W.W.C.D?

Does anyone remember the strange story that Tom Cruise’s character in the movie Collateral spoke about with the dead man on the subway not being noticed? Well Philly just told a similar story last week. Read this…

Police charge man in Philly subway hammer attack
Police have arrested a man suspected of brutally attacking a dozing subway passenger with a hammer while other riders did nothing to stop the assault, the city's police commissioner said Wednesday.

Thomas Scantling, 26, of Philadelphia, was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and related charges, police said.

Scantling, who was taken into custody in a mental institution late Tuesday, has a lengthy record of rape and other convictions, Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said on NBC's "Today."

The victim was treated and released from a hospital.

Ramsey criticized other riders for standing by when the assailant entered the train with his 5-year-old son, directed the boy to a seat, calmly pulled a hammer from a backpack and attacked a man dozing in a nearby seat.

At least 10 other riders were in the car, yet no one interfered as the attacker repeatedly struck the victim in the train car and later out on a platform, Ramsey said on "Today."

"They better pray they're never a victim, because if someone was attacking them that way they would certainly hope someone would step forward and help, and it starts with stepping forward and doing something yourself," Ramsey said.

Police trying to generate tips released surveillance video Monday showing the early Sept. 4 assault that was played repeatedly on Philadelphia television stations.

Authorities said Scantling was apprehended after family members called police. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney.

"He has a long criminal history including rape, robbery, assault, narcotics violations," Ramsey said.

Scantling apparently had tried to hurt himself with the hammer following the attack on the subway. Family members said they were not initially aware of the attack, but had Scantling committed to the mental institution where he was taken into custody.

The victim, 20-year-old Dewayne Taylor, made his own way to a hospital and was treated for head and neck injuries. Taylor, who has been released from the hospital, said Tuesday he has no idea who the attacker is or why he was targeted.

This incident really managed to spark a lot of conversation. Besides the fact that I use that same subway system twice a day, five days a week and this story scared the mess out of me, there was a lot of discussion as to why nobody helped the victim.

Which then led me to think “What would Courvoisier do?” (W.W.C.D?)

Well I am not going to lie and say I would have stepped in because I wouldn’t have. But I do believe I would have called the police on my cell phone. This incident wasn't reported until eight hours later, when the victim called the police. And if you watch the video I linked in the header, you will see there were quite a few witnesses and not one person stepped forward. That truly makes the island gal in me sad.

Think about it what would you have done?
We know what Jesus would do.

Happy Monday y’all.
Peace

girlie get your gun

Breathe deep. Bend down. Pick it up. Place it against my shoulder. Breathe deep. Wait.

Ok ya’ll. Get your sight. Ready. Aim. Fire.

Squeeze Finger. Close Eyes. Squeeze Finger Tighter.

Pow. Pow. Pow.

So went my first time...shooting a gun.

This weekend I went to the shooting range with some co-workers. Mainly because I’ll try almost anything at least once. And I wanted to see what guns were all about, having never touched a real one, at least not without a plastic evidence bag between my fingertips and the cool metal.

Until this weekend, guns scared me. I didn't grow up with a grandfather who hunted. My grandaddy liked cars and pull your own part junkyards. Not a single family member owned a gun, as far as I knew. To me guns = dangerious weapons. That hurt and kill people.

But I had to rethink my stance on guns recently due to a couple of events. When I moved to the N.O. a few months back, a friend suggested that I get "a pistol" and I seriously considered it. What if somebody tried to run up on me in the mean streets of N'awlins? "I'm a public defender" might not do the trick to ward off someone bent on taking something from me. But then I thought about Nikki Red.mond, who bought a gun for protection from a stalker and ended up on trial for the murder of her boyfriend after she shot that same gun in fear of her life. Having a gun readily available in a moment of intense passion or rage might get somebody kilt. All the admonitions that tis better not to have a gun around because you're more likely to get shot with your own gun really stuck with me and I pushed the idea of gun ownership to the back of my mind.

Then the opportunity to actually go shoot guns came up, I decided to give it a go, you know the whole try it once thing. After my round at the range, my immediate thoughts were that I'd never shoot a gun again. I didn't get the thrill out of it that some of my colleagues did but I didn't shoot my eye out either. After some reflection, I have to admit that with each shot of the gun. my fears were lessened and I might just try it again sometime. Although the 9mm has way too much kick for a sista, I'm seriously thinking about a cute little pearl-handled revolver.

Round these parts you don't need a permit to own a gun, just enough gumption and money to make your purchase. Which means than way more people that I thought are packing. Mayhap I should too.

What say you?

Bombs Over D.C.

I woke up at 6 o'clock this morning to the loud sounds of an object flying overhead; hovering so low that I thought it would clip the roof of my building. It scared the shit out of me. I jumped out the bed and sprinted to the window to see what the hell was going on. It was a helicopter circling my neighborhood with persistence and intent. The chop chop sounds were echoing through my open window. My first thought was the police are looking for somebody. I don't live in a neighborhood where such activity is the norm, but anything is possible.

My second thought was we're being attacked.

Sounds crazy, right? I know that given our wonderful quality of life here in the U.S., it is quite easy for many of us to forget that this country is currently at war. Sure we get updates on the news about the latest battles and their casualties and every couple of months there's yet another protest here in the Nation's Capital, but the sad truth is that we (Americans) can go on for days at a time without one thought to the war because it ain't happening in our backyard.

Which is why my paranoia this morning was a great shock to me. In retrospect, I am surprised at how serious my thoughts were of possibly being under attack. I can usually find humor in anything, but I'm still not amused about this right 'chere. My heart was thumping so hard I thought I would choke on the beats. As I searched the sky for answers, my eyes danced around and darted back and forth like a fiend looking for their next fix. I switched the TV on and started flipping between each station for answers. There was talk of high gas prices, three shootings over the weekend, Obama playing hoops in Indiana, and the D.C. Madam's supposed suicide last week. Nothing about my helicopter from hell.

I started thinking about Gil Scott-Heron's famous words, "the revolution will not be televised". But didn't they show the 9/11 attacks on TV all around the world? And speaking of the 9/11 attacks- citizens of the United States realized we weren't quite as invincible as we thought we were on September 11, 2001. So maybe I had real reasons to be so paranoid... I thought about my mom and how I had to get to her as soon as possible. She may be the parent but I feel obligated to protect her at all times. I wondered if my dusty boombox in the closet took C or D batteries and checked my cell phone to make sure it was still working. I started regretting the box of dried goods that I recently donated to a local food drive, thinking now I may be the one who needed them.

Then I stopped and thought to myself "come on, this could never happen to us". Or could it?

Imagine living in Kabul or Baghdad, where people wake up to similar sounds every day. Imagine standing in the kitchen, stirring your pot of greens, when suddenly the floor shakes from another missile attack 1/2 mile down the road. Or sitting in the den, playing Xbox with your homie, and sirens start wailing in the streets to warn of imminent danger. Picture two women kicking it on the front porch each with glass of wine, exchanging stories of good times, when three troops run by on foot with machine guns in their hand on their way to the next raid. Real people live like this.

It is so easy to forget how blessed we are. So easy to forget how easy our lives are. And sometimes I even wonder, why I am so lucky and not the next person? How did I get saved from such an existence?

At 6:07 AM, I realized my sleep had been interrupted by a traffic helicopter.

I pray that I am always mistaken.


Tumultuously Yours,
Dark & Stormy

Bulletproof Tears

You ain’t even safe wit a full clip
I swear on the presidents grave
I’m sick of livin’ in this bullshit
We down to take it to the full length
Meet us up on capitol hill, and we can
Get up in some real shit.

- Assassination, dead prez


After yet another horrific school shooting last Thursday, we are once again reminded that we are not safe anywhere. A former student of Northern Illinois University (NIU) opened fire onto a lecture hall full of students at the school, killing six and injuring others, before committing suicide.

It was the fourth shooting at a U.S. school that week.

This school was not your typical "ghetto" neighborhood, ridden with crime and proverty, where gunshots are a part of the daily soundtrack of life. This school was not an innercity school like Mr. Clark's Eastside High or Stand and Deliver's Garfield High School.

NIU has white, middle-class, suburban, SAT/ACT scoring, career driven, law abiding students. So did Columbine. And Virginia Tech. University of Texas, as well.

The worst school massacre in U.S. history, the Bath School disaster of 1927, was orchestrated by a school board member. Most of the victims were school aged children.


** Hanging my head in sorrow. **


What is my point? That violence has no face. It is widespread. Universal. We are all affected by it. Despite our media's insistence on focusing on a certain group of people [who mostly resemble me] it is undeniable that since the beginning of time the majority of these perpetrators of violence are men. And mostly white men.

I prefer not to discuss the right to bear arms and gun control laws today. Instead I want to focus on metal detectors. Metal detectors are very effective when used properly. You cannot board an airplane without going through them. I am greeted with them when attending major sporting events and music concerts. Many public schools around the country have them, especially in high schools.

So why aren't there metal detectors installed in colleges and universities?

While I find it sad that we have been forced to consider such extreme measures, what other choices do we have? Like my boys dead prez said, you ain't even safe with a full clip these days. For those who wish to carry their heat, cool. But I think that we need to be a lot more vigilant about making sure they check that sh*t at the door upon entry.

Our children are at war with us. How in the hell did this happen?


Tumultuously Yours,

Dark & Stormy