[todaysdate]
By Joseph Niemiec Jr.
There are two people who know the truth of what happened in Ferguson and one of them no longer lives. Twelve people have spent the equivalent of two work weeks each, 840 hours total, listening to testimony and sifting through evidence. These 12 came through with a decision that was unacceptable to many.
There is only one person who now knows the “truth” and he must live with the decision he made to shoot on that fateful day. As individuals, we would like to think there is a right and wrong — yet it is obvious there are shades of grey — and interpretation has more to do with any decision than do the facts.
What is the answer? Move forward. At a local level, possibilities may include allowing body cameras, a strong police ombudsman, an education system that educates people for the future in a way which keeps them in school long enough to graduate, and a strong economy that pays well enough for the average person to raise a family.
These are ideas that seem simple and yet they are not being achieved here in Spokane. We can show up and protest what is not “right” in the world or we can create a world right here in “River City” that supports the people living here: providing a quality of life that lifts us not only economically but spiritually.
The earliest gods were created to overcome man’s inability to feed himself and his family and, therefore, those gods became the proverbial “whipping posts” and/or they were given gifts so that they would provide rain, bountiful harvests, good hunting, and so on. Before humans were able to look beyond their own limitations, their basic needs had to be met
Let us, as a community, create an economy strong enough to provide basic needs for everyone. It is time let go of anger and violence and turn to love and respect.
Let us break bread together and honor each other in whatever way we understand God.
