As a pro basketball player, Charles Barkley was the type of star athlete who fans quickly learned to love or hate.

While he was a dominant NBA player in the 1990s, Barkley had a temperament off the court as well and sometimes found himself on the wrong side of the law. His bar fighting was legendary, and he once threw a man face first through a store window. Opinions of Sir Charles haven't changed much since he retired to become a basketball analyst, and his nonsports commentary especially inflames passion. He recently fanned the race debate by standing up for the police and the Missouri grand jury's decision not to indict the Ferguson police officer who shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown.After last month's ruling which sparked nationwide protests, looting and vandalism, Barkley was one of the few black people on the national stage who favored the grand jury verdict, blasted the violent, destructive protesters and defended the police in this nation for protecting us. He felt that the true story of Ferguson came out from the grand jury testimony and that three or four witnesses, who were black, corroborated what the officer said.While black civil rights leaders like the Revs. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson criticized the Ferguson decision and alleged racial profiling by police, Barkley called the Ferguson looters and vandals "scumbags." He stated on a Philadelphia talk radio show that there is no excuse for people who burn down businesses and police cars.Barkley also ripped the press, saying he didn't like talking about race issues with the media "because they love this stuff and lead people to jump to conclusions. He said the media never devotes that much coverage "when black people kill each other."If it wasn't for the police, Barkley said we would be a nation in chaos."We have to be really careful with the cops, because if it wasn't for the cops we would be living in the Wild, Wild West in our neighborhoods," he said. "We can't pick out certain incidentals that don't go our way and act like the cops are all bad. ... Do you know how bad some of these neighborhoods would be if it wasn't for the cops?"Barkley also weighed in on the case of Eric Garner who died at the hands of New York police."When the cops are trying to arrest you, if you fight back, things go wrong. I don't think they were trying to kill Mr. Garner. He was a big man and they tried to get him down," Barkley said.While countless folks across the country, both black and white, have taken to the streets to protest recent grand jury decisions and police profiling, it was good to hear a celebrity type stand up and credit all officers for keeping our cities and communities from becoming the "Wild, Wild West."By JIM ZBICKtneditor@tnonline.com