Mark and Patricia McCloskey are “Ken and Karen.” They were the white people in St. Louis who stormed out of their palatial mansion to threaten Black Lives Matter protesters. The McCloskeys were armed – he carried an AR-15 assault weapon and she carried a handgun. They pointed their guns at each other, at BLM protesters and anything else they saw. It’s actually kind of a miracle that no one got shot. The McCloskeys were quickly identified on social media, but that didn’t stop “Ken and Karen” from trending for much of Sunday and Monday. And with that kind of heat comes misinformation, because of course. I avoided writing a follow-up on this unhinged couple because of the misinformation. People (dumbasses) were screeching that the McCloskeys are Democrats and that BLM activists had broken into the McCloskeys’ home and everything was completely justified.
For what it’s worth, Snopes did look into the FEC filings and found that Mark McCloskey has donated to some Democrats over the years, but the bulk of his political contributions were to Republicans, and he donated exclusively to Republicans since 2012, and he’s a big Donald Trump supporter. Which explains why he and his lawyer chose to appear on white supremacist douchebag Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show to tell the his side of things.
A white St. Louis lawyer who quickly rose to internet fame this week after he pulled an AR-15 on Black Lives Matter protesters marching near his house told Fox News’ Tucker Carlson on Tuesday night he couldn’t possibly be racist because his Black clients love him.
Appearing on Tucker Carlson Tonight alongside his lawyer Albert Watkins—whose bio is jaw-dropping—McCloskey was asked by Carlson to tell his “own story rather than have it told for you by ideologues.” According to the personal injury attorney, he saw a “flood of people” smash through the iron gate of their private street, claiming they were “angry and screaming—they have spittle coming out of their mouth” and were advancing on his house.
Noting that he immediately thought of the violent St. Louis protest on June 2 that resulted in the murder of a retired St. Louis police captain, McCloskey reiterated that he felt they would be “overrun in a second” by the “mob” and decided to get his gun at that point. “I have a low wall that separates the house from my front yard,” he added. “And so I was literally afraid that within seconds they would surmount the wall and come into the house, kill us, burn the house down and everything that I had worked for and struggled for for the last 32 years.”
After McCloskey called himself an “urban pioneer” for moving into the city years ago, Carlson asked the homeowner what he thought about those criticizing him for being a racist.
“I don’t understand. Here’s the interesting thing, I spent my career defending people that are defenseless, for people having a hard time making their miracle happen, for people who don’t have a voice,” he declared. “My Black clients love us! And the night that this happened, I had some of our Black clients calling us up at 2:30 a.m. telling us how wrong this was the way the press was writing this up. I help people that are down or that need a hand and people that need a voice. To call us racist is ridiculous and it had nothing to do with race. I wasn’t worried what the race was for the mob that came through my gate, I was worried that I was going to be killed. I didn’t care what race they were.”
Carlson concluded the interview by asking Watkins whether he was worried that his client would be prosecuted by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, who has launched a probe into the couple. “Given the fact that we have a political animal in the attorney’s office, there is a risk,” Watkins stated. “If the law prevails, long-standing Missouri law prevails, they are fine.”
Kim Gardner is black. Just in case you thought it was odd or racist that Mark McCloskey is calling a woman an “animal,” you were right. I’m sure the McCloskeys are worried about possibly being charged with a crime, but I also think that their white privilege – the same privilege which gave them the confidence to stand in their lawn and threaten to shoot entirely peaceful protesters – will give them the opportunity to “explain” their actions to all of the Tucker Carlsons of the world. It doesn’t matter that all of the BLM protesters who were on the site said that they weren’t doing anything violent. It will be enough that Mark McCloskey says he FELT threatened. By the presence of black people in his neighborhood. That’s all it was.
Tucker Carlson segment with Mark McCloskey who defended his home in St. Louis with a firearm after protesters trespassed in his neighborhood:
"I did what I thought I had to do to protect my home and my family." pic.twitter.com/cIskEHKS6H
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) July 1, 2020
This is Mark and Patricia McCloskey, lawyers in St Louis, reacting to protesters walking by their home by pointing guns and threatening them.
This is illegal, antagonistic, and racist.
Why hasn’t the @SLMPD charged them?
If they were Black, arrests would’ve already been made. pic.twitter.com/C0uMhksVtv
— Bishop Talbert Swan (@TalbertSwan) June 29, 2020
Photos courtesy of social media.
I went on a hike and was very afraid of the cliff. So I stood as close to the ledge barefoot screaming and whipped out a Bazooka and faced it towards the cliff because that’s what you do when you’re afraid… Or what they’re saying is absolute horse shit. If you were afraid you would have stayed inside. Like Trump in his bunker.
OMG!! I cannot stop laughing at your comment!! Thank you for posting it!! 😂😂😂😂
lol. sometimes i love the comments so much!
I was thinking the same thing: If they’re SOOOOOO scared, WTF DID THEY COME OUT OF THE HOUSE? Why not stay in, go down to the basement? Lock doors/windows??
They just more republiTHUG Karens and Kens. I hope they get the book thrown at them: anything that CAN be charged SHOULD be charged. Sadly, in MO., I don’t think that will happen.
Comment of the week
I believe these people are terrified. I’m not surprised to find they’re Carlson viewers. He’s a white supremacist fear monger. And it works. I know white people who are terrified out of their minds. It wasn’t long ago they were terrified of “the terrorists”. Some thought they were hiding out in suburban parking lots hoping to nab someone to behead. I’m not making this up. Now, Tucker told them to be terrified of BLM (read; all black people) and they are. I mean, they were already racist as 2020 is long, so it wasn’t hard for him to do.
Darla is right. If these racist MAGoTS lived in my town they would be throwing them a parade for their “courage” to stand up to their fear.. even as idiotic as that sounds. 911 brought out the Muslim fear/hate in KS (Trump reinstalled it). Trump & his band of racist mouthpieces incites fear and hate against BLM (-all black people) and Antifa (anyone not a Republican or Not a Trump Lover..aka can’t be a Republican then). This guy and his Racist attorney knew going on Carlson would cause a stir with the base they were hoping would rally to their defense. Like a call to arms. I have watched on FB for weeks now where quite a few locals are going to meet The Patriots & 2 other biker gangs in Seattle and take back the territory (6 blocks) because the liberal do nothing mayor and Governor won’t (their actual events page states this). There has been so many posts regarding the huge fireworks show. (Guns blazing) and how they are going to take them out.. a real blood bath (Actual description kn posts). Yet FB has let these posts stand. These people knew exactly who they were calling out to when going on Tucker & FOX. The kind of idiots that are cheering for a race war in the streets. God help us all.
OMG… so true. My brother in small town south was worried about terrorists at his local Walmart. I laughed out loud.
did he come out of the house and have words with someone then go back in to get the gun? I was under the impression they both came out of the house with their guns and pointing them
she definitely needs a gun safety class
I mean, I believe these two morons were afraid for their lives – look at the way they’re holding the firearms. They’re absolutely 1 step away from bursting into tears. The ridiculous thing is that had they not made such a show they’d have probably been ignored by the protestors.
MO has ridiculously lax gun laws. They don’t even have an age limit on open carry. The only thing that they seem to be against is brandishing the gun in a violent manner. But it’s just going to be argued that they were scared for their property and lives and they reacted in a way to protect their property. It’s a load of crock, but that’s what will almost definitely happen. Where this was a private street rather than a public street, I’d imagine that would play into it more. Personally, I don’t think these two should even own a paintball gun at this point – they could have killed each other multiple times during their little standoff. The only thing I could see MAYBE causing them trouble is the report that people broke down the gate to get in when there is video of people just waltzing in beside the intact gate.
They literally look like this is the first time they have ever held guns. I mean, she’s waving the pistol around like it’s a flag.
they claim it’s the 2nd time, the first time they pulled a gun on their neighbor for cutting across their lawn (they are now friends with that neighbor)
It is illegal in my state.
S.C. Code § 16-23-410. It is unlawful for a person to present or point at another person a loaded or unloaded firearm. A person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be fined in the discretion of the court or imprisoned not more than five years.
So tired of the “I have black friends (clients) so I can’t be racist” excuse. Obviously no one else felt threatened by the protesters. And as Teresa, above said, they could have stayed in their home. If something happened the police could have been called. Pretty sure the police knew there were protests going on there. And if they were so afraid why did they not call the police. Hope they lose a lot of business because of this.
I like how he quotes Bill Murray in the movie “Scrooged” “having trouble making their miracle happen” speech in the end when he realizes what a douche he has been. Cute movie….ruined now because of this scene poaching douchebag.
He doesn’t represent these people for free & by the looks of his tacky McMansion he overcharges. He was probably fearful people he had represented were back for refunds. They were brandishing & in MO & St. Louis THAT is a crime. As a lawyer he know this which is why he is on his explanation apologist tour
What exactly is an urban pioneer?
Is “black clients love me!!!!!!” the new “I have a black friend?”
Something tells me their “black clients” do not love them.
God knows. He was a gentrifier before it was cool?
This. He “braved” the dirty, scary city to endure living in a historic mansion.
Especially when they live in a gated community and build themselves a wannabe manor. Totally the “urban life”, right?!
@Arpeggi More like a wannabe plantation.
The house they live in is a historic mansion, build by August Busch. It is a legit mansion, and after purchasing it in less-than-stellar condition 30 years ago, the McCloskey’s restored it to its original glory. The folks are a-holes, but this house is… something else. Here is an article with photos of the home.
https://www.stlmag.com/design/a-decades-long-renovation-returns-a-midwestern-palazzo-to-it/
@Noodle. Sorry but the concept of a “Midwestern Renaissance palazzo” still sounds dumb to me, even if it was built in the early 1900s (aka 400 years after Renaissance). Yes, it’s a very well done reproduction of different eras, but I think that part of having taste is to try to build something that fits your time and place and not feeling that it needs to look like 1600’s Tuscany to show your taste/education; there’s something very nouveau riche about it.
I love this comment at the end…What a couple of a-holes.
And then there’s the matter of the original stove…a very, very large stove.
“There’s a place in California that will restore it,” Patty says. “But we haven’t found anyone willing to carry it out of the basement!” Mark adds. “They need to get a crane down there,” Patty says with a sigh, “but they can’t quite yet figure out how to do that. Some things are just…difficult.”
Yes Karen, some things are just… difficult.
They are urban pioneers in the sense that very few native St. Louisans live on the private streets of Portland & Westmoreland Place.
The reason is because one block away the neighborhood is very dangerous, with boarded up buildings, open drug-dealing and prostitution and children (up to 15 this year so far) murdered in broad daylight.
So these historical homes are great bargains and tend to be purchased by transplants.
The bit about his Black clients calling him in the middle of the night has shades of Trump to it. “Big, strong men with tears in their eyes, saying Sir, thank you for allowing the country to say ‘Merry Christmas’ again!”
Yeahhhhhh I’d like to see some proof on that 2:30 phone call.
Why would a client call your home at 2:30am ?? That sounds like crap. Also convenient that he can’t release the name of those clients for proof due to client/attorney privilege.
Whatever it means this Central West End neighborhood has always been the most expensive in St Louis city. It borders Forest Park and the Missouri History museum if you have ever been to town. All mansions and quite beautiful. This is the neighborhood where the Judy Garland movie Meet Me in St Louis was set.
In the early 80’s the Central West End area was very gay friendly. I remember streets blocked off for the Halloween celebrations, hip resale, make up and record stores. My friend’s parents live in one of the homes off of Goodfellow. The Historical Museum and further south Shaws Garden are my favorite places to visit.
I know that calling the police on people of color is inherently dangerous for the ones being called about… but what made this couple decide that calling the police on trespassers (which it doesn’t sound like protestors were actually ON their property) would be a worse idea than walking outside their house with an arsenal of guns? I am scratching my head.
the gated community, including the streets in it, are private property so the protesters were trespassing but they didn’t go on to the McCloskey’s lawn or toward their house (I think the wife may have walked out to the sidewalk while pointing her gun)
I heard that the gates were open so not sure if they were trespassing if they were on the street. It was common for the gates to be left open. I would like to see evidence of them crashing thru the gates as they claim.
Lawl I don’t think the BLM movement is the in the business of burning down residents homes but go ken. Gather those sympathy points from other moronic people 🙂
Ugh. My husband and I got in a big fight about this last night. So much that I was googling “should I divorce my republican husband”.
I did! (He was a MAGA idiot and didn’t know it until well after we married when Trump decided to run.) I don’t think I’ve ever made a better decision in my life to do so. I hope you don’t have to because divorce sucks! Wish you the best 🙂
Sure sure. And you should have added if you were black you would have been shot for being confrontational and then of course they would add that you were non-cooperative. Nah…maybe just wield a brush or mobile phone while black, same outcome.
I hope fellow black and poc Americans take steps to protect themselves. These people are whipping guns out on us in broad daylight. This video is the not the first instance I’ve see this year or even this week. Please stay safe.
Ken and “his attorney” also appeared on Chris Cuomo for like 2 minutes in what looked like an attempt to get ahead of Missouri bar sanctions. The smarm was real. He tried to use the fatal shooting of a retired black St. Louis police captain, David Dorn, during riots a few weeks ago to justify himself. A-hole.
The wife looked like the The Hamburglar. Also their house is gauche.
I agree, very nouveau riche.
The house has historical significance and is on the National Registrar of Historical Places. It was built by August Busch for his daughter as a wedding present in the 1800s.
The house is right on one side of the Delmar Divide, an artery that divides a wealthy community from a district where houses are redlined. There’s poverty within shouting distance of this “Historic place.” St. Louis is notorious among modern urban planners for the private streets that rich people still think are privaye. Only one reason to keep this arrangement, which is racism, and that is the historic aspect of this neighborhood. Not the fancy-tacky houses.
Marjorie I live in neighborhood like this in a rust belt city. Historically and architecturally significant homes, some still sitting on 2-4 acre lots, just a couple of blocks away from urban blight. The divide is stark, and our city is one of the most segregated in the country. One of the reasons I chose to live where I do is so my kids could attend an integrated school (I’m mixed race, my husband is white). The people in the mansions all chose private schools but the public school is one of the few that is racially and economically diverse. A mile in one direction and the school would be all poor and all minority. The other direction all white and all wealthy. There are a couple that are racially diverse but all poor. And the affordable houses in my neighborhood are starting to increase in price so much that soon I’m afraid the diversity will be lost. My son will buy a house in the next few years and wants diversity but doesn’t want to contribute to gentrification. The housing issue is such a tough nut to crack.
It’s not even a political issue, who gives a crap if he’s a democrat. Racism is a human rights issue.
Lately when I’m calling out racists on my town Facebook page they respond by immediately trashing Biden, as if this somehow defends them in their racism. I always point out that I haven’t stated that I’m a democrat and that Biden has nothing to do with the conversation, and ask them to stay on topic about the RACISM Im calling them out for.
They can’t. They just have knee-jerk talking point anti-Dem reactions. They can’t defend racism with logic or civil discourse (of course) so they have the straw man “Dems” to start going in on.
It’s not about parties. It’s about human rights. People are daft and evil at the same time!
That type of thinking/knee jerk emoting has been going on for years.
I’ve got some friends who lean right and used to watch Fox News (I don’t think they do anymore) I remember being over their house for a small cookout, and the subjects of health care and immigration came up. I’d ask a question like “setting aside the politicians for a minute, what do you think a good approach to immigration/managing the country’s borders would be” or “what do you think about how health care, health insurance is managed in the US?” and they could not for the life of them talk about those subjects for more than 30 seconds without devolving into name calling of Obama and Sec Clinton or some other Democratic politician.
It was like they were unable to think about policy, or how they think things should be or what would work for them (she’s in higher ed, he runs his own manufacturing business with clients worldwide) it was all emotions and OBAMA IS EVIIILL!
I was purposely trying to avoid the partisan talking points because I knew that we tended to come down on different sides of issues. But they’re smart people, and I was genuinely curious how they thought things should work. And from comments here and there, I suspected there was a lot of common ground between my views and their views when it came down to actual policies and how to manage things. But we could never get to that common ground because they were too busy shooting their mouths off with name-calling like you’d hear on talk radio or Fox.
That polarization is by design. The status quo loves people who straight ticket or single issue vote because they don’t think critically about anything. They don’t support progressive or alternative platforms because it’s easier just to hit that Republic or Democratic down vote button. No research required, which of course means everything opposite becomes a monolith upon which you can project your frustration into as the Inscrutable and Incorrect Other with whom you cannot compromise.
I’m confused, did the protestors walk through the gate or break down the gate?
There is video of protesters walking through an intact gate that someone is holding open for them. There are photographs of a broken gate. The images are from different sides so it isn’t even clear that it is the same gate and there are no images of the gate being broken.
Stay off my property or I’ll shoot my wife
I had to read this 2 times, then chuckle-grunted; third reading and I’m laughing out loud!!1
I honestly didn’t think that anything about this story could make me laugh, but I was wrong. Thank you!
I LOL’ed this and the hamburgler comment above. Thanks!
I went to high school with the wife. I can only say at that time she was incredibly nice and smart. She certainly was not racist that I could tell. She is from PA and grew up middle class. That’s all I got.
Why does he get the big gun and she gets the silly little toy gun? Seems sexist.
If the protesters did in fact break down a gate to enter their private property, after watching some of the protests on tv, I think they are within their rights to arm themselves.
Now pointing the weapons at protesters who were not being menacing or threatening is another issue. But when you are in that particular situation with a huge group of people in front of you, I’m not sure rational thinking is in play at that time, they look terrified.
LOL, even if their arming themselves was justified (I *highly* doubt their version of things, for the record), their behavior is absolutely irresponsible. You don’t hold a gun with one hand, you steady it with two. You don’t put your finger on the trigger until you’re ready to shoot. And most of all, you absolutely do not point a weapon, much less a loaded one, in any direction toward people unless you have an intended target. All they did was prove to everybody they were the danger.
More importantly, a group of people smash through your front? You lock the door, call the police, and go somewhere well fortified in the house. You don’t go outside waving around a gun you clearly aren’t trained to handle, bare foot and trying to incite more violence and fear. That’s not how scared people react. That’s how irrationally racist idiots react when they want to exude a sense of power and control against a perceived threat to their dominion.
Yes, to all of this Veronica. Their version of events is a pack of lies. And they were not scared, they were pissed off that black people dared enter their racist little community.
The street and sidewalk, while private property of the gated community, is not THEIR property. And coming out of your house with a semi-automatic weapon and your finger on the trigger of a handgun should never be step one. Staying inside your gauche fortress and calling the cops is an option. Staying inside your stone mansion and minding your business is an option too.
Also, f*&k gated communities! They shouldn’t exist, they were created to make sure White people would live amongst Whites. It’s gross. The sidewalks belong to everyone
Yes Arpeggi. Tear down all the gates!
Not just that they’re white in this case – but that they’re wealthy and connected among the law community, so they’ll know how to work the system even if they are arrested. A great example of who the justice system in America serves above anybody else.
Also a great example of the kind of people who should have their gun rights revoked. If you can’t delineate between a real threat and a perceived one based on your racist ideology, you shouldn’t be trusted with a weapon. I don’t care if people own guns, but the right should be one of the easiest to revoke by law once people prove themselves incapable of utilizing it properly.
*clapping* If police can’t even figure out real threats, I’m not sure how anybody expects the common person to figure it out. I wish they’d take away guns from most people. My friend from India was saying how most people don’t have guns but those that do are so closely tracked and monitored, even to the level of knowing how many bullets they have; I thought that was a great idea. If people do have guns, limit the hell out of the bullets and have government officials tracking everything.
I watched the Cuomo interview. Well done. Screaming I’m terrified without cause, pulling out guns, (threatening behavior), is not acceptable under MO law. They are being investigated. The simple protocol, stay inside, call the police, activate the alarm, double check doors and windows are secure and cameras are activated. The McCloskey’s stated they had video and yet when asked refused to produce it. The protesters were filming. Bonnie and Clyde 🙂 are angry and feel persecuted.
Yes! Stay inside the well-fortified house and wait for law enforcement. If people break down your door and enter your home retreat to your most secure area. But, rush outside holding your big ass gun, point it at defenseless protesters and scream threats? Idiots. I sincerely hope that they both get disbarred.
Exactly.
The way that private streets work in St. Louis is different. The homeowners DO OWN the street, the sidewalk, everything. They are trustees of the street.
The protesters shouldn’t have had to face guns.
The protesters were trespassing because it is a private street.
If someone just wants to take a walk during the day, they will be asked to leave by security. It is completely private. The residents pay for everything and the city doesn’t spend a dime protecting those streets. They residents pay for private security.
Private streets within city limits should not exist. It’s designed to keep “certain people” out. Systemic racism at work.
Aaaaaand again…pointing semi-automatic weapons at people should not be your first move. Good lord.
Seeing that the city is very broke:
the public schools are among the worst in the nation, poverty and homelessness is at an all-time high, it can’t even afford to salt or plow the streets so residents stay home or walk.
St Louis City can never pick up the additional cost of maintaining these private streets.
These private streets have been private since the 1800s!
Private since slavery was legal? Sounds about white.
Missing the larger point @Whatever, but okay.
@Whatever: the city is broke because wealth isn’t distributed equally. Instead of giving some and investing it infrastructures in places where they are needed, it’s kept amongst the wealthy and has been for 200 years… How can a place not be broke when such a system exists?
@Whatever is providing some very good background on STL.
It’s not “very good background” when it is completely free of racial, historical, and political context.
Anti-Blackness and unchecked capitalism are at the core of these “funding” issues.
Just read up on this and it seems that St. Louis’ money problems started in the late 1970s – early 1980s with a very swift decline in the manufacturing employment base and one of the worst epidemics of white-flight to the suburbs in the USA.
Brandishing a loaded weapon isn’t justified by trespassing. They need to show imminent danger and they cannot. Not when all the protestors are unarmed. The lawyers should know the law better and should be charged.
Where was security then? Should they not have stopped them? Still no reason to brandish the firearms.
Sl staying in their home was not an option.
What????
Americans, please help a confused Canadian – if you wander around brandishing guns at people, isn’t that illegal? how have they not been arrested????
Because they are rich white lawyers, and property >>>>>> people. That’s it.
Laws vary between states. In California this would have been considered, “brandishing a weapon.” I’m unaware if the police were called or the protesters simply decided to post the video online. They appear to be angry and vocal but non-threatening.
It depends. Lots of states have different laws. For instance, Illinois has really strict gun laws so you can’t go out and just buy a gun there and have it. Oklahoma has very lax laws where anyone can get a gun and just carry it. However, you can’t just go around pulling your firearm out whenever; it’s only legal to brandish and shoot for self defense.
Some states have “stand your ground” laws which means if someone is on your property threatening you, you are within your rights to shoot.* Other places with concealed carry allow self defense use – I know someone who was getting mugged, they pulled their gun, said “stop now or I will shoot” and the attacker ran. I own guns because I’m terrified of a break in or someone attacking me while I’m walking around. I’d say 99% of legal gun owners are responsible here. We just only hear about the bad apples.
*This is just one of many reasons why Breonna Taylor’s death is so f-ed up – her boyfriend was fully in his right to shoot and defend her and himself from a break in.
@OriginalLala – In Florida, I may lawfully sit in a lawn chair in my front yard with an AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifle laying in my lap. As long as I am on MY property OWNED by me, there is not much the police can do.
Also, Florida has open carry laws so you can go almost anywhere in public (grocery store parking lot) with guns as long as the guns are completely visible.
Inside the store would not be considered public and the grocery store or Pizza Hut or Ace Hardware or CVS Pharmacy may say “No Guns, Please”
It is a felony where I live.
S.C. Code § 16-23-410. It is unlawful for a person to present or point at another person a loaded or unloaded firearm. A person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be fined in the discretion of the court or imprisoned not more than five years.
I am sorry, but I find this story so terrifying because it shows that some brainwashed people are just far gone and nothing, no arguments and no facts will ever make them listen to anything sane. That woman clearly does look distressed (how does one in that state is allowed to have a gun is beyond me). Which begs the question, how does one living in a big house and green lawn gets to that point? Being white and privileged with lots of money as these two clowns means you are in the minority group of people who are the safest in the world. Whatever change is coming on the streets, literally will just pass their gigantic houses and they will continue to live in their bubble of delusion, discrimination and prejudice, still doing quite well for themselves. Yet they probably sit at home, watch Fox news and listen to Trump who is firing them up and they feel like their world will crumble so they run out of the house barefoot and act like they are in a zombie apocalypse. This makes me think that if Trump looses in November there will be a civil war initiated by these brainwashed miserable people. They are angry and they all have guns no one will take from them.
Under the USA Constitution there is no way to take guns from law abiding citizens.
Obviously this needs to be changed. I know the framers of the Constitution were talking about muzzleloaders not assault weapons.
Am I wrong in my thinking? Seems to me calling oneself an Urban Pioneer and stating they take on poor clients and have black clients that just love them is one’s way of thinking when they see themself as The Great White Hope.
Kinda off topic but not.. Wasn’t there a tv show once where there was a white coach in an urban area and he was their Hope. Maybe that’s why I read into it he saw himself as the great white hope swooping in an urban neighborhood. Really cares about his poor clients..How much are they charging those cash poor clients or rather fleecing to afford a mansion?
Yo! Mansions are cheap in these parts. Many don’t even have to pay property taxes, courtesy of their aldermen.
The schools are shit. It’s off Kingshighway, a block away is fast food drive through where carjacking are very common.
Gunshots ring through the night.
This area was abandoned in the 70s and many converted to rooming houses.
Because of their historical significance, people have purchased these 10k square feet palaces which include ballrooms for $600k-800k and painstakingly rescue these houses from further disrepair.
The city is broke so the homeowners pay for everything.
Go to Redfin and you can buy one 12k square feet with pool and pool house totally move-in ready for less than 1M, built in the 1890s.
@Whatever.. wow. Honestly, seeing the inside photos of their home and the photos of their actions this last weekend I would never have guessed they had all of that going on or surrounding their neighborhood. Guess photos do not always tell an entire story. But still, the couple make it sound like they were the injured party and all they wanted to do is protect what is theirs, when no one was threatening what is theirs. To be honest for me and most people I know $800,000.00 plus the cost of refurbishing is expensive.. actually for anything that is expensive would be an unattainable dream. Our state is broke (thank you Governor Brownback) and our City is bankrupt (thank you corrupt mayor and council) I don’t think we have any homes (maybe a few farmsteads) in that range. Even Manhattan that has Kansas State University that price would be considered steep. I get that they have owned it for a long time.. maybe in the 80’s they paid less I don’t know. But isn’t it a gated community? So it’s still elite in a way no? I mean if someone can afford it great.. but not paying taxes it’s not like it’s helping the community much. Which is sad. Great for the homeowner, sad for the community.
“Wasn’t there a tv show once where there was a white coach in an urban area and he was their Hope.”
It was called “The White Shadow” starring Ken Howard and ran on the CBS network from November 27, 1978, to March 16, 1981, about a white former professional basketball player who takes a job coaching basketball at an impoverished urban high school with a racially mixed basketball team.
@Baytampabay Yes! Thank you I could see it in my mind but couldn’t think of the show’s name or the actor. That was the show.
Deep down all these people have a desire to kill. They’re just looking for an excuse to do it. Have you seen the latest Karen who pointed a gun at a family in a parking lot? These people hold onto their guns so much because deep down they want to murder someone and they’re looking for an excuse. Especially if it’s black people. I think it’s a fantasy they’ve always had. It sounds dark and scary, but murderers aren’t that rare.
That house is really something!
These people are idiots. How much $$ are the charging? Good grief.
Gated communities are absolutely meant to keep “The riff raff” out!
By riff raff they mean anyone who can’t afford to live there.
People at this level of money have a huge sense of entitlement, IMO.
In their minds they have struggled and what they have/own is all because of their personal nose to the grindstone. Which is generally BS, IMO.
An AK47! he’s waving an AK47 around as if it’s an empty coffee cup.
Lucky these 2 did not shoot each other. Or anybody else. They look ridiculous, terrified but stupid.
And again, I say a mansion like that should have a private home security system in place.
Or have a Safe Room built if you are so afraid.
I own guns and I can promise I’m not some closet murder fetishist lol! I got them after moving into my first home because I wanted the upper-hand if I needed to immediately defend myself. Plus, we’ve seen how the US police are….
Nearly all gun control laws – much like pretty much every drug law here – were made with racist intent. The laws made it practically impossible for the poorer, disenfranchised people to get guns which meant many black people were defenseless unlike wealthier white people.
It’s kind of foucault-esque* to me. People used to be able to own guns to protect themselves from tyranny. Gun laws were passed to screw over the black population. Now we are taught “look! These laws are good. Things are better than before!”, however things aren’t really better. The powerful, under the guise of progress, control the people through pressure of changing social norms.
Btw, thanks Whatever for this info. 🙂
It is a really huge house, I have no idea what property is going for, I live in the same town I was born in. 10K sq ft is about 9K bigger than my home.
I just read an article at the Daily Beast about this couple. They have a long history of being “aggrieved.”
If I’m looking out my window at something terrifying I immediately run out to greet it. Why on earth would I safely stay in my huge house with locked doors and windows?
I had a relative by marriage — a tall, brazen, bleach-blonde, far right Republican from South Florida who worshiped the ground Sarah Palin walked on. Let’s call her Sally. One evening about 10 years ago a few of us were out for dinner in Key Largo where she and her husband lived. A young woman walked in wearing a sari and headscarf, looked around as if searching for her dinner partner, and Sally immediately went nuts. She literally shouted “what’s SHE doing in here? We don’t want Muslims here…” and her husband had to physically restrain her and quiet her down. Sally had a gun but didn’t bring it with her thankfully, I could just imagine her taking it out of her purse and waving it at this poor woman. I said…”She may very well be Hindu Sally, not Muslim, and I don’t think she’s in here to set off a bomb….”. That ended the relationship and I never saw her again.
All that to say there are so many uninformed and intolerant people who just don’t get it and probably never will. I found it very unsettling, and the Tucker Carlson’s and Hannity’s and so forth who continue to actively promote racism are influencing the Sally’s of the country against perfectly nice and respectable folks who have done nothing to incur such hatred other than have brown skin.
I just finished reading an article about how many American banks actively target African Americans by calling the police/911 when a black person tries to open an account, deposit or cash a cheque. Several people who contributed to the article said they were handcuffed and arrested without a shred of evidence other than some POS teller who accused them of some made-up crime. All these two idiots had to do was remain inside their palace, perhaps inform the police that some PEACEFUL protesters were outside and leave it at that. But no, because “white supremacy”. Take every opportunity to bully blacks and those white people who defend their cause. I really hope they get disbarred or at least publicly reprimanded/fined/rebuked, whatever because THEY are the problem.
Right on cue…
https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/02/us/banking-while-black-racism-trnd/index.html
I was shocked by this but then, not really. It’s sad.
The goal of any institutionalized form of prejudice is to make certain the Other lives in constant, certain terror of what can be done to them at any time, however innocuous their actions. It’s designed to kill them, if not through outright means, but by the slow, persistent stress of living with the boot firmly pressed to their face.
Dear God. That first picture. I grew up with guns – lots, and lots, and lots, and lots of guns – in the U.P. We did gun safety courses starting in the 6th grade. Rule #1, don’t point your guns at other people.
Maybe he knew it wasn’t loaded and was just being a jerk. But these seem like people who have guns, but don’t know what the H they are doing with those guns.
They could have stayed inside their locked mansion with their gun if they were actually afraid.
They wanted to bully, looking for an excuse to murder and get away with it.
When the revolution comes over income equality, off with their heads.
I am saddened by so many traumatic experiences Cele’s have had. I encourage checking your local laws to see what rights you have. In CA, gated or open communities with HOA’s are governed by Stirling-Davis, HOA guidelines. Private security is private security. Our criminal and civil law takes precedence. Our roadways, citing, ticketing, arresting is with law enforcement. I’ve had my own experience in being stalked and harassed to a point I’ve needed to take legal action. The McCloskey’s will not fare well in this experience and deserve to be an ongoing example to just stop or face the consequences.
Do you suppose these scaredy cats look under their beds every night and have to sleep with the closet light on? Sheesh. I have never felt the need to have a gun and I’ve lived in Alaska and had some creepy encounters in Maryland, near DC.
All these racists had to do was step outside and wave at the people. No harm, no foul, but noooooo….
They’re lawyers. Guaranteed…they will find some way to make money. Someone needs to snatch one of their licenses.
There needs to be a serious bar inquiry into both of them. Brandishing a weapon while drunk is not the image most state bars want of their lawyers . At a minimum they might require drug/ alcohol and sensitive training.
Hillbillies don’t fall far from the tree.