This Is Just The Beginning

Accountability.

Some accountability was finally handed down to a murderous police officer yesterday. Derek Chauvin was found guilty on all three counts in the murder of George Floyd. The jury found, beyond reasonable doubt, that what Chauvin did was murder. He used excessive force on George Floyd. He had no regard for his life when he decided to knee on his neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds. He choked the life out of Floyd. Floyd constantly told him that he could not breathe, and Chauvin did not let up. He was rightfully convicted of the murder of Floyd, and now he will hopefully spend the rest of his miserable life behind bars. That is what he deserves.

This needed to happen. We all saw what happened one year ago. It was everywhere. You couldn't miss it. It was terrifying. And the jury agreed. George Floyd should still be alive, just like so many other African American people that the police have wrongfully murdered.

I want everyone to know what this all means. This is just the start. Now is the time for accountability. We need to hold anyone that uses excessive force accountable to the fullest extent of the law. These people need to be prosecuted. They need to know that they cannot get away with murder just because they are the police. They need to know that they are not above the law. That is fact, and it should be easy to follow.

When the verdict was read I was joyous for a while, and then I turned my focus to the other people that have lost their lives too early at the hands of the police. Those officers need to be put in front of a judge and jury. The lady that killed Daunte Wright, she should be guilty. The cops that shot that 13 year old child, they are guilty. The cops that murdered Breonna Taylor and Tamir Rice and Philando Castile and so many others, they all need to face a judge and jury. That is the law. They are not above it. They can't get away with it anymore. The joy I felt was kind of odd too. This is what was supposed to happen. But since we have become so backwards in our country, we applaud when a murderer gets convicted of murder. This is what we should have expected. We all should not have been on bated breath waiting and hoping he would be found guilty on all three counts. This was a homerun as far as convicting him. But we all cheered and applauded when it finally happened, when the verdict came back the way it was supposed to. This shouldn't be the case. But because of the situation, coming off the last administration, dealing with all the rampant racism, white supremacists getting more and more comfortable and police becoming more and more brutal, we as a society did have to wait with bated breath. We didn't know what the outcome was going to be. That needs to change. We need to evolve. We need to grow up. And we need to be held accountable. The Floyd family finally got some justice. It will not bring their son, father and brother back, but they did get some kind of justice. But as I said at the top, this is just the start. More of this needs to happen, and I hope that it will.

So while we celebrate a murderer being put in jail, lets all get ready to work to make sure that this continues to happen to anyone in a position of authority that uses that power in the wrong way. Let's put all these murdering cops behind bars. That is what they deserve. Rest in Peace George Floyd. And, BLACK LIVES MATTER.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Enough is Enough, Again

How many more?

I seriously want to know.

Why is seemingly everyday another innocent black person gets murdered by the police. What is going on in this world? Have we lost all morals and ethics? Do people not care? Why is racism so rampant within the police department? Why do they have access to guns but no training in how to deal with people using words? I'm sick of this all. I am also scared. I do not know where we go as a society from here. The last administration made these racist police officers feel that they could go out and literally get away with murder. And now that we have a competent president and vice president, anytime they want to pass legislation to make it much harder to acquire guns, and to allocate more money for other parts of society than just the police, the GOP sits on its hands, or votes it down.

The fact is that Daunte Wright should be alive today. He should not be dead. His family should not be making arrangements for a funeral. His son should be seeing his father right now. He should be waking up next to his girlfriend and getting ready to talk to his folks. He isn't because some racist police officers saw a "traffic violation", and then saw him on his phone, and when he went to get out of his car, he was shot dead. This is sickening and worrisome. I want to know what this so-called "traffic violation" was, and why it was deemed serious enough to get a gun out. And I do not care if he was running away from the police. I feel like everyone should be running from the police right now with the way they have acted since the last administration. Derek Chauvin is currently on trial for the murder of George Floyd. Floyd used a counterfeit bill and this monstrous police officer decided he needed to put his knee to his neck for over 8 minutes and squeeze the life out of him. If Chauvin is not convicted of the murder he knowingly did, there will be riots. Wright was murdered by a different police officer not too far from where this trial is happening. And no one seems to be talking about it as much as they should right now.

I get worried every morning when I wake up and check the news because something horrible like this seems to happen everyday, and the people who commit these heinous acts, these crimes, seem to face little to no punishment. I saw today that the police department that is responsible for the police officer that murdered Wright said "we were supposed to taser him". Explain to me how you mix up a taser with a handgun. I haven't held either, but I have seen many, many pictures of both, and I know the difference between the two. This is a very scary time to be alive, and excuses like this are adding to the fear. It just came across my phone that they have postponed a baseball game that was supposed to happen in Minnesota this afternoon. That was the right call. Things like this cannot just continue to happen and we all just move on as a society. Consequences have to be paid. The punishment needs to fit the crime. The people who shoot to kill need to be held responsible and be prosecuted. I cannot take it anymore.

And it will happen again. That is what makes this even worse. Any of us who may have thought that George Floyd's death was going to be a wake up call, was going to change things, clearly we were wrong. Nothing has changed from the police's perspective. I'm sure there are still some decent police officers, but that wanes every time I see another story like Daunte Wright's. Police officers are given too much power, and I feel the good majority of them abuse it. I feel like a lot of officers were the "cool" guys and girls in high school, and it all stopped there. So they have to find a way to stay relevant, to still be deemed "cool", so they go out and find a job where they can have a miniscule amount of power, and then abuse it. There have been far, far too many deaths that could have easily been avoided. We also have traffic stops that, if they do not end in death, they still end pretty awfully. This past December there were two cops who openly harassed an Army veteran because he is black. They yelled at him, threatened his career and pepper sprayed him even though he was following their directions to a T. The video is only coming out now because the veteran rightfully pressed charges. Those officers need to be excused of their duties and rightly prosecuted as well. But with Wright and the police involved, this is clearly premeditated murder, at least from my perspective. They found a bogus reason to pull him over, and when he made a movement, the police fired their weapons in cold blood. This shit needs to end.

I say again, Wright should be alive today. So should George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and Hamidou Diallo and Michael Brown and Philando Castile and Eric Garner and Botham Jean and Tamir Rice and so, so , so many more people of color that were murdered because they are not white. I have said it before and I will say it again, I am scared. I do not want to be pulled over by any officer. I am scared of what they will do to me and my wife and my kids. And I am a white male in my late 30's. I cannot imagine what my friends who are minorities think whenever they see a police officer, especially with how blood thirsty they have become over these past four years. I am also finding it harder and harder to not tell my children my true feelings about the police. This is another dark day in a very dark time. Something needs to be done. Something big needs to happen. And these monsters that are shooting people in cold blood, they need to be held accountable for their acts. BLACK LIVES MATTER.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Things Are Not Good Right Now

I don't know what to do anymore.

You think it may not get worse, that something positive may happen, that things may turn a corner, but we, the United States that is, just continue to take steps backwards. We are drowning in so many different ways as a country. COVID has become not only one of the deadliest viruses in the world, but somehow political. People fight over simple tasks, simple asks and suggestions by scientists and doctors, such as social distancing, staying home if sick, not gathering in big crowds and wearing a mask. These are easy and effective, and seemingly, at least at the moment, the only way to slow down the spread of this virus. But what may be even worse, scratch that, is worse, is the systemic, never ending racism and murder by police that seems to happen daily now in America.

I knew that Breonna Taylor wouldn't get just due. She lost her life over nothing more than the color of her skin. She should still be with us today. So should Philado Castille, Tamir Rice, George Floyd and so many, many more. But the police, and the current majority of the "government" are allowing these people to be murdered with no consequence. I was crushed yesterday when I saw that only one of the three police officers, all white middle aged men, was indicted for their actions. What made this news even worse, he was only charged, essentially, with property damage. No charges for entering without a warrant, for attacking a defenseless person and for murder of a defenseless person. I was crushed, but not surprised, and that is the problem. I had a sliver of hope that some kind of justice would be served, but of course, since 2016, nothing happened to an over eager, egotistical, power and gun hungry police officer who got away with murdering another black person.

This is happening way, way, way too much, and the fact that nothing is being done is horrifying. It is wrong. It is racist. It is systemic. There needs to be change. Something big needs to happen. And I know that some will say, "you cannot blame a few bad apples". Well, it seems like the mass majority of police officers are the "bad apples" that people are referring to. There are far less "good apples". I am a 37 year old white man that lives in the suburbs of Saint Louis, but I get the jitters now more than ever when I am on a night time jog with my dog. When we walk by the police, when my kids and I go for my daily walk, I make them walk briskly. It has become a point where I am more afraid of what a police officer may do to me or my kids. I don't feel protected by them anymore, especially when I have on a BLM shirt or a RTJ shirt or a shirt with a basketball player on it. They have the opposite effect now. I don't trust the police. And as I said, I am a 37 year old white suburban dad. I cannot even imagine how any person of color deals with the police, or talking about the police to their kids. It has to be awful.

These conversations shouldn't be needed, but they are now more than ever. The police have become the villain, except this is real life. It is no wonder that athletes and people of power that are African American, or just not white, are speaking out. People will listen to them. Kids will listen to LeBron James when he speaks about police brutality in post game interviews. And I love that James, and so many other athletes are doing this now, when it is more important than ever. But we still need to change so many things. The US is a total dumpster fire. I am not proud to be an American. I am embarrassed and disgusted to be an American. This is all so messed up, and I want to leave you today with this, please, please, please vote. Vote like your life, and the future of our country depends on it, because it does. We can get people into power who will enforce change. We need to get the monsters in office out now, because if we don't, our future is dire, at least for four more years. I can't deal with that, and I would like to think that most normal, smart people feel the same way. There are far, far too many problems plaguing our country, but we can change that. Vote, defund the police and let's find some kind of justice for, not only Breonna Taylor, but every other person of color that has been shot and killed, or shot and hurt, or beaten and brutally hurt by racist police.

The time is now. Let's make changes. Vote. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Thank You for Not Sticking to Sports

Yesterday was a day that will go down in the history books. I talked about Jacob Blake, the systemic racism in the police department in the US, the hate speech being spewed on the internet and that there was talk of a possible boycott in the NBA playoffs.

Well, the boycott happened. The Bucks refused to come out of the locker room prior to the start of their game 5 matchup with the Magic. The Magic were on the floor warming up, but when they realized what was happening, they left the court and joined the boycott. Three O'Clock came and went, and the Bucks decided it was in their best interest to take a stand. The Magic joined them. Then the Rockets and Thunder decided to boycott their game later in the day, with the Trailblazers and Lakers ready to follow. Before the Lakers and Trailblazers could officially boycott their game, the NBA canceled the rest of the night's slate.

This is historic. Something like this hasn't happened since Bill Russell was playing in the league, and that protest was during a preseason game. The fact that these players, these young men, had the fortitude and the wherewithal to do what they did is simply amazing. I was never more proud to be an NBA fan than I was last night when the boycott started. I was so thrilled that the players were taking a stand against racism, I loved that it was the Bucks since Blake was shot in Wisconsin and I am so pleased that every other player stood with them in this historic moment. There were no dissenters. This was an all for one type thing. And to see everyone come together was so moving and so very important. Then to see Kenny Smith walk off set in solidarity, to see all the tweets from stars and role players, to see Jim Jackson and Chris Webber speak so eloquently and passionately, to see Rachel Nichols, Jay Williams, Marc Spears and Kendrick Perkins all touch on why this is so important, I was stunned in the best way possible.

This was exactly what needed to happen. Just like Chris Webber said, "if not now, during a pandemic, then when". It is awesome. To see young millionaires, mostly African Americans, stand up for what they so rightfully deserve is so moving. Everybody should be treated equally. We all should have the same rights. We shouldn't judge people by the color of their skin. Unfortunately though, we still have monstrous people, especially in the police department, who don't see the world that way. They think they are better and more deserving. They think they have some sort of power that they certainly do not. They are emboldened by the monster that currently resides in the White House. This is a problem, and the NBA, and please do not let me forget the WNBA, what they did was truly astounding and powerful, wearing the shirts with Blake's name on it, and seven red dots on the back for the shots, that was amazing. To see them stand up for what they believe in, to stand together, to say screw it, we want equal rights, the rights afforded to everyone else, it was incredible. I told my son about all of this this morning. I explained to him why there was no basketball last night, and why this was a good thing. I told him that when he is older, he will read about this in history books. This story will be told for generations. My wife compared it to our generation learning about the 60's and 70's. This boycott, the BLM movement, the protests, this is all akin to Kent State and Watergate. This is a shift. This is a moment. And after the NBA boycotted, and the WNBA boycotted, the Brewers decided to not play their game, then a young tennis star decided to not play her match, then a bunch of football teams canceled practices yesterday and today to hold meetings about systemic racism.

We need more of this. We need more pro athletes standing up to their owners and to the "government". I can go protest all I want and make petitions to defund the police, but I won't get a sniff. I am a regular suburban dad. But people like LeBron James and Giannis Antentekoumpo, Chris Paul, Christian Yelich, any famous football player, they can get to their owners, who can get to people in charge and get in their ears. And while I know that finishing the season was on the verge last night, even going as far as the Clippers and Lakers voting to end the season then and there, the NBA did decide to finish. I don't fully know how I feel about that yet, but I do think they can still use this platform to continue to get messages out there to people who need to hear it. But this is historic. This is important. This is something that will go down in history. This is going to be remembered and talked about forever.

Again, I have always loved the NBA, and I always will, but last night that went to a whole other level. I am so impressed and so on board with whatever they decide to do, and I will follow them wherever they go. Hopefully this means a change is starting to happen. Hopefully, this starts a real movement. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

His Name is Jacob Blake

Another black man was shot, multiple times, by white police officers in Kenosha, Wisconsin a few days ago. His name is Jacob Blake, and as I write this, he is in a hospital on life support. Blake was simply walking into his car when the white officers opened fire on him. They shot him in the back seven times. This is madness.

This has to stop. The police need to be defunded. The police need most of their power stripped away from them. The powers that be need to stop normalizing this, and this needs to be addressed. This is a serious problem in our country. There is systemic racism that is being hyper perpetuated by white police officers. The "government" has shown zero progress in making changes, in showing sympathy and trying to understand why this is happening more and more lately. The "government" and the "president" are racists, fascists and they don't care about people that aren't directly involved with them. It's disturbing that this continues to happen and that there is no end in sight. We need to make changes. We need people that actually care and we need people that will do their best to end this.

I also saw a story that some NBA players are contemplating a boycott to the start of the playoffs until something, anything, happens to the white police officers that are constantly gunning down unarmed and innocent black people. They, along with a good portion of the rest of the country, want these murderers, these monsters to be reprimanded and dealt with like the horrible people they are. I agree with the players who are thinking about doing this. They are seeing this all too often, they are young black men, mostly, that have children. They look at other people who have been brutally murdered, George Floyd, Tamir Rice, Philando Castille, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and now possibly Jacob Blake, and they are thinking, enough is enough. They are also trying to send a real message. I have talked about how well the NBA restart has gone, and how it is amazing that the players are using their media availability to talk about systemic racism and what they think needs to change. Chris Paul, after OKC had a great comeback win, was doing his on court after the game interview, and all he talked about was Blake and trying to implore people to go out and vote. That is amazing. Paul George, LeBron James and many others have talked endlessly about Breonna Taylor. Donovan Mitchell hopped on Twitter and gave an impassioned tweet about all the awfulness. And last night after the Clippers win, Doc Rivers gave one of the most moving speeches I have ever heard from anyone anywhere ever in my life. It was incredible. But still, black people are being killed for no reason by white police officers. This is still happening. And when I read some of the comments under the article about a possible boycott, it made me sick to my stomach how awful and rude and ignorant and mean and stupid and spiteful and hateful random idiots on the internet can get. It is truly a disgusting place, the comment section on any website. This stuff that was being written by some of the biggest monsters in the world, who hide behind screen names by the way, is truly horrifying.

Enough is enough. Changes need to happen. And if a boycott to an NBA playoff game, or series, is the catalyst, I say great. We need to wake up and stop the systemic racism in this country. We need better people in positions of power and we need to heal as a country and stop killing innocent black people. This is too much, and I fear it will only get worse. BLACK LIVES MATTER. 

Ed note: Since this was written, the NBA has announced that all games are being postponed on Wednesday.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.