I want to agree with Tamir, up to a point. Tamir writes: > Wizard makes an excellent point about changing police > chiefs. Although I support the buyout of Olson's > contract it's important to remember that this won't > make much of a difference in terms of the avarage > rank-and-file cop being rude to, beating, or even > killing the Black/Somali/Hispanic/long haired/spiked > haired (etc.) resident.
I have only reported on, not witnessed, incidents of alleged police brutality. Since I will be reporting on police issues again, I am going to be less-than-certain about Olson's staying and the police department's actions. However....I think Tamir hits the nail on the head on how the problem seems to be blamed on one man - Olson - without some acknowledgment, that if there is a problem, it has to be broader than the chief. Yes, the Chief is the top person and thus bears significant responsibility as a leader. But I am concerned that while RT has warred with the chief - his predecessor's choice - in public and apparently private, he has not mentioned other leaders or potential offenders in the department, who endorsed him through the Police Federation. I think we overdo the Great Man theory of history, and I worry we are overdoing the Poor Leader theory if there is a problem in the department. It seems logical that this is bigger than one guy. Our leaders should tell us why he is the sole offender, and if it's bigger than that, what they will do beyond criticizing the chief. David Brauer Kingfield _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
