;)
The Commentariat -- August 21, 2014
Internal links, defunct video removed.
NEW. Carol Leonnig, et al., of the Washington Post: "The police officer who fatally shot Michael Brown suffered a fracture to his eye socket in a scuffle with the unarmed teenager before opening fire, a family friend said Thursday. Hospital x-rays of the injury have been submitted to the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney and will be shared with a grand jury now weighing evidence to determine whether Officer Darren Wilson should be charged in the shooting." CW: This is essentially the same information in the Fox "News" story, linked below.
Lara Jakes & Ryan Lucas of the AP: "The United States launched a new barrage of airstrikes Wednesday against the Islamic State extremist group that beheaded American journalist James Foley and that has seized a swath of territory across Iraq and Syria. President Barack Obama vowed relentless pursuit of the terrorists.... Looking forward, the State Department refused to rule out future U.S. military operations in Syria, where Obama has long resisted intervening in a three-year civil war." ...
... Adam Goldman & Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post: "U.S. Special Operations forces staged an unsuccessful operation this summer to rescue photojournalist James Foley and other Americans being held in Syria by Islamic State militants, according to senior Obama administration officials. The attempt, in which at least one U.S. serviceman was injured, came after at least six Western hostages freed by the militants had been debriefed by U.S. intelligence.... 'Unfortunately,' [one] official said, 'it was not ultimately successful because the hostages were not present ... at the site of the operation.'" ...
... The New York Times story, by Michael Shear, is here. ...
... Rukmini Callimachi of the New York Times: "Before pulling out the knife used to decapitate him, [Jim Foley's] masked executioner explained that he was killing the 40-year-old American journalist in retaliation for the recent United States' airstrikes against the terror group in Iraq. In fact, until recently, ISIS had a very different list of demands for Mr. Foley: The group pressed the United States to provide a multimillion-dollar ransom for his release, according to a representative of his family and a former hostage held alongside him. The United States -- unlike several European countries that have funneled millions to the terror group to spare the lives of their citizens -- refused to pay." ...
... Uri Friedman of the Atlantic: "Foley died while working in what is now the most dangerous place in the world to be a reporter -- a country where dozens of journalists have been killed and kidnapped in recent years." ...
... Jon Anderson of the New Yorker: "Yesterday's guerrillas have given way to terrorists, and now terrorists have given way to this new band, who are something like serial killers.... Freed and encouraged to kill and to horrify, it seems, many people will do so, even people raised in Western democracies.... There is no longer any doubt that the Internet, with its power of contagion and usefulness for recruiting, has become a preferred, particular tool of terrorists." ...
... ** Secretary of State John Kerry on the murder of James Foley.
Laura Wildes-Munoz & Josh Lederman of the AP: "President Barack Obama is considering key changes in the nation's immigration system requested by tech, industry and powerful interest groups, in a move that could blunt Republicans' election-year criticism of the president's go-it-alone approach to immigration. Administration officials and advocates said the steps would go beyond the expected relief from deportations for some immigrants in the U.S. illegally that Obama signaled he'd adopt after immigration efforts in Congress collapsed. Following a bevy of recent White House meetings, top officials have compiled specific recommendations from business groups and other advocates whose support could undercut GOP claims that Obama is exceeding his authority to help people who have already violated immigration laws."
Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a last-minute order putting a hold on same-sex marriages in Virginia less than a day before officials there were to begin providing marriage licenses to gay couples. The move comes a month after the federal appeals court that struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage refused to delay the effects of its ruling. Legal experts have predicted that the Supreme Court will take up the issue of same-sex marriage in its next term, which begins in October."
"By Any Means Necessary." Linda Greenhouse writes a very readable column on the politics & tactics of the right wing's current challenge to the Affordable Care Act.
Russell Berman of the Atlantic: "The only thing that would make congressional Democrats happier than a Republican attempt to impeach President Obama is if Republicans force another government shutdown. So when Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) raised the specter of a government shutdown fight [also linked in yesterday's Commentariat] if Republicans retake the Senate in November, Democrats rejoiced. And by rejoiced, we mean they feigned outrage."
Jonathan Chait: Paul Ryan is still the unapologetic, ideological supply-sider he was a teenager & believes cutting taxes "across the board" (i.e., for the rich) is the "secret sauce" that spices up economic growth. CW: This might be just an anecdote of stupid, but GOP leaders have tapped the functionally innumerate Ryan to head the House Ways & Means Committee, the House's chief tax-writing committee.
Beyond the Beltway
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Six arrests were made by officers patrolling the streets of Ferguson late Wednesday and early today, Missouri Highway Patrol Capt. Ronald S. Johnson said. Speaking at a brief press conference at 1:30 a.m., he said the protests now in their 11 night were fairly calm although an officer was hit by a bottle at one point. He said the officer was uninjured." ...
... The Washington Post story is here. ...
... St. Louis Post-Dispatch at 6:20 pm ET Wednesday: "U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is meeting with the parents of Michael Brown downtown at the federal courthouse in St. Louis. Afterward he will meet with elected officials, including Gov. Nixon, U.S. Sens. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and U.S. Reps. William Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis, and Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City. All the meetings are closed to the press." ...
... Alan Zagier of the AP: "Attorney General Eric Holder sought Wednesday to reassure the people of Ferguson about the investigation into Michael Brown's death and said he understands why many black Americans do not trust police, recalling how he was repeatedly stopped by officers who seemed to target him because of his race. Holder made the remarks during a visit to [Ferguson, Missouri]." ...
... Hollie McKay of Fox "News": "Darren Wilson, the Ferguson, Mo., police officer whose fatal shooting of Michael Brown touched off more than a week of demonstrations, suffered severe facial injuries, including an orbital (eye socket) fracture, and was nearly beaten unconscious by Brown moments before firing his gun, a source close to the department's top brass told FoxNews.com." CW: At least one part of this report is definitely incorrect (unless all other media reports are wrong): "Wilson is a six-year veteran of the Ferguson police force department...." Actually, he has been with the Ferguson PD for about four years. ....
... Mark Berman of the Washington Post: "A police officer who pointed an assault rifle at people in Ferguson on Tuesday night and threatened to kill them has been relieved of duty and suspended indefinitely, authorities said. The officer, who was not identified, has been removed from the field after he pointed his semiautomatic weapon at a peaceful protester, according to Brian Schellman, a spokesman for the St. Louis County Police Department. A video documenting the encounter ... made the rounds Wednesday.... A county police sergeant forced the officer, who works for the Saint Ann police, to lower his weapon and leave the area, Schellman said."
... A commenter on the site The Concourse, which published the video above, wrote, "The cop was later asked to write an essay on exemplary policing for the Washington Post." See WashPo op-ed by LAPD officer Dutta, linked in yesterday's Commentariat, for context. ...
... Jason Sickles of Yahoo! News: "The Ferguson, Missouri, police officer facing possible charges for recently killing an unarmed young man was commended earlier this year for wrestling and restraining another suspect. Officer Darren Wilson received the commendation for his 'extraordinary effort in the line of duty' at a Feb. 11 City Council meeting. New video turned over by the city under Missouri's open records law shows Wilson being presented his award and shaking hands with Police Chief Thomas Jackson." With video of the commendation ceremony. CW: I'd like to see video of the "wrestling & restraining" incident. ...
... ** CW: If you have the stomach for it, I suggest you watch this home video of the St. Louis police killing of Kajieme Powell, which occurred Tuesday. The video is an unintended masterpiece of slice-of-life (& death) videography. The unidentified videographer is walking down the street when he sees Powell acting strangely on the sidewalk in front of a convenience store. The videographer finds Powell's erratic behavior amusing & continues recording for that reason. I'll let the videographer's commentary take it from there. Via Jim Fallows.
Mayor Angela Pearson, City of Popular Bluff, Missouri, Official Website: "Dear Friends..., As you learn more about Poplar Bluff you'll see it is a great place to live and raise a family, with a population of nearly 17,000 friendly residents. Poplar Bluff is the county seat and is centered in the middle of beautiful Butler County. Poplar Bluff is the gateway to the Ozarks nestled in southeast Missouri, in between St. Louis and Memphis." ...
... CW: Aw, doesn't Poplar Bluff sound like the quintessential sweet, All-American town? I'll bet they have a swell city council, just as Mayor Pearson says: "... the City government works hard to meet the needs of this growth and encourages growth for the future. Working together we will meet the challenges the future holds...." Video via the Raw Story:
Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "In a moment that sent electric currents through a crowded courtroom, Robert F. McDonnell, the former Virginia governor and once rising Republican star, was called to the witness stand Wednesday afternoon, testifying that he did next to nothing for the businessman who showered his family with cash and gifts. The appearance, three days into his legal defense, came sooner than expected. But Mr. McDonnell, once considered a contender for his party's presidential nomination, was as smooth as ever as he began the political sales job of his life.... And almost immediately, a politician who always campaigned as a devoted family man and conservative Catholic turned the spotlight on his embattled wife, Maureen." ...
... Bob McDonnell is still testifying about what a fine fellow he is & what a difficult bitch he married. He moved out of the home he shared with the Difficult Bitch & the kids about a week before their corruption trial began. Now the choir boy is living with his priest. As the Washington Post reports, "'I knew there was no way I could go home after a day in court and have to rehash the day's events with my wife,' he testified."
... Rosalind Helderman, et al., of the Washington Post: "Former Virginia governor Robert F. McDonnell, taking the stand in his own defense Wednesday against federal corruption charges, said his wife, Maureen, seemed uneasy about their new life from his very first day as governor-elect."
Senate Races
Sen. Mark Pryor (D), who is in a tight race to keep his seat in red-state Arkansas, cuts a terrific ad for ObamaCare -- with his father, former Sen. David Pryor -- without ever mentioning the ACA or "ObamaCare." Via Greg Sargent:
Gail Collins on Montana Democratic U.S. Senate "super-long-shot" candidate Amanda Curtis.
Gubernatorial Race
Jim Fallows of the Atlantic on the three-way race for governor of Maine. Fallows endorses independent Eliot Cutler, who is a personal friend. Maine Sen. Angus King (I) endorsed Cutler, too. CW: In case you have forgotten, the thuggish goonie Paul LePage (RTP) is the current governor; he is one of the three candidates, along with Democrat Mike Michaud.
Presidential Race
Excuse me, shut up! -- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to hecklers at a town-hall meeting in Vermont
News Ledes
New York Times: "Some 10,000 mourners on Thursday buried three senior commanders of the armed wing of Hamas who were killed in predawn airstrikes by Israel, the most significant blow to the group's leadership since Israel's operation in Gaza began more than six weeks ago."
ABC News: "An American doctor who contracted Ebola will be released today from Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, with details expected on the release of a second patient who also contracted the disease.... The virus has killed at least 1,229 and sickened 1,011 more, according to numbers released Tuesday by the World Health Organization. Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia have the most cases."
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Reader Comments (13)
@Jack Fuller wrote in yesterday's comments: "Voter participation rate in Ferguson, MO: 12%. We get the government that we choose."
The turnout for blacks in Ferguson is even lower -- 6 percent. However, these are for local elections, which take place in April of odd-numbered years. They are not the turnout figures for general elections.
If you read the pieces by Ian Millhiser & Jeff Smith, & also the piece by Jeannette Cooperman, all linked in yesterday's Commentariat, you'll understand why voter turnout is so low, Short explanation: local authorities planned it that way.
So it's a bit harsh, I think, to blame the (non)voters.
Marie
UPDATE: "In the 2012 presidential elections, turnout for Ferguson blacks was 54 percent." That's pretty damned good for a town in which many of the residents are transient, as multiple news outlets have reported. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nationally "About two in three eligible blacks (66.2 percent) voted in the 2012 presidential election, higher than the 64.1 percent of non-Hispanic whites who did so, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report released today. This marks the first time that blacks have voted at a higher rate than whites since the Census Bureau started publishing statistics on voting by the eligible citizen population in 1996."
Late last night I happened upon that incredible video of St. Louis police killing Kajieme Powell that CW mentions. Prior to viewing I had read a story about it with the details of what had been stated by the police. The video, however, tells a much different and more compelling story then the official version. I was dumbfounded to 'witness' how quickly after stepping out of their vehicle, the police officers fired their guns at Powell. Why is it necessary to shoot to kill? At the very least, one might ask: whatever happened to good old-fashioned knee-capping? or a warning shot?
Re Maine's governor's race, the polls aren't exactly indicating that it is a three-way race a la Fallows. http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2014-maine-governor-lepage-vs-michaud-vs-cutler
Lepage is such a dismal man and a disaster. (Charlie Pierce aptly refers to him as "a human bowling jacket.") As governor of a state where he was not even a property owner until recently, the news broke last week was that he and his wife just closed on a foreclosed home in Boothbay Harbor, ME.
I like Angus King, but I'm not swayed by his endorsement.
The FOX news report alleging that Officer Wilson suffered serious injury in a fracas with Michael Brown that led up to the shooting is sadly typical of much of the press coverage. The source(s) of the information is/ are unnamed. The police are officially releasing no information, even though it has been over a week since the shooting. Yet a number of witnesses have come forward and give very different accounts from the spin by the "unnamed sources." Much of the press is treating the two sides as equal - he says, she says - without acknowledging that only one version has been backed up by witness willing to come forward and give their names. Even the NY Times is guilt of this. Larry O'Donnell took them to task last night for their speculative front page story which he deemed an awful example of police reporting unworthy of the Times:
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/lawrence-odonnell-rips-new-york-times-lazy
It was a meticulous and masterful critique.
Victoria,
If the Ferguson police spent as much time teaching their personnel the best ways to react as they do spinning stories to make the people they kill look like criminals, there'd be fewer bodies lying on the street for four hours after being shot by clearly poorly trained officers.
Oh, wait. But maybe, just maybe, Officer Wilson did just as he was trained to do given the circumstances. We can't know however, because of all the stonewalling, coverups, misdirection, and unverifiable stories about broken eye sockets. Don't you think that if that was true, they would have hauled the guy out in front of the cameras to show his bruised and battered face? Broken eye sockets are pretty serious, and painful, and that kind of injury looks bad.
But the media, bovine as ever, is parroting everything that comes out of the mouth of someone with a uniform adding to the dismay that must be mounting by the hour in Ferguson, at least for the segment of the population who have to worry that if they or their kids are walking down the street and some angry cop doesn't like the cut of their jib, they may be shot and killed.
Isn't this America? Did we all suddenly wake up in a different country? I guess we did. Right-Wing World. Where you can be shot, like Kajieme Powell, just for acting a little strange.
I did watch that video and, like everyone else, was astonished, first, at the fact that the cops had their guns out before their feet hit the ground, and second, that they shot the guy within seconds. Not minutes, seconds. Both of them. And not one shot, SEVEN shots. Even worse, after he was DEAD they CUFFED HIM!!!!
I mean, WTF. Who does that? Meanwhile the other stormtroopers were chasing away law abiding citizens. One woman was so petrified, of someone else being shot for no reason other than watching, that she went out of her way to try to get them out of reach of the strutting cops.
And like everyone else, I wonder why they couldn't shoot him in the leg. Or how about trying to calm the guy down before thinking about pulling their weapons and turning him into Swiss cheese? Oh, who would ever have thought of that? A peaceful end to a minor problem. And the wingers wonder why there's so much distrust of law enforcement.
Will Fox cover the ceremony where those two murdering cops are given medals for shooting another unarmed black man?
Don't want to push the analogy too far (yet), but see disturbing similarities between ISIL tactics and those of Republicans like Mitch McConnell.
Both are eager and willing to perform unprovoked violence on people, institutions and beliefs they don't like. On ISIL's bloody hand, these True Believers glory in intimidation and mass murder. You don't agree with me? Off with your head!
On the R's less bloody but still destructive hand, we have politicians willing to bring the country to its knees if they don't get their way, fearful of taking action on any difficult or critical issue like immigration or military intervention in Syria, threatening another shutdown, and defunding everything they and their masters don't like from the EPA to the IRS. The attitude: If I can't have it my way, I'll tear the whole thing down, human consequence be damned.
Two other similarities: If morality means anything at all, surely violence employed in the pursuit of power, from schoolyard bullying to government shutdowns to public beheadings, has to qualify as immoral. (As Akhilleus has often said, there is a special circle of Hell reserved for these people.)
And the other: such behavior, the the deserts of the Middle East or in the halls of Congress, is the hallmark of bullies, who are often pathetic cowards at heart.
As for that other moron cop in Ferguson (is that part of the job description?), he is now an internet meme, Ofc Gofuckyourself.
Officer Gofuckyourself has now been identified:
"The suburban St. Louis police officer who threatened to kill protesters with his weapon drawn in Ferguson is Lt. Ray Albers, his boss said.
Albers, 46, a 20-year police veteran who served four years in the Army, is the man caught on video screaming at protesters, "I will fucking kill you," while pointing his rifle at civilians, St. Ann Police Chief Aaron Jimenez told The Huffington Post."
Good old Ray has found fame on Twitter. Some of Ofc. Gofuckyourself's "posts":
"My wife hasn't had sex w/ me in years bc she doesn't "find sociopaths attractive". Whatever. I'M FAMOUS NOW, SHIRLEY!"
"Anyone kno [sic] a good soothing cream? Papercuts all over my asshole from wiping it w/ the Constitution all week"
"If the crybabies at the ACLU get their way, I'll just join another police department. They move us around like Catholic priests."
and
" Its nice to be able to harass the blacks without wearing the hood... Its hard to see through those things."
If I was a good, well-trained, level-headed police officer, I would hate these dickheads.
Ken,
And as bad as the ISIS murderers are, their violence is rather limited in scope. Not Republicans. With the wave of a pen they can devastate the lives of millions (look at what Bush and Cheney did--their violence is still going strong). Just for a laugh and a few political points. Mitch has done it many times in his black marked tenure.
Reading the Greenhouse piece linked above, it's clear that they are still serious about destroying the ACA and removing one of the few lifelines that have been thrown to citizens in need in many years. They will cut that line and watch them drown while downing martinis and slapping each other on the back for another good day's work.
@Victoria D. Thanks for the link to the Lawrence O'Donnell commentary. While his comments are valuable, I think O'Donnell misses a major point of the Times story, & one that is illustrated by the Fox "News" report: Darren Wilson & "his side" are going to present a completely different account of the shooting & what went down to elicit it. It also seemed to me in reading the Times story that the reporters were prohibited from reporting precisely what the "other witnesses" said, since the Times learned of these "other accounts" through official sources (and, yes indeed, that shows you what the "official story" is going to be). I found both the Times & Fox "News" stories pretty enlightening as a window into what we will be hearing in the future.
Also, Dr. Michael Baden determined in his autopsy that all of the shots that hit Brown entered through the front of his body. So although O'Donnell complains that Wilson illegally shot at Brown while he was fleeing (& this agrees with some published eyewitness accounts), apparently none of those shots hit Brown -- or else Wilson did not fire at Brown while he was fleeing & the witnesses are mistaken.
At least two private citizens took videotapes of part of the shooting. We can hope the videos will be at least somewhat helpful in getting at the facts.
This piece by Pema Levy of Newsweek, which explores the possibilities of a legal case against Wilson, is helpful.
O'Donnell was right about one thing: the case may not hinge on what happened after the scuffle ended, as the Times reporters suggest. According to the legal experts Levy consulted, the nature of the physical confrontation between Brown & Wilson is what's important in determining Wilson's "state of mind" & whether it could reasonably justify the use of lethal force. Baden said Brown's body showed no signs of the scuffle; the police are claiming that Brown significantly injured Wilson. I assume they've documented the hell out of any evidence of Wilson's reputed injuries.
I think it's far too early to tell if there is a case against Wilson. While there is no doubt that he used terrible judgment, he may have acted legally. After all, St. Louis police are confident that their shooting Kajieme Powell to death was legal. They might be right, but to the untrained eye (mine), it looks like murder. There were many ways the police could have contained & subdued Powell -- who reportedly came at them with a knife -- without killing him. I'm sure police officers around the country do that dozens (or hundreds) of times every day with other criminals & confused or mentally unstable people. I can't help thinking that if Powell had not been a young black man, he would be alive today, even if he had behaved exactly as he did in the moments before police shot him to death.
Marie
Garrett Epps, on the Atlantic site, offers a bit of Supreme Court analysis that should make the schadenfreude ganglion jiggle just a bit.
The piece titularly notes the passing of the wingnut torch from Dark Lord Scalia to the newer boys, Little Johnny Roberts and Sammy (The Hitman) Alito, but buried in the middle, like a prize in a box of Cracker Jacks, is the answer to why all these courts around the country have been knocking down barriers to marriage equality (aside from the obvious fact of its essential unfairness).
Scalia, renowned for his sharp-tongued snark may have done himself, and his fellow wingnut haters, in with the barking he did in his dissent in Windsor, the case that plunged the knife into DOMA.
His Snarkiness just couldn't help himself, I guess, and in his pique, provided appellate judges with exactly what they needed to enshrine into law the right of anyone to marry anyone else, the idea being that laws against gay marriage were in place for the sole purpose of causing harm, something (most) judges look upon with a fair amount of disdain.
It thus appears that the Dark Lord gave himself a hot foot.
Thanks, Nino! What a guy.
Not long ago someone out here (James?) contributed a nice comment about the problems conservatives have with comedy. There are, in fact, very few conservatives who can be funny. Case in point...
Real Clear Politics (not really that clear, they just think it is), has a headline proclaiming it throughout the land that Mittens Romney (R-Loser), while campaigning for some senate wannabe (R-somewhere), made a funny.
Holy crap. Stop the presses!
Romney told a joke.
Don't bother. I ain't even gonna link it. The "joke" is all about how stupid Obama is. Ha-ha. A much funnier joke of course is that he's the president and not Romney, and if he's stupid, what does that make the Rat?
Predictably it's a long drawn out affair with a lame punchline. Extremely unfunny (I can picture the Rat practicing in front of Lady Ann who had to have her frozen grin surgically removed later). Now I'm all for having a good laugh at the president's expense if it's funny and has the ring of truth to it, but this is just sad.
And, well....stupid.
According to the Rat, one of his sons told him this "joke". I'm guessing it's probably the psycho one, Tagg, who once threatened to beat up Obama.
Sorry wingers. Your jokes blow.
Anyway...in order to make up for wasting your time (sorta), here's a joke about someone who really is worth laughing at:
''No! Not Captain Buzzkill! Not the guy who looks like everyone who ever fired your dad! He's gonna suck all the fun right out of this crazy thing. Just look at the online video announcing his run. It looks like it could double as an ad for erectile dysfunction pills. 'Mitt Romney: for when the moment's right.''' —Jon Stewart on Mitt Romney announcing his presidential campaign.
Okay. Now that's funny.
My shy thin 130lb middle aged grandmother wife, tae kwon do black belt, first degree, learned how to disarm an attacker with a knife. I can tell you as a physically fit 180lb practice attacker with a (rubber) knife, she makes it look easy. And it hurts. WHY IS IT SO HARD FOR PROFESSIONALS?
I am finding the focus on racism amongst the police forces, while a factor, to be a distraction. To my eye the underlying problem seems to be more related to the herd mentality that lets them circle the wagons around the bad behavior of a fairly large minority of their personnel. If they were to adopt a zero tolerance policy against brutality from verbal to lethal, and begin to prosecute these quick-draw thugs, and that;s what they are, for assault or manslaughter or murder, the racism problem would heal itself. Pressure has to squeeze from top and bottom so, once again, write your mayors or police commissioners, or whomever.
Don't know how I missed this, but I did.
According to the NY Times, "However, law enforcement officials say witnesses and forensic analysis have shown that Officer Wilson did sustain an injury during the struggle in the car.
As Officer Wilson got out of his car, the men were running away. The officer fired his weapon but did not hit anyone, according to law enforcement officials."
And, as Little Green Footballs suggests, this revelation "...makes it very clear that officer Wilson was firing his weapon at Michael Brown as he ran away — in other words, even though law enforcement officials say he didn’t hit Brown or Johnson, he was indeed shooting at Brown’s back.
That’s a confirmation of one of the crucial bits of eyewitness information, and an explanation for the initial reports that Brown was “shot in the back” — because Wilson did try to shoot him in the back. And that’s not supposition any more; it’s the direct word from law enforcement."
I don't think shooting someone in the back who was trying to run away, even if you don't hit them, is considered a reasonable thing to do, at least by most police departments. Then again, I could be wrong. Certain police departments might consider firing an RPG up the ass of a citizen trying to avoid a beating and/or shot in the back from police personnel A-Fucking-OK.
And if they did, I'm betting that Loofah Boy O'Reilly and his despicable right-wing posse would agree that that was the best thing to do to a (black) citizen.
Because uppity.
Oh, and Whyte, resist the urge to send your formidable wife to Missouri to train the troglodytes.
Officer Gofuckyourself might be aggravated and threaten to kill her. In which case I would give a month's salary to watch her throw him to the ground and jam a foot in his throat, or whatever black belt Tae Kwon Dos decide to do with bullying dickweeds.
I had a friend who was rated a Tae Kwon Do black belt. He was pretty freakin' scary when he wanted to be. And his teacher, Mr. Kim, a little guy by American standards, was insanely scary.