Craig Cheslog’s thoughts about politics, sports, and other stuff.
David Pell urges us to keep the central issue in mind even as we try to hold law enforcement accountable for its lies and failures in Uvalde.
This is not a story about doors. It’s not a story about cellphones in schools. It’s not a story about the evasive Uvalde police chief. This is a story about America placing a greater value on being able to buy machines designed to kill really fast than we do on the lives of our children. Don’t lose the plot.
Molly Jung-Fast writes about the need for Democrats to do something in the wake of the recent gun massacres.
In her Wait, What? newsletter, she quotes Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman making an essential observation:
“At a time when the other side has basically declared war on reality, and is willing to lie about something as fundamental as who won an election, it’s important that Democrats not only call out the BS, but take a stand and don’t back down from a fight. When the stakes are this high, we need more Democrats who are clear and confident about what we believe, refuse to apologize for it, and don’t run away scared every time Republicans call us names.”
I’d love it if Democrats started fighting. Results can’t be guaranteed, but it would be great if we could see some fight and passion from our elected leaders.
David Pell makes a vital point in his NextDraft newsletter today when discussing the Uvalde, Texas, elementary school massacre:
The delayed reaction by the police is part of the exact same problem that led to the shooting in the first place: The fact that anyone can walk into a gun store and acquire a ridiculous amount of firepower. If a gun is powerful enough paralyze armored cops with fear, it’s too powerful to be sold.
In his latest Puck newsletter, Baratunde Thurston frames the choice our nation has made as gun violence continues to kill so many people.
When given the choice, we have decided to get rid of children rather than guns. We’ve absurdly interpreted the Constitution to defend this madness while forgetting that the Constitution can be changed while dead children cannot be brought back to life.
We can choose a better outcome. We should ask ourselves why our society refuses to do so.
The Uvalde Elementary School Massacre is the latest example of the police lying to the public about their activities.
Aaron Rupar examines how the story the police told changed dramatically as their lies were exposed as the facts came to light. As Rupar writes:
The lesson here, as my friend Alexandria Neason wrote better than I can, is that police departments lie, primarily to make themselves look like necessary servants of an endangered public. Allowing them to self-justify off the record is, at this point, inexcusable.
Rupar explores how what the police said about the imaginary school resource officer, the mythical Border Patrol agent, the nonexistent body armor, and the children who weren’t dead yet were lies designed to make law enforcement appear to be the heroes.
After all of these incidents, law enforcement has lost the benefit of the doubt.
