All I can say is that now people are beginning to see what I was writing about last week.  The Gates Affair wasn’t race, it was a guy who thought he was able to lip off at a cop learning that cops don’t like to be put down.  In any test of strenghth cops win. So prevent that from happening.

What Gates should have done?  I dunno, I wasn’t there. But one thing is clear:  the cop thought he was being given a hard time.  Don’t do that.  I’m not saying that you should do whatever the cop tells you (Gates was smart to refuse to “step outside” I believe) but do it respectfully.  The cop has a gun. Say “sir”, don’t take a tone with him.  If you want the name & badge number, you are entitled to them but ask for them politely.  It’s hard, I know but be polite.  Ms. Manners shows how to be polite but firm. Learn how. It can save you.

Most everyone by now has heard of the arrest in his home of Henry Louis Gates, the very prominent Harvard Professor who is African-American.   Some people say it’s racism. Some say the cop was out of control.  Frankly, I’m not sure it’s either of those things.

I think it’s simple: a cop thought he was getting a lot of lip from a loudmouth.  So he decided to be a hardass.  On the street it’s called “contempt of cop”. It’s punishable by beatings, hassle, and lies. Cops beat you, hassle you and then lie about it in court.  Problem was, this cop picked the wrong guy to hassle.

Now I don’t know what actually happened.  But the apparently uncontroverted facts are that the cop a) walked into the house uninvited and b) demanded that Dr. Gates “step outside”, and refused to give Dr. Gates his name and badge number.  Now the  first would upset me no end.  There is no right to invade my privacy and do a search of the premises.  Maybe I can make the case that the cop could follow Dr. Gates back to the house while Dr. Gates got his ID.  But maybe not too.  But the 2nd is offensive and I don’t blame Dr. Gates for refusing to leave the safety of his home while armed police are there and hassling him.  Finally, a cop refusing to identify himself is *always* a problem and indicates to me that at that point the officer had decided to teach Dr. Gates a lesson.

BTW:  the police officer’s written report is so completely different from Dr. Gates’ statements that I have to wonder if they were even involved in the same city.

So what should *you* do?  Be respectful to the police.  Never raise your voice.  Always say “sir” and never, ever, ever talk to them.  If they insist on talking to you, never answer a question.  It will only get you in trouble.  The only thing you should ask a police officer is “am I under arrest?” and then leave if the answer is “no”.  If the answer is that you *are* under arrest, shut up.

Finally, if the cop decides that you are being a smartass for not talking to him, there’s nothing you can do.  Talking only makes it worse.  and get a lawyer.

Talking with a friend today about teaching our children how to drive.  I noted that nobody ever teaches 1 key thing that can save more lives than almost anything except wear your seatbelt. What is that thing?  It’s simple really:  When you see a crazy driver or a drunk driver or whatever kind of driver Get Behind Them!  That way you can see what they are doing, they can’t hit *you* and you can take evasive action.

Most people I know try to run away from these whackos.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But get behind them and you’re in good shape.