-
Essay / Assessment of the conflict between Rodney King and the New York blackout
Many incidents have occurred in the United States that have led to disastrous consequences. The Rodney King affair and the 1977 New York blackout were two incidents that had catastrophic consequences. There are also many things anyone can learn from reading or experiencing these two incidents. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the Original EssayThe Rodney King affair began on March 3, 1991, on the California highway. California Highway Patrol officers saw Rodney King speeding on Interstate 210 and chased him for eight miles straight. Police claimed they were pursuing King at speeds above 100 mph, but the manufacturer of the car King was driving later pointed out that the car was incapable of exceeding 150 mph, even at full speed. When officers were finally able to have King arrested, he disobeyed officers' orders to lie down. The officers realized they had to act, so they pulled out a Taser and shocked King with it. However, King repeatedly attempted to stand up and refused to do anything the officers asked of him. The officers then took out their batons and struck King with them, forcing King to fall to the ground. Later, when King was arraigned, officers argued that they had legitimate reason to believe that King was potentially dangerous and may have been using drugs. Later that night, Rodney King was charged with a crime, but the case was dropped. The officers were later charged with discrimination and unnecessary physical contact. This incident sparked massive riots in Los Angelos, which lasted three days. When everything was under control, there was reported to have been nearly $1 billion in damage, with 58 deaths, 2,383 injuries, more than 7,000 fire responses, and 3,100 businesses damaged. Another incident that had disastrous consequences was the power outage in New York. on July 13, 1977. The power outage began at 8:37 p.m. when a lightning strike struck South Buchanan, causing two circuit breakers in Westchester County to trip. However, this only damaged the circuits and did not cause a malfunction. Shortly afterward, a second lightning strike struck and caused the loss of two 345,000-volt transmission lines and the blackout of power at a nuclear power plant in Indian Point. 18 minutes after the first lightning strike, another lightning bolt arrived and struck two critical transmission lines. This left the remaining lines to do all the work. The remaining transmission lines could not do this job and they were all overloaded. As a result, the entire area lost its electricity and it did not receive electricity until later the next day. During the period when the city lost power, there were countless cases of looting and vandalism. Many shops and buildings were also set on fire and burned. Once things were settled, there were 1,616 stores damaged by looting and rioting, 1,037 fires and 3,776 people arrested. The cost of the damage was estimated to be just over $300 million (US). These two incidents taught everyone a lot of things. The Rodney King case teaches readers that people should not judge others based on the color of their skin or their differences. If the officers who apprehended King were not somewhat racist toward black people, they would not have physically assaulted King simply because he did not obey their wishes. The power outage in New.