Dehumanization

This has been an insane week. How many more mass murder-suicides, attacks on police, and death by cop are we going to see? Meanwhile, a family at my school has been blogging their story. The father had leukemia and was documenting the journey. He died yesterday around the time I was getting ready for the basketball game. So while I was in the thrills of the game, a family was experiencing a terrible crisis. Among the comments on their last post about the death was this one:

hahahaha

-james


There's a bunch of sick people in this world. I was going to rant about the concept of dehumanization. I just don't have the anger. I'm too sad.

An Impossible Situation

Police shooting in Oakland

I don't know the entire political situation in Oakland. I only know that there is always a tension between the police and the community. In an effort to establish the authority, liberties are taken, liberties are taken away, and the resentment grows. The authority becomes an oppressor. Unchecked authority becomes systematic oppression, the target typically the minority, who can offer the least resistance.

Violence begets violence. Oppression leads to pushback, sometimes passively, sometimes violently. When the authority is no longer seen as serving the majority, revolutions should occur.

Yet, humans are imperfect, selfish, violent. What could take the police's place? Can an authority be established that isn't oppressive? What would it look like without police?