Black Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, All Lives Matter

You would think this would not be a controversial issue.  Yet, for some reason, it generates considerable excitement in some circles.

I understand why the African American community cares about this.  Numerous young and middle aged black men have been killed by police officers.  Police officers should be there to serve and protect the community from criminal activities, not putting fear into the lives of the community that if  the wrong policeman shows up, the individual will wind up dead.  And then, after these events, the community finds the policeman innocent of breaking any law or police rules.  This is not right.  Innocent black people are killed by police action and there is no punishment.

Is there any wonder that athletes of the same age would care about this issue deeply, particularly when some have had similar interactions with the police.

At the same time, the police deserve our respect and our protection.  They put their lives at risk every day, deal with the worst elements of our communities, and are the target for deranged individuals who take advantage of lax gun laws to arm themselves with powerful weapons and gun for men/women in Blue who are from every ethnicity the U.S. has to offer. Many of the policeman killed in Dallas were African American.  Many of the policeman who have not been convicted for acts against African American young men are African American.

This is clearly a complicated issue that involves where do you draw the line on freedom to access guns, should we take the profits out of illegal drugs by decriminalizing them, and how does society address the fear that so many acts of violence has created.  This is vastly more complicated than showing any specific form of respect for the National Anthem.

Except for our President.  Who once again has shown he has no ability to reach beyond his base and be a President for all people.

Link to the most thoughtful piece on this issue