Is there a path forward?

"But for right now, our world is somewhat at peace. We have a fragile truce with each other, which allows us to have a semi-normal life. How long that will last is anyone's guess."

Well, it is finally over. From last Memorial Day to present time, the George Floyd issue has been sucking up all the of the news cycle (locally). It has put our little Mayberry, in the center of the universe. No longer "fly over country", we are the home of (as the pundits put it), a renegade cop, who did not know how to control himself. Oh yes - the narrative became rich with suppositions and innuendos. Derrick Chauvin was an out of control cop, a monster, who took the life of an innocent man.

Here is my take. I always like to hit the rewind button on situations, to find out how we got to a certain point. That fateful morning might have just been a normal morning for both Chauvin and Floyd. George Floyd had no clue that day might be his last, and Derrick Chauvin had no clue he would (unintentionally) kill someone. But how the day unfolded, and then developed into a series of unfortunate events, became the story. At the end of the day, George Floyd would be laying in a morgue, and Derick Chauvin's career as a cop would basically be over. All because of a 10 minute lapse in judgement.

The lessons learned from this incident, and subsequent trial, would result in a list a mile long. Many missteps, many mistakes, many errors in judgement were made. Why so many? First off, we are all human. One of the national lawyers (one of many), was interviewed once the verdict was read. He thought not putting Chauvin on the stand was a mistake. Give Chauvin a chance to explain to the jury he did not mean to kill George Floyd. That he did not have a "depraved mind". He just got caught up in adrenalin and the moment. Instead, all the jury had was the "dream team", telling them, what a monster Chauvin was. And of course, the tape. 

Yes, the tape. The tape the jurors would see countless times. The tape which showed a cop, expressionless, with his knee on the neck of a man who was handcuffed, face down on the pavement. Most all of us have seen the tape at least once. In the absence of any other facts, that tape is very damning. Very convicting. It is not easy to see a person die.

The jury ruled in almost record time. No questions were asked of the judge. Some say the reason was the tape itself. Others say the reason was the pigs head and blood on the garage door of a defense witness. In other words - fear of "mob" retaliation, if Chauvin was acquitted. Still others say it was the circus atmosphere of the trial, and not having the jury sequestered, allowed the jury to witness the nonsense going on in the background. In any event, the verdict will be appealed. That will be a slam dunk, according to many legal experts.

But where do we go from here? Where is our path forward? Was this just a brief respite to the mayhem in our streets? We have the other three cops in the Floyd incident to be tried later on this year. Are the minions going to be satisfied if these three former officers, "walk"?

And of course, the Brooklyn Center issue. Alan Dershowitz has already weighed in on this one. His opinion? Kim Potter, the offer who shot Daunte Wright is guilty of - nothing. Not murder, not manslaughter. Only a mistake. How is that going be accepted? Or is it? If she is not charged, will that light the fuse again? Should we keep our Wal Marts boarded up until that is resolved? 

Our path forward will be fraught with dangers and uncertainties. The Derick Chauvin verdict really settled nothing. The race baiters and critical race aficionados, will keep pounding home the narrative that we are a racist country - especially the cops. Even though this is very far from the truth, the race baiters (like the Justice Brothers), will see "gold in them thar hills."

But for right now, our world is somewhat at peace. We have a fragile truce with each other, which allows us to have a semi-normal life. How long that will last is anyone's guess. "One day at a time", seems to be the sage way to look at our path right now. One day, each day, at a time.