Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin
The article in Time mentioned another incident which happened 25 years ago. If one questionable incident happens every 25 years or so, how is that evidence of a pattern of conduct?
Both stories are plausible. If you get loud and obnoxious while conversing with a police officer, you are lucky to be walking away from that encounter not in handcuffs. I don't care what race you are. Being an Harvard professor doesn't make you special in that respect either.
Even if you believe Gates' account, both men were acting like asses and one of those men had a badge and handcuffs. At the end of the day, that trumps an Harvard ID card.
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Why am i not surprised that you would say something like this?
It is a pattern of conduct because it happens around the country more than every 25 years. The issue is not whether the story is plausible. first of all would the neighbor have called if the man was white. Then once the cops SAW his identification and had PROOF that he lived in that house, why did they continue to bother him?
Gates wasn't being an ass. He was pissed because he was being accused of breaking into his own home.
Although it hasn't happened with a home, I had an incident happen to me that had similar racist overtones. I had used valet parking at a hotel. When I came down to retrieve my car, I showed the attendant my valet tag and he gave me the keys. As I was walking towards my car, ANOTHER attendant suddenly dashed over to me and angrily demanded that I show him my valet tag. I showed it to him. He then demanded to see my driver's license AND my registration. At this point I was pissed. I complied, but I let him know that I didn't appreciate his behavior. He had no reason to go to those lengths. Then as I was getting in he said, "well ma'am, I just wanted to make sure you weren't trying to drive off in someone's fancy BMW." Sickening, but it is a part of what many blacks go through in this country...even in 2009.
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