The Police

This is an illuminating exchange, but this summation, I think, gives us a good idea of what the real problem is with too many of the police in this country:

"How about this: Listen to police officers' commands. Listen to what we tell you, and just stop," he said. "I think that eliminates a lot of problems."

"I think the nation needs to realize that when we tell you to do something, do it," he added.

And for some strange reason, the response from people who don't think they should be living in a police state seems to have struck a nerve.

Charles Wilson, national chairman of the National Association of Black Law Enforcement Officers, told TPM that he thought both sides had the right to express their opinions. But he has sensed a change among his peers.

"What you've got to understand is that cops don't like to be criticized. We have a hard job to do. ... Cops are just like everybody else, especially when they think they're doing the right thing," he said. "But I would have to tell you, yes, they have become quite a bit more defensive."

Contrast that with this statement from Andrew Hawkins, the Cleveland Browns player who wore a T-shirt calling for justice for Tamir Rice and John Crawford III, both killed by police.

To clarify, I utterly respect and appreciate every police officer that protects and serves all of us with honesty, integrity and the right way. And I don’t think those kind of officers should be offended by what I did. My mom taught me my entire life to respect law enforcement. I have family, close friends that are incredible police officers and I tell them all the time how they are much braver than me for it. So my wearing a T-shirt wasn’t a stance against every police officer or every police department. My wearing the T-shirt was a stance against wrong individuals doing the wrong thing for the wrong reasons to innocent people.

And just who, exactly, is the problem here?

You can read Hawkins' full statement at the link.

Addendum: CNN decided to do a special on cops involved in lethal force situations, and invited viewers to submit questions. The response was a bit more than they bargained for.