August 9, 2020

"It's been six years since Michael Brown's life was taken in Ferguson — reigniting a movement. We must continue the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing."


Breitbart reacts: "Former Vice President Joe Biden tweeted Sunday that 'Michael Brown’s life was taken in Ferguson' — a reference to the founding myth of the Black Lives Matter movement, which claimed Brown was murdered by police in cold blood.... Left-wing activists popularized the slogan 'Hands Up, Don’t Shoot,' and claimed that Brown had been shot in the back with his hands raised in a gesture of surrender. Journalists and mainstream media pundits gave credence to the claim.... The Department of Justice under the Obama-Biden administration investigated Brown’s death and confirmed that there was no basis for charging Wilson under federal law. The investigation also suggested that Brown had attacked Wilson in his patrol car, reaching into the vehicle and attempting to seize the officer’s gun. In the ensuing struggle, part of Brown’s thumb was shot off. Brown ran away, and Officer Wilson pursued him. Wilson fired only when Brown charged at him...."

Loophole for Biden: He only said "Michael Brown's life was taken." Passive voice. True. There's no assertion that the life was wrongfully taken. Brown lost his life, and he didn't give his life, so technically, it was taken. And the loss of life did reignite a movement. People were touched off by that loss of life, and that really happened regardless of whether what the police did was entirely justified. And "the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing" stands apart from the facts of that particular incident.

So that's how he can defend himself if he's ever grilled with the material in the Breitbart article. But when is he ever grilled?! But if he's ever grilled, he has left himself room to explain his words. It's not a mistake. It's crafted. He meant to say exactly what he did (or rather, his people meant to say exactly what they did). They need that resonance with Black Lives Matter and are cagily constructing it.

116 comments:

Earnest Prole said...

I'm shocked, shocked to see politicians using weasel words that tell only a part of the truth.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

"reigniting a movement" = fanning the embers of racism

wendybar said...

Joe Biden is too delusional to know the truth, and is lying and repeating the Democrat lies that are dividing us to this day....Great job Democrats!!! So Progressive!!!

Amadeus 48 said...

Althouse—you are over-thinking this.

Time’s up for BLM. They oversold their product. They made a pretty good case for reviewing police training and tried to turn it into a case for getting rid of the police. No one wants that except thugs. Their apparent partnering with antifa is a death move.

Team Biden can dance around with rhetorical tricks pleasing to people who are willing to vote for a 77 year old with advancing dementia, but the bottom line is that a law and order campaign run by Trump is going to win. The only question is, by how much?

Those Fox ratings mentioned in the previous post are evidence of a preference cascade that is shaping up. As Don Meredith used to sing, “Good night, Irene...”

h said...

Why didn't those racists in Trump's DoJ (Loretta Lynch and Eric Holder) bring those racist cops up on Federal charges? Answer me that if you can!!

eddie willers said...

It's not a mistake. It's crafted. He meant to say exactly what he did

Watching Greg Gutfeld last night, his big buddy Tyrus warned that Biden may be using the old Rope-A-Dope. And he may be right.

Expectations are so low that just showing up may be like Reagan in 84 during the second debate with Walter Mondale. After ""I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience" came the 49 state landslide.

Big Mike said...

Biden doesn’t need a lawyerly loophole. His base buys into every word, and the saner voters assume he’s just being stupid, as usual.

n.n said...

Biden made the [false] NYT-style association between the Brown incident and an assertion of systemic diversity. Biden made the [unsupported] NYT-style association between the Brown incident and the unsupported need to reform policing. Another civil rights movement a la some, select Black Lives Matter based on a false or misleading premise.

Ken B said...

Deniability.

Weaseling.

To repeat this lie, which he is doing, with deniability, is odious. Especially now, with riots underway.

Drago said...

According to Inga and LLR-lefty Chuck violence theories, Michael Brown was an early victim of Steve Bannon and Boogaloo-ers.

It was probably a test run.......

Jupiter said...

It would seem that if every instance of a Black criminal getting himself shot by a white policeman "reignites a movement", then we are, in fact, facing "systemic racism". Or perhaps better, "systematic racism".

Diogenes of Sinope said...

Biden can rightfully declare he wasn't involved.

Everyone KNOWs that Biden doesn't write his tweets. I wonder do they have one person or or a team writing and posting Biden tweets? Does the team make sure to tell Biden what they have posted in case he is asked about the tweets posted in his name? Does the team take the time needed to explain their tweets to Biden?

Iman said...

Don't forget your apology chain, Joe!

Mark said...

Hey AA, what are you doing? Trying out for left-wing Hot Air or middle-right PJ Media?

They like to post a tweet AND quote the text too.

BUMBLE BEE said...

Brown surrendered it. Foolish.

Ken B said...

Eddie Willers
Reagan — hated here by the Trumpkins btw — had the wit and charm and composure needed to pull that off. Biden does not. “Look , Fat, ...”

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

If you vote for joe, you ain’t white!

Mid-Life Lawyer said...

It's unconscionable that any politician or media source continues to use anything about the Michael Brown farce as anything other than an example of the irresponsibility of journalists and corrupt politicians. The fact that almost all major corporations and professional sports, including the PGA I have found this weekend, are promoting the myth of systemic racism indicates to me that our country is in a decline that we will never correct. Joe Biden and Donald Trump are the presidential candidates that we deserve.

Diogenes of Sinope said...

Biden is the challenger, he needs to win debates not just show up.

Drago said...

eddie willers: "Watching Greg Gutfeld last night, his big buddy Tyrus warned that Biden may be using the old Rope-A-Dope. And he may be right."

Biden will have to stand there for 90 minutes or more and even having the questions fed to his team early (that is guaranteed) and having all of Biden's answers pre-written (they will be) as well as having the "objective moderators" handle most of the direct attacks on Trump (they will) and the "objective moderators" cutting off Trump's best lines of attack (they will) along with 1-liner zingers set up for Biden by the "objective moderators" (they will probably be obvious in the tee up and wait for Biden's response), it is still too much to expect Biden to stand there for that length of time without being drugged up to keep up his energy level.

The problem there of course is that too much energy means too much Slow Joe and we've seen where that gets them.

More Corn Pop and rubbing of leg hairs stories....Fat!

walter said...

Yeah..why not?
McDonald's modded their Twitter banner during height of Floyd protests, lumping Brown and Trayvon in with Floyd.
I guess because they all look alike..so could have been related to Obama.
Ferguson was also a great instance of "witnesses" lying to grand jury.
If you're not ok with that, you're not black/Black.

n.n said...

"reigniting a movement" = fanning the embers of racism

He's stoking diversity, which has been a politically, socially, and economically profitable racket for Democrats for the better half of a century. However, this latest campaign by the diversity racket will not so easily be hidden nor evaded in the darkness of a black hole... whore h/t NAACP. They need to lose their Pro-Choice quasi-religion ("ethics"), discover principles, and focus on the issues as they are, as they were, not as their myths and narratives have presented and normalized.

Iman said...

eddie willers @3:55PM... I watched that last night... they do have a point.

As far as Biden being with it enough to take Reagan's approach, I have my doubts. The suspense will be in whether Biden's able to express coherent thoughts without stuttering.

Chris of Rights said...

And tomorrow will mark one year since Jeffrey Epstein's life was taken.

Amadeus 48 said...

Hey, Eddie. Before you get too married to that rope-a-dope, take a look at Biden’s last week. The Gaffomatic has gone into overdrive. I don’t know about you, but most Democrats I know at least purport to have a more nuanced view of black people than Biden articulated. Maybe he is the heart of the Democrat party, but if so he revealed too much. I never have personally assumed that an accomplished black professional is a drug addict, but Biden did.

Josephbleau said...

I am so proud of Biden. He is so cool when he deceives by telling a narrow truth. This strategy works in Law, Politics, and in marketing of consumer products.

Narayanan said...

learn something new every day.

AA as amica counsel for Biden campaign

Joe Smith said...

@Althouse

I guarantee he won't be grilled. Even though it's summer, nobody wants to eat a medium-rare Biden.

That, and the cheerleading 96% of journalists who donated to Hillary in 2016 media.

mccullough said...

Homicides are up in the most populous cities. Mostly more blacks killing other blacks.

This is what defund the police is.

If All Cops Are Bastards that would mean none of them had a father growing up. This is stereotyping. And projection.

Iman said...

Biden’s probably wondering why he’s getting so many informal prostate exams, given the Shari Lewis Lambchop approach to his campaign his “handlers” are taking.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

eddie willers said...
Expectations are so low that just showing up may be like Reagan in 84 during the second debate with Walter Mondale

well-- just getting out of a basement and riding a bike garnered
Geriatric Joe a boost in perceived viability

Kevin said...

So that's how he can defend himself if he's ever grilled with the material in the Breitbart article.

You think Joe Biden wrote that Tweet?

LOL!

The Tweet is immaterial. Just ask Joe to explain what happened in Ferguson.

Hilarity ensues.

Oso Negro said...

At long last Althouse reads Breitbart

rhhardin said...

I don't think they're caring about an out. Truth isn't any kind of goal on the left.

Jon Ericson said...

Don't ever try to change me, I been in this thing too long
There's nothing' you can say or do to make me think I'm wrong

William said...

Police are perfectible. When police reach a level of gentle kindness and tact sufficient to restrain the most violent felon, then there will be time enough to start work on our criminal population. When the wealth of America is equitably distributed, gun control laws are enacted, and police respond with restraint and sweet reason to attacks upon their person, then we can move on to asking our criminal population to reform their ways. But not before. First things first....If I were a black parent, I would tell my kids not to take any shit from cops. grab that motherfucker's gun and shoot him with it. This might not work out to my kid's optimal advantage, but the parents will become fabulously wealthy if the cop shoots him.....If a kid gets shoot in some drive by shooting, that's the end of it and of him. If he gets shot by a cop, he achieves martyr status and the family is rich.

tim maguire said...

That’s an awfully strained defence. He can try it (in the fantasy world where he’s forced to), but nobody will buy what he’s selling.

MadisonMan said...

When I see quotes like that from long-time politicians, my reaction is always the same: You've been in politics for decades -- why have you taken so few steps until now to address this? This is especially true here in Dane County, but the same sentiment applies to feeble Joe Biden.

gspencer said...

Sure thing, Joe.

When will you be allowing the BLM cohorts to set up camps on your lawn, with pool privileges?

n.n said...

Do the crime, do the time. Legislation is first, and rules and regulations are second. Is the AG (e.g. Ellison) the political officer overseeing, approving the latter? That said, there is no evidence of systemic diversity, and reform pursued based on a false premise engenders progressive corruption.

NKP said...

Good night, Irene ???

I like the tune but Dandy Don's signature musical method of announcing the issue was settled on Monday Night Football was: "Turn out the lights, the party's over..."

We've come a long way from the day when commentary in the booth was spiked (?) with spontaneity, truth and humor. Now all you have to do is say, "All lives matter" and your 20-year gig is OVER.

robother said...

"Systemic racism" is doing a lot of work in this paragraph. The real message, of course, is that any death of a Black man at the hands of police is evidence of the racism of the American justice system: the facts that lead to the conclusion that it was a justified shooting merely prove the systemic nature of the racism. The fact that Blacks commit murders, felonious assaults, rapes, armed robberies at rates exponentially higher than any other racial group, resulting in disproportionately high incarceration rates, is similarly mere proof to BLM of "systemic racism."

This is why abolition of police is the ultimate goal, with police retreat from the streets (as in Ferguson effect) a satisfactory interim result. "Law and order" is literally a white privilege thing. The lives lost to the chaos (disproportionately Black) don't matter at all to BLM.

Ann Althouse said...

“ At long last Althouse reads Breitbart”

Somebody I follow on Twitter tweeted it. I don’t go there looking for things to blog.

Michael said...

Michael Brown! LOL. Wait until the cop who leaned on Floyd’s neck is judged innocent. Too bad it will be after the election.

narciso said...

I don't call susan rosenberg's extortion scheme, by that name, for that reason, it is just another way for her to achieve her goal, of destroying this country, she couldn't do it through direct action, that's the lesson lenin learned from the social democrats, and his proteges alinsky and gramsci, proselytized, one must infiltrate the leading institutions of this country, and sabotage them from within, of course the clinton's facilitated this with the last minute pardon, as he did for the faln, except for lopez rivera, who like madiba would not renounce violence to achieve his objective,

n.n said...

Biden #MeToo Joins the em-pathy train.

Jess said...

It's been six years since Brown attempted to murder a police officer and was shot.

rcocean said...

During the Democrat Debates several candidates asserted Brown had been murdered or was the killed in a miscarriage of justice. Biden NEVER disagreed. People forget that Biden was VP when this happened. What did he say about Mike Brown then?

Again, its simply irrelevant whether Biden PERSONALLY believes Brown was murdered or is simply going along with the left-wing narrative. He's a defacto supporter of BLM antifa and defunding the police. if you think "good ol' Moderate Joe" is going to be the bulwark against AOC and all the Left-wing Democrat craziness, you're an idiot. He wasn't that during the Obama Administration, and he won't be in 2021.

Big Mike said...

I don’t go there looking for things to blog.

But probably you should.

rcocean said...

I'm sure someone crafted that statement FOR Biden. After watching him in the Roberts, Bork, and Thomas hearings and the Democrat Debates, I didn't see any evidence of Biden being a careful, "Crafter" of words. Just the opposite.

DavidUW said...

I mean, anyone who's ever hear anything come out of DementedJoe's mouth knows that tweet bears absolutely zero resemblance to how Joe speaks.

He's not cogent enough now, and I don't believe he ever was, to have a different writing than speaking voice.

Trump, however, his tweets sounds like he talks and are definitely believable as authored by him.

gilbar said...

look; it's Quite Simple. No Black Life should be taken; EVER, for ANY reason...
well, expect when another Black takes it; then it's FINE... IF the other Black ain't a cop
AND, it's perfectly Okay for a Black life to be taken; if they're in a nursing home in NYC

but Other than THOSE exceptions...

Skeptical Voter said...

Rope a dope? At some point Slow Joe has to get out of his basement, get in the ring and come off the ropes. Somehow that may be a few yards too far for good old Joe to do on his own. I'd be surprised if he got out of his yard! Well maybe they can carry his caracass to the ring, but he's not coming off the ropes.

Big Mike said...

Reagan — hated here by the Trumpkins btw

I must not be a Trumpkin, then, because I was a minor official in the Reagan-Bush campaign. Ronald Reagan transformed me from what today we’d call a moderate Republican into a conservative Republican. Liberal Democrats will never forgive Reagan for winning the Cold War.

Amadeus 48 said...

Col. Mustard— I bow before your superior memory. I should have looked it up if I wasn’t sure. I miss Dandy Don and the incomparable Howard.

We all remember that Howard got blown out in a manifestation of political correctness. I personally believe that Howard didn’t have a racist bone in his body, and his longtime back and forth with Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali was some of the greatest sports promotion in history. Howard asked Muhammad some tough questions and the Champ gave as much as he got. Howard unfortunately used a term to describe outstanding play by Alvin Garrett that was deemed racist by some civil rights activists. Howard left in 1983, but he left a mark on sports broadcasting for the betterment of all.

narciso said...

this is what we think it is:


https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/08/perils-pretending-war-something-else-david-horowitz/

Mike Sylwester said...

An article in my blog about the killing of Michael Brown:

Brown stopped on the east end of Copper Creek Court

My article begins:

[quote]

The US Justice Department's report about the death of Michael Brown did not specify the spot where Brown stopped running away, turned around and began charging toward Police Officer Darren Wilson. Rather, the report specified only the 21.6-foot distance from Brown's first blood drops to his dead body.

Brown charged a considerable distance before that first blood drop hit the street, but the Justice Department preferred to omit any such consideration -- preferred to create a false impression that Brown charged perhaps only 21.6 feet (about 7 yards).

The charge-beginning spot was discussed but not specified clearly either in the grand-jury documents that were released to the public. The police investigators told the grand jury that Brown began charging from the the northwest corner of Canfield Drive and Coppercreek Court and that the distance from that corner to Brown's body was 16 yards (48 feet).

[end quote]

My article finds:

[quote]

However, three African-American witnesses -- whom I have designated as Balcony Brother, Visiting Brother and Visiting Sister-in-Law -- indicated that Brown began charging from the southeast corner, near the intersection's street sign. I estimate that this distance from this spot to Brown's dead body was about 25 yards.

[end quote]

See the last two photographs in my article.

effinayright said...

Ann Althouse said...
“ At long last Althouse reads Breitbart”

Somebody I follow on Twitter tweeted it. I don’t go there looking for things to blog.
***********

A pity. Instead you go to the New Yorker and the NYT to get your biases confirmed.

No cognitive dissonance for you!

Mike Sylwester said...

I think Michael Brown committed "suicide by cop".

He had been kicked out of his grandmother's home and so was sleeping on a couch in a friend's living room. Brown was about to be kicked out of the friend's apartment by the friend's sister, who paid the apartment rent.

Brown thought he was about to make a profitable drug deal. He was walking back from a shopping trip to meet with a White guy who might buy some drugs from Brown. Police officer Wilson was detaining Brown, who therefore would not be able to meet the White guy.

Brown lost his temper and attacked the policeman. When he was charging at Wilson, Brown was suicidal.

gadfly said...

Michael "Big Mike" Brown, Jr.(18-years-old, 6'4", 292 lb), along with Dorian Johnson (who confessed that the two had just robbed a convenient store) were stopped in the street by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson and another policeman because Wilson spotted the cigars taken from the store in the strong-arm robbery in Big Mike's possession.

Wilson drove ahead of the suspects, noted that they fit the descriptions of the robbers so he drove in reverse back to them. When Wilson tried to get out of his car, Brown slammed the police car door shut violently. Then when the officer opened the car again and tried to stand up, Michael rushed up and shoved him back into his car. He then punched Wilson in the face and then Darren grabbed for his gun. Michael also grabbed for the gun. At one point the officer got the gun entirely turned against his hip. And when he shoved it away, the gun went off.

Michael then took off running and but stopped about 35 feet away when officer Wilson yelled “Freeze!.” Big Mike taunted him - then suddenly started bull-rushing back toward the police car at full speed. Thus threatened, Darren Wilson defended himself by shooting at the deranged perpetrator. But Brown did not stop until he died from the gunshots.

The courts ruled twice in the Officer's favor despite improper interference from Obama and Eric Holder.

Marshall Rose said...

The fact that he will not get grilled on this, and frankly the media will always circle the wagons for any dem, goes to the very heart of the tense divide in this country.

Until all politicians are treated by all media members as the lying crap weasels they are we will not get past the hype to find real solutions. Our ruling class on both sides has no interest in actual solutions, they NEED the problems to exist in perpetuity so that they can campaign and keep their phoney jobs with their snouts in the trough.

cfs said...

"Breitbart responds or "pounces". It is never about what someone on the left said. It is always about how someone on the right responds. That way, the leftwing media can give bare minimum coverage to what Biden actually said. Instead, they concentrate on the response from a right-view news or blog site. And, immediately start tearing that response down. Thus, they change the narrative. It would be amusing to watch if it wasn't so sad.
'

madAsHell said...

This is desperation.

The democrats have no platform beyond child-sacrifice, and dead negros.

Greg The Class Traitor said...

gadfly said...
Michael then took off running and but stopped about 35 feet away when officer Wilson yelled “Freeze!.” Big Mike taunted him - then suddenly started bull-rushing back toward the police car at full speed. Thus threatened, Darren Wilson defended himself by shooting at the deranged perpetrator. But Brown did not stop until he died from the gunshots.

Which is to say, Big Mike DID "give his life. He committed suicide by cop. Because what he did at the end was creamy suicidal

Joe Smith said...

Wasn't there talk of the prosecution inventing a witness? It sounded very fishy...wonder what happened to that story.

The law and 'justice' is so corrupt these days that I suppose we'll never know.

Michael K said...

because Wilson spotted the cigars taken from the store in the strong-arm robbery in Big Mike's possession.

gadfly has it almost right. Brown was walking in the middle of the street which drew the cop's attention.

Does anybody think it unusual that Ann would look only at the NY Times, WaPoo or New Yorker for blog topics ?

Gk1 said...

"Everyone KNOWs that Biden doesn't write his tweets"

That's pretty much the gist of everything coming out of the Biden camp isn't it? Joe is just a figurehead while his team floats this or that balloon or stokes this or that racial grievance. What are the odds Joe would even know this is his position or could defend it if called during a debate or non softball interview? 0 chance, that's what.

Joe will have to come out of the basement at some point and deal with people who don't particularly like him or feel any need to give him any deference. Oh boy! That's when you get "Dog faced pony soldier!" and "Shut up fat!" You know its going to happen somewhere along the line. I don't buy for a minute there is any "rope a dope". Sometime a senile old crone, is just a senile old crone.

Drago said...

Ken B: "Reagan — hated here by the Trumpkins btw"

Big Mike: "I must not be a Trumpkin, then, because I was a minor official in the Reagan-Bush campaign."

Ken B is trying to recover from the unrecoverable Alliance of Lies with Inga and Howard and so he's throwing everything and the kitchen sink into the conversation.

Sebastian said...

"But when is he ever grilled?!"

What difference, at this point, does it make? Dems are ABT, sane GOPers know Joe is dim.

Althouse, you are not still "making plans," are you? I mean, you don't need any "grilling" to decide how to rationalize your vote this time, do you? Or are you saying that you want Biden exposed as senile through grilling so that you have "evidence" to vote against him?

Temujin said...

Joe should run on Michael Brown and Ferguson. I encourage it.

Known Unknown said...

Tamir Rice is rolling in his grave.

Dude1394 said...

And that is only one of the reasons that I love trump. He says what he means.

Francisco D said...

Ann Althouse said...
“ At long last Althouse reads Breitbart” Somebody I follow on Twitter tweeted it. I don’t go there looking for things to blog.

Ann only reads highly reputable and non-partisan sources like the NYT and WaPo.

Her obsession with pseudo-intellectual liberal culture is both charming and amusing.

madAsHell said...

This is desperation.

The democrats are re-cycling the zeitgeist from 4 years ago.

All they have is........negroes be unhappy.

Yancey Ward said...

You have two choices, Althouse:

(1) Whoever wrote the Biden tweet truly is ignorant of the facts of the case;

(2) Whoever wrote the Biden tweet knows all the facts and deliberately wrote the tweet to mislead.

There is no third option, and there is no defense to #2.

Skippy Tisdale said...

"'Michael Brown! LOL. Wait until the cop who leaned on Floyd’s neck is judged innocent."

I have lived in Minneapolis for decades and I can assure you that's what will happen. Former officer Noor was convicted of third degree murder only because he foolishly shot an unarmed pajama-wearing woman approaching his partner's window. That's not anything like what happened in the Floyd incident.

Bunkypotatohead said...

Biden could shoot a black guy on 5th Avenue and not lose any black votes.
His tweet was completely unnecessary. The Dem candidate always gets 90% from that constituency.

Darrell said...

A lot of movements are based on a lie.

Sally327 said...

Joe Biden falsely claims that a drunk driver killed his first wife and their daughter so I guess it isn't a surprise he is cagey with the truth about Michael Brown's death as well. What I don't think is true is that he's doing it because he needs resonance with the BLM movement. What constituency is he aiming for that he doesn't already have?

walter said...

gilbar,
(no report of the races of the mostly peaceful vigilantes)
According to a news release from Wauwatosa police:
The group of protesters began to vandalize his home around 8:05 p.m. Saturday.
"Officer Mensah attempted to establish a dialog with the group but was ultimately physically assaulted outside of his home."
"As Officer Mensah retreated into his home, armed protesters approached the rear door and a single shotgun round was discharged by a member of the group into Officer Mensah’s backdoor."
Several other departments were called to help disburse the crowd.
Investigators were still at the scene of the incident at 2:30 a.m. Sunday.
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/wauwatosa/2020/08/09/wauwatosa-police-officer-joseph-mensah-physically-assaulted/3330610001/

n.n said...

I think Michael Brown committed "suicide by cop".

His life wasn't taken, but rather his self-abortion was delegated. This is similar to shared responsibility, but the officer was forced to reduce his burden, which was Brown's unfortunate choice.

Nichevo said...


eddie willers said...
It's not a mistake. It's crafted. He meant to say exactly what he did

Watching Greg Gutfeld last night, his big buddy Tyrus warned that Biden may be using the old Rope-A-Dope. And he may be right.


Needless to say, Biden doesn't write his own tweets or anything else. I wonder if he can write or write like an adult anymore. I wonder what his signature looks like if you got his autograph, if it would show the disintegration of the man inside.

I also think that it's inevitable and necessary that the President of the United States has special information about other presidential candidates' medical conditions. If that's an unfair advantage, too bad, the good of the country requires it.



Ken B said...
Eddie Willers
Reagan — hated here by the Trumpkins btw

Don't be a hoser.

Bruce Hayden said...

Learned some stuff today, thanks to the extensive reporting by Mike Sylwester. Thanks. One was that a significantly larger number of rounds were expended by Officer Wilson. At his Tahoe, I thought that a single round had been expended when Wilson and Brown were fighting for control of Wilson’s gun. There were two. Brown’s blood on the inside of the door corroborated Wilson’s story, and was the time that Brown went from a misdemeanor suspect, to having committed violent felonies (assault on a police officer and attempted murder - both with 20 year sentences standard) in the presence of a police officer, legally justifying Wilson using deadly force to apprehend him (not needed, since Wilson could credibly claim self defense). It should also be remembered that Brown handed the stolen cigarillos to Johnson at that point, in order to free up his second arm, turning Johnson into an accessory to those violent felonies (Johnson, interestingly, corroborating Wilson’s story there). My theory is that, knowing that he was now a felony suspect, was why Johnson started the “Hands up, don’t shoot” myth. It worked - the Black community rioted, and he was apparently never arrested for his crimes that day.

I was also surprised that Officer Wilson expended another ten rounds in the violent altercation that ended with Brown’s death. I have been claiming for years that he only shot six rounds, in double taps that first hit Brown’s arm, then torso, and finally, fatally, to his head. That apparently had been Wilson’s recollection. There were four more expended shell casings in Mike’s map, suggesting that he had been firing fairly constantly. The pattern of shell casings (ejected to the right) suggests that Wilson was backing up, trying to keep the distance open (presumably around the Tueller Drill distance of about 20 feet that he claimed), and that he indeed could have started with a double tap, but at the end was probably shooting almost as fast as he could. Still, to Wilson’s credit, he didn’t empty his magazine, and appears to have stopped shooting when Brown Finally went down with the two rounds to his head.

The reality is that the forensics confirmed most of Wilson’s story, which essentially was that he was, at the end, shooting in self defense, and that the multiple legal and public attacks on him, for killing Brown in justified self defense, is why the “Ferguson Effect” was the result of those attacks. If police cannot defend their own lives from deadly attacks, then the communities that they police cannot realistically expect that they will put themselves in harm’s way. And if the violent criminals like Brown know this, they will be emboldened, which is what happened in Ferguson, and most recently in Minneapolis, and other places where BLM has rioted.

Cato said...

It's been 57 years since Lee Harvey Oswald's life was taken.

Cato said...

It's been 57 years since Lee Harvey Oswald's life was taken.

Jon Ericson said...

Detachable penis... or transparent moby? Embrace...

Ampersand said...

Just what we need:a cagy president.

Michael K said...

Ken B said...
Eddie Willers
Reagan — hated here by the Trumpkins btw — had the wit and charm and composure needed to pull that off. Biden does not. “Look , Fat, ...”


I don't know where this came from or who posted it but it is a lie. The people who hated Reagan and who forced him to choose a GOPe, Schweiker, for VP in 1976, are the same ones who hate Trump. They are the ones, like Peggy Noonan, who hated Sarah Palin and who ridiculed the Tea Party. This goes back years.

Drago said...

"Loophole for Biden"?

The only one he needs: Democrat

donald said...

Joe Biden is a piece of shit.

The Gipper Lives said...

Michael Brown was a brute thug who tried to murder a police officer with his gun. Obama, Holder and Sharpton are responsible for the cops and bystanders they helped murder in their War on Cops. As is CNN: "Repoerting So Bad, It Kills People!"

Biden means to keep killing cops with the New Democrat Paramilitaries, Klantifa and Black Lives Murders. This is End-Stage Liberalism: it is a Murder/Suicide Death Cult as surely as Islamist Terrorism.

Narayanan said...

Sally327 said...
Joe Biden falsely claims that a drunk driver killed his first wife and their daughter
----------------=================
months ago this was the disqualification against Biden for the Professora.

is it still >>>>> asking for Trump would like to know!

Rory said...

"This goes back years."

I grew up in a classic ethnic Democrat family. I trace my move to conservatism to something that happened at the 1976 Republican convention. Someone from Virginia didn't vote as expected, and they polled the delegation. After just a few people said their votes I could pick out who someone was going to vote for. All the expensive suits went for Ford, all the shabby suits went for Reagan.

Nichevo said...

Brown lost his life, and he didn't give his life, so technically, it was taken.

Not hardly. He threw it away.

Phil 314 said...

Odd timing. Maybe a pre-emptive strike to mollify the BLM crowd when the Biden campaign announces their Veep candidate as someone less fiery?

MikeD said...

"Trump speaks as if he's lost the ability to think and is just reading from a note card." Followed by this incomprehensible post defending a tweet which almost certainly was not from Biden. Retirement has not been good to Althouse. After her many trips to National Parks (DJT has never frequented) she was faced with the ever existential (but tiny) threat of the "VIRUS", forgoing all human contact out of some deep seated fear. I fear her ensuing deep dives into the cesspool of the Acela corridor media has diminished her formerly admirable thought processes. But, what do I know except you don't need to see articles of incorporation to know Antifa exists as an entity.

richard mcenroe said...

There is precisely ZERO proof Biden is writing these tweets. The man is locked in a frigging basement for a reason.

DeepRunner said...

Creepy Joe had someone tweet:
"It's been six years since Michael Brown's life was taken in Ferguson — reigniting a movement. We must continue the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing."

Beyond the fact that it is playing at the margins with the truth, it's an obvious suck-up for his screw-up on saying Blacks aren't as diverse as Hispanics.

n.n said...

re: self-abortion

Elective abortion... Her life was taken in Planned Parenthood etc. Is Biden Pro-Life?

Gahrie said...

Reagan — hated here by the Trumpkins btw

I'm willing to bet that a huge majority of Trump supporters were also Reagan supporters. My vote for Reagan for president was the only one where I didn't have to hold my nose.

Ray - SoCal said...

And destroyed the life of the officer.

And probably caused a lot of other deaths.

What a legacy.

>Big Mike DID "give his life. He committed suicide by cop.

Crazy World said...

I see Joeys handlers have moved onto climate change today, so ridiculous.

MayBee said...

Benjamin Crump.

Shane said...

You keep say "he" (he did this, he has left himself) in referencing Biden, when it is obviously "they".

DEEBEE said...

Awesome Ann, now do Trump. That is if you can get over your disgust and pain.

MayBee said...

The Obama Justice Department finding that Wilson acted properly and virally hiding that under other wrongs the Ferguson Police Department had committed was one of their weakest moments. It harmed our nation. The myth of Michael Brown continues to harm our nation, and Biden playing into that myth is gasoline on the fire.

Did you all see what happened in Downtown Chicago overnight?

Tank said...

Biden does not know he wrote that tweet.

Leland said...

Trump need only note that the Brown lost his life during the Obama Administration, which investigated the incident and found the officer acted appropriately. Trump doesn't have to say he agrees or disagrees, and if grilled to answer, the response should be "why ask me, when you can ask my opponent who was the Vice President at the time?" and then Trump pivots to a discussion of prison reform.

dbp said...

Even if Biden had the wit to be able to find and defend this loophole, the best result ought to be that he was clearly intending to be deceptive. Of course, none of this will happen. The press will gladly pretend that "hands-up don't shoot" was true.

Fernandinande said...

Joe Biden is a piece of shit.

I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

Todd said...

"It's been six years since Michael Brown's life was taken in Ferguson — reigniting a movement. We must continue the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing."

If I recall the "facts" of this incident, his life was not "taken". Instead Michael threw it away. There is a difference that I guess is too subtle for "slow Joe" and most of the left/SJW/Democrats to understand.

Craig said...

There's no way Biden wrote this himself.

Static Ping said...

I'm not sure Joe Biden was capable of an intentional "rope-a-dope" when he first ran for President, much less now. He's always been a dunce and he has gotten worse with age. However, dunces can be unpredictable and therefore can get lucky from time to time if you are not prepared for the nonsense.

From what we saw in the primaries, he is capable of getting through a debate without looking like a complete idiot. The problem is he cannot sustain it day-to-day, which is why they hide him in the basement and have someone else do most of his communication with the outside world. Even with this he gives us a couple of gaffes and at least one senior moment a week.

gerry said...

They need that resonance with Black Lives Matter and are cagily constructing it.

When both gun sales and Fox News max their popularity, and it's because lawlessness, violence, and anti-Americanism seem to be the newest Democrat Party meme, that really may not be a good idea.

Jim at said...

Dude's been in DC since 1973. But elect him President now and he'll get to changing things.

Unknown said...

> Team Biden can dance around with rhetorical tricks pleasing to people who are willing to vote for a 77 year old with advancing dementia, but the bottom line is that a law and order campaign run by Trump is going to win.

Who will be counting the mail in ballots?