Cops Amok, Part ____

You can just fill in the blank above, it could be any number. Cops are beating people up all over the country every day. YouTube has hundreds of examples. The video accompanying this post is just one of them. But it is genuinely horrific. You will notice that most of the people set upon by the police are black people, not unusual at all when you think about the percentages of the races that we lock up in this country. But the absolute worst beating here is administered by huge black officer with his billy club on the helpless prisoner already being held down by another cop. For a peaceful and nonviolent soul like myself, these scenes were absolutely horrifying, disgusting, vile, and really scary. Conjures up in my mind thoughts of the Nazi brownshirts, and the state-sponsored terror that allowed them free reign to assault and murder German citizens pretty much with impunity. I don't think there is any doubt that the United States is moving closer every day, under its oppressive and overpowering fear and loathing of ________ – you can fill in at this point with whatever you want: terrorists, criminals, people with a different religion, Muslims, strangers, people who look different, people of another race, foreigners--to a garrison state where might is all that determines right. That got Americans prisoners of their fears. Afraid enough to send gun sales to the roof and, sadly, to even justify some of this behavior by the cops who are sworn to protect us.

Don't watch this if you got a weak stomach. But remember the main message of the film: it takes guts and the cops hate it, but you have every right to videotape them doing whatever it is they do. And all too often they are abusing their authority and giving vent to the cruelest and meanest instincts we have. Thank goodness for the brave souls that took these pictures.