A beer at the White House?

Joseph C. writes:

I have been following the Crowley vs. Gates episode on your site.

As much as I believe that Gates acted like the racist pig that he is, and that Crowley’s actions were 100 percent justified, I will lose a lot of respect for the officer if he accepts Obama’s invitation for a beer. The only purpose that meeting will serve is to help Obama score a PR coup, even if (at best) Obama and Gates shut up about the affair from here on. The only Teachable Moment needed is to teach the lessons Gates and Obama need to learn: Do not verbally abuse police officers, and Shut up if you don’t have the facts. Just by being in the presence of these hustlers, Crowley lends an aura of credibility to their charges, and makes the parties seem equally at fault.

LA replies:

I agree 100 percent. I will be very disappointed with him if he accepts that invitiation. But it doesn’t look good, because the get together was Crowley’s own idea, suggested during his phone chat with Obama.

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Bill W. writes:

The hilarious thing about this whole ordeal has been how stupid Obama appears, to any thinking person, in trying to find the liberal’s perpetual “middle ground.” On many subjective things—which TV show to watch, where to take your evening walk, what to name a child—finding middle ground and being flexible is good. But thinking the answer to questions of law enforcement should be viewed the same way is a formula for disaster. Are both parties (the criminal and the policeman) generally both at fault for the unpleasantness of an arrest? Of course not. The standard assumption is that the criminal (guilty or not) is 100 percent responsible getting himself arrested.

In this case, there seems to be no evidence (even by Gates’s narrative) that Officer Crowley was at all to blame or did anything wrong. Yet Obama’s belief, openly stated, is that both were partially wrong in this encounter. But that’s nonsense. Either Crowley inappropriately arrested Gates, or he didn’t. If Crowley goes up to meet with Obama and Gates, he will be in effect saying, “Gee, Mr. President, I guess you are right. I guess I am a little bit racist, and am pretty unprofessional, like you said.”

The bottom line is that claims of “both being wrong” don’t make any sense. It’s not possible to be “a little bit wrong” in falsely arresting someone. Making false arrests, as a police officer, is criminal behavior, and any evidence-less accusations like this should be taken seriously, and either completely refuted or completely pursued.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at July 28, 2009 09:00 AM | Send