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Henry Louis Gates Arrest Case Is About Liberty, Not Race, Beer, or Stupidity

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Professor Gates was arrested disorderly conduct, which must take place in public.
He was in fact warned twice in a public place, the sidewalk outside his home, that his behavior was disorderly before he persisted and was arrested. Three strikes.
Further more, you are incorrect that Sgt Crowley could have simply deescalated at that point by leaving. In fact his investigation of the reported break-in was still on-going. Recall the university ID that Prof. Gates presented did not establish his residence, and that confirmation from dispatch as well as dealing with other responding units were pending.

Dave of TX 11:49AM September 15, 2009

And exactly why is it that US News & World Report has no black people on staff writing opinions? Is it because it is run by liberal elite racists?

guesswho 10:40PM September 13, 2009

Dear Professor Gates,
Please listen before you alter fates.
Do not let one’s pride,
Cause this great nation to divide.
Look at what is happening in such a short time,
What this is undoing is really the crime.
All across America people are upset,
Now I ask you Sir what good will all this get?
A learning lessons already taught,
So many people’s mending has been for naught.
A man has risen to lead us all,
Do not be a part of America’s fall.
This is the year of our lord, two thousand and nine,
So please do what you know to be divine.
One planet, one race, as one beating heart,
The world may end some day, please do not be the start.
We lead the world with freedom first,
Do not let racism quench it’s undying thirst.
To not enslave us all at last,
Lets look forward away from our past.
The mistakes we make and continue to do,
Could spell the end of more then me and you.
By bringing down our great nation,
All of this for the sake of sensation.
I ask you not to let our enemies see,
Such things may still live in the land of the free.
I love the different colors of man,
We were created according to plan.
So different and the same,
All of us with our own name.
Man and woman combine,
To create new life is so divine.
Able to mix and mingle,
No one has to be single.
Banding together to survive,
I for one am happy to be alive.
If we all looked alike it would not be nice,
I’m so glad to be the only Sonny Rice.

Sonny Rice of FL 8:40PM September 10, 2009

Somebody call a waahhbulance. When the story of two officers one white and one black agree, who is lying? The 911 call was that perhaps a hispanic was there. The moral of the story here is that there is only one race in this world. Human and you are only one of two types. Male or female and that is determined by what your reproductive organs produce. So the next time there is a paid authority at your door, be polite! Stop thinking like a Racist.

Jeff of WI 12:57PM September 03, 2009

What is most likely the case is that both men behaved like a couple of egotistical hotheads, each with an attitude of "do you know who I am?" towards each other. One was a professor from Harvard, and anyone who has ever spent time on an elite university campus knows that while it's certainly not all professors, some are, indeed, a tad full of themselves and will not hesitate to let it show. On the other hand, merely being obnoxious in the face of an officer merely trying to respond to a call does not warrant an arrest! No wonder the charges were dropped before the embarrassment of a court date, as the professor clearly broke no laws other than to caterwaul, insult the officer and accuse the officer of being a racist officer.
Reports now indicate that Gates has apparently send a thank you to the nice concerned lady who called the police and in a calm, cool, and collected manner pointed out that she wasn't even sure if it was, indeed, a break in, but that she was concerned about what she was seeing, nonetheless, and so she felt it better to make the call.
The teachable moment is probably not even race related at all; it is probably more along the lines of some guys just cannot be trusted to handle their egos without other adult supervision around to break it all up when it comes to a boil in a situation.
Maybe that's why the calm, cool and collected little lady didn't get invited to the beer summit. She wasn't the one who needed to chill in the first place.

Angie Koutrotsios of IL 8:35PM August 17, 2009

Linda of HI
A privileged life of affirmative action??!!
Affirmative action gives you nothing but an opportunity to attain that for which you already qualify but would have been denied because of the color of your skin. It is not given to unqualified people. Mr. Gates is an accomplished man who has worked hard and earned everything he has. He has been given nothing!!
I find that the only Whites who oppose affirmative action are those who've realized that they have not earned the privilege that they've enjoyed simply because they are White. The era of White privilege is crumbling and some of you are shaking in your shoes.

Misscool of VA 8:14PM August 17, 2009

Cin of CA,
while I agree with most of your comments, you made a basic mistake that many Whites make (and I'm assuming you are White, correct me if I'm wrong)and that is that just because slavery is over and we've been through civil rights, etc, that there is now a level playing field. Blacks no longer have to be concerned about racism and how it affects our lives. But you are sooooo wrong.
Even today a Black man cannot walk in a certain neighborhood or drive a certain type of vehicle without someone being suspicious. It has been documented that some employers, when they see an application with an ethic sounding name, automatically throws it in the trash (Dateline NBC). It is underreported how many Blacks are beaten by cops who assume they have a gun although no gun was ever recovered. Yes, Mr. Gates acted rashly, but he did not do so in a vacuum. Just as cops suspect Blacks, Blacks, too, suspect cops.
Yes, plenty of people have been oppressed but at least they have ancestral connections. Do Blacks have that? No, we don't. There is strength in those connections.

Cecilia of VA 7:48PM August 17, 2009

The bottomline is the fact that Crowley acted stupidly when his need to feel superior (since he's less educated and may very well be a racist)towards an African-American, outweighed his ability to judge rightly and bring peace to an already emotionally heightened situation where there was no real threat to anyone. The little tough guy approach is typically what policeman exhibit to African-Americans or have you heard
about Rodney King? Obama called it the way he saw it - STUPID!
Don't hate Mr. Presisdent who's African-American and can identify with Dr. Gates. Perhaps, if it were your father, you might feel that the Cambridge Police acted stupidly, as well, so stop trying to take potshots at Presisdent Obama to make others and yourself feel smarter. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to see the wrong in what was done to Dr. Gates and since police lie about why they pick on certain people, it's good that President Obama put it in our faces; Cambridge cop
and others who operate likewise, act stupidly.

Ms. Tillman of PA 12:52AM August 17, 2009