As most are aware, Officer Darren Wilson resigned his post.  Yahoo News reports that he will not receive a severance package.  Would that it were all they reported:

Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson did not receive a severance package when he resigned over the weekend, the St. Louis suburb's mayor said Sunday.

It’s a shame Officer Wilson will not receive a severance package.  He no longer has a job or a career.  That, coupled with the danger he faces from goons bent on seeking vigilante justice, means this man is facing a long and complex road to becoming financially independent.  He needs our help.  And he deserves it.  Far too much has been placed on his shoulders.  And for what?  For doing his job.  

There are several Facebook pages that have been set up in Darren Wilson’s name.  It’s difficult to know which are legit and which may not be.  In light of the news that he will not be receiving a severance package, supporters have plans to set up a fund for him – a fund they hope to establish in a week’s time.  I will monitor the situation and write a follow-up blog once it is set up.

Wilson, who is white, had been on administrative leave since he killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old, during an Aug. 9 confrontation. A grand jury decided Monday not to indict him, sparking days of sometimes violent protests in Ferguson and other cities. (snip)

Can the media please stop with the “Wilson, who is white…” and “Michael Brown, an unarmed black…”?  There is zero evidence in this case to suggest that Michael Brown was killed because he was black, much as throngs of out-of-control criminals, communists, anarchists, and professional victims ironically persist in wishing it were so.  More accurate reporting would be that Wilson had been on administrative leave after he killed Michael Brown in self-defense.

Also, can the media please stop referring to what is happening as “protests”?  These are not protests.  They are riots.  If people want to protest, they can apply for a permit through the proper channels and exercise their right to free speech by conducting themselves within the bounds permitted by law.  Anything beyond that is criminal, lawless behavior.

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Brown's family, said Wilson's resignation was not a surprise.

"It was always believed that the police officer would do what was in his best interest, both personally and professionally," Crump said. "We didn't believe that he would be able to be effective for the Ferguson community nor the Ferguson Police Department because of the tragic circumstances that claimed the life of Michael Brown Jr."

I realize that this idea will be lost on Crump and those who think like him, but the fact is that Officer Wilson was highly effective as a law enforcement officer in Ferguson.  He had received an award for excellence.  He had never used his gun prior to his fateful encounter with Michael Brown.  He was performing his duty as a police officer when he initiated contact with Michael Brown, thereby protecting the community from a thief who had just assaulted a shopkeeper.

There is no reason to smear his name or suggest he did not perform his job with the utmost professionalism.  Police officers like Darren Wilson put their lives on the line every day.  And the day Wilson encountered Michael Brown was proof positive of just how risky the job is.  Someone was going to die that day.  Officer Wilson had the sense to realize that fact and defend his life.  Would those raging against reality have preferred if Officer Wilson had been pummeled to death or shot dead in his squad car by Michael Brown?  Had that occurred, you can be sure there would have been zero outrage or media coverage.

Crump said the family is still considering civil litigation such as a wrongful death lawsuit, "but don't let that get confused with the fact that they really wanted the killer of their child to be held accountable."

Someone needs to let Crump in on a little secret.  The “killer of their child” was a person whom their child was trying to kill.  Beyond that, our criminal justice system worked overtime on a case that should never have even gone to the Grand Jury.  The fact that it did was pandering enough.

Michael Brown’s family will need to grieve a depth of sorrow that only parents who have lost a child can know.  The loss is heart-wrenching beyond what anyone can imagine.  I hope and pray they can find their way without getting further sidetracked by distractions.

Victoria Rutherford of Ferguson said she believed Wilson should have not only resigned, but been convicted of a crime.

“I'm upset. I have a 16-year-old son. It could've been him. I feel that he was absolutely in the wrong," she said. (snip)

I would like to ask Ms. Rutherford if her teenage son engages in criminal behavior, including assaulting police officers.  If he doesn’t, there’s no reason for her to think a police officer would simply shoot her son dead for no reason at all.  Statistics simply don’t support such a notion, emotionally charged and compelling as it may feel to some.  She should, however, be concerned about her son making it through his teenage years without becoming the unwitting victim of a murder committed by another black person.  Sadly, statistics back up that scenario far more than any other.

Wilson has spent his career as a police officer, first in neighboring Jennings, then in Ferguson. Bruntrager said it's all he's ever wanted to do.

"In terms of what it (the resignation) means, it means at this point he doesn't have a paycheck," Bruntrager said. "He has no income so he'll have to make some decisions pretty quickly."

As noted earlier, I hope that a fund will be set up for Officer Wilson in the coming days.  

Wilson fatally shot Brown in the middle of a Ferguson street after the two scuffled inside Wilson's police SUV. Brown's body was left for more than four hours as police investigated and angry onlookers gathered.

Dear Media: the two didn’t “scuffle.”  Brown attacked Wilson by punching him with a powerful closed fist.  He also reached for Wilson’s gun, grabbing the top of it and jamming it.  Signed, Please tell the truth.

As for the four hours, I can’t comment one way or another.  It seemed a long time for the perpetrator to lie dead.  On the other hand, I don’t know what is involved in a police investigation of this sort.  Perhaps if Michael Brown’s body had been removed prematurely and resulted in compromised evidence, enraged folks would have been enraged about that.  Rage can be peculiar that way.  It seems to rear its head no matter how things unfold.

Some witnesses have said Brown had his hands up when Wilson shot him. Wilson told the grand jury that he feared for his life when Brown hit him and reached for his gun.

Can the media please stop reporting on people who lied as if they told the truth?  How about this: shamefully, some witnesses perjured themselves, but the prosecutor has decided not to press charges.

The U.S. Justice Department is conducting a civil rights investigation into the shooting and a separate investigation of police department practices. It isn't clear when those results will be announced.

As to when the results will be announced, let me venture a guess: when Barack Obama, Eric Holder, Al Sharpton, and hey, maybe even Louis Farrakhan decide the time is ripe for throwing more gasoline on the fire?

After the grand jury's decision was announced, 12 commercial buildings in Ferguson were destroyed by fire. There have been well over 100 arrests at St. Louis-area protests in that time.

Excuse me, but buildings were not just “destroyed by fire.”  They were intentionally set ablaze.  They were torched.  It’s called arson.  And it’s a crime.  Speaking of which, how about reporting on all the damage these rioters have inflicted?  Including economic damage from blocking traffic, holding die-ins at shopping malls, and other idiotic dramas The Grievance Community has been allowed to get away with as regular people try to go about their day, do some Christmas shopping, and do something called work?

And as an aside, if the 100 arrests don’t include members of the Black Panthers for calling for Wilson’s death, Brown’s stepfather who incited a riot, Louis Farrakhan for inciting violence, and while we’re at it, Al Sharpton, Eric Holder, and Barack Obama, among others, for legitimizing and fueling violence, then the list is woefully short and incomplete.

Knowles said there hasn't been a cost assessment of the damage in Ferguson yet, and he promised residents and businesses that the city will do all it can to seek financial help.

"We are committed to rebuilding our city," he said.

I’ve got news for Knowles.  They may be able to rebuild brick and mortar in Ferguson.  But what is needed more than that is rebuilding who we are as a people, who we are as Americans, and who we are as a nation of human beings who can think critically, understand right from wrong, and respect the rule of law.  Because without that, we’re sunk.