Beer Summit

Is it just me or does something called a "Beer Summit" actually dominating the news and talk shows the last week or so seem like a successful fraternity prank? Or a dream come true to the beer companies that were mentioned over and over as the beers of choice in countless articles and TV programs? What was the point?

I mean doesn't the president have more important things to do than to "mediate" a meeting of two people that probably didn't care to see each other ever again. One of whom by some accounts still expected an apology from someone doing his job responding to a call that was made by someone, who ironically was looking out for the best interest of a neighbor and trying to protect his property.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2009/07/30/news/news-us-obama-race.html

Oh, but you may say, "Lola, that's your skewed slant on the story." Is it?

Fact: the neighbor saw someone who appeared to be forcibly entering a home in her neighborhood rather than entering with ease as if he owned the place. I'm sure he wasn't looking around for her to see his face either.

Fact: She called the police as it's never recommended to confront a potential criminal yourself.

Fact: The police responded to a call about a suspected break in.

What happened from there I can't attest as a fact since I wasn't a witness. But do you or do you not want your neighbors to call the police when they suspect someone is breaking into your home? And do you or do you not want the police to do their job and protect your home when called? And should they not be reasonably suspicious if you don't have the keys to your own house? Or should that be the new standard? No keys, breaking into the house normal...Do you think being rude and belligerent or polite and respectful to a cop will get you what you want.

So the result of the "summit" according to the above article from Reuters;
"'I think what you had today was two gentlemen who agreed to disagree on a particular issue,' Crowley told reporters." Again I say, what was the point? Was the point to convince Gates that he overreacted? Or was the point to convince Crowley he was wrong? It's a shame that Gates and Obama made this about race. I don't believe most reasonable people believe it was about anything other than this cop doing his job as he was trained to do. That fact that it came down to agreeing to disagree seems to make the whole thing an exercise in futility to save face for Obama for stupidly making a statement without having the facts. "I have no comment until I have the facts" (more or less) should be a standard response when unaware of the facts. Maybe this was a lesson learned for him. What I don't know is if he understands the part he played in perpetuating the "race card" that so many people have been trying to squash for years, even after he was elected to the highest office in the country.

"'I have always believed that what brings us together is stronger than what pulls us apart,' Obama said in a statement after the meeting in a garden outside the Oval Office."

"I am confident that has happened here tonight, and I am hopeful that all of us are able to draw this positive lesson from this episode."

I'd like to know what everyone's lesson was from this episode, especially after Crowley's statement. Is agreeing to disagree a positive outcome of this meeting? Perhaps the follow-up "Beer Summit" should be with Bill Cosby.

What's your opinion?