One America, Or Two?

[MrScorpio]

[RiverLover]

1. kick!

& Rec

Sadly, we have 2.

[HappyMe]

2. Yes, there are 2.

Sadly, I don't know when it will be 1.

[yurbud]

3. is this on TV? It should be?

[mountain grammy]

4. Kick and rec.. this should be a public service announcement..

[SpankMe]

5. The original video is here:

Pretty good.

[GoneFishin]

6. To begin with they need to ditch the bias which favors lower IQ police recruits.

[appalachiablue]

7. The awful reality. Thought we were becoming better than this. Ultraconservative regression.

[Enthusiast]

29. Ultraconservatives want to use the way back machine.

[malthaussen]

8. I fully agree with the sentiment...

... but I am a child of White-boy privilege, and I have never been told, nor have I ever believed, that Mr Policeman is my friend. So I'm not completely sure about the "Two Americas" idea. Are there really people who think the police are there to help?

-- Mal

[1StrongBlackMan]

12. Yes.

So I'm not completely sure about the "Two Americas" idea. Are there really people who think the police are there to help?

Isn't this: http://www.mcgruffstuff.com/ what "suburban kids" grew up with versus http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/08/31/02security.h31.html for "urban pupils."

I appreciate the WhataboutMErism; but, your personal experience does not reflect that of the general population: http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/news/local/2014/12/08/marist-poll-race-divides/20109505/

[2naSalit]

9. K&R for reality.

[tclambert]

10. Is it only 2?

One for the rich. One for poor (includes middle class). Yet another one for black people. Another for LGBT. Another for Muslims. Another for American Indians. And another for women.

It seems like every group except the first one loses some of their rights. Overlapping yet slightly different rights. For instance, police don't shoot women nearly as often as they shoot black people or American Indians. But women are far more likely to get sold into various forms of sex slavery.

[1StrongBlackMan]

15. Not true ...

Would you agree, PoC (which includes American Indians/Native Americans, Hispanics and dark(er) skinned Muslims), whether rich or poor, male or female, LGBT or not, "loses their rights" at a rate that would indicate 2 separate American realities?

[tclambert]

17. I'm saying at least 2, and maybe 5 or more.

As a white male, I know I get better treatment than PoC and women in many cases. Police call me "Sir" and no one tries to rape me on dates. But I'm not rich, so I don't get a seat in First Class, let alone a seat on on a private jet, and I don't own any Congressmen. So I think my America is different from yours, but also different from the one the Koch brothers run.

When John Edwards spoke about "Two Americas" in 2004, he referred to the haves and the have-nots, dividing the two Americas by wealth. But clearly, these videos are right to point out the difference between the black and white experience in America, especially regarding the police.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

30. Distinct cultures with distinct histories, interpretations of the constitution...

sets of scientists and facts, educational systems...

Indeed, at least 2 countries.

[WDIM]

11. theres the right to obey

And the right to kill.

[Raster]

22. What???

Please explain your comment, so I don't think you are a racist P.O.S.

[F4lconF16]

24. I think the poster simply meant

That those are the "rights" PoC and cops have. One has the right to obey, to be a slave, and the other has the right to abuse and kill on a whim.

[WDIM]

31. there are two kinds of Americans

The ones with the right to obey and the ones with the right to kill. In our current system it has become evident that the people have the right to obey. And the police/government has the right to kill.

Its not a race thing. Its a power and corruption thing.

[Raster]

32. Gotcha! Thank you for taking the time to 'splain. I concur.

[napkinz]

13. here's the actual video ...

[napkinz]

14. ...

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

20. Still lots of hate out there.

[tblue]

16. My BIL got pulled over for DUI.

The cop gave him a ride home. No ticket. Nothing. And it's not the first time he'd been stopped and cited for erratic driving. Guess what. BIL is white.
(I'm not, but this is not about that.)

He wasn't drunk, he was an extreme ambien zombie (the stories I could tell!), but the cops didn't know that. They just saw bad driving and they gave him a pass and treated him like their best friend.

If BIL was black, he would have been so arrested. Instead the cop gave him the gold glove treatment. We should all be so graced.

[irisblue]

18. "your job is to get home safe...."

[F4lconF16]

23. I know...

That made me tear up :/

[KamaAina]

19. Nice post, John Edwards!

[jtuck004]

21. It will be One America, or none. n/t

[hedgehog]

25. From your post to my Facebook -

Thank you.

[Mike Nelson]

26. The last vid doesn't look realistic, to me...

...my white father gave the good advice in the earlier ones.

[merrily]

27. Several Americas

[Enthusiast]

28. Kicked and recommended a whole bunch!