Where does one begin to sift through all the political knots and emotion-fueled diatribe against the Atlanta police force? As America’s cops are trained to do on the daily, seeking the silver lining belies the belief that despite how bad things look, there is some layers of good in the mix. Moments before I started pecking the keyboard, such an uplifting story availed itself, and it is centered in the current corrosive climate circulating all over broadcast and print media: Atlanta.
The mass reports surrounding the major call outs among Atlanta police personnel is a bittersweet saga bewildering the mind and generating a real-life example of a society with zero cops to quiet the din and lasso the wild miscreants who would do us/you harm.
After the undeniable knee-jerk, unethical, immoral, and unconstitutional prosecutorial pursuit of Atlanta police Officer Garrett Rolfe swiftly stripped him of his rights to due process by summarily hanging him in the court of public opinion (thanks to Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard), the Atlanta police radios went utterly silent. I became aware of the deafening silence last night upon tuning in to APD’s frequencies. The proverbial crickets were characteristically mum, giving way to the stark reality that there were no cops to respond to calls, an unmistakable first glimpse of a largely police-free metropolis.
The uplifting story I alluded to above comes to us from WSB-TV in Atlanta, reporting on the Atlanta Police Foundation’s grand gesture of gifting every Atlanta cop a $500 bonus. I am sure that will come in handy for those who called out last night (and perhaps plan to do so again) during a show of silent solidarity.
The Atlanta Police Foundation also allocated funds to replace the approximately 20 Atlanta police cruisers destroyed by rioters over the course of the last few weeks, saving tax payers that enormous economic impact.
While some protesters and activists with a baseless “defund the police” mindset make claims that police unions and fraternal organizations endeavoring on behalf of the nation’s cops are part of the problem, here is the Atlanta Police Foundation doing right by its police force which has been wronged in several ways…simply because of an iconic uniform. The violent miscreants who engendered police actions? Perfect angels, according to some local politicians and activists.
People can bark and whine all they want, rendering erroneous claims including the phrase “they take care of their own.” In the right context that is a fact from which cops and citizens alike can derive pride and American spirit and constitutional embrace. No cop’s salary qualifies for a Beverly Hills mansion. No police officer’s lifestyle is saturated with windfalls of money. Every law enforcer’s life is rife from bearing witness to troubling real-life scenes which most vicariously experience by buying a movie theatre ticket guaranteeing a fictitious show. Roughly two hours of fill, and off you go to the next happy place.
With naysayers and activists and crooked politicians (some of whom happen to be prosecutors bonded to an oath to justice, the Constitution, and all that it entails) so eager to convict any cop for wrongdoing while completely negating that officer’s rights to due process underscores their own complicit role in the problems at hand. Never mind that a thorough investigation was not done; District Attorney Howard ordered cuffs slapped on Rolfe and hit the media mics with the verve and drool of someone up for reelection.
Never mind the due process in which a trial is constitutionally accorded/afforded; the attorney representing Rayshard Brooks’ family has already publicly claimed what his crystal ball indicated, citing that then-Officer Rolfe “was not fearing for his life.” Best guess? Court of public opinion is robust with mouthpieces hell-bent on getting their way, even when they know the requisite probable cause does not necessarily exist.
Despite District Attorney Howard already being under investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) for several counts of illegal conduct, he audaciously exhibits the steamroller method of plowing on with charges that have as much merit as a gnat’s knee felling a dinosaur. Gonna be interesting to watch this play out concurrent with the state investigation against him for his own alleged wrongdoing—state investigators building a case before effecting an arrest.
Back to that silver lining. Besides the $500 unexpected bonus provided to each Atlanta crime-fighter by the Atlanta Police Foundation, of the $2 million it has aggregated, the foundation is also going to procure 20 new police cars to restock the fleet which took a 20-car hit because of rioters’ destructive behaviors. The sweet spot is that the Atlanta Police Foundation makes clear that not a dime will come from the city. (Not as if the city of Atlanta was supportive to begin with, an ingredient which may have ignited the fuse and compelled rioters to do what they wished while government officials assumed the let-them-protest stance on the sidelines.)
In an interview with officials from the Atlanta Police Foundation, Channel 2 investigative journalist Justin Gray was informed that “the bonuses are a thank you for the long hours and hard work over the past three months.” How easy things can be. If only matters weren’t politically motivated. If only cops doing their job as they customarily do was recognized. If only local leaders didn’t feel the need to pander to a crowd possessed with misguided hostilities. If only people sought the silver linings. If only…
One Facebook commenter wrote the following: “Hope Atlanta enjoys the hellhole that the spineless politicians they voted for have created. They deserve every last bit.” On that note, every Atlanta police officer deserves every last bit of $500 provided by the Atlanta Police Foundation.