What is wrong with the Mayor of Baltimore?

[Chocolate Cake]

She is trying to give "balance" by allowing criminals to act like full fledged animals while she "gives them their space to destroy". My goodness. There are no words.

http://fusion.net/story/126587/the-...ltimore-protesters-space-to-destroy-property/


"I’ve made it very clear that I work with the police, and instructed them to do everything that they could to make sure that the protesters could exercise their right to free speech. It’s a very delicate balancing act because while we tried to make sure they were protected from the cars and the other things that were going on, we gave those who wished to destroy space to do that, as well. And we worked very hard to keep that balance and to put ourselves in the best position to deescalate. And that’s what you saw."

 

[JanaDee]

They are a bunch of thugs and criminals. The police need to start shooting. Once you destroy property that does not belong to you, you have crossed the line from a protestor to a criminal.

 

[CPT Tripss]

“What she is saying within this statement was that there was an effort to give the peaceful demonstrators room to conduct their peaceful protests on Saturday. Unfortunately, as a result of providing the peaceful demonstrators with the space to share their message, that also meant that those seeking to incite violence also had the space to operate. The police sought to balance the rights of the peaceful demonstrators against the need to step in against those who were seeking to create violence.

The mayor is not saying that she asked police to give space to people who sought to create violence. Any suggestion otherwise would be a misinterpretation of her statement.”

I see this clarification on the cited website.
The OP quote was not about the current violence.

Surely PP doesn't really think that rioting is a capital offense?

 

[penn19]

And people wonder why a business wouldn't want to set up shop in some communities.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

I thought it was pretty clear what she was saying. By giving the protesters space to exercise their constitutionally protected right, it also allowed vandals the space to destroy things. Therefore, it's a balancing act. Of course she and the police are not condoning or encouraging those actions.

My boyfriend's company contracts with a number of locations in this area. He spends about half of his time at Mondawmin Mall which has turned into the epicenter of this mess. For those of us directly affected by this, it's an unnerving situation. The last thing I want to see is for it to escalate with police shooting people in the street. Geez.

 

[Judique]

I see this clarification on the cited website.
The OP quote was not about the current violence.

Surely PP doesn't really think that rioting is a capital offense?

Not sure if you are getting the live coverage that we are here in the Washington area, but things are quite serious. Vehicles being burned and looting. School let out at Frederick Douglass High School (near the Zoo) and instead of heading home, a lot of kids joined into this.

So lots of juveniles running loose.

I think the Mayor's comments were unfortunate. My opinion only.

Governor and Mayor are not saying much right now and this has been going on since early afternoon.

Police from other jurisdictions are being called in.

And the media is being asked to call for parents to locate their children and get them off the street.

Meanwhile Camden Yards has not cancelled the Orioles game and there is a lot of concern. Officers in riot gear are all over that area which is only about ten minutes from the rioting. Edit - Camden Yards is supposedly now on lockdown - people already in can't leave and no one else allowed in. (News comment).

Saturday night, there were injuries after the game from the demonstrations.

 

[CynBeth]

Just heard the game has been postponed. We are supposed to go tomorrow night. Hope things have quieted down.

 

[wvjules]

What is happening in Baltimore is not protesting. I wish the news outlets wouldn't call it that. These are looters and rioters. Not protesters! This is not about Freddie Grey, Mike Brown, Trayvon Martin and the other similar stories anymore. This is about violence. I am pissed off that people act this way. It is senseless. This is not about race. This is about acting like dumbasses and animals. This is not how you make change. I am so upset and pissed off at the senselessness at what is happening. Not just in Baltimore but everywhere. This has to stop!

 

[wvjules]

Just heard the game has been postponed. We are supposed to go tomorrow night. Hope things have quieted down.

We went yesterday and it was a beautiful day. I had reservations about going but I'm so glad we did. I hope tomorrow is like yesterday but I don't think it will be.

 

[lorimay]

I cannot believe what I am seeing on the news.....SMH
These animals cleaned out a CVS and have now set it on fire..... What is going on????
God Bless these Police Officers and Firefighters

 

[phorsenuf]

Watching on CNN. People are cutting holes in the hoses in now.

 

[Judique]

It now appears they are trying to contain the perimeter using police in riot gear. The National Guard is on standby alert.

 

[MickeySP]

Great prove your point by destroying your own neighborhood. Brain surgeons!!!!

 

[Judique]

Watching on CNN. People are cutting holes in the hoses in now.

Yes. They first looted the CVS and then set it on fire. Now they are cutting the hoses. Plus CVS has closed additional stores in the area to keep their employees safe.

 

[Judique]

Great prove your point by destroying your own neighborhood. Brain surgeons!!!!

You can be pretty sure it's not the property owners....

 

[Jaya]

Yep, there's nothing that says "Nobody Knows the Troubles I've Seen...." quite like looting and burning a CVS store. These aren't protesters; they're thugs, looters and criminals. In my books, peaceful "protesters" get the right and leeway to protest.....looters get teargas and, at the least, rubber bullets.

 

[GAN]

Ughhh ...my poor CVS stock!

 

[GAN]

It's too bad ...rather than using this to emphasize how police brutality affects their community, they're proving to many Americans exactly why continued excessive force may be necessary.

 

[KiKi Mouse]

They are terrorists.

 

[Bluestars]

The police officers should have had help sent in a long time ago. It's ridiculous that things got to this level. I absolutely think if a person throws a brick at an officer, the officer should be able to shoot. These thugs know they can do whatever they want to do.