April 30^th

There are two interesting developments today, each worthy of some comment. The protesters are quite put out that the Baltimore mayor has called them “thugs.” She pulled back from that term because she claimed she had said it in the heat of the moment and due to frustration yada, yada, yada. In fact, in my view at least, she apologized because she risked alienating her black support. President Obama used the same term in describing the rioters and got the same response; the rioters didn’t like being called thugs. The President, unlike the mayor, didn’t back off. (Of course he isn’t facing reelection some would say, although I doubt that had anything to do with his stand.)

So why the fierce objection to “thug?” Those who objected claimed it was just a substitute for the heinous N word. The term wasn’t universally criticized because some rioters had indeed been thuggish in their behavior. A better and more accurate choice of label might have been vandals. Vandals simply destroy for the pleasure of destroying and that’s exactly what these rioters did. They looted and destroyed stores, even those owned by blacks; they set fire to a neighborhood pharmacy and in doing so, eliminated the source of medicine for many black people. They destroyed and set fire to cars, privately owned cars and police cars. None of this vandalism had any remote connection to the death of Freddie Gray. Their rage had built to the point where it expended itself on any convenient target, appropriate or not.

The second interesting development is the very recent testimony of a man who was also in the van with Freddie Gray. This man, whose name is withheld for good reason, claims he heard Gray slamming himself around in his section of the police van apparently trying to hurt himself. There is also testimony that the van stopped three times, once to check on Gray, once put leg irons on Gray and once to pick up this recent testifier. The new arrival in the van was there for a ride of just six blocks. Gray went from slamming himself around in the van to lying unconscious on the van floor in just those six blocks. He had not been attached to a seat belt in spite of regulations requiring it. There was, however, no problem with stopping the van to put him in leg irons.

That last prisoner has been a godsend for the Baltimore police department. Just imagine the relief to have testimony that Gray was trying to hurt himself. I see a problem though: within a six block ride Gray has gone from slamming himself around in the van to lying unconscious and near death on the van floor. Well, maybe! In any event I’ll bet the prisoner who provided that testimony will get very special care from the Baltimore police department. They have no more valuable prisoner than this gentleman.