Seriously, What the Heck?

Simple solution: police should stop killing people.

Riots in Baltimore... if anything, they are overdue. The endless stream of pointless deaths caused by police who are just a little too ready to use lethal force at the slightest provocation has become numbingly painful. If I were in Baltimore, I'd want to march as well.

There is, of course, an incredibly simple solution to all this pain. The police could stop murdering people. While I don't expect absolutely perfect behavior from everyone 100% of the time, it should be simple enough to not murder somebody. No rough rides. No chokeholds with tackles. No gunning down somebody running away. Just stop the killing and start figuring out how to do actual policework instead of acting like an occupying force. Get cops on the streets, talking with people in neighborhoods, understanding the areas they work in. Proactive policing, small town policing... it's possible. It's done in some places, even in big cities. This attitude of cops against the world needs to go away. Police need to be a part of the community, one of the people in the neighborhood (a person that you meet each day).

I'm an idealist in many ways. This is one area I truly believe we can improve in. This is something that is badly broken that I believe we can fix. The cops should be the good guys.