# Sandra Bland video **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 22, 2015, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859 "2015-07-22T05:50:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 62
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1221 "2015-07-27T18:52:56Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > How frustrating it would be to be SO close, and then, BAM, Officer Dick’n’balls pulls his shit for a failure to signal. First the being SO close and getting screwed (either through your own actions or somebody elses) argues more FOR likely suicide than against IMO. More importantly, Officer Dick"n"balls has no idea that she is on the ragged edge and any ragged edge stuff ain’t on him (see my previous post about imaginary bitchy neighbor). Officer Balls played a part in this whole thing no doubt, but again IMO, it was minor in the big scheme of things and other parts/people that can be blamed. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1222 "2015-07-27T18:58:39Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > This could explain why her family didn’t seem to be in hurry to post her bail. Maybe they thought Bland would be safer in a holding cell? Or at least remain sober for a few days? Man, that would suck. I hope they DID not do that for their own sanity. But, I can say I know that POV for some people exists (and statistically speaking it’s not neccesarilly the wrong thing to do). ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1223 "2015-07-27T18:59:34Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > Part of the puzzle was _ **because** _ the officer disregarded department protocol, it unnecessarily escalated into the tragic debacle they both face. > > There was a very distinctive point where the officer crossed the line, and the was from the cigarette request, onward. And that part of the puzzle has been/is being discussed. I believe all parts of the puzzle should be discussed. You’ve suggested that people discussing other parts of the puzzle should, “Give it a rest.” FYI, “giving it a rest” is an unacceptable option. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1224 "2015-07-27T18:59:52Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > First the being SO close and getting screwed (either through your own actions or somebody elses) argues more FOR likely suicide than against IMO. > > More importantly, Officer Dick"n"balls has no idea that she is on the ragged edge and any ragged edge stuff ain’t on him (see my previous post about imaginary bitchy neighbor). > > Officer Balls played a part in this whole thing no doubt, but again IMO, it was minor in the big scheme of things and other parts/people that can be blamed. Right. That was my point, in that such a frustratingly unfortunate turn of events, kept her from attempting to land a better job and hopefully turn her life around. People who abuse drugs are alcohol are not inherently bad people. A lot of the time, they’re used to self-medicate and escape the hell that is life. As Homer Simpson states, “Alcohol: The cause of AND solution to all of life’s problems!” This can apply to any drug of choice. Financial hell truly is a bleak pit of despair, especially if your ass is on the line with the law. Now, I agree, it was her own doing getting behind the wheel while drunk or high, but still, the move and new opportunity indicates she was attempting to forge a new and better path for her life. And then… Whether or not is pure speculation, but certainly fits the facts, suicide and all. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1225 "2015-07-27T19:00:47Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > We don’t know that she was _just_ about to turn her life around with this move and a new job ahead of her. Woulda, coulda, shoulda. If I were taller, I could have been a Vogue model. So much for your statement about a payment plan, being in the clear, and paying her dues. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1226 "2015-07-27T19:00:59Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > And that part of the puzzle has been/is being discussed. I believe all parts of the puzzle should be discussed. You’ve suggested that people discussing other parts of the puzzle should, “Give it a rest.” FYI, “giving it a rest” is an unacceptable option. Fair enough. So long as you read the previous 1000+ posts. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1227 "2015-07-27T19:02:38Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > Now, I agree, it was her own doing getting behind the wheel while drunk or high, but still, the move and new opportunity indicates she was attempting to forge a new and better path for her life. Her license was going to be suspended on July 31st. Where her new job was, there is NO public transportation. None. That’s quite an obstacle on that “new and better path”. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1228 "2015-07-27T19:04:01Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > Woulda, coulda, shoulda. > > If I were taller, I could have been a Vogue model. > > So much for your statement about a payment plan, being in the clear, and paying her dues. It’s easy to be cynical when you’re not in another’s shoes. It’s pretty hard to pay those dues when the state is trying to squeeze blood out of a rock. I make decent money, being self-employed. But hell if I can come up with $7,500 for a horrible mistake I made. I can only imagine for those that are living on the brink. It’s no excuse for the law she broke, but still… no warrant issued. :shrug: Someone want to quote her annual income, now? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1229 "2015-07-27T19:05:12Z")
It’s funny how these stories always start out as “Honest, hard-working, clean-living, completely innocent person is brutalized and killed for no reason because **RACISM** ”. It’s only later, after the reputations of innocent public servants and departments have been ruined, threats have been made, and public respect for law and order has been made to erode even further, that the truth gets published. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1230 "2015-07-27T19:06:40Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Her license was going to be suspended on July 31st. Where her new job was, there is NO public transportation. None. That’s quite an obstacle on that “new and better path”. Perhaps she was counting on a friend for commute. Who knows. But catching a ride from a friend isn’t all that much an obstacle. Several years ago, I agreed to carpool with a co-worker for six months because he had a suspended license as well. It was a couple miles out of my way, but he was a good guy who made a mistake. It helped him keep his job, and now is onto better pastures. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1231 "2015-07-27T19:12:59Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > Perhaps she was counting on a friend for commute. Who knows. But catching a ride from a friend isn’t all that much an obstacle. Several years ago, I agreed to carpool with a co-worker for six months because of an a suspended license as well. It was a couple miles out of my way, but he was a good guy who made a mistake. It helped him keep his job, and now is on the better pastures. It’s not just a job commute. What about stores, bank, any kind of chores? You cannot live in this area without a car. And there is no indication whatsoever that she was actually doing something (or even knew) about the upcoming suspension. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1232 "2015-07-27T19:13:34Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > It’s funny how these stories always start out as “Honest, hard-working, clean-living, completely innocent person is brutalized and killed for no reason because **RACISM** ”. > > It’s only later, after the reputations of innocent public servants and departments have been ruined, threats have been made, and public respect for law and order has been made to erode even further, that the truth gets published. Perhaps erosion for respect of public law and order is happening for a reason. Chew on that. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1233 "2015-07-27T19:16:51Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > It’s not just a job commute. What about stores, bank, any kind of chores? You cannot live in this area without a car. And there is no indication whatsoever that she was actually doing something (or even knew) about the upcoming suspension. Never heard of a bike, or walking? Or still, bumming a ride from a good friend. 😕 Cars are not the end-all, be-all of existence. I give her the benefit of the doubt that she was attempting to reconcile her past. As I would hope for if I made a horrible mistake. You keep trying to make her a heinous citizen that deserves her jail time and ultimate suicide. GLWAT. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1234 "2015-07-27T19:17:06Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > It’s only later, after the reputations of innocent public servants and departments have been ruined, threats have been made, and public respect for law and order has been made to erode even further, that the truth gets published. Actually, no. If you note the date on the article I cited, it is July 17th. 10 days ago. NBC Chicago did their job. Then this information was very studiously ignored by every other media outlet. It didn’t play into the narrative. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1235 "2015-07-27T19:17:50Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > But hell if I can come up with $7,500 for a horrible mistake I made. I disagree with your choice of words, specifically “a” and “mistake”. It wasn’t just one, or “a” anything. IME, a mistake is inadvertent, and unintentional. Neither adjective applies to her actions. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1236 "2015-07-27T19:21:05Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > By the way, just out of curiosity, do you think her family’s and friends’ inexplicable inability to find $500 to bail her out for three days - does that “apply some culpability for her death” to them? It definitely could. I would need to know more about why they failed to bail her out. Was that supposed to be a difficult question? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1237 "2015-07-27T19:21:07Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > It’s easy to be cynical when you’re not in another’s shoes. > > It’s pretty hard to pay those dues when the state is trying to squeeze blood out of a rock. > > I make decent money, being self-employed. But hell if I can come up with $7,500 for a horrible mistake I made. I can only imagine for those that are living on the brink. It’s no excuse for the law she broke, but still… no warrant issued. :shrug: > > Someone want to quote her annual income, now? You have no problem attacking the officer’s every move but you do not wish for anyone to discuss anything about Bland’s past personal life that might have been responsible for her suicide. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1238 "2015-07-27T19:21:17Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > I disagree with your choice of words, specifically “a” and “mistake”. > > It wasn’t just one, or “a” anything. > > IME, a mistake is inadvertent, and unintentional. Neither adjective applies to her actions. She was young and stupid. BURN HER AT THE STAKE! ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1239 "2015-07-27T19:21:56Z")
Well, she was no angel. Perhaps if she were a better person, her death might matter. Oh, well, whats on TV? ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2015, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859/1240 "2015-07-27T19:22:12Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > It’s funny how these stories always start out as “Honest, hard-working, clean-living, completely innocent person is brutalized and killed for no reason because **RACISM** ”. > > It’s only later, after the reputations of innocent public servants and departments have been ruined, threats have been made, and public respect for law and order has been made to erode even further, that the truth gets published. Who characterized her initially as “honest, hard-working, clean-living, completely innocent person”? None of those adjectives have any bearing whatsoever on the important questions in this discussion. ETA: To have assumed people were assuming this about her would seem to reveal a certain attitude wherein you don’t expect anyone _would_ (or should) care about how police treat those who aren’t hard working etc etc etc. That is unfortunate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859.md?page=61) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bland-video/725859.md?page=63)