Wednesday, July 30, 2014

At What Point do we Back Off?

It's sad when a senseless murder is committed. And since any murder is senseless, they're all sad.

National Guardsman Dontae Norris was shot and killed trying to stop two men from stealing his car. He leapt onto the top of his car and was shot through the roof by the assailants. The Detroit Police have two men in custody.

Mr. Norris had just completed his training, was working at the store where the assault occurred, and was also incidentally engaged to be married. How many lives have been injured by this incident? A countless number, no doubt, some of them perhaps not even born yet.

It's easy to get on Detroit's case for this and other equally heinous crimes. Surely, however, the issues behind the plight of the City run deeper than one crime, however reprehensible. There doesn't seem a lot to say.

We despise the idea of the inmates running the asylum. That in itself is a poor reflection on so much of modern urban society. We despise further the idea that they should be allowed such power over us and our security. We almost hate to ask what we're about to ask, yet we feel we must. At what point should you nevertheless back down?

It was just a car, after all, and we are in no way, shape, or form arguing that the assailants are at all less than 100% at fault here. They stole a car, they killed a man, and they have to pay the price.

Yet look at the price Mr. Norris paid.

Crime must be fought. But there are times when the bad guys just win. We need to reflect on that, on when we reach the point where such and such is just going to happen, and that in a war sometimes the wrong side wins a battle. The real shame is that we sometimes must think that way.

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