Honoring a man's memory brings out the best----and worst----in us

To think that this all started over an arrest for allegedly passing a counterfeit bill.

George Floyd, arrested on said charge on Monday, never made it to jail for booking. Instead, one of the arresting officers suffocated him to death, using his knee to apply undue pressure on Floyd's throat for nearly 10 minutes. Floyd's last words, saying he couldn't breathe, brought back the horrid memories of Eric Garner just a few years ago. Garner, you'll recall, was choked to death by a police officer.

The four officers in the case, as previously noted, were all terminated from their jobs Tuesday. The one officer directly responsible for Floyd's death was arrested Thursday. But that isn't even enough to quell the growing mobs, not only in Minneapolis, but across the country.

There have been reports of violent protests in New York & Los Angeles and elsewhere.

This is spiraling out of control. There are reports that, with little evidence to support the claims, left-wing groups are in part responsible for the out-of-control protests, accompanied in some places by looting, a crime of opportunity.

It has been said that there was a chance Floyd didn't know the money he had Monday was counterfeit, but there's been little or no follow-up. Instead, the issue is that he was killed by a police officer using unnecessary and excessive restraint. If you handcuff him, hands behind the back, as officers are taught, and the knee is on the back, then there's no issue.

While athletes and celebrities, including Grammy & Oscar winner Jamie Foxx, are supporting the peaceful protests, it is the rabble rousers who are getting the attention, raising the ire of President Trump and other officials. There is no need to burn the city down in Minneapolis, New York, or in parts of Los Angeles. That only makes the situation worse than it already is.

Prior to the start of the main card last night on ESPN, UFC posted a memorial photo of Floyd. Yes, Eric Garner's name has been mentioned in the narrative since Floyd's death. So has Rodney King, who was gang-assaulted by Los Angeles police some 30-odd years ago. We all know what happened in 1992. Riots in Los Angeles. It got to the point where rapper-actor Ice Cube cancelled an appearance on Good Morning America because he was tired of talking about things like this. Can you blame him?

There are those of us who pray and mourn for the family of George Floyd, who was denied due process of law, at the cost of his life, just because one officer overstepped his authority. And, then, there are those who think answering violence with violence is the only answer. It isn't. It never has been. It only makes matters worse. And it's going to get worse before it gets better.