Mandatory Grieving For Two Dead Cops In New York City (And Shut Up About Police Murders of Black Men)

That's the order of the day for the time being in NYC. According to Mayor Bill deBlasio and all media, EVERYONE in New York is stricken by grief at the killing of two policemen in their car two days ago by a "madman" who came from Baltimore to avenge (so he said in Internet postings) the police killings (murders, actually) of Eric Garner on July 17th (choked to death on Staten Island by Officer Daniel Panteleo) and of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, August 9th.

The Mayor demanded that all protests against police brutality and continual unpunished murders by police be suspended while funerals are held for the dead officers and their families grieve. (As grieving can last years, that could be awhile.)

And yet the boss of the police patrolmen's union, Patrick Lynch (an appropriate name for this character) angrily blamed the Mayor for the assassinations of the two officers, saying "many people have blood on their hands" "starting with" the Mayor's office. Not merely an absurd, demagogic claim, one that threatens to politically destabilize the city by putting police into open rebellion against city government, but a classic example of reactionary inversion of reality and psychological projection. In fact, "many" have the blood of Eric Garner (and other victims of New York police murders) on their hands, namely all the police who support killer cops, and the prosecutors' offices and courts and politicians.

Eric Garner's daughter spoke out in support of the slain officers, a generosity of spirit that is the diametrical opposite of the fascistic, violent Lynch and his followers.

The family of Michael Brown has also condemned the killings of the NY policemen.

So far, no police or their families have condemned the murders of Brown and Garner- or of the numerous other people murdered by police, EVER. (And I'm not implying that all police homicides are murders. Clearly there are circumstances in which police use of deadly force is justified.)

Lynch's cops have taken to turning their back on deBlasio when he visits wounded officers in hospital. Lynch called on police families to tell the Mayor he wasn't welcome at the funerals of slain officers. Earlier this month he had a form distributed to his union members to fill out saying if they were killed, they didn't want deBlasio to come to their funeral.

Lynch squarely blames the protests against the recent police murders for the act of a mentally unbalanced man. (The killer has a history of mental illness, and shot her ex-girlfriend in Baltimore before coming to New York to kill the cops. His girlfriend wasn't killed and she alerted police, who found threats to kill cops online by the killer, Ismaaiyl Brinsley.)

Worse, deBlasio's police commissioner, William Bratton, also blamed the killings of the two cops on the protests. Well, that's what deBlasio gets for appointing Bratton, a professional oppressor.

Apparently the police require the Mayor to applaud the murders of black men by police in order to merit their support, or at least not attacks. But deBlasio has supported the police- just not so far as to alienate large segments of the population.

Here's the anodyne statement deBlasio issued after the Staten Island District Attorney finished engineering the clean bill of health for killer cop Daniel Panteleo:

“His death was a terrible tragedy that no family should have to endure. This is a subject that is never far from my family’s minds — or our hearts. And Eric Garner’s death put a spotlight on police-community relations and civil rights — some of most critical issues our nation faces today…Today’s outcome is one that many in our city did not want. Yet New York City owns a proud and powerful tradition of expressing ourselves through non-violent protest. We trust that those unhappy with today’s grand jury decision will make their views known in the same peaceful, constructive way. We all agree that demonstrations and free speech are valuable contributions to debate, and that violence and disorder are not only wrong — but hurt the critically important goals we are trying to achieve together.” New York Mayor DeBlasio, Dec. 3rd.

Notice, no hint that the non-indictment was wrong, no call for reinvestigation, special prosecutor, firing the cop, putting him on modified duty- just telling everyone sure, we'll let you march around, make sure YOU don't get violent. Later, trying to discourage more protests, it was announced that some cops would start wearing cameras. (An insult, given that the murder of Garner was recorded by a bystander with a cellphone, so the issue isn't a lack of video. That person, for his troubles, was later arrested by the police, as were his girlfriend, and both have been subjected to constant police harassment and intimidation, meaning the police are committing additional crimes of witness tampering and obstruction of justice.)

The only mayor in recent years the NYPD has liked was Rudolph Giuliani. Every time the police committed an outrageous murder, Giuliani would verbally piss on the still warm body of the victim by publicly excoriating the dead as scum.

The truth is, American police are only willing to submit to the authority of reactionary political bosses. Otherwise they are attack dogs not on any leash. This is similar to the situation on the national level, where secret police agencies and the military only submit to presidential authority if the president basically lets them do what they want. (In the worst case scenario, they will kill the president if he tries too hard to pull them in a direction they don't want to go, as happened in 1963.)

As with the GOP, there can be no compromising with Lynch and his goons, because they demand that everyone support them completely, including supporting their murders. They will not give an inch. Under former Mayor David Dinkins in fact the police were almost in open rebellion. (Giuliani, during his second campaign for Mayor in which he unseated the black Dinkins, incited a police riot on the steps of City Hall.)

This is what fascists do when they aren't in complete control. They attack established authority in order to supplant it.

The killing of the two cops couldn't have come at a better time for the NYPD and its political and media supporters to mount a counteroffensive against the grassroots demand for reform. [1]

There will be no reform. People are going to have more brutality and police murders shoved down their throats.

As the Chinese curse goes, May you live in interesting times. Indeed these are scary times.

1]  Just prior to the killings, Bratton and his gang ginned up a phony "attack" on police by protesters. The video that allegedly shows the "attack" only shows cops and demonstrators harmlessly tussling. Yet the media took this as "evidence" for the "assault" and joined in with the police in a hunt for the culprits. A lawyer observer was even accused of assault (just like in China, criminalize lawyers with the "wrong" clients).