown on some news sites in his graduation photos or with his swimming garb on. The other sites showed his mug shot, as was, I believe, appropriate.  

 Here’s the only fact we really know when a story like this breaks – “We know absolutely nothing about all of the events that took place.” All we do know is that the end result was horrific. But arguments over the end result quickly spin into debates on what is or isn’t justified. Do you see the problem in this? How can we determine if anything is justified or not without full disclosure? We have a snippet of a cell phone video but it doesn’t tell the whole story. I know what I see and it doesn’t look good. But I haven’t seen everything. What I did see was a man lose his life. Whether or not it was justified is not the immediate issue in my mind. My heart goes out to the deceased’s family as they have lost a father, husband and brother. He may or may not have been a terrible guy but he was those things to some people and those people will be hurting. Then my heart goes out to the officers involved because they will immediately be under fire for their actions. They have to live with that moment for the rest of their lives, right or wrong. And any human being with a conscience will wrestle with that until the day they die.  

 Therein lie’s the problem. Is it not ok for me to feel for both parties? Do both parties not deserve that immediate consideration until the facts present themselves in their entirety? If I “Back the Blue”, does that make me either a racist or someone who doesn’t care about the victim? If I support the victim’s family in their grief, does that make me “anti-police”? You can answer that however you want to but I can assure that I am neither. Then the million dollar question becomes, “When is taking someone else’s life justifiable?” I don’t want to nor am I qualified to answer that question. I believe there is only one judge and jury. I know that I will go to any lengths to protect myself and my family but fortunately, I am not in the position to have to do that every time I go to work. So it’s not for me to try the police for murder on social media. Nor is it for me to condemn the deceased as someone who got what they deserved.

 I grew up in Small Town America (I hate that term), Camilla, GA. I went to Mitchell-Baker High School and anyone will tell you that I am proud to say that. I have played sports from the time I was 11 until this very day with a diverse group of people. I have not been sheltered to race and it’s effects on us as a society. But again, I have always considered myself a human being. That is my race. I consider BJ Harris, Ashley Kinnett, Joe Jackson, Tavis Cole, Jorge Rodriguez and Jomar Diaz my friends and brothers in this world, among many, many others. That’s why it bothers me so much to see friends and family fall victim to this enraging game that is played with us. It pits us against one another. It reveals our weaknesses as a society. You begin to question whether you should be friends with people anymore because of what they share on FB instead of relying on what you believe to be in their heart from a lifetime of knowing them.

 When the facts come out, if the police were in the wrong, they should be dealt with accordingly. If the suspect’s actions led to the result, let’s talk to each other about what should be done differently without accusations or division. We have to stand up for what’s right and condemn what’s wrong, no matter whose side of the fence it happens on. It’s ok to feel for the victim and family. It’s ok to be thankful for all of the police that protect us. It’s ok to stand in solidarity against violence. It’s ok to condemn a criminal just like its ok to condemn a bad cop. It’s NOT ok to incite violence or promote violence or cheer when violence occurs as many have the last few days. What I witnessed last night happening in Dallas is the stuff of nightmares. It never settles the score. It never evens the scale. It only deepens the chasm that is fracturing us as human beings. And in the end, that is what we all are; living, feeling human beings.

 J-Dub