Please read these two articles:
1. Taibbi has a good nose for BS and the rot underlying received wisdom. If you feel uncomfortable with cop-blaming, focus on the parts of this article that cover the statistical flim-flammery that’s been inflicted on the police by city politicians and the legal trickery used to con people who are arrested out of their rights to redress. This stuff doesn’t help the police stay safe and do their jobs any more than it helps the communities they’re serving.
2. Taibbi’s coverage of financial market mayhem in 2009 was influential. And there’s the Kwak article. Which isn’t as satisfying but illustrates the lack of effort being made to punish Taibbi’s “vampire squids.”
3. I understand that a “Wire” reference is obligatory in any commentary about Baltimore and policing, but somehow it also wound up in the Kwak article.
4. Speaking of which, reading Terrell Starr reminds me to point out that “The Wire” was not a documentary. Matt Taibbi is a good reporter but he’s not telling the story from the inside either. Not that he has to be, but it would be nice if major media outlets were hiring more people who could.
Salary Mom Chronicles 