RE: Statues, Monuments, and Monsters, OH MY... I introduce the "Nose of history".

blacks are about 3.5 times more likely to be killed than whites

Yep, I am aware of this. Though I also see admiration for talking about killing cops, rapping about gats, and all the things I've heard since rap came out in the 80s. I was actually around then. I've seen Ice-T in concert and I've watched it over the years. I've had one of my children that liked dressing and acting that way, and I didn't tell them not to.

Yet I've also come to realize that acting like you are a THUG and TOUGH whether it is an act just for show or real is hard to discern.

Also keep in mind that most blacks are killed by other blacks. Those neighborhoods are dangerous places at times whether white people or cops are present or not.

I suspect some cops will be paranoid, some will likely just be racists assholes, some will likely have seen assholes and then started using generalization fallacies to justify their treatment.

It doesn't have to be just because of skin color. It could also be the reputation and behavior within neighborhoods that leads to this.

I guess what I am getting at is that correlation does not always equal causation.

There are actually more white people killed by cops in the nation each year. It is when you compare the ratio versus the percentage of black people that it is higher for blacks.

Yet there can be other factors besides just skin color. That doesn't mean there are, but I seriously doubt most people even stop to consider other correlations besides just skin color. I think there is more to it.

I actually suspect it is anti-culture more than anti-race... so culturism rather than racism. I suspect the thug, gang, and other attitudes are particularly abrasive when brushing up against law enforcement. The shows I've watched, the rap I've listened to, etc all seems that way to me.

It seems that way even when it is a white guy acting the same way. So people can point out race, but I've been places where being black was actually beneficial to a person. Actually that is the case everywhere I have lived since I moved to Colorado when I was 4 or 5. They were often treated like a rockstar where I am from. :)

This does not describe everywhere. Yet they were an EXTREME minority where I lived most of my life and they didn't have that thug like mentality.

So is it race, or might it be actually some cultural collision?

Also keep in mind black cops kill blacks too so it isn't just a white vs black thing. So is it truly racism, or is there something else going on and people are aiming for the wrong cause?

I'm not saying it is... but it is something I am curious about. I mention it only to maybe inspire thinking about OTHER correlations.

So yeah I am familiar with the stats. Yet, I do think if we were to narrow those stats further down and look for clusters of WHERE these are happening that we would find that they predominantly cluster in certain areas. I have an untested/unverified hypothesis that these clusters once found might be dangerous areas predominantly due to the culture and behavior of the populations in those neighborhoods. I suspect we would find a higher than average black on black killings in such clusters as well. Law enforcement going into dangerous neighborhoods I would expect a higher number of fatal encounters. It just makes sense. Yet is it truly about skin color other than those neighborhoods are populated by more of that color?

If the neighborhoods were white and as violent I suspect we'd see similar levels of white deaths due to cops.