So, you quoted what I wrote, then proceeded to mischaracterize it in order to try to discredit me for something I did not argue. Not really a point in your favor.
The two cases have commonalities and difference worth discussing as a way of getting around some of the very personal reactions that can arise in these discussions. For instance, does Finicum bear any culpability in his own death? What you characterize as “victim blaming” has the converse of always considering the cops guilty, and also always considering a person who is shot a “victim”. Finicum was part of an armed take over of Federal property who was trying to evade a legal traffic stop, for which authorities had a warrant. I think he had some culpability. The kid in this case? I think he did, too. Enough that justifies shooting him? That I don’t know. And no, that is not similar to some scum who blames rape victims - rape is never justifiable, and thus the victim is never to blame. Shooting, on the other hand, is sometimes legally, and morally, justifiable because the person shot is at fault, such as attempting a home take over, holding someone hostage at gunpoint, pointing a gun deliberately at a cop, etc. Does continuing to approach a cop and acting like you are reaching for a weapon count? I think that depends on circumstances.
In civil cases liability can be a percentage. I think in these cases the same thing is true in terms of culpability. The individuals who were shot performed actions that contributed to their deaths, as did the cops. Thus it isn’t an either or situation, but rather the balance of who is more culpable, and what could, or could not have reasonably been done differently.
I’m appalled by the over reactions of cops around the country. There are cases where those shot did absolutely nothing and the cops were 100% at fault - for instance, the case where trigger happy cops in search of a cop killer unloaded dozens of rounds into a pick up truck that was not even the same model as the on they were looking for, almost killing the two newspaper delivery women in it. And those cops got away with it. They should have been prosecuted for the same raft of charges a civilian would be, from negligent discharge to attempted murder.
Either or thinking is low effort cognition, and common to conservatives, who like to brand things “Right!” and “Wrong”, "Godly! and “Satanic”. Liberals, which I include myself as, are more likely to discuss nuance, to decide right or wrong, but not assume that it is some easy binary calculation in all instances.
