Citizen blogger Peak Johnson's last post touched on the "stop and frisk" issue. Here, he responds to several of the comments readers made to the post. He writes:
It hasn’t been long since my last post, and already I’m writing another. Blogging is so much fun I wish I had discovered it sooner. I though I would attempt to answer some questions left for me in the comments area of my last post. My last entry revolved a little around "stop and frisk." I wrote about the opinions of the two wonderful ladies who allowed me to take their photo. The post, I don’t think, really delivered my opinion of "stop and frisk." So here it is: A lot of African-Americans see "stop and frisk" as a way for the police to abuse their power; I’m sure many are aware of this. Furthermore, it is viewed as racial profiling. However, my outlook is that if it helps limit crime in communities like mine in North Philadelphia, then it can’t be all bad. Also, if some people would not portray themselves negatively just for the heck of it, then officers probably would not have a reason to search them at all.
There was also a comment along the lines of "if teens have nothing to do, they don't have enough homework." This one actually made me and a friend laugh a little. A person, yes even teenagers, can get burnt out. Homework is good and all, and it will benefit in the future. But it’s like staying in the same workplace for years; pretty soon, you are going to get bored. Some teens are just angry people. Mix being bored with teenage anger, and you have a dangerous combination. Therefore, teens need a place where there are individuals who understand what they are going through. They need to know that there are opportunities in this crazy world that we live in available to them. They need to be engaged in activities to keep them busy and motivated. They need to have their voices and opinions heard. Most important, they need to know that they do matter.
Comments (1)
Why would a newspaper give value to baseless commentary by an untrained commentator? Letters to the editor are one thing, but to rely on a blogger for topical insight is simply unprofessional. I am saddened to see the city's leading news provider stoop to such amateur tactics.
Posted by Cliff | June 4, 2008 11:01 PM
Posted on June 4, 2008 23:01