TX - Multiple Dallas Police Officers shot during downtown protest, 7/7/16

[Dogface]

Interesting article about DPD Police Chief David Brown, Sr., and I wonder how these tragedies in life shape him as a man who puts the uniform on everyday.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/dallas-police-chief-david-brown-sr-lost-partner/story?id=40447116

Before five police officers were killed and seven more were injured in a deadly Dallas shooting spree last night, Brown Sr., a 30-year veteran and a Dallas native, had already lost his former police partner, his younger brother and his own son to gun violence.

To add to it, his partner was killed in the line of duty, his brother killed by drug dealers, and his son shot and killed after killing a police officer. This man manages to stand strong with what surely must be a heavy heart burdened by a lot of loss. Prayers for him.

 

[ninij9]

It hurts to read the posts bashing the victims as a whole. Everything I have read in MSM shows that all of the Dallas PD, DART and other departments did a great job of protecting the citizens of Dallas that night. They ran to the danger to protect and serve Dallas that night. I have not read one article that has been posted about any rouge cops that night. Everything I have read indicates Dallas PD is a roll model for their policing tactics. They deserve recognition for the positives that they have done and will continue to do. Why are they being lumped in with the less than one percent of bad cops?
It is just my opinion, but to me the issue here that a community is mourning the loss of their police officers and need to feel the support of our nation. It is no different than Orlando that needs the support of our nation to heal as a community . Being from Orlando I followed the thread closely, and I did not see any gay bashing or Latino bashing. So why is it ok to use this time, this thread to bash law enforcement as a whole?
My heart hurts for Dallas and their law enforcement community and I pray that Dallas will get the same love and support from our nation that Orlando has received to help them to heal.

❤ ty

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[pepper 34]

I think the changes are just in white peoples minds. If it were not for the cell phone, all the horrors we have seen will not be known at all. There is still great disparities between the two populations, so the progress being refferred to is it is no longer legal to own a person - past that I am not sure all that mcuh progress has really been made.

Eat in the same room , share bathrooms and water fountians.

The real tradegy here, IMO, is even after videos many are still not supporting these folks being put in jail for breaking the law.

Its all been on video. For the last several years - anyone see any AA threatening a LE person in the videos that have come out??

Imagine all the stuff that goes on without a cell phone on.

Seriously? Eating in the same room, sharing a bathroom and water fountains? These are the changes you choose... from the 1960's? Do you realize how insulting this kind of thinking is to black people who have taken advantage of everything this country has to offer, worked hard and achieved their goals in colleges and varied jobs they have worked at all their adult lives? Just to name one thing: black colleges run by black people... that's beyond the water fountain. Do you think Obama became our president on the black vote alone? Certainly, without any doubt, things have changed immensely in every area of opportunity. When I went to nursing school I was surrounded by black students, instructors, doctors, supervisors, etc. When I went to community colleges to further my degree, I found the same thing to be true there. When I became employed, my boss was a black woman. I believe the opportunities are there for everyone but, the trick is, to take advantage of them. I took out a student loan and paid it back.... but money is there for those who want an education if you they have the grades... and that's another one of the requirements... you have to have the grades. Rather than cutting back on education, our "leaders" need to be pouring well supervised money into education for all young people. True, things are still not equal... I just read last week that Asian males are the highest paid group in the USA. http://www.pewresearch.org/daily-number/asian-americans-lead-all-others-in-household-income/ What should we do about that? Just get angry and destroy property or kill people? I don't think that will work very well. I have, since the 70's when I, myself was out there on the streets protesting, believe what I learned back then. It's the major difference in philosophy in thought processes, imo, between the 70's and now.... that it is a conflict between the rich and the poor. The POOR in the country don't matter NO matter what color they are. Bottom line, imo... money. But, as long as we continue to play into the black vs white issues, we are doing exactly what we are expected to do so our "leaders" can continue to do as they do... concentrate on themselves and keeping the status quo... it works for THEM. We overlook the real problems and concentrate on what we have been told to concentrate on and remain divided. We not only need to join together but I think it will be the downfall of this country if we don't.

 

[jjenny]

"A private first class, Johnson was given an honourable discharge from the Army in May 2015 and moved back in with his mother. His departure was reportedly preceded by sexual harassment charges from a female soldier with whom he served in Afghanistan, who allegedly told superiors that he should seek “mental help”. It is unclear whether he did so."

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...icah-johnson-black-lives-matter-a7128301.html

 

[ninij9]

"A private first class, Johnson was given an honourable discharge from the Army in May 2015 and moved back in with his mother. His departure was reportedly preceded by sexual harassment charges from a female soldier with whom he served in Afghanistan, who allegedly told superiors that he should seek “mental help”. It is unclear whether he did so."

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...icah-johnson-black-lives-matter-a7128301.html

A very angry, hateful and troubled man he was.

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[CSIDreamer]

It hurts to read the posts bashing the victims as a whole. Everything I have read in MSM shows that all of the Dallas PD, DART and other departments did a great job of protecting the citizens of Dallas that night. They ran to the danger to protect and serve Dallas that night. I have not read one article that has been posted about any rouge cops that night. Everything I have read indicates Dallas PD is a roll model for their policing tactics. They deserve recognition for the positives that they have done and will continue to do. Why are they being lumped in with the less than one percent of bad cops?
It is just my opinion, but to me the issue here that a community is mourning the loss of their police officers and need to feel the support of our nation. It is no different than Orlando that needs the support of our nation to heal as a community . Being from Orlando I followed the thread closely, and I did not see any gay bashing or Latino bashing. So why is it ok to use this time, this thread to bash law enforcement as a whole?
My heart hurts for Dallas and their law enforcement community and I pray that Dallas will get the same love and support from our nation that Orlando has received to help them to heal.

Thank you.

 

[Tricia]

We're not allowed to refer to BLM?

Yes we are allowed to discuss BLM as it relates to this shooting. That's because according to reports the gunman used this group as one of the reasons for the killing.

You can discuss BLM but it must be respectful. If a poster uses name calling or posts in a manner that is hateful then the posts will be removed.

By respectful, I am saying offer your opinion but keep the rhetoric and inflammatory words off your posts.

 

[Elley Mae]

I wondered too when I heard that, if he felt detached from forming a relationship with either his biological mother or father, perhaps he held this stepmother responsible for 'ripping the family' apart. Would not put it past his mentality. IMO, it wasn't about him being black... not even the disdain towards police.

Someone may not approve of my 'pigment,' yet you wouldn't feel so vividly insecure in your day to day life - something close to home drove those unstable thoughts rather steadily. As it were, seems he was a 'loner' type. IMO, he would have been a danger no matter his ethnic background. But he'd find something* to disassociate himself from and target that specific group. Apparently, he wasn't respectful about 'girls,' as reported. It starts with stealing women's panties, and aggravates later to something way worse so... it's a little sickening to see some of those support messages on twitter on the such. "We understand you, brother." All I see is that this young male used his race as overseas terrorists use the "Islam card,' it is just subterfuge for their underlying mental instability.

If he truly meant to help, he wouldn't have taken the movement hostage, which resulted in injuries/trampled protestors and the like.. purely selfishly motivated. I would say international terrorism is obviously bunk manipulation, hijacking religion as "Islamic revolution." My arse, hey buddy, you have to pray five times a day, not rape and pillage, kill innocents, etc etc. They're just psycho 'anarchist gypsies' if you will, who have nothing else to sell. I highly doubt most of them have ever even touched the Quran. Whereas I, am fluently able to read Arabic and have a respect for their culture.

Alright, I suppose this thread had already been updated with other findings regarding the ex-Army vet - removed from service.
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crim...s-shooter-used-military-skills-for-murder.ece

I too Thank you b_lab7410 for this.

snip

Johnson "was always very affected by the police stuff and had very strong feelings about being black," said Caitlyn Lennon, 27, a friend who worked with him at a sandwich shop years ago."I can only imagine how pissed off he would be in the past year, watching all of the shootings."

bbm, I have worked in environments that employed all walks of life, one employed 18,000 at one location,(was there 18 yrs) I worked where I worked with all walks of life that served all walks of life for over 10 yrs. I have never met or worked with one person of color that I could/would say that about.

snip

Johnson told police he had been training for the deadly ambush; one neighboring family said Friday that he had been performing what looked like military training exercises in his yard.

bbm, If that is all that this family saw him doing that would seem normal, unless there were other things he did that seem off.

snip

One family friend said Johnson had changed when he returned from overseas.

"He was withdrawn, didn't want to talk to people anymore, didn't believe in God anymore," said Myrtle Booker, 62, who knew his mother through church.His interest in guns had grown, she said.

bbm, If I returned from over seas under the conditions( kicked out for sexual harassment, Honorable discharge or not he did I would not want to talk much either. Not believing in God anymore is troubling, and the interest in guns and training in the backyard would raise my eyebrow.


jmo idk

 

[AliceInPain]

What a clueless idiot.

 

[cady]

He did do it single-handedly.

Yes, as it turns out, he did. Still wondering why my post from yesterday morning was selected for a response 12 to 18 hours later.......... At the time my comment was posted, not WS and not LE knew for sure that he was a lone gunman. He told LE that he was the lone gunman, but he also told them that IED's were planted in the vicinity, among other things...... He also told them that he was upset with BLM, which just about everyone here JUMPED on, and asserted that he was a supporter, when, in fact, he did not subscribe to BLM because it is not as radical as he preferred. He objected to a peaceful protest, because he wanted to KILL WHITE POLICE OFFICERS. The man was mentally ill. He was not a member of any group, much like Mateen, in Orlando. Just a lone wolf sicko. With a weapon of war, and a place to use it. JMO

 

[jjenny]

Even his lawyer isn't clear why he received an "honorable" discharge. It was recommended that he didn't, yet somehow he was still honorably discharged.
"Lawyer Bradford Glendening says Micah Johnson was sent back to the U.S. with the recommendation he be removed from the Army with an "other than honorable" discharge."
http://www.stripes.com/news/us/dall...used-of-sexual-harassment-as-soldier-1.418273

 

[Elley Mae]

Seriously? Eating in the same room, sharing a bathroom and water fountains? These are the changes you choose... from the 1960's? Do you realize how insulting this kind of thinking is to black people who have taken advantage of everything this country has to offer, worked hard and achieved their goals in colleges and varied jobs they have worked at all their adult lives? Just to name one thing: black colleges run by black people... that's beyond the water fountain. Do you think Obama became our president on the black vote alone? Certainly, without any doubt, things have changed immensely in every area of opportunity. When I went to nursing school I was surrounded by black students, instructors, doctors, supervisors, etc. When I went to community colleges to further my degree, I found the same thing to be true there. When I became employed, my boss was a black woman. I believe the opportunities are there for everyone but, the trick is, to take advantage of them. I took out a student loan and paid it back.... but money is there for those who want an education if you they have the grades... and that's another one of the requirements... you have to have the grades. Rather than cutting back on education, our "leaders" need to be pouring well supervised money into education for all young people. True, things are still not equal... I just read last week that Asian males are the highest paid group in the USA. http://www.pewresearch.org/daily-number/asian-americans-lead-all-others-in-household-income/ What should we do about that? Just get angry and destroy property or kill people? I don't think that will work very well. I have, since the 70's when I, myself was out there on the streets protesting, believe what I learned back then. It's the major difference in philosophy in thought processes, imo, between the 70's and now.... that it is a conflict between the rich and the poor. The POOR in the country don't matter NO matter what color they are. Bottom line, imo... money. But, as long as we continue to play into the black vs white issues, we are doing exactly what we are expected to do so our "leaders" can continue to do as they do... concentrate on themselves and keeping the status quo... it works for THEM. We overlook the real problems and concentrate on what we have been told to concentrate on and remain divided. We not only need to join together but I think it will be the downfall of this country if we don't.

Just a big oh THANKS.::tyou:

 

[scmom]

I think he thought he was doing his part to achieve "justice". As much coverage as BLM has received over the past couple of years I would not agree that he wasn't a supporter.

 

[AliceInPain]

Why is there even a thing being of different colour? Where I grew up no one gave a ****.

Personality was all that mattered. (I grew up in Northern Europe)

That anyone would feel proud of the colour of their skin or hate someone who has a different colour skin than them is totally weird and strange to me.

:thinking: :therethere:

 

[pepper 34]

Why is there even a thing being of different colour? Where I grew up no one gave a ****.

Personality was all that mattered. (I grew up in Northern Europe)

That anyone would feel proud of the colour of their skin or hate someone who has a different colour skin than them is totally weird and strange to me.

:thinking: :therethere:

Believe me, please, there are millions of people here who feel the same way that you do in America. This is the way I was raised... to judge on character and never anything else (color included) and to never judge another on how much money people had or didn't have. I was taught to respect and be polite to, literally, everybody. My parents made sure we learned about and respected all cultures and nationalities. I believe it is the extremists among people all around the world who cause most of the world's problems. Extremism comes in many forms and in every skin color on earth and, unfortunately, people who are more moderate are influenced greatly by them and that's where all control can begin to be lost... because extremists effectively divide people who would otherwise get along just fine.

 

[Everyday Grace]

Michael Smith, 55, Dallas Police Department

A family friend described him as “salt of the earth.”

He consistently received outstanding performance awards, including a “Cops’ Cop” award from the Dallas Police Association.

Smith was a member of the Watermark Community Church in Dallas. Senior pastor Todd Wagner said that Smith understood that loving people was the best way to protect and serve them.

“It genuinely troubled him when he saw people treated as objects or when protocol got in the way of personal care,” Wagner said in a statement. “He never compromised his responsibilities, but he never walked away from a compassionate response.”

Smith was a member of DPD since 1989.

DMN has updated their extensive profiles on the slain officers.

http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2016/ambush-victims/?_ga=1.186452074.2142664786.1451579563

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Jul 8 2016, 8:36 pm ET

After Shooting, Memories of Dallas' Darkest Day Return

by Emma Margolin

The minute 89-year-old Julian Read heard about Thursday's sniper attack on 12 Dallas police officers, a glaring thought immediately crossed his mind: November 22, 1963.

A former aide to the late Texas Gov. John Connally, Read was in the motorcade that fateful day, just a few cars behind President John F. Kennedy. He watched as the presidential limousine made a sharp left off onto Elm Street, heading across Dealey Plaza past the Texas School Book Depository, before hearing the popping sound of gunfire.

Fifty-three years later, the memory of Dallas' darkest day came flooding back with reports that another gunman had once again sat perched in a building overlooking the city's downtown district, raining down bullets from above...

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/after-shooting-memories-dallas-darkest-day-return-n606261

 

[i.b.nora]

Chris Jansing on MSNBC reporting the discharge from the Army was a General Discharge, (not an Honorable Discharge).

From: http://www.forthoodsentinel.com/new...cle_7a646c48-8852-5ba4-a8d3-d4c01e90c662.html

“...a “General, Under Honorable Conditions” Discharge (commonly referred to as a General Discharge) is for service members whose service was satisfactory, but involved situations where the Soldier’s conduct and/or performance of duty were not so meritorious to warrant an Honorable Discharge. Recipients of General Discharges usually have engaged in minor misconduct or have received nonjudicial punishment under Article 15, UCMJ. While the “under honorable conditions” terminology is slightly confusing, there is a clear disadvantage to receiving a General Discharge in contrast to an Honorable Discharge. While recipients of a General Discharge will receive entitlement to benefits such as VA medical and dental services, VA home loans and burial in national cemeteries, they will not receive educational benefits under either the Montgomery or Post-9/11 GI Bill.”​

 

[Irish_Eyes]

I think he thought he was doing his part to achieve "justice". As much coverage as BLM has received over the past couple of years I would not agree that he wasn't a supporter.

If LE has looked at his social media then they already know that he was.

 

[faw720]

Jul 8 2016, 8:36 pm ET

After Shooting, Memories of Dallas' Darkest Day Return

by Emma Margolin

The minute 89-year-old Julian Read heard about Thursday's sniper attack on 12 Dallas police officers, a glaring thought immediately crossed his mind: November 22, 1963.

A former aide to the late Texas Gov. John Connally, Read was in the motorcade that fateful day, just a few cars behind President John F. Kennedy. He watched as the presidential limousine made a sharp left off onto Elm Street, heading across Dealey Plaza past the Texas School Book Depository, before hearing the popping sound of gunfire.

Fifty-three years later, the memory of Dallas' darkest day came flooding back with reports that another gunman had once again sat perched in a building overlooking the city's downtown district, raining down bullets from above...

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/after-shooting-memories-dallas-darkest-day-return-n606261

Today's Dallas is a very different city than the Dallas of 1963. No, it's not perfect but it has moved light years away from where it was in 1963. Today's Dallas PD is a prime example of the change.