We have been in tears as well - Alex Pretti was the type of person the world desperately needs - now and always - the type of person evil wants to eliminate. Let us not let his death be in vain.
I thought they had already crossed the line, and we now have to plan as an extended family for the possibility that my non white, citizen siblings (veteran and former LE officer) could be snatched from their homes or out shopping because they fit a profile. But now, they have proven what many of us already have known, that even if you are white, they will arrest, detain or kill you if they feel threatened. No one is safe.
When unreserved gun rights organizations speak out and become an ally, we need to do what our founders did. This is the 250th anniversary of out revolution and independence from tyranny. We must do it again to preserve what our country was intended to stand for.
Of course he did, but this situation is quite literally deadly. This is about detaining and killing people for not being white or, if you are, for standing up to protect others. I had my license and phone numbers in a separate pocket, yesterday at an Indivisible rally in my small quiet city, in case something happened and my phone was taken. We are no longer safe, nor are local, trained law enforcement (who where I live have been present when agitators from the MAGA crowd tried to intimidate us, and warned them off).
OMG. Seriously? You think I don’t know that? I was merely pointing out the blatant absurdity of what Trump has gotten away with, during his first lawless administration and now, it’s 2.0 on steroids.
This was my initial response to Mike’s post:
I wept with you as I read this post. Trump can never rob us of our empathy, our humanity, our shared values, our compassion, our ability to discern right from wrong.
And YES. “That death lies at the feet of the President of the United States — a man who, more likely than not, spent the week golfing or schmoozing at some party with crooks handing him cash for pardons.”
SO, YES, Republicans need to IMMEDIATELY impeach, indict, remove, prosecute this disgraceful, corrupt, demented, convicted felon, remove him from office and put him in prison for the rest of his life, preferably in a straight jacket, in a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane.
Thank you for your fuller articulation. The best part of these community conversations is sharing of our experiences and what pushes us to respond and act. I knew my whiteness protected me, most of the time, but until now, although I was prepared to, I never thought I might have to literally and physically protect another person or myself from a government agency. And I was a Public Defender—I know how the system works and doesn’t.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I was a teenager during the 1960’s, 13 years old when JFK was assassinated. And following that horrendous slaughter, there were so many other assassinations, along with substantial social unrest, struggles for equal rights, not only for minorities, but for women as well. And I’ve experienced those injustices personality, several times since then, when women’s rights were supposedly guaranteed by law. So I never take those rights for granted.
We, as women, struggled to even get the right to vote not so long ago. And in the late 60’s women did NOT have the right to own property, or even get a credit card that didn’t have a man’s name on the account! And we know about bodily autonomy and what’s happening to that under Trump.
Add a minority “race to the mix? Double whammy. Add homosexual to the list? Triple whammy.
Women have been objectified, assaulted, abused, beaten, raped, murdered, just for being a women. (And I often believed that gun ownership by WOMEN could at least equalize and protect them from men’s brutality, who are generally bigger and stronger physically than most women. But they are NOT SMARTER! And BTW I’m a Midwest country girl who appreciates diversity in ALL THINGS. It’s a universal natural law, a strength of Mother Nature. I’ve been married twice, have a son and have never owned a gun. But I have been sexually assaulted by men, more than once, even by my own step-father when I was a young teenager. And I actually believe that I would have shot him, if I’d had a gun.)
Women unfortunately still face discrimination. Maybe not as much as we have in the past. But DJT has definitely increased blatant misogyny, racism, bigotry, and the exploitation and objectification of women. So for me, “grab em by the pussy” is a nonstarter, a reason to immediately reject him as a legitimate POTUS. And he has a very long, documented history of sexual assault. He’s a known sexual predator, now legally defined as such.
And I will never understand how ANY self-respecting woman, or how any man who has a mother, sister, a daughter, or a female friend could possibly vote for him either.
I get it, grew up in the civil rights movement and was part of the feminist movement, as for my first career as a minister, that didn’t go over well with half of my family, I get it. My second was a s a Public defender, so those traumas that women kids and some men go through are burned into my psyche. We share an awful lot of similarities in our lives. Frankly, I have never forgiven Clinton and don’t respect him (or Hilary much at this point). We may be Boomers, but we ain’t done fighting yet.
I agree with you! I've said this exact thing...all you need to know about Trump was when he said.."you can grab them by the pussy...and they just let you do it." That tells you everything you need to know about him...his disrespect and hatred of women, his disregard for people, his grifting...how anyone with integrity can get beyond this and justify supporting him is beyond me.
I don't believe all of them feel threatened. I see them as emboldened to rough up people, just as they did with the woman who Alex Pretti was trying to help. That officer pursued her farther up the street and pushed her hard even before she was pushed down. She was just trying to get away and that officer just kept at it. That's what Alex saw and tried to help.
Agreed, some of them are sadistic troglodytes (which may be an insult to troglodytes). But, when you watch what happened and know how well trained law enforcement or military personnel would have dealt with the situation (seriously pushing people from behind to the ground, who are trying to get away because they are filming you?) you know there a lot of armchair warriors whose experience of conflict is based on Call of Duty video games and MAGA acolytes. There is no one more dangerous with a weapon than someone who doesn’t know how to use it.
Let’s be abundantly clear here about what this is - Pam Bondi sends a letter saying “Give us your voter rolls and this will end.” Sounds a lot like Brendan Carr telling ABC “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” And it sounds like treason.
Actually, it sounds like state sponsored domestic terrorism. An attempt to intimidate or coerce a civilian population or to intimidate or coerce a government through violent means. The violence was already on full display. Bondi just flat out admitted the intent part. That’s all that was missing.
The problem is, who’s going to pursue the case, and in what court?
I'm Canadian but was also heartbroken by the senseless murder of Alex and Renee. I pray for your country everyday hoping things will change but until the Trump Regime is gone I fear that won't happen.
I wept with you as I read this post. Trump can never rob us of our empathy, our humanity, our shared values, our compassion, our ability to discern right from wrong.
And YES. “That death lies at the feet of the President of the United States — a man who, more likely than not, spent the week golfing or schmoozing at some party with crooks handing him cash for pardons.”
SO, YES, Republicans need to IMMEDIATELY impeach, indict, remove, prosecute this disgraceful, corrupt, demented, convicted felon, remove him from office and put him in prison for the rest of his life, preferably in a straight jacket, in a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane.
Thank you, Mike, for putting in words (again) what so many of us are feeling right now. I appreciate those suggestions of how we can respond and help each other when we don't have the ability or funds to do everything we want to do. Your voice and expressions of empathetic feelings for the Pretti family and all of us who care about our Country are so appreciated.
There are no words that can tell how dreadful the current administration is and it is never going to change their inhumane ways. The innocent will continue to be slaughtered with no accountability if we can't discover the means and ways to do so. May the family, friends & each of us find the strength to mourn the losses that are becoming far to frequent. May God speed Alex and Renee to His side quickly.
We’re in a real mess and we’ll have to figure a way out, that’s for sure. These actions are backfiring spectacularly and we can lay this at the feet of the Republican Senators who are cowards. As a nation, we have witnessed the brutal murder of three people In Minneapolis at the hands of zealous, cold-blooded officers of the state: George Floyd, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti. The fact that these happened in a city and state known for its kindness, open-mindedness and compassion is beyond ironic. The people of Minneapolis are showing all of us the strength and courage it takes to peacefully protest. I believe they know the stakes and understand the underlying reasons these murders are happening. The Republican Administration wants someone to snap and kill an ICE agent. That will give them the excuse to invoke The Insurrection Act. They chose the wrong people and the wrong place for that to happen … I hope. Once this is passed, I hope a new statue will be erected in downtown Minneapolis honoring its citizens who stood up to tyranny. These people deserve our greatest devotion and they will not be forgotten.
The shooters are only the low hanging fruit. Prosecution must go up to those who had the power to prevent this and did not….Miller, Vance, and the felon himself Trump
It was not mentioned, but maybe you know, that Mr. Pretti was a VA nurse. I live 40 minutes from both murders, my son 10 blocks. I fear for my 7 cousins (of 11), are 1/2 Mexican (their choice of ID). They also look very Latino and work in the Mpls/St.P metro. They are citizens, but that does not stop ice @ all. 3 Americans assaulted, 2 murdered for all the world to see..... and the trump dictatorship blatantly lie to us about it. gop & magats, these deaths are on you all. Let's cut the head of Satan and get our country back to live by and for the Constitution.
It's really sad that there are people in our government, our society that are celebrating this activity of lawlessness by unregulated employees of our government. Cheering the cold blooded killing of an unarmed civilian Alex Pretti, in the head and back while he was on all fours, is quite unfathomable to me. The similar action perpetrated on an unarmed Renee Good, trying to drive away from them, it's beyond rational thought that they can find this okay. There is no justification whatsoever, and punishment, by our legal system is mandatory for those who pulled the triggers and also for those who authorized it.
I read your post with a heavy heart. I am Canadian and I have hard memories of trying to explain 9/11 to my six year old. But having to explain to your young child that people are being murdered in the street by your own government is beyond the pale. I am so sorry that you had to do this! I am so sorry for your child having to learn that hard lesson at such a young age. This is the horror that trump had brought to your country and to the world. I’m sure that you will give your little son the love and strength he needs. Parent to parent my heart bleeds for you
Sad part is, the White House and its Administration continues to blame Alex Pretti. They do not see a problem with executing an American citizen in broad daylight, for merely recording those agents. These agents are former J6ers, new hires, and poorly trained for interactions with large crowds. Our government is failing us!!
You are correct on all levels Mike. I'm sick and tired of being called a "radical leftist", I'm sick and tired of being told these deaths were all in my imagination when I see it on a video that points out that they took his weapon and shot him 10 times, and Renee N Good was trying to be nice and turned her car away from the agents when she pulled out and the agent shot her 4 times. How ridiculous this is but then they lie to try and cover it up when it's obvious to most of us that they can and will continue to lie to us to protect the "thugs" that are ICE agents.
We have been in tears as well - Alex Pretti was the type of person the world desperately needs - now and always - the type of person evil wants to eliminate. Let us not let his death be in vain.
I thought they had already crossed the line, and we now have to plan as an extended family for the possibility that my non white, citizen siblings (veteran and former LE officer) could be snatched from their homes or out shopping because they fit a profile. But now, they have proven what many of us already have known, that even if you are white, they will arrest, detain or kill you if they feel threatened. No one is safe.
When unreserved gun rights organizations speak out and become an ally, we need to do what our founders did. This is the 250th anniversary of out revolution and independence from tyranny. We must do it again to preserve what our country was intended to stand for.
Trump crossed the line at “grab ‘em by the pussy” …
Of course he did, but this situation is quite literally deadly. This is about detaining and killing people for not being white or, if you are, for standing up to protect others. I had my license and phone numbers in a separate pocket, yesterday at an Indivisible rally in my small quiet city, in case something happened and my phone was taken. We are no longer safe, nor are local, trained law enforcement (who where I live have been present when agitators from the MAGA crowd tried to intimidate us, and warned them off).
OMG. Seriously? You think I don’t know that? I was merely pointing out the blatant absurdity of what Trump has gotten away with, during his first lawless administration and now, it’s 2.0 on steroids.
This was my initial response to Mike’s post:
I wept with you as I read this post. Trump can never rob us of our empathy, our humanity, our shared values, our compassion, our ability to discern right from wrong.
And YES. “That death lies at the feet of the President of the United States — a man who, more likely than not, spent the week golfing or schmoozing at some party with crooks handing him cash for pardons.”
SO, YES, Republicans need to IMMEDIATELY impeach, indict, remove, prosecute this disgraceful, corrupt, demented, convicted felon, remove him from office and put him in prison for the rest of his life, preferably in a straight jacket, in a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane.
Thank you for your fuller articulation. The best part of these community conversations is sharing of our experiences and what pushes us to respond and act. I knew my whiteness protected me, most of the time, but until now, although I was prepared to, I never thought I might have to literally and physically protect another person or myself from a government agency. And I was a Public Defender—I know how the system works and doesn’t.
And so, we fight on.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I was a teenager during the 1960’s, 13 years old when JFK was assassinated. And following that horrendous slaughter, there were so many other assassinations, along with substantial social unrest, struggles for equal rights, not only for minorities, but for women as well. And I’ve experienced those injustices personality, several times since then, when women’s rights were supposedly guaranteed by law. So I never take those rights for granted.
We, as women, struggled to even get the right to vote not so long ago. And in the late 60’s women did NOT have the right to own property, or even get a credit card that didn’t have a man’s name on the account! And we know about bodily autonomy and what’s happening to that under Trump.
Add a minority “race to the mix? Double whammy. Add homosexual to the list? Triple whammy.
Women have been objectified, assaulted, abused, beaten, raped, murdered, just for being a women. (And I often believed that gun ownership by WOMEN could at least equalize and protect them from men’s brutality, who are generally bigger and stronger physically than most women. But they are NOT SMARTER! And BTW I’m a Midwest country girl who appreciates diversity in ALL THINGS. It’s a universal natural law, a strength of Mother Nature. I’ve been married twice, have a son and have never owned a gun. But I have been sexually assaulted by men, more than once, even by my own step-father when I was a young teenager. And I actually believe that I would have shot him, if I’d had a gun.)
Women unfortunately still face discrimination. Maybe not as much as we have in the past. But DJT has definitely increased blatant misogyny, racism, bigotry, and the exploitation and objectification of women. So for me, “grab em by the pussy” is a nonstarter, a reason to immediately reject him as a legitimate POTUS. And he has a very long, documented history of sexual assault. He’s a known sexual predator, now legally defined as such.
And I will never understand how ANY self-respecting woman, or how any man who has a mother, sister, a daughter, or a female friend could possibly vote for him either.
https://www.homestreet.com/education-center/education-center-blogs/2024/03/07/from-struggle-to-triumph--the-history-of-women-and-real-estate
I get it, grew up in the civil rights movement and was part of the feminist movement, as for my first career as a minister, that didn’t go over well with half of my family, I get it. My second was a s a Public defender, so those traumas that women kids and some men go through are burned into my psyche. We share an awful lot of similarities in our lives. Frankly, I have never forgiven Clinton and don’t respect him (or Hilary much at this point). We may be Boomers, but we ain’t done fighting yet.
I agree with you! I've said this exact thing...all you need to know about Trump was when he said.."you can grab them by the pussy...and they just let you do it." That tells you everything you need to know about him...his disrespect and hatred of women, his disregard for people, his grifting...how anyone with integrity can get beyond this and justify supporting him is beyond me.
EXACTLY. Thank you. Read my response to Diane, which I just posted.
Stephen Miller must be punished as well as Kristy Neom and Tom Holman and Greg Bovino.
All of these people at least must o e day soon pay the price for trying to destroy our Country.
Our version of the Nuremberg trials.
I don't believe all of them feel threatened. I see them as emboldened to rough up people, just as they did with the woman who Alex Pretti was trying to help. That officer pursued her farther up the street and pushed her hard even before she was pushed down. She was just trying to get away and that officer just kept at it. That's what Alex saw and tried to help.
Agreed, some of them are sadistic troglodytes (which may be an insult to troglodytes). But, when you watch what happened and know how well trained law enforcement or military personnel would have dealt with the situation (seriously pushing people from behind to the ground, who are trying to get away because they are filming you?) you know there a lot of armchair warriors whose experience of conflict is based on Call of Duty video games and MAGA acolytes. There is no one more dangerous with a weapon than someone who doesn’t know how to use it.
Let’s be abundantly clear here about what this is - Pam Bondi sends a letter saying “Give us your voter rolls and this will end.” Sounds a lot like Brendan Carr telling ABC “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” And it sounds like treason.
Actually, it sounds like state sponsored domestic terrorism. An attempt to intimidate or coerce a civilian population or to intimidate or coerce a government through violent means. The violence was already on full display. Bondi just flat out admitted the intent part. That’s all that was missing.
The problem is, who’s going to pursue the case, and in what court?
I'm Canadian but was also heartbroken by the senseless murder of Alex and Renee. I pray for your country everyday hoping things will change but until the Trump Regime is gone I fear that won't happen.
I wept with you as I read this post. Trump can never rob us of our empathy, our humanity, our shared values, our compassion, our ability to discern right from wrong.
And YES. “That death lies at the feet of the President of the United States — a man who, more likely than not, spent the week golfing or schmoozing at some party with crooks handing him cash for pardons.”
SO, YES, Republicans need to IMMEDIATELY impeach, indict, remove, prosecute this disgraceful, corrupt, demented, convicted felon, remove him from office and put him in prison for the rest of his life, preferably in a straight jacket, in a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane.
Thank you, Mike, for putting in words (again) what so many of us are feeling right now. I appreciate those suggestions of how we can respond and help each other when we don't have the ability or funds to do everything we want to do. Your voice and expressions of empathetic feelings for the Pretti family and all of us who care about our Country are so appreciated.
In a way, these innocent victims are our children.
There are no words that can tell how dreadful the current administration is and it is never going to change their inhumane ways. The innocent will continue to be slaughtered with no accountability if we can't discover the means and ways to do so. May the family, friends & each of us find the strength to mourn the losses that are becoming far to frequent. May God speed Alex and Renee to His side quickly.
Trump needs to be impeached and removed from office immediately.
We’re in a real mess and we’ll have to figure a way out, that’s for sure. These actions are backfiring spectacularly and we can lay this at the feet of the Republican Senators who are cowards. As a nation, we have witnessed the brutal murder of three people In Minneapolis at the hands of zealous, cold-blooded officers of the state: George Floyd, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti. The fact that these happened in a city and state known for its kindness, open-mindedness and compassion is beyond ironic. The people of Minneapolis are showing all of us the strength and courage it takes to peacefully protest. I believe they know the stakes and understand the underlying reasons these murders are happening. The Republican Administration wants someone to snap and kill an ICE agent. That will give them the excuse to invoke The Insurrection Act. They chose the wrong people and the wrong place for that to happen … I hope. Once this is passed, I hope a new statue will be erected in downtown Minneapolis honoring its citizens who stood up to tyranny. These people deserve our greatest devotion and they will not be forgotten.
The shooters are only the low hanging fruit. Prosecution must go up to those who had the power to prevent this and did not….Miller, Vance, and the felon himself Trump
Kristi Noem immediately.
And so many others now embedded in Our government!
It was not mentioned, but maybe you know, that Mr. Pretti was a VA nurse. I live 40 minutes from both murders, my son 10 blocks. I fear for my 7 cousins (of 11), are 1/2 Mexican (their choice of ID). They also look very Latino and work in the Mpls/St.P metro. They are citizens, but that does not stop ice @ all. 3 Americans assaulted, 2 murdered for all the world to see..... and the trump dictatorship blatantly lie to us about it. gop & magats, these deaths are on you all. Let's cut the head of Satan and get our country back to live by and for the Constitution.
It's really sad that there are people in our government, our society that are celebrating this activity of lawlessness by unregulated employees of our government. Cheering the cold blooded killing of an unarmed civilian Alex Pretti, in the head and back while he was on all fours, is quite unfathomable to me. The similar action perpetrated on an unarmed Renee Good, trying to drive away from them, it's beyond rational thought that they can find this okay. There is no justification whatsoever, and punishment, by our legal system is mandatory for those who pulled the triggers and also for those who authorized it.
I read your post with a heavy heart. I am Canadian and I have hard memories of trying to explain 9/11 to my six year old. But having to explain to your young child that people are being murdered in the street by your own government is beyond the pale. I am so sorry that you had to do this! I am so sorry for your child having to learn that hard lesson at such a young age. This is the horror that trump had brought to your country and to the world. I’m sure that you will give your little son the love and strength he needs. Parent to parent my heart bleeds for you
Sad part is, the White House and its Administration continues to blame Alex Pretti. They do not see a problem with executing an American citizen in broad daylight, for merely recording those agents. These agents are former J6ers, new hires, and poorly trained for interactions with large crowds. Our government is failing us!!
You are correct on all levels Mike. I'm sick and tired of being called a "radical leftist", I'm sick and tired of being told these deaths were all in my imagination when I see it on a video that points out that they took his weapon and shot him 10 times, and Renee N Good was trying to be nice and turned her car away from the agents when she pulled out and the agent shot her 4 times. How ridiculous this is but then they lie to try and cover it up when it's obvious to most of us that they can and will continue to lie to us to protect the "thugs" that are ICE agents.
An articulate and moving heartfelt statement.