Conservatives And Ferguson: Cognitive Dissonance, Or Blatant Hypocrisy?

Let's be clear, before we go any further, about one thing:  when it comes to Ferguson, the police blew it.  Any time you shoot six bullets into an unarmed teenager--two of them into his head--without even knowing whether or not he was a suspect in a crime, you have failed as a peace officer.  And any time your superiors fail to address a tragedy of this magnitude with full disclosure and complete humility, they have blown it as well.  When Ray Kelly, nobody's idea of a bleeding-heart liberal, thinks you've blown it, you have blown it.  Period.  Ferguson obviously has a serious problem with race relations, and we can only hope and pray that, out of this senseless homicide, lessons can be learned and people can find a way to answer Rodney King's famous question with a "Yes."

But we need to pray for ourselves as well.  Because Ferguson is not alone when it comes to the poison of racism and its ability to seep into our public services.  And we need look no further for evidence of that fact than the simple, obvious absence of something in the midst of the chaos and controversy:

Outrage from conservatives about the excessive use of governmental force against Mr. Brown.  And, in particular, outrage from the National Rifle Association about the excessive use of governmental force against Mr. Brown.

Then again, perhaps outrage from the NRA would be surprising.  It would certainly be ahistorical.  After all, as I noted in a previous post, the Second Amendment--the NRA's alleged raison d'etre--has its roots not in the need for civil militias, but in the need for "slave patrols" to protect the "rights" of slaveholders to their "property."  And say whatever else you will about the NRA; its dog-whistle rhetoric does not stray far (if at all) from the racist roots of our so-called "constitutional right to bear arms."  Take a look.  See what I mean?  It is painfully clear from the proverbial horse's mouth that the only people who have the right to defend themselves are the ones who share something in common with slaveholders:  complexion.

But what about conservatives who aren't members of the NRA, or, for that matter, focused on advocacy of gun rights?  Where's their outrage?  Why do we get nothing but dog-whistle rhetoric from the likes of Sean Hannity?  Is it possible that modern conservatism owes its rise almost exclusively to white-power thinking, speaking and acting?  Can you say "Southern strategy"?  Ultimately, aren't all of these questions rhetorical?

Perhaps they are, when posed as part of an exchange among progressives.  But maybe, just maybe, it's about time to confront the other side with the truth that lies behind their double standard on gun rights and governmental force, as Patricia Byrnes courageously did in pushing back against Mr. Hannity's condescension.  Perhaps its time to stop pretending that the double standard is an Emersonesque "foolish inconsistency," and recognize it as the pernicious, racist evil that it really is.  Perhaps its time to risk anything, even putting ourselves in harm's way, to make this point.

And perhaps the best time of all to do is before there's even one more Michael Brown on our consciences.