By Jim Glennon
The New York Times, the storied newspaper that prides itself as the Gold Standard of news reporting, a crusader for moral integrity, and the decrier of racism, is currently employing a Hitler-worshiping antisemitic racist as a news contributor.
And they not only know it, they also acknowledge his bigotry and justify and support their decision to employ the man.
In 2012, on his Facebook page, Soliman Hijjy, the freelance journalist in question, posted, “How great you are, Hitler” (in Arabic) accompanied by an image of the despicable Nazi leader.
But that was in 2012. Maybe his racist anti-Semitic perspective has done a 180-degree turn in the intervening years. Maybe he has become enlightened.
Nope.
In 2018, again on Facebook, Hijjy posted a photo of himself with a caption that said he was “in a state of harmony as Hitler was during the Holocaust.”
Yes twice, publicly, he praised Adolph Hitler, which in saner days would be the kiss of death professionally. But not today, and not for the NY times. And what has the paper tasked Soliman Hijjy to write about objectively, free from prejudiced and bigotry today?
The Israel Hamas/Palestinian war. Specifically, the merciless massacre of helpless and peaceful Jews and how the Jewish state is responding.
How This Impacts the Law Enforcement Profession
So why is this relevant in a column dedicated to policing issues?
I’ll be blunt.
There is a massive double standard culturally and politically in this country and law enforcement is stuck squarely in the middle.
Law enforcement reacts to media outlets, activists and politicians who blame, indict and allege that the entire police system is rife with evils and ills. Racism being the most egregious of those systemic sins.
Being painted with the broad brush of racial prejudice, either as an individual or the profession as a whole, is a monstrous charge. It is a contaminant for which there is no remedy. It is the loudest of bells that cannot be unrung.
In today’s fast paced, short attention span, give-me-the-salacious-and-move-on media world, an accuser requires no tangible proof to levy a charge of racism. They need only an innuendo, an allusion, an agenda, a target.
Sadly, and unfairly, once the accusation of racism is declared, the recipient is burdened with disproving the repulsive negative. But of course, they can’t as it is virtually impossible to prove something does not exist. And even if they were eventually able to bring forth irrefutable proof, well, the media has moved on. No one cares, no one is listening. The damage, therefore, is irreparable.
Systemically over the past several years, especially after the George Floyd incident in Minneapolis, any argument defending law enforcement, any demand for due process, any request for critical thinking, is immediately met with louder screams of racism accompanied by threats of termination of employment and even physical harm.
Numerous officers, supervisors and Chiefs lost their jobs without a trace of fairness or due process after an incident went viral.
Appease the supposed virtuous throngs was the goal, no matter the facts.
And cops and police bosses around the country quickly got the message, so they reacted.
How?
By doing two things.
Shutting up and shutting down.
Too many police bosses refused to fight the fight and defend their officers and agencies as it would present a danger to their own employment. Swimming against the proverbial social justice current was next to impossible, so they simply allowed themselves to be swept along with it.
For the cops, many gave thee public what they believed the public wanted from them; nothing.
There is truth of which all cops are well aware, and it is this: Police officers almost never get fired for doing nothing. They only get fired for doing something. In some agencies, being lazy is preferred over being aggressive.
Police departments don’t fire lazy cops. If officers show up on time, in uniform, drive to their respective patrol beats and answer 911 calls, their jobs are safe and secure. The risk is when they become proactive. The more active they are the more opportunities for citizen complaints.
The math is simple, do and risk, do nothing and be safe.
Recently an officer told me the rallying cry in his agency is, “Save your pension!”
And what has been the result of cops shutting down?
Crime exploded. Violent crime especially. Murder rates are near record highs. Citizens are afraid. Lifestyles are changing.
How the Terrorist Attack on Israel has Pulled Back the Curtain
What is astounding right now, this minute, yesterday, today and I’m sure even more tomorrow, is how many people—the very same people who have denounced the entire law enforcement profession as systemically racist—are openly broadcasting their own egregious racist views. And remarkably, defending themselves while proclaiming that they are the ones holding the high ground of morality with free speech as their constitutional right.
An assistant professor in American studies at the University of California, Davis, Jemma Decristo, three days after Hamas terrorists murdered, raped, and beheaded innocents and infants in Israel, posted this message on X (formerly Twitter):
“[One] group of ppl we have easy access to in the US is all these Zionist journalists who spread propaganda & misinformation. They have houses w addresses, kids in school. They can fear their bosses, but they should fear us more.”
She included a knife, an axe and a blood-drop emoji.
Veiled threat? I don’t think so but, Decristo still has her job.
Free speech.
Grant Napear, 60, lost his longtime Sacramento Kings broadcast gig and was fired by KTHK Sports 1140 after he tweeted “ALL LIVES MATTER” when asked for his opinion on the Black Lives Matter movement.
“All lives matter” became a de facto racist phrase. Using it was dangerous for your professional life. Proof you held racist views.
If a police officer said it, they risked their career.
But a week ago Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., at a rally calling for a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza declared for the crowd and other politicians nodding behind her in agreement that “all lives do matter.”
“I hope and pray that when we exit this crisis, we will be able to say resoundingly, yes, we did enough because we spoke through the noise, and we stood firmly in our belief that all lives do matter — as they said when it was our turn — and that each and every one of them is precious.”
No outcry of racism followed.
Free Speech for Me, Not for Thee
Cornell Professor Russell Rickford publicly described the Hamas attacks as “exhilarating” and “energizing” at a rally…
…and he is still employed.
Basking in the glow of vile atrocities is not racist rhetoric. I’s simply, free speech.
College campuses are rife with antisemitic protest rallies. Hamas flags, not just Palestinian flags, have been carried by protesters in NYC.
“It’s free speech” those defending the protesters cry. The foundation of this country.
But the Blue Line Flag?? A symbol that is revered by law enforcement?
“No, that has to be shelved, put away, taken from sight! It’s been co-opted by right wing activists. The very viewing of it offends and causes some to feel unsafe and uncomfortable. Take it away, take it away.”
So, the Blue Line Flag that represents those risking their lives daily, has to be eliminated because less than 1/10th of one percent of the population may have their feelings hurt, but the display of a genocidal terrorist group needs be protected no matter how much anxiety and fear it instills in people because, well, free speech.
Multiple professors, politicians, artists, actors and activists have blamed Israel and excused the Hamas massacre, which is again, the rape, torture and murder of everyone from octogenarians to infant children. But little to nothing of consequence has happened to them. In fact, many in the Hollywood sect are afraid to come out in support of Israel. Afraid for their careers, their influencing, and their lives.
Again, why talk about this insanity in my column about the police?
It’s the double standard.
Many who condemn Israel and support Hamas are splitting hairs when they say their rhetoric is directed at the Israeli government and not Jewish people in general. Yet they support Hamas who has a stated goal of wiping out the existence of Israel!
How many people defended the police, in general, after witnessing Derek Chauvin pinning George Floyd to the ground with his knee? Who pointed out that even the police were disgusted at what they saw, and the majority of police are great people risking their lives in an effort to save the lives of strangers?
Anyone within that same community, actors, artists, activists, politicians?
Few, if any. And zero at first.
For any defense of the one million honorable police officers was loudly and angrily condemned!
“It’s not one bad cop, the whole barrel is bad! Defund! Abolish the police!”
In June of 2020, The New York Times ran a headline that read, “Yes We Mean Literally, Abolish the Police!”
Conclusion: Self Examination
Law enforcement should get a lot of credit, not only for their collective patience over the past several years, but for their ability to look inside and examine what they are doing right and what they are doing wrong.
I catch grief every now and then for being a police apologist. I’ve even gotten some nasty comments from relatives, distant relatives, so I don’t really care, about my bias towards the police. And while I do admit openly and proudly that I defend this noble profession, I also very often in my articles, and certainly in all of our seminars, establish, through analysis, the problems that are actually prevalent in law enforcement. Problems that need be addressed.
One of our most popular Seminars is titled, Legally Justified, But Was it Avoidable? In it we analyze police shootings and ask honestly if the officers contributed to the need to use justifiable force or missed opportunities to mitigate the need to use force. We literally view over 30 video clips and discuss each of them and the officer’s pre-shooting tactics and communication skills.
We address our systemic shortcomings in our Leadership Seminars. We have multiple courses on how to communicate realistically and effectively on the street establishing that law enforcement is a people profession and understanding human behavior is the most important of skills (Reading People, as well as Deescalation & Intervention, and How to Predict Violence and Influence Outcomes to name a few).
The point is the work is being done on the part of law enforcement.
But the upheaval in American society is as dangerous as I’ve ever seen in my lifetime.
Rules seem to be out the window.
Crimes are excused and criminals are coddled as though they are the victims.
True victims are too often ignored or treated as though they deserve their victimization.
Hypocrisy is rampant and searingly evident in the highest offices of our government.
Pointing fingers and refusing to take responsibility is on full display in our Nation’s Capital on both sides of the aisle.
This has caused a fracturing of the legal structure.
Herein lies a major problem. If there are no consistencies in parameters, structure, laws, free speech, etc., the division in this country will only further widen and the weakest will be the ones at risk. They will be the ones in danger, becoming prey for the powerful and sociopathic criminals.
Chaos will ensue.
And the burden will fall on the police. The very profession demonized by those with platformed voices. And it’s already happening. Some of the same politicians who demanded “defunding” have become victims of crimes and what do they ask?
“Where are the police?!”
But, in many ways, certainly in some cities, the police have been weakened. Confused about what they can and should be doing.
I guarantee that is a fact!
It’s going to get worse.
After 9/11 the police were looked at for safety and security. “This can never happen again!” was the hue and cry from all in government.
But today, the proverbial wolves are at the door. In fact, we opened it for them and invited them in.
While we are a welcoming nation, many who have allegiance to the same groups that cheer the slaughter of innocents in Israel are being caught daily coming across our southern and northern borders.
Now what? Is it too late?
We have to find a commonsense balance in this country on many levels and come together at least for the purpose of safety and security.
Leadership is the key. The question is; do we have any leaders?
A lady asked Benjamin Franklin after the Constitutional Convention in 1787, “Well, Doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” Franklin purportedly replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS? Editor@calibrepress.com
As usual. Jim nailed it!
It’s 100% true. Do nothing and nothing bad happens to you. Do something and your chain of command will throw you out like a pile of garbage. Welcome to policing in 2023. Cops are figuring it out. Doing nothing is the only viable option. The public hate you and your admin staff in your department don’t care about you. Think about that when you are about to make that stop or talk to that suspicious person…and then smile and wave and drive away.
The double standard this article speaks of exists but as a profession, it is ours of our making to some degree. Let’s have this talk on a micro-scale while I peel back the band-aid on Compstat and stop & frisk. Both of these tools were instrumental in policing a city, (New York) for the 31 years that I and an exceptional cadre of officers policed and did so during a time where the criminal element had a vice grip on its habitants. I served during a time where there were routinely 2500 plus/minus homicides a year and 12-15 homicides of police officers from the NYPD for almost the first 12 years of my employment dating back to 1987 and likely existed before then as well. We took gentlemen’s bets on what Precinct would record the first homicide for the year. Under Jack Maple and William J. Bratton, our Commissioner, Compstat was born. Skipping to the end, Compstat enabled us to focus and target our enforcement activities to carefully plotted and identified areas of concern where criminal activity was occurring. Stop & Frisk although having existed before Compstat, became both the hammer and the anvil used or misused against the public we were supposed to police and protect. Every Captain wanted to be an Inspector and every Inspector wanted to be a Chief and you don’t get there by not being a crime fighter or by not dispatching those to do you bidding. No Precinct Commander ever wanted to go to Compstat unprepared and or unable to answer for high crime numbers without the benefit of having taken a good report, made some focused arrests and without the benefit of having produced substantive Stop & Frisk reports to demonstrate that the police were in town seeking out bad guys. Many commanding officers have been called on the carpet for not having had their people produce enough “touches” (Stop & Frisks) or made enough arrests to drive down their crime numbers and were publicly humiliated during this meeting in front of their peers and or removed from command sometimes transferred to unceremonious commands, and given “highway therapy.” The end result were a few shaky senior police supervisors leaning on their junior supervisors and officers to produce numbers that may have been inconsistent with the amount of criminality being chased down. I say this with assuredness as i used to perform the quality control inspection for these reports. Some officers were preparing these reports not for crimes or for reasons of probable cause based on their observations or complaints from the public but for the sake of producing expected and sought after results. This was problem one. The other problem short and sweet is the need to safeguard against those in our employ who may have held beliefs that were not congruent with the expectations of the public that prevented us as a whole to effectively and adequately enforce the law, protect the public and do so without and or in spite of any held or perceived prejudices or lack of empathy. My training Sergeants Rodriguez and Sarocco always hammered home that today’s perp can very well be tomorrow’s victim and as such must be treated amicably. Aggressively moving away from that concept as we did, albeit in an effort to promote safety in our communities, has caused consternation within the very public we sought to defend and protect. A lack of sensitivity to the history of treatment against all persons of color coupled with the over policing or our communities have caused an aura of mistrust of the police. A need to weed out those who would misrepresent our collective desire to do the right thing in our service to our communities is real and needs to be done. We need to police ourselves before we go out and police others. That’s the job… Full stop!
It’s weird to read this. I’ve never been to New York and certainly never been the police there but you couldn’t be any more wrong about policing where I am from. Either you are an anti police activist or New York has problems I can’t understand.
Bravo! Nicely summarized and detailed. We need only look to the economic problems of the city of San Francisco (recent budget cuts ordered) to see the consequences of many prevailing “crime” and social control policies.
Jim, its nice to be your own boss. But for some of us still working, just keep things to your self and keep moving. But in a few more years, I will be retired and looking for a new job. I think that you would be someone I would like to work for. I will submit my resume in time.
Very well articulated by a man who has a complete understanding of the truth and what is really going on. One thing in particular that you said is absolutely true: it’s going to get worse. There is a much deeper and broader evil infecting the country, however. The roots of many of the ills we are experiencing are connected in a very calculated and coordinated effort. Media bias and misinformation, the fueling of racial division and hatred, vilification and a push to abolish law enforcement, celebration of violence and the elevation of criminals, open borders, billions of dollars and military weaponry provided to sponsors of terrorists. I encourage you to see Mark Levin’s piece titled ‘This is the full story on the infiltration of America’ and also Charles Love’s book, ‘Race Crazy’. This insanity must be stopped while we still have a country to save.
Awesome article! Wonderful summation of what our profession is experiencing daily. Mr. Jim Glennon for President!
If it weren’t for double standards, the left wouldn’t have any at all.
You hit the nail on the head again. I remember the insane vitriol coming from many back when George Floyd happened. I had the “audacity” to point out at the very start that the simple facts of the video do not prove racism in any way. What they seemed to show was gross incompetence and negligence which would be just as egregious regardless of who was lying on the ground. So many people, even people whom I respect and previously thought were smarter than to make massive jumps to conclusions at the outset of an event, were screaming at me. For simply stating that the evidence did not prove any sort of racism and that we should reserve judgement until all the facts are known, I was verbally attacked.
All of this definitely shows that we should not give a fraction of an inch to the woke lunatics and should boldly push back against them at every turn. Appeasing them has never and will never work, because they’re insane. We should instead expose their lunacy for what it is and destroy their pathetically weak arguments with truth and facts every chance we get.
Great article….. things today are not exactly the best. But, I have to say this, if we as police do nothing, then we condone the actions of those we complain about. I strongly believe that our society will fall when the good do nothing to protect it. I understand everyone’s fears (they are justified), we have a lot to lose, but I would like to think that we all knew this when we answered the calling to be the protectors of our communities. This might be the Pollyanna view, but I refuse to give up on what we represent. We have to continue to be proactive or we risk losing a whole generation of young people to take our place. We have to show them that protecting our community and homes means something.
I know a lot of officers who say they would not recommend this job to family and friends. I understand but I cannot agree with this thinking. Ours is an honorable profession and I am very proud to still be a part of it (28 1/2 years and still counting). We must hold the line, especially leadership. Speak up and teach our communities about who and what we are. We are fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, and friends. We are a part of the community, they need to know this. We are not there to hurt them but stop those that are trying to harm them. We must also police ourselves. We have to get rid of the bad officers. I am constantly telling our young officers – the attitudes they get from someone is a result of an interaction from a previous officer. If the interaction was good, then we for the most part will get cooperation, if the interaction was bad, then we get those who will fight us.
Bottom line, there is no easy solution, but I can say this without any hesitation, we cannot give up!!!!! Please be safe my brothers and sisters…………….
You must be in an admin position. Those of us out on the street see things for how they really are. The cops on the street have zero support in most areas. The cops on the street see it and are shutting down. Shutting down is safe. The admin of agencies and the elected officials will throw you out if you do anything proactive. Smile and wave…that’s how you get to retirement. Or you move into an admin position. Admin types hide from the real work and tell everyone else they need to be motivated and take bad people to jail. They aren’t leading from the front…they are trying to push from the rear. The cops on the street see it and that’s how they can do smile and wave policing. The admin types aren’t out there making sure the cops are working so it’s easy to smile and wave.
Smile and wave and get to retirement….and tell your kids to do something, anything else.
You must be in an admin position. Those of us out on the street see things for how they really are. The cops on the street have zero support in most areas. The cops on the street see it and are shutting down. Shutting down is safe. The admin of agencies and the elected officials will throw you out if you do anything proactive. Smile and wave…that’s how you get to retirement. Or you move into an admin position. Admin types hide from the real work and tell everyone else they need to be motivated and take bad people to jail. They aren’t leading from the front…they are trying to push from the rear. The cops on the street see it and that’s how they can do smile and wave policing. The admin types aren’t out there making sure the cops are working so it’s easy to smile and wave.
Smile and wave and get to retirement….and tell your kids to do something, anything else.
Well done once again Jim, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”. Thanks for continually addressing these kinds of major topics so close to our profession.
I hesitated in writing this response, but I believe the following paragraph is the crux of Jim’s excellent article: “Herein lies a major problem. If there are no consistencies in parameters, structure, laws, free speech, etc., the division in this country will only further widen and the weakest will be the ones at risk. They will be the ones in danger, becoming prey for the powerful and sociopathic criminals.”
The police are but one piece of the larger openly-stated mission of globalist manipulation and control of western society [think World Economic Forum, et al – which has “penetrated 50% of the Canadian government cabinet” (and elsewhere) according to its leader Klaus Schwab!]. While efforts across the western world at the highest “political levels” seek to disarm the citizenry, to incrementally pass censorship legislation (and apply it selectively), to gradually legislate consumer choice away from “carbon-producing” products [i.e., everyone must drive an electric car by certain dates (to be followed by electric heat, cooking appliances, etc.)], to force medical “choices” on the citizenry (directly or via economic blackmail, social scorn, etc.), to manipulate food choices, to confine people to geographic sectors, etc.
The neutering of the police is an important piece. The fact that cops have seemingly been conditioned (and it only took a little more than a decade – since: “the cops acted stupidly”; “hands-up, don’t shoot”; and, “I can’t breathe”) to understand that it’s best to do nothing (or the absolute, bare minimum) in order to (hopefully) make it safely to “pension-life”, opens the door for brazen violent crime, economic crime, etc., and amounts to a successful tick in the “policing box” for the globalist elites – whom, again, have openly-stated that they want the plebes to “own nothing and be happy”. Rampant crime, division, a law enforcement system that has been programmed to refrain from performing its function (and even if it occasionally does, the “system” will remedy this) are all part of the plan.
Yes, we do desperately need leadership – at the highest levels in North America, and across western Europe. Different than the “leadership” we have been witness to for the past decade-plus. We have lost our way – on so many levels. But we also need leadership at the grassroots level. We need cops to step up and demonstrate that the bare minimum does not work – it is clearly dangerous. We need supervisors to support them. We need management to support everything below them. And ultimately, we need the navel-gazing public to “snap out of it”, to find their courage, and to find the path of a functioning moral compass. Because if the cops simply “let go of the rope”, we will no longer have any safety or security – it will soon become a “Road Warrior” world. And, make no mistake, we are going to be tested on the safety and security fronts sooner than anyone is currently psychologically, emotionally, physically, strategically, or tactically ready for.
“Every society gets the kind of criminal it deserves. What is equally true is that every community gets the kind of law enforcement it
insists on.” – Robert F. Kennedy
Policing is political. To become a Chief of Police, you must be a politician to get the job and to keep it. There are some very good Chiefs that don’t throw their officers under the bus when they make a mistake. I’ve worked for a few, so I know they exist. I’ve also worked for a chief who was vindictive and would have fired me had there not been civil service. (Full disclosure, in retrospect, I was not an easy officer to supervise, I could have been more tactful when voicing my opinions.)
We are headed into a very dark time if the current trends continue. This is not new in the history of the world. I would recommend that officers read, “Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland” by Christopher Browning. “Ordinary Men” tells of the officers who just went along with the genocide of Jews. We are not immune from this evil behavior.
Yes, there is a double standard when it comes to free speech and racism. Unfortunately, Mr. Glennon doesn’t seem to have a sense of irony.
I am NOT defending the New York Times columnist Soliman Hijjy. I abhor Nazi ideology.
The irony is that the New York Times, a newspaper viewed as left leaning, is being called out in Calibre Press, but Fox News, an unapologetically right-wing entertainment company, is not.
Why didn’t I just call Fox a news organization? Because it isn’t. It uses the word news in its name, but it has a couple of news programs in an entertainment network. Look at its programming, opinion shows are the bulk of the lineup, but hard news is almost non-existent. Further, Fox’s highest profile shows, and entertainers work for the entertainment division.
As far as racism goes. Former host Tucker Carlson is the poster boy for white nationalism. The rest of their “talent” is hardly better.
The difference from Calibre Press is that in law enforcement we are generally conservative politically and many of us watch Fox. I don’t know Mr. Glennon’s politics or TV habits.
Mr. Glennon goes on to write about statements made by politicians and other public figures. Skipping over Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R) assertion that wildfires in California were started by “Jewish space lasers”.
Yes, there is a double standard. The irony is neither left nor right get it.