More than anything else, Ferguson is an administrative *********
I mean, it's ridiculous. As of this morning, 11 journalists had been detained, even after identifying themselves. The cops are all getting conflicting orders, so the peaceful protesters who are actually trying to follow the regulations have no clue what to do (currently, they have designated zones where you can be, and zones you can't be, and you have to keep moving when outside these zones... but cops are giving conflicting directions about which are which - move, stay out, permitted).
And then there's just how ridiculously, pathetically bad the police department has been at its job since the start. The initial investigation into the shooting was a **** show (with witnesses not getting interviewed, the body lying in the street, etc.), the early press conferences were full of clearly inconsistent and incorrect pieces of information (that they later had to refute), and then the complete and utter overreaction to the protests. Am I confident that there are some violent people in the crowds? Yes. Do I think that a more measured response is possible? **** yes.
Do I think sitting there with military-grade weaponry pointed at the crowd is going to escalate the situation? Holy **** yes.
I was really hopeful when they brought in Johnson that things would get better.
At this point, I can't even begin to imagine how you de-escalate the situation.
And I can't imagine Mike Brown could possibly see justice done, assuming he was a victim of more than circumstance. Not with how much BS occurred in the initial investigation. Witnesses have had too much time to be exposed to public perceptions to be anywhere near as reliable as they would have been at the start. So regardless of whether or not this was a legal use of police action, manslaughter, or murder, Wilson's probably gonna be just fine.
But if the police chief doesn't get canned, I'll be pissed.