Does this horrify you?

[indestructo]

Well said Becca

[VTechVaulter]

police should have tasered him the moment he started resisting. the simple fact is that they have a job to do and as soon as he CHOOSE to break the law and disobey what he was being instructed to do by a higher authority, he put them in a position to make quick decisions, and thats what he got. I would bet money that if he had complied when they had attempted to remove him the first time, he would not have ended up no the ground, and would not have wound up tasered.

listen to the authorities first. then if there is a problem take it up with someone who can do somethign about it. dont throw a hissy fit and complain about what you got

[MightyMouse]

If an officer was about to violate my freedom of speech I might think twice about complying

What about protecting the freedom of other students to ask questions?

Freedom of speech has its limits, particularly when your free speech is hindering others' freedoms.

What is the appropriate amount of time to ask a question? I better know so Im not muscled out by cops at our next speaker event.

I also find it hard to believe that intellectual freedoms and violations of those freedoms can be resolved in a violent manner. It would be at the speakers discretion to deal with the 'criminally' long & obnoxious question and in this case Kerry said "thats alright let me answer his question".

Also the whole event lasted UNDER 5 mins, and his question was about 2min. So no ones ability to ask a question was THAT impacted.

[rainbowgirl28]

What is the appropriate amount of time to ask a question? I better know so Im not muscled out by cops at our next speaker event.

This was made clear by the event organizers. They certainly have the discretion to limit the amount of time available.

I also find it hard to believe that intellectual freedoms and violations of those freedoms can be resolved in a violent manner. It would be at the speakers discretion to deal with the 'criminally' long & obnoxious question and in this case Kerry said "thats alright let me answer his question".

Also the whole event lasted UNDER 5 mins, and his question was about 2min. So no ones ability to ask a question was THAT impacted.

You are losing sight of the fact that the video all over the internet is edited. Read some of the first hand accounts of what happened and you will have a better feel for the big picture.

[BadMotherVaulter]

What is the appropriate amount of time to ask a question? I better know so Im not muscled out by cops at our next speaker event.

This was made clear by the event organizers. They certainly have the discretion to limit the amount of time available.

I also find it hard to believe that intellectual freedoms and violations of those freedoms can be resolved in a violent manner. It would be at the speakers discretion to deal with the 'criminally' long & obnoxious question and in this case Kerry said "thats alright let me answer his question".

Also the whole event lasted UNDER 5 mins, and his question was about 2min. So no ones ability to ask a question was THAT impacted.

You are losing sight of the fact that the video all over the internet is edited. Read some of the first hand accounts of what happened and you will have a better feel for the big picture.

She is right... i've seen one video of the entire thing and he was out of line.

My problem is that the police say they were following some kind of procedures when they used the taser... and its my belief that tasering should only be done in a most extreme case, not here.

They had him handcuffed and subdued while he was on the ground. THAT is enough. It seems almost cruel to tase him after that point.

He was being a monumental butthead though.

[MightyMouse]

You are losing sight of the fact that the video all over the internet is edited. Read some of the first hand accounts of what happened and you will have a better feel for the big picture.

Good point, I can now see that maybe he should have been asked to leave, but No Physical force was required.

[rainbowgirl28]

You are losing sight of the fact that the video all over the internet is edited. Read some of the first hand accounts of what happened and you will have a better feel for the big picture.

Good point, I can now see that maybe he should have been asked to leave, but No Physical force was required.

I wasn't there, but I have a feeling that he was asked to leave. Sometimes physical force is required.

[MightyMouse]

You are losing sight of the fact that the video all over the internet is edited. Read some of the first hand accounts of what happened and you will have a better feel for the big picture.

Good point, I can now see that maybe he should have been asked to leave, but No Physical force was required.

I wasn't there, but I have a feeling that he was asked to leave. Sometimes physical force is required.

Imagine the same situation but without Police there, it would have been resolved in a non-violent manner, taking a few minutes for him to finish or maybe he would be persuaded by the boos of the audience or the disapproval of the speaker. He leaves looking like a complete jerk and forever known as that annoying kid who wants attention

He was a Student at a University event, and posed no physical threat to anyone there. So why respond like he’s a drug addict on PCP

But I imagine we will have to agree to disagree on this one

[achtungpv]

He was a Student at a University event, and posed no physical threat to anyone there.

You should offer your psychic abilities to the government. They could probably use your skills.

This sums up my opinion of the matter...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzkd_m4ivmc

[decanuck]

Well this is old news now, but, somehow, this hasn't been said yet...

The six officers who actually took part in holding Meyer down while he was being handcuffed reported that they were only able to get a handcuff on his right hand because he was squirming so much.

Six officers to get ONE hand of ONE guy in cuffs? Heaven help them if they have to arrest, say, three people at once. By that math they'd need 36 officers cuff all three.

I highly doubt these six officers are so weak and incompetent that they can't physically subdue a skinny college kid without tasing him. That was clearly a vindictive, petty act of vengeance on the part of the supervising officer that tried to tase him and couldn't, then instructed another officer to do so.

One could argue that the guy is a total knob (which he clearly is) so he deserved it, but it isn't enough for the police to merely fairly exercise power, they have to be SEEN to be doing so or the public will rapidly lose confidence in them. Given the circumstances, the officer in charge acted shamefully. It'd be different if it was one cop chasing down some streetwise punk in a back alley at midnight, but this was a public speaking forum in a Florida University. The police HAVE to do better than that.

Remember, tasers were designed to be used in situations where a gun otherwise would've. This clearly isn't one of them.

I hope the kid sues.

[powerplant42]

Did anybody else see the guy in the light-yellow shirt laughing at him near the end of the video?