The quote highlighted in this post is a little unusual in that its writer, John Rowlette, is an average Joe. He describes himself on his Twitter page as a “Progressive Independent.”
His sole claim to fame is not so much that he was present at a restaurant in Sedro-Woolley, Wash., earlier this week when members of local law enforcement were treated discourteously. It is rather that Rowlette’s message — which is quoted in an article on the incident by ABC Seattle affiliate KOMO — so typifies the present-day liberal mindset.
Before getting to the tweet, some background information is necessary. According to KOMO, four deputies with the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office were told by the owner of Lucky Teriyaki when they went to pay the bill that they were no longer welcome at his restaurant.
When Sheriff Will Reichardt learned of the incident, he was so offended that he took to the department’s Facebook page:
The KOMO article suggests that the ostensible insult was actually a misunderstanding resulting from a language barrier: The owner of Lucky Teriyaki is from Japan. But a careful reading of the article indicates that was not the case. Rather, the owner’s discourteous behavior toward the police seems to have arisen out of his misreading of customers’ reactions to the deputy’s presence in the restaurant.
Which in itself is a sad commentary on the state of relations between police and the communities they serve. America’s men in blue have become persona non grata, based largely on misinformation, which is odious enough considering the risks associated with their work.
But on top of that are the added insults heaped on them by people like John Rowlette. Here is his tweet:
@komonews It’s their right to refuse service. If customers feel threatened, just like with gang members, they hurt business, so they must go
— John Rowlette (@JohnRowlette) July 14, 2016
Just like gang members? I am guessing that should Rowlette (who also describes himself as having been “blind for 9 years”) find himself in desperate need of assistance, he will somehow know which entity to call — and it won’t be gang members.
By the way, the KOMO article states that “the owners of Lucky Teriyaki said they’ve received death threats online and over the phone.” If those threats came from pro-police types, those people are as blind as Rowlette.
