Sean Bell's dead and the cops have been cleared of all criminal charges for their role in his death. As finite as those two things seem — Bell's never coming back to life and the cops aren't going to jail — the situation is far from over. There's the inevitable civil case and federal investigation, which the New York Times editorial board hopes will provide "answers" that the criminal trial and subsequent verdict did not. There are the officer's jobs, which the New York Daily News editorial board thinks they should be fired from, pronto. There's the matter of police being allowed to shoot 50 rounds into the car of an unarmed person, which the New York Post editorial board thinks is A-ok.

This article reminds us, based on the dull sadness, disappointment, and resignation (as opposed to blind rage) of the black people a reporter talked to in Queens, that New York is a different place than it was during Guiliani's reign — when black folks were fighting mad after the white cops who shot Amadou Diallo 41 times were acquitted — and that Bloomberg is a very different mayor who is more invested in soothing race relations. The article also reminds us that this was a very different case. Two of the cops were black, and some think the cops simply made an error in judgment that had tragic consequences. Yet, even as some people consider what happened to Sean Bell to be a result of simple police negligence and an unfortunate series of events, others see a very clear racial link. Some people see a crime. Some people think the verdict is a cruel example of how little society values the lives of young black men. It all depends on how you look at it. I mean, Al Sharpton's planning to shut down the city. Protest songs are being written. Special investigators are being called for. Judge Arthur Cooperman's house is under 24-hour security watch. And yes, some people are filled with rage reminiscent of the aftermath of the Diallo case. They're wondering how this happened. Not only how things could have gone so horribly wrong on the night of Bell's death, but how the cops who were involved — particularly the one who fired 31 shots, got away with it.

But we know why they got away with it — Judge Cooperman told us in his verdict:

• The prosecution put forth a piss-poor case and the witnesses came off as unreliable. Based on various bits of commentary from people in the know about the trial, the evidence was so poor that a jury might have swung the same way as the judge. Or they might not have. While a jury might have been negatively influenced by the changing testimony of witnesses, they might not have taken their "demeanor" into account, as the judge did.

• The cops had ample reason to be scared and to think their were in danger. The judge referred to the club's location and bad reputation in his verdict, implying that it was not an unreasonable leap for the officers to come to the conclusion that people (I'll go ahead and be specific where the judge wasn't — black men) who attend a club of ill-repute and who, during an argument fueled by drunken bravado, mention having a gun, would actually have a gun. And, as a result, they were justified in fearing for their lives and acting accordingly.

• Because on-the-job incompetence is not criminal. This is true. However, when I'm incompetent, I say Lee Daniels directed the new Mariah Carey movie when he actually produced it.* When cops are incompetent, someone, frequently a black man, is killed. I see a clear difference, but obviously not everybody's with me.

Unlike the Diallo case, the Sean Bell verdict doesn't seem to be inspiring dangerous racial tension in the city. But people are unhappy — in varying degrees — and they want answers, they want changes, and they want higher standards. Yes, Sean Bell's gone forever and the cops are acquitted, but this thing is bigger than Sean Bell and those three cops. And it's far from over.

*I'm well aware that I also don't put my life in danger every time I go to work either. But the point is that people who are allowed to shoot people as part of their jobs should be held to a higher standard of competence.