Los Angles Officer Manhunt is Linked with Racism

The origin of the recent Los Angles officer police hunt is linked with the L.A.P.D's history of racism. In decades past, the department was known for its racism against black and Latino people. One example of this abuse came in 1992 when the Los Angeles Police Department beat a black man, Rodney King. This beating was caught on tape and made its way to televisions all over the country. It now seems that the departments past actions are coming back to haunt them due to Christopher J. Dorner.

Christopher Dorner's online manifesto not only pledged his revenge against all L.A.P.D officers and their families, but it also claimed that his firing was due to racism showed by the L.A.P.D. However, his dismissal was actually due to him lying about his trainee kicking a suspect. His career as an officer for the L.A.P.D actual only lasted about three years, from 2005-2008. The Chief Charlie Beck is reopening Dorner's case to let people's trust with the department grow. He wants to show that the department is no longer extremely racist and to repair relations with the black and Latino peoples of Los Angles. However, he does emphasize that reopening the case won't let Dorner off the hook.

The manhunt has already gone to extremes. Dorner has already shot and killed three people, an officer's daughter, her fiancé, and an officer.. On Thursday morning, a truck that looked like Dorner's was repeatedly shot at, but it was actually only a truck with two women delivering newspapers. Both women survived and the police department is going to provide the women with a new truck. The manhunt now involves the L.A.P.D, the San Diego Police Department, the Riverside Police Department, various police departments in Nevada, The United States Marshal Service, and the F.B.I.

It was very surprising when I heard that the root of this problem was racism. This further drives home the point that racism is one of largest atrocities that has ever existed. Dorner's entire drive is that he feels that racism cost him his employment. This doesn't justify his actions of revenge, but it should make us all think about how we treat other people. The way we treat others can drive them insane because they will feel like they're garbage if we offend them. We don't have the right to belittle anyone because of their differences. The next time you want to insult someone you should think about Christopher Dorner and his revenge quest due to how poorly people treated him.


To see the article click here: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/us/los-angeles-police-to-reopen-dorner-case.html?ref=us&_r=0#h[MDpHiw,2,TkaTbw,2,4,TshTsh]

To see a timeline of the manhunt click here: http://timelines.latimes.com/statewide-manhunt-ex-lapd-officer/

You Can Be Too Extreme

The X-Games, as we all should suspect, are full of grown men risking their lives for the joy of competing in extreme sports. The X-Games have been coming under heavy fire recently due to a tragic event. Granted, these games have never been accident free, but they hadn't caused death until now. The 18 year track record for the X- Games was finally broken by Caleb Moore's death this past Thursday.

Caleb Moore, 25 years old, was competing in a snowmobile event in the Winter X-Games. Tragedy came when Caleb attempted a back flip using his vehicle. He crash landed and was knocked out by his snowmobile as he tumbled down the hill. A medical team began treating him, but he was taken to Aspen Valley Hospital shortly afterwards due to the severity of his injury. Ironically, his brother Colten Moore was taken to the hospital only thirty minutes after his brother due to injuries being sustained in his run. However, Colten got the "easy end" by just receiving a separated pelvis. He was able to leave the hospital the next day. Caleb’s injury was much worse. He was bleeding near his heart; therefore, he had to have surgery done to repair it. This surgery led to a complication in his brain that proved to be fatal. ESPN, official organizer of the X-Games, said they would review their protocols to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again.

This is a useless waste of a life. The only benefit I can pull out of this situation is that at least Caleb died doing something he loved, but even that isn't good enough. Why do these people willingly risk their lives? Organizations like ESPN and Red Bull, sponsor of the X- Games, have poured millions of dollars so we can watch grown men risk their lives. Is there a need for any of this? Obviously, this isn't the first injury at the Games. Jake Brown, for example, fell five stories while performing at the Mega Ramp in the 2007 Summer X-Games, one of six X-Games each year. Jake returned the following year to the Mega Ramp. In my opinion, this is a huge risk of life just to provide entertainment. I don't think the games can be stopped now due to the huge fan base; therefore, I agree that the safety should be reviewed to prevent any more deaths in the future. What do you think should be done to the X-Games? Do you believe that they should continue?

Here's the link to the original article
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/01/sports/snowmobile-rider-caleb-moore-dies-from-x-games-injuries.html?hp&_r=0

Here is a video of Caleb's fall as it was seen live by millions.

 

 

In case you have nothing better to do here is Jake Brown's fall off the Mega Ramp at the 2007 Summer X-Games.