A Peacemaker in this Gates-Crowley Affair

I am a peacemaker in this Gates-Crowley Affair, with President Barack Obama caught in the middle. Let me say that, in terms of public opinion, I would rate it a 50-50 situation. There was a basis and rationale for every action and reaction taken by each party. There were justifications on both sides of the issue, though neither side can ever seem to see the other. And, you can bet your boots, somebody is going to exploit the difference.

We are peacemakers. We take a mess like that above and turn it into a golden opportunity to learn better, to do better.

Of course, I know impartiality rubs some people the wrong way. Sorry, but bring it. Eddie Griffin can handle it.

I was once a peacemaker better warden and inmates, while in prison, according to my massive FBI files. I was a flash point inmate who could promise the warden peace and no riots if the guards acted civilized. The warden and I were equals. Making peace does not necessarily mean not using strong-arm tactics. Quite the contrary, peace is offered always by the stronger and superior force.

I could always offer peace without loss of ego, manhood, dignity, or respect, not because I was the weaker party. On the contrary, I made peace first with death. My adversary is aware that in this mindset I am not afraid of dying.

The seed of peace is sown in the hearts of those who make peace. If peace is what they truly desire, then it will be easy for them to find peace. Gates, Crowley, and Obama should be able to walk away as friends, in the spirit of fraternal brotherhood. That would be the ideal.

Of course, some will do everything within their power to keep the breach open and the controversy alive. The condition of peace is predicated upon our ability to keep the peace-breakers at bay, from creating hostile opposing camps, and dividing the nation along polar color lines.

President Barack Obama has the opportunity to address the important issue of mass incarceration of minorities. But we must be willing to hear, rather than run off at the mouth with our narrow-minded opinions.

As I said, bring it on!

I have taken on cops like Sgt. Crowley and little bourgeois wimps like Gates. Crowley could not have tricked me into an arrest. If he did indeed arrest me, it would have been under false pretenses. I am conscious of where the line of the law is etched in the sand and I never cross it. I do not cross into enemy territory sober, and I do not drink. If a cop arrests me, then be it known that he would have to work overtime, and end the day stressed out, and ready to quit. My motto used to be: Wear ‘em down, wear ‘em down, wear ‘em out, wear ‘em out the front door. If you are not Eddie Griffin, don’t try it.

And, if the jailer had put Gates in the same cell with me, I would have rolled up his bunk and tossed it out on the tier. Whatever he had to say when he hit the cell door, I wouldn’t want to hear it. Enter my cell as a man, and stand like a man.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.
(Matthew 5:9)

Eddie Griffin