# Obama says cops acted stupidly in Gates incident **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 23, 2009, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995 "2009-07-23T14:37:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/201 "2009-07-24T17:33:45Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Every cop member of this board will claim to be perfect in their dealings with the public. Can you please cite an example of any police officer on this board who claims that he has never made a single mistake in his dealings with the public? ---
**Author:** ![ashman165](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@ashman165](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ashman165)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/202 "2009-07-24T17:46:04Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Then it should be easy for you to cite an instance when a police officer is arrested and convicted for following his department’s procedures. Hrm, civil rights trials come to mind. > [@](#): > > But I think we should be talking about the real news story today. The one that is getting so much air time. Is Obama really a US citizen? We should teach the controversy!! And while we’re doing that, let’s talk about Jesus Christ, your soon-to-be personal Lord and Savior! ---
**Author:** ![ashman165](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@ashman165](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ashman165)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/203 "2009-07-24T17:49:43Z")
> [@Duggy\_Fizzle](#): > > No, this is almost a textbook definition of Disorderly Conduct. I read the report and I would’ve arrested him, too. If people persist in being disruptive and uncooperative when we are trying to figure out what is going on, they will soon find themselves in handcuffs. I don’t see any indication that race played any part. What I do see, however, is a pretentious jerk who expects the whole damn world to know who he is, and he doesn’t think the law applies to him. Or a guy who expects an officer to know who he is after he’s presented identification indicating he is who he says he is and lives where, well, where he lives. You don’t get to come into my home and be a big fucking asshole to me, either. It isn’t about race; it’s about professional demeanor, of which this cop is severely lacking. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/204 "2009-07-24T17:55:37Z")
Why, that should be easy! Simply search on “cop” and “single mistake”, and there you go! Of course, if he can’t perform such a simple task, he must be full of beans! Good catch! ---
**Author:** ![Anduril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Anduril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduril)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/205 "2009-07-24T17:59:20Z")
> [@ashman165](#): > > Or a guy who expects an officer to know who he is after he’s presented identification indicating he is who he says he is and lives where, well, where he lives. You don’t get to come into my home and be a big fucking asshole to me, either. > > It isn’t about race; it’s about professional demeanor, of which this cop is severely lacking. Nah. It’s Gate’s assholish behavior that got him arrested. This is just another example of a black man decrying racism where none existed. A Harvard-trained African American professional victim - that’s what Gates is. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/206 "2009-07-24T18:00:21Z")
There’s this video I’ve seen on YouTube a number of times – I’m sure some here have seen it as well – of a cop stopping a motorist and issuing him a ticket. The guy getting the ticket has an effing melt-down, going on about bullshit this, and fucking that, and “I work hard where do you get the right?” … screaming and screeching – the whole gamut. At one point the guy snatches the ticket out of the cop’s hand, crumples it up and throws it on the ground, at which point the cop calmly tells him that if he doesn’t pick it up he’ll be cited for littering as well. After all is said and done, batshit insane motorists takes his ticket and drives away and the cop laughs him off. Apparently this didn’t happen in Cambridge. ---
**Author:** ![Anduril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Anduril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduril)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/207 "2009-07-24T18:04:16Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > There’s this video I’ve seen on YouTube a number of times – I’m sure some here have seen it as well – of a cop stopping a motorist and issuing him a ticket. The guy getting the ticket has an effing melt-down, going on about bullshit this, and fucking that, and “I work hard where do you get the right?” … screaming and screeching – the whole gamut. At one point the guy snatches the ticket out of the cop’s hand, crumples it up and throws it on the ground, at which point the cop calmly tells him that if he doesn’t pick it up he’ll be cited for littering as well. > > After all is said and done, batshit insane motorists takes his ticket and drives away and the cop laughs him off. > > Apparently this didn’t happen in Cambridge. Yup. Because every one needs to accept that kind of abuse especially, if you have a Harvard-trained victim in front of you. Heck, the moment he shouts “Racist”, even the president will remark that he believes the cop was in the wrong, without knowing the full story. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/208 "2009-07-24T18:05:36Z")
Or on the other hand, as you claim, every cop can arrest whoever they want right on their front porch because they got their autoritative feelings hurt. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/209 "2009-07-24T18:07:25Z")
But you know what, snark aside, yes, cops do have to take a certain level of abuse. People getting pissed off at them, whether it’s warranted or not, is not an excuse to arrest them. Period. Obama commented on this just like you have with as much information – you just don’t like what he said. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/210 "2009-07-24T18:11:15Z")
> [@sachertorte](#): > > I’m sorry, but that makes me discount your opinion. My expectation is that police officers will protect their own. You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but stating that you are an officer brings up an expectation of bias. (We’re all have bias, it is just that some are more easy to categorize than others). > > To me, this boils down to a question of how do I want police to treat the citizenry. I didn’t like the way the officer treated the situation. I don’t like the way Gates treated the situation either, but he doesn’t work for the City of Cambridge! I think criticism of the Police should be common and accepted. The knee-jerk reaction of police are always right troubles me. I’d be very happy if police videotaped all interactions with the public. Allegedly audio tapes of the incident exist - from the 911 call, from the police radio. The cops apparently want to release them. [http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1186764](http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1186764) My guess is that they are willing to release them because they back up the cop’s version of the story. Not that it matters in my opinion - I still do not think that the arrest was truly warranted. From what I’ve seen, the Prof was 100% in the wrong right up to the moment he was arrested, but the arrest wasn’t really justified. ---
**Author:** ![Anduril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Anduril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduril)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/211 "2009-07-24T18:13:41Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > But you know what, snark aside, yes, cops do have to take a certain level of abuse. People getting pissed off at them, whether it’s warranted or not, is not an excuse to arrest them. Period. Obama commented on this just like you have with as much information – you just don’t like what he said. It’s a judgement call, and I trust the cop’s judgment that the assholish behavior of this Harvard-trained professional victim merits arrest. Re: Obama - The difference is, I’m not president and my comment would not get much mileage. Sorry. Obama is an idiot for commenting. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/212 "2009-07-24T18:14:04Z")
> [@Anduril](#): > > Yup. Because every one needs to accept that kind of abuse especially, if you have a Harvard-trained victim in front of you. Heck, the moment he shouts “Racist”, even the president will remark that he believes the cop was in the wrong, without knowing the full story. You do realize that Obama quite explicitly _didn’t_ call the cop a racist, right? He expressed his negative opinion on how the Gates situation was handled, and then segued into a separate mini-speech about race issues in law enforcement, perhaps because the question was: “Recently Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. was arrested at his home in Cambridge. What does that incident say to you and what does it say about race relations in America?” ---
**Author:** ![Anduril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Anduril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduril)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/213 "2009-07-24T18:18:46Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > You do realize that Obama quite explicitly _didn’t_ call the cop a racist, right? He expressed his negative opinion on how the Gates situation was handled, and then segued into a separate mini-speech about race issues in law enforcement, perhaps because the question was: “Recently Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. was arrested at his home in Cambridge. What does that incident say to you and what does it say about race relations in America?” I know. But couldn’t he have said: “What I know of Gates is that he is a decent guy but I don’t know enough about the incident to make an informed opinion of the matter and whether or not it makes any statement about race relations in America”. How’s that? ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/214 "2009-07-24T18:20:01Z")
> [@Anduril](#): > > Nah. It’s Gate’s assholish behavior that got him arrested. This is just another example of a black man decrying racism where none existed. A Harvard-trained African American professional victim - that’s what Gates is. Almost. It was the cops inability to walk away from a stupid confrontation. I don’t necessarily agree it was about racism. It was about a bunch of stupidity. Gates should not have gotten angry and screamed at the cop , assuming he did. The cop should not have arrested him. He was asking for a mess when he decided to. He should have been an adult and walked away. ---
**Author:** ![ashman165](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@ashman165](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ashman165)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/215 "2009-07-24T18:20:11Z")
> [@Anduril](#): > > Yup. Because every one needs to accept that kind of abuse especially, if you have a Harvard-trained victim in front of you. Heck, the moment he shouts “Racist”, even the president will remark that he believes the cop was in the wrong, without knowing the full story. Well, the president surely doesn’t have inferior rights to you in the way of expressing his biased opinion without knowing all of the facts. If you can do it, so can he. The only difference is that he outright says his view is biased, and he doesn’t know all of the facts. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/216 "2009-07-24T18:29:27Z")
I don’t think a cop should have to take abuse anymore than a McDonald’s cashier or a telephone representative. I also don’t think a cop should be allowed to arrest someone for simply being an asshole to him anymore than a McDonald’s cashier or a telephone representative should be able to have someone arrested for the same thing. In my mind, even if his report is accurate, the cop clearly overreacted, and it seems to be that he deliberately got this guy outside for the sole purpose of saying that he was disturbing people. That being said, I don’t think there is anything racial here. Just an idiot cop who decided that he needed to swing his big dick all over the place… ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/217 "2009-07-24T18:30:18Z")
> [@Anduril](#): > > I know. But couldn’t he have said: “What I know of Gates is that he is a decent guy but I don’t know enough about the incident to make an informed opinion of the matter and whether or not it makes any statement about race relations in America”. How’s that? It sounds like it dodges the second half of the question, “and what does it say about race relations in America?” I’ll readily concede that Obama stuck his foot in his mouth and bit down when he chose to use the word “stupid”, but I don’t hold having an opinion against the guy - and if this incident reminded him about the fact that racism in police actions _happens_ (even if it may not have happened in this particular case), then I don’t mind him commenting on it. Yes I would _also_ have been fine with him saying “no comment - move along”. (Though if he makes a habit of that, why hold press conferences?) But he didn’t avoid commenting, and the fact that he didn’t doesn’t offend me. And I’m actually kind of glad to have a president who actually speaks his mind - not just a carefully-crafted political facade. ---
**Author:** ![Anduril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Anduril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduril)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/218 "2009-07-24T18:33:45Z")
But if it shows him to be an idiot, why bother speak your mind. I mean, he did use the caveat that he doesn’t know everything about the case - so why bother commenting? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/219 "2009-07-24T18:34:55Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > … and it seems to be that he deliberately got this guy outside for the sole purpose of saying that he was disturbing people… Hey! He had “pertinent” information! Don’t make me cut and paste a dictionary definition of “pertinent” to slap you down! ---
**Author:** ![Anduril](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Anduril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduril)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995/220 "2009-07-24T18:35:04Z")
> [@ashman165](#): > > Well, the president surely doesn’t have inferior rights to you in the way of expressing his biased opinion without knowing all of the facts. If you can do it, so can he. The only difference is that he outright says his view is biased, and he doesn’t know all of the facts. All the more reason to withold his comment until he learns more. Does he really have to answer at that time? And he does have every right to express himself - but it gives everyone else the right to point out how pointless and stupid the exercise was. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-says-cops-acted-stupidly-in-gates-incident/503995.md?page=12)