Take a deep breath before you open this thread.

[WilliamPitt]

A line of roses down the centerline of the street where Michael Brown died.

I have no idea who did it. But it happened.

It happened.

[jillan]

1. How nice it would be if the m$m would show this instead of burning buildings.

Or at least to show both.

[HappyMe]

2. I agree.

They should show both.

[Travis_0004]

8. They showed that photo back in august when it happened.

[LanternWaste]

11. Which national news broadcast illustrated the photograph when it happened?

Which national news broadcast illustrated the photograph when it happened?

[sabrina 1]

26. I saw that photo in August, don't know if it was on the MSM, but I did see it online.

[Quasimodem]

28. Did a Google Image Private Window Search.

That photograph was all over Twitter, Tumbler, Wordpress and Blogspot, but ten pages deep into Google search and no main stream media hits.

Try it yourself.

[Art_from_Ark]

61. Try doing a regular Google search of "roses Ferguson street"

http://www.google.com/search?hl=ja&source=hp&q=Roses+Ferguson+street&gbv=2&oq=Roses+Ferguson+street&gs_l=heirloom-hp.3...5786.14756.0.15795.23.16.2.5.0.0.121.1537.13j3.16.0....0...1ac.1.34.heirloom-hp..7.16.1445.mvvdQUgFb78

That picture was at the top of the first page on my computer. And clicking on that picture took me to an NBC News video about the roses:

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/michael-brown-shooting/roses-line-scene-michael-brown-shooting-ferguson-missouri-n186561

[Quasimodem]

77. Okay, I tried your search criteria, and my own.

Between the two I found found links to 2 headlines on nbcnews.com, 1 link to usnews.com, and 1 link to dailymail.co.uk.

There was 1 link to washingtontimes.com but it was a woman holding up a rose in a photo of protesters, but the flower was cropped off the top, and the story was about fewer protesters and the 47 arrests made.

Slate.com did run a photo story showing how police cars had trampled the roses petals and candles people had put on the street as a memorial of where Michael Brown died, and there was an earlier story in which The Slatest quotes "several sources" claiming that a police dog handler had "let his dog urinate on Brown's makeshift memorial".

Finally, on the 10th page, I found cbsnews.com, but it was only reporting from Aug, 20th, that "Protesters demand a new prosecutor for Ferguson case" ... "tensions *rose* briefly when someone hurled a bottle at officers ..." yaddah, yaddah, yaddah.

Pretty slim reportage, don't you think?

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. And, believe it or not, they appear not to have been vandalized, looted, or burned.

[Hari Seldon]

4. one more

[NYC_SKP]

5. It's a beautiful tribute done anonymously on August 21. Very powerful.

Theo Murphy (left) of Florissant and his brother Jordan Marshall, 11, light candles on Thursday, August 21, 2014, at a memorial on Canfield Drive where where unarmed teen Michael Brown was fatally shot by Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson sparking outrage and protest from the community. "Being near the same age and demographic, I wanted my brother to see first hand how this affected the community," said Murphy. A small group of people who preferred to remain anonymous laid roses along the middle of the road that stretched about 60 yards. Photo by Christian Gooden, [e-mail]

Theo Murphy (left) of Florissant and his brother Jordan Marshall, 11, light candles on Thursday, August 21, 2014, at a memorial on Canfield Drive where where unarmed teen Michael Brown was fatally shot by Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson sparking outrage and protest from the community. “Being near the same age and demographic, I wanted my brother to see first hand how this affected the community,” said Murphy. A small group of people who preferred to remain anonymous laid roses along the middle of the road that stretched about 60 yards. Photo by Christian Gooden, [e-mail]

https://www.popularresistance.org/roses-line-ferguson-street-in-memory-of-michael-brown/

[KoKo]

12. Recommend View..

[BlancheSplanchnik]

17. this

.

[Xyzse]

6. Agreed. I have a deep distrust on what happened last night.

One of the biggest proponents of whatever shenanigans happened last night I would throw on the supposed "Prosecutor's" feet.

He knows that the decision would be controversial, and rather than take a solemn and respectful tone, he went off like a fu--ing a--hole, pouring salt on wounds and pretty much inciting the damn thing.

[JDPriestly]

54. He is probably elected. if not, he is a political appointee.

The response to him is in the ballot box. Anything else is just blowing off steam.

The only way to get change are to campaign for it and then vote for it. Minorities can be powerful if they vote as a bloc and make sure all their supporters get out and vote.

Demand Democratic candidates that all can vote for.

[Xyzse]

68. Absolutely agreed.

I shouldn't have been shocked at his little press conference, I mean, you'd think they are all for keeping the peace, but that was just trying to guarantee a riot.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. It did happen, and it's so beautiful. Wow.

[Paper Roses]

9. Tears. n/t

[TRoN33]

10. Silent roses for Brown

[ReRe]

13. A beautiful Memorial for Michael

[RockaFowler]

14. Thank you for posting this Will

I love you and your posts

This one is really perfect

I wish people who thought it was a good idea to riot actually thought about the person who died. And actually thought about their family. He was someone's child, someone's brother, someone's friend.

This right here is a better way to remember him.

[TorchTheWitch]

15. personally, I'm a lot more interested in 25 building being burned down

Journalists pelted with rocks. Cop cars smashed and rolled. Looting and trashing of businesses and homes. Molotov cocktails. 100 shots fired not from the police. A police officer shot. Need I go on?

All that money spent on all those flowers yet the town was basically destroyed by a bunch of outsiders. Hey, it's fun to destroy a town that you don't live or work in. Once it's all scorched earth they'll go back to where ever they came from, have some beers, and congratulate each other on how they stuck it to man.

Thanks for the distracting shiny thing... all rose colored and all so no one need put on the rosy hued glasses.

Nine eyewitness interviews in and every one so far other than one from someone that only saw anything from the point just before Brown fell dead all back up Wilson's version. No hands were raised, and Brown continued toward Wilson after being ordered to stop multiple times. Johnson was no where near the cop car when the struggle in the car took place, and he split in a white Monte Carlo at speed before the first volley outside the car.

Not that anyone cares about the evidence or anything though no one ever did here or there anyway.

[Comrade Grumpy]

16. The cop put multiple bullets in an unarmed man. And got away with it.

Maybe you'd be more comfortable on some other web site.

[TorchTheWitch]

25. haven't looked at the evidence have you?

Of course not. Nobody here ever gave a flying fart in the wind about the evidence from the moment the shooting occurred.

Go read it and try that nuttery again.

It isn't me on the wrong website. I don't go in for willful ignorance or get distracted from reality by rosy hued shiny things sitting on scorched earth.

[JimDandy]

53. Your own guy Wilson said in his testimony

that Johnson was right next to the car when he grabbed Brown through the window.

You either "haven't looked at the evidence" or you don't give "a flying fart in the wind about the evidence".

"Go read it and try that nuttery again".

[rhett o rick]

74. This Grand Jury was a circus put on by a reluctant prosecutor that corrupted the GJ

process. It was a kangaroo court with the obvious goal of exonerating Officer Wilson. It is extremely rare that the prosecutor doesn't file charges before a GJ. This prosecutor had major conflicts of interest. Let's get this case into a court where witnesses can be cross examined and see what comes out. Were you aware that 99.99% of GJ cases result in indictments? And that's after 1 to 7 days of testimony. This prosecutor had 3 months and failed to get a indictment. Read the transcript and tell us that the prosecutor was not trying to exonerate Officer Wilson. Check this out:

"Consider the questioning of Witness #42, who testified, "I didn't deem it to be a hostile situation to where the officer needed to have his gun raised. Mike was coming like, 'stop shooting' And he's shooting him and kept shooting him. I'm like, he don't pose no threat. He was ready to give himself up." Here's what Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kathi Alizadeh asked him about that testimony: "The first time you talked to the FBI, which was a week after this happened, you told them a story that had a bunch of lies, isn't that right?" "

Does that sound like a prosecutor that was trying to indict Officer Brown? You do realize that the prosecutor's office was supposed to be getting an indictment AND NOT TRYING TO EXONERATE THE OFFICER?

I stole the above quote from someone here but forgot who. If I find it I will add by edit.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

75. The prosecutor's office is not "supposed" to get an indictment

The prosecutor is supposed to indict if he believes he can get a conviction.

He didn't think he could get a conviction, so he passed it off to the grand jury and let them take the heat. It's a chicken shit decision, I do admit.

[rhett o rick]

76. If he takes it to a GJ it's because he wants their help to indict. It doesn't

make sense to ask a GJ to help indict then sandbag. It's almost impossible not to get a GJ to indict if the prosecutor has his heart in it. Read the transcript and it's painfully obvious that he was arguing for exoneration. This is a corruption of the process. Also, he has a huge conflict of interest. His dad was killed on duty, four of his close relatives work for the same department, and he has to work closely with the police department. He let Officer Wilson testify at the GJ. That is extremely irregular. This whole process was a twisted joke.

[blackspade]

43. +1000

[tenderfoot]

18. Oh yeah? Then google "San Francisco world series riot"

Have a nice day.

[ieoeja]

19. A bit off topic, but those probably outsiders as well.

After the first Bulls championship in the '90s the Chicago Police Department did something truly bizarre. They questioned** the rioters and analyzed the results.

What they learned was that the rioters:

1. were overwhelmingly from the suburbs, and
2. came into the city after the game ended.

They weren't even a bunch of drunk guys who came into the city to watch the game. The came to town for the specific purpose of rioting.

Next year, the Bulls won again, and the barricades went up on the freeways. The suburbanites could not get into the city. Throughout five more championships that decade, there were zero riots.



[font size=1]** This is, of course, patently impossible since, as the Wilson/etc defenders keep telling us, the police are under imminent danger at all such times and must kill or be killed. Calmly walking up to a rioter and asking them a question could never have actually taken place. The Chicago Police Department's intent in manufacturing this patently ridiculous story is unknown at this time.[/font]

[daleanime]

21. It takes two to dance....

and the police are more then willing. After all, do you want all the military hardware to go unused?

[TorchTheWitch]

32. oh so it was the police that were burning Ferguson to the ground

smashing up their own police cars, looting the stores, etc.

Have I got that right?

[daleanime]

51. So the police use of military hardware was correct?

Have I got that right?

[Erose999]

22. 12 bullets in an unarmed man. Do you really think Wilson had to shoot Brown 12 times to escape

danger? Or that a 6'4 210 person with police training could be manhandled by a teenager who was an even match in size?

Whether or not he is guilty of murder, Darren Wilson is a shitty cop.

[nomorenomore08]

37. And supposedly, Brown kept advancing on him after being shot one or more times?

What was he, the Incredible Hulk?

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

23. Johnson really wasn't there when the shooting occurred?

Really?

[TorchTheWitch]

34. Yes really

That's the kind of stuff you find out when you actually read the evidence documents.

There's a hell of a lot worse than just that.

http://documents.latimes.com/ferguson-grand-jury/

The eyewitness interviews aren't in chronological order. I'm just reading through them as they appear in the list on the page. The first one is witness #10 then 12, 14 (that's a really interesting one), 16, etc. etc.

Johnson was also no where near the police car during the altercation in the car. He was standing under a tree quite a distance away. I've been trying to find a good aerial photo that's close enough to the ground to see all the various buildings, roads, trees, etc. to try to figure out what tree this was and how far that was from the cop car as well as just being able to follow what witnesses describe as to where they were themselves, the buildings, streets and corners they describe, etc. None of that can really be understood without some kind of photo or map to go by.

One or more of the first six witnesses I read said that the tree he was standing next too was right next to or right near the "memorial" but I'm not sure what is meant by that. I'm assuming it was the memorial of stuffed animals, candles, etc. that was right near where Brown's body fell, and if that's the case then it's REALLY quite far away from the cop car.

There's other stuff like threats about "snitching" and stuff like that that are some of the most eye opening stuff.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

42. I'm watching him on CNN right now

Erin Burnett refers to his earlier statements about what he witnessed which he doesn't actually repeat, and then she asks him if he feared for his life, and he definitely says he feared for his life.

[TorchTheWitch]

57. I'm not seeing who wouldn't have been

Some huge guy plunges into your cop car in broad daylight and tries to bash in your noodle then even keeps coming at you when you're shooting him would be scary as shit to anyone.

[SCantiGOP]

66. It sure was easy

putting Torchthewitch on full ignore. Won't have to listen to that kind of bullshit again.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

71. Actually, I was referring to a statement by Brown's friend Johnson

He said he feared for his life, but apparently he ran away when everything started.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

44. Do you know

if Johnson testified and which witness # her was?

Also, who talked about "snitches?"

[TorchTheWitch]

56. haven't gotten that far yet

I imagine he'd say the same thing verbatim that he said in the media. Or possibly not since he still hasn't gone to court yet about his other lying to the police incident. I'm also reading the interviews with the detectives since I haven't gotten to the witness testimonies before the grand jury. If he testified before the grand jury then he'd also have to worry about perjury charges.

There's just stacks and stacks of documents to plow through. I still haven't figured out how they've been organized or if they're all that organized at all. Grand jury testimony transcripts may not even be available yet since it takes for ever to get them transcribed on paper and sent back. Or they may be all in those first documents on the website that are titled "Grand Jury" which I haven't looked at yet. Seems to me there should have been a lot better organization about these docs. But the first site I went to that had them all went through Adobe Reader as pdf docs 80 and more pages long that crashed my browser and continually froze just trying to read the first couple of pages. I've always hate Adobe Reader for really long documents. The never seem to load and end up crashing my browser. It's not a problem if it's only about 5 pages though you have to wait for them to move it along from page to page. That site was a barking mess. Every doc packet was many pages long and they all had the same exact title that told you pretty much nothing at all about what each contained. I'm likely to be plowing through all of this for a week at least. It's a TON of stuff.

It was the really scared witness #14 who seems to be an older man that mentioned a lot of interesting stuff as well as being threatened by people he didn't even know about the danger to him if he "snitched" to the police about what he saw, and he's terrified for an ill family member and refuses to let them talk to police because he has to protect this person. He said two of them were girls that were together.

[bhikkhu]

72. #14 describes the execution of a wounded, unarmed man, in the middle of the street

Its hard to read that and then conclude "nothing wrong with that", and no reason to have a trial. Unless its legal to execute unarmed wounded people in the street, then its not legal, and there should be a jury trial.

If that happened in my town and there wasn't a riot I'd be surprised. I'm about as peaceful as they come, but if that happened and a crowd was at the courthouse later and needed a match to burn it down, I'd offer one. People and principles are far more important than property.

[TorchTheWitch]

64. I just found Johnson's grand jury testimony

http://www.scribd.com/doc/248126858/Dorian-Johnsons-Testimony-Before-the-Grand-Jury

I haven't read it yet.

[mshasta]

73. I have two things for you

Mississippi burning.



got it?...now go back to your protecting the police facts mode.

[TorchTheWitch]

78. go look at the evidence - got it?

now learn that facts and evidence always trump agenda or put your blinders back on and go back to your protecting biased idiots that are so biased and agenda driven they refuse to look at the facts and evidence or even acknowledge its existence because they KNOW that the actual facts and evidence in the incident are a crock of shit mode.

I'll even help you out...

http://documents.latimes.com/ferguson-grand-jury/

Now, explain how ignoring evidence both eyewitness and forensic is at all reasonable in determining the facts. Explain how Mississippi Burning has shit in shinola to do with this case or any other especially when ignoring the evidence. Evidence that came from dozens and dozens of people audio/video recorded and sworn not to mention physical evidence that can be seen with one's own eyes. Yeah, I read Mississippi Burning. I own the DVD. And it has no more relevance than Star Trek or My Little Pony, but nice job pulling that one out of your nether regions.

You didn't know that 7 of the eyewitnesses testified in great detail that Brown did not have his hands up, was never on his knees, did not stop when ordered and continued toward Wilson, that he had his upper torso past his armpits through the driver's side window of the police car moving in a manner that appeared to be a physical struggle, that Dorian Johnson was no where near the vehicle at that time and was some distance away standing next to a tree all of whom identified the same tree on a diagram of the scene and that immediately after the shot inside the police car was fired he ran and jumped into the passenger side of a white Monte Carlo that took off at speed and was not there when Brown was shot or died... and all of those seven are black people?

Of course you didn't. Because bias and agenda mean more to you than facts and evidence. It's been a plague here that's festered for months.

[BeanMusical]

29. What a shitty thing to say, especially in a thread like this.

[TorchTheWitch]

45. Frankly, I think it's shitty to point to rose colored shiny things

as if all is lovely in Ferguson. That town just got unbelievably trounced. And all because people just decided they didn't want any evidence or justice system rolled in there from all parts of the country and put it to the torch. What the fuck do they care, they don't live there.

Meanwhile, I've been reading the eyewitness testimony and other documents that not only corroborate Wilson's version but have a lot more eye opening stuff about what's been going on there.

Why is it that the biggest story here is how minor Wilson's injuries were which we already knew from the beginning were minor when he's not required to have any injuries in the first place? Since when is a cop supposed to be severely beaten first before he is allowed to shoot? How do people so easily overlook the fact that the vast majority of perfectly legitimate police shootings even THEY would agree with the firing officers were not even in touching distance of who they shot? Why is it that now that we actually have the evidence nobody is looking at it? Though that should hardly be a surprise since no one was interested in waiting for the evidence to come out in the first place.

I'm supposed to be all moved at the flowers in the street that are sitting on scorched earth? How much money did all those flowers cost when that money could have gone to people who lost their jobs or their businesses or had their cars smashed up, etc. because of all this mayhem that's been done by people who do not fucking LIVE there? All those protesters out on the streets most of them aren't Ferguson residents. They don't GIVE A SHIT about what happens in that town BECAUSE they don't live there. Ferguson residents are POOR. Jobs are so scarce that most young people have nothing to do all day but wander around town and hang out with their buddies.

A thread "like this"? A thread like this is a fucking abomination when Ferguson has just been destroyed irreparably. Yeah, ignore those poor mostly black people having their town destroyed their jobs and businesses and property damaged and destroyed by all these out of towner's just wanting to destroy stuff in someone else's town and all for a violent thief that in the space of a few minutes assaulted two innocent people.

[Texasgal]

48. To be fair TTW-

The flowers were placed well before Ferguson was burning. This picture was taken back in August.

I agree that the burning and looting of Ferguson is horrid and ridiculous but I'm honestly wondering why the police and "national guard" allowed all this damage. I mean shit, didn't the governor scramble to get all this "protection" in place? Where was the fucking fire department? I never saw them anywhere. They should have nipped it in the bud with the very FIRST action of violence or vandalism started to happen! I personally watched live when a cop car was burning an NO ONE. No fire department NO city official, NO national guard came to put out the flames!

They sat back and watched, just solidifying their point of trying to make Ferguson and their residents look like animals!

Now THAT'S abominable!

[BeanMusical]

49. What a weird tale.

[delete_bush]

55. +1,000

How DARE you post the reality of Ferguson.

Much better to go back in time several months, "take a deep breath", and look at some pretty flowers.

[Lars39]

60. Yes, most of the police don't live in Ferguson.

They obviously don't give a fuck.

[morningfog]

67. I see your true colors. Thank you.

[WilliamPitt]

69. Wow.

Just wow.

[liberal_patriot_md]

33. Wait, what?

Nine eyewitnesses that haven’t been identified. How many others have publicly refuted Wilson’s version of the events? And isn’t convenient that he didn’t have to make an official report until days after the event?

But, Johnson was right next to the car during the struggle at the police cruiser. Or at least within arm’s reach.

According to Wilson’s testimony:

"I was doing the, just scrambling, trying to get his arms out of my face and him from grabbing me and everything else. He turned to his...if he's at my vehicle, he turned to his left and handed the first subject. He said, "here, take these." He was holding a pack of — several packs of cigarillos which was just, what was stolen from the Market Store was several packs of cigarillos. He said, "here, hold these" and when he did that I grabbed his right arm trying just to control something at that point. Um, as I was holding it, and he came around, he came around with his arm extended, fist made, and went like that straight at my face with his...a full swing from his left hand.”

Want to try again, since your claim isn’t even backed up by Wilson’s own (ridiculous) story?

[nomorenomore08]

39. The number of inconsistencies alone seems like a red flag IMO. n/t

[Ken Burch]

35. So you believe the prosecutor's lies about what the witnesses said

(most of them did NOT say the kid was charging)

And you put property before people.

Why do you post on a progressive discussion board? Obviously, you're on the right.

[BeanMusical]

50. Yes, it's very obvious. n/t

[Leopolds Ghost]

36. Nice, defenders of Wilson all over DU -- yep, hands raised is the crucial thing

I take it you support stand-your-ground laws.

[Nevernose]

47. "Well Im gonna take my random drive to Florisant"

"...Need to understand the black race better so I can stop calling blacks niggers and start calling them people like dad always said you cant fear or hate an entire race because of what one person did 40 years ago"

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370734-witness-40-journal-entry.html

This was one of the witnesses deemed credible by the DA.

Furthermore, the one thing never explained anywhere -- in any evidence or testimony or anything else -- was why Wilson reasonably felt he was in fear for his life. At the very east it was negligent homicide or manslaughter or something similar.

[noiretextatique]

63. what, exactly, is your problem?

I have read a few or your rants on this subject, and none of them make any sense. So, is up? Spell it out.

[morningfog]

65. How date you judge the expressions of anger of

The African American community.

This, to be blunt, has nothing to do with Michael Brown's murder. It is the culmination of generations of oppression and injustice, again and again.

Their rage is justified and in my opinion, tempered. They would be justified with even greater expression of anger. I have seen much restraint, even in the face of militarized cops corralling and exacerbating the injustices.

How dare you judge their anger. How day you soil this beautiful tribute to a young man who was gunned down by an authority figure who is supposed to protect him.

You should be fucking ashamed.

[Ken Burch]

20. "And the people hear us singing, Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses". n/t.

[AverageJoe90]

24. A touching tribute, no doubt.

Too bad this photo hasn't been making the rounds in our headlines obsessed media, though.

[Duval]

27. "A picture

is worth a thousand words" This, in contrast to the hatred and scene after scene of burning cars, says what it's all about. Tragic and unjust is but two of many words I could use for description.

[Jefferson23]

30. Oh..that photo so did me in...

peace out.

[BeanMusical]

31. Kick and R.

[HuckleB]

38. This is awesome. Is there a link to this photo?

[HuckleB]

40. Here's a video on this...

http://www.usatoday.com/media/cinematic/video/14435171/roses-line-street-where-michael-brown-died/

[amandabeech]

41. That is an absolutely breathtaking photo.

Thank you very much for posting.

Hoping for a calm night of peaceful, but effective, demonstrations.

[Control-Z]

58. It is so beautifully touching

it takes one's breath away. That is how I understood it.

[Enthusiast]

59. Kicked and recommended a whole bunch!

[polichick]

62. k&r

[mackerel]

70. Brilliant! RIP Michael Brown.

[woo me with science]

79. K&R