Comment hidden because you are ignoring dag.(show it anyway)

Just beat me to it Eric - a very disturbing video. He was asking some valid questions I thought.

Why doesn't Kerry get involved one way or the other. He should have stood up for the kid or against him. He just seems impotent standing up there mumbling about the question, while the person who asked it is getting tasered.

Why didn't anyone there get involved? Because we're a nation of people who hide under our desks while our fellow classmates get killed.

that is what dictatorship looks like.

fuck Kerry, I think he does the worst stuff here, just mumbling "i'll answer it" and then doing what, saying "calm down"?? wtf??

But what annoys me more is people reacting to this like "he was an ass, he was out of line, he was seeking attention, he deserved it" etc. etc. as if they literally have no idea what democracy is supposed to be.

If this guy wasn't hassled by the police on the way, and if his questions hadn't been repeatedly ignored by the media for years during an illegal war, then maybe he wouldn't have been driven to being such an ass about it on that day. Kerry was on the right track with calmly accepting the question, but as soon as the freaking blackshirts give him a break he shuts up.

What i don't understand is why people are so comfortable with the idea of armed thugs in black uniforms giving students totally unnecessary electric shocks in front of all their peers.

Hello America? Germany in the thirties called, she wants her ideas back.

America the land of the oppressed.

vote ron paul i reckon, he's your only hope

The only person in this video more obnoxious than the kid who got tasered is the asshole saying "Rodney King" at the end.

Disturbing the Peace.

This is EXACTLY why I scoff at the lefties here who think it's just the republicans who are the problem. Both parties dance to the same music; it's just who has the middle of the dance floor right now.

These days, you cannot question. You cannot question those who particpate in the political process. You cannot question the police. You cannot question ANY authority. What are we going to do when we've turned our backs to the point where there's nowhere to turn to.

What does this have to do with political parties? Um, Rotty ... Im guessing you are the only person thinking about party affiliation after watching this video. I dont know about anyone else but I saw police abusing there power. I think you might be a little preoccupied with the whole left right thing.

From this YT video (the beginning is good, but swap it for one of the better ones on the internets,, I got sick watching it)

I couldnt get to my camera in time to record his entrance, but this guy basically comes running in with 4 or 5 cops in tow and says he has been running around trying to get in to ask a question and the cops are going to arrest him for it. they almost do it then but Sen. Kerry says he will answer it. he then answers a previous question someone else asked (i cut that part out because it isnt important to this video) then the guy asks his questions and when he is done all hell breaks lose. to the cop haters: i have no doubt the cops were going exactly by the book, the problem isnt them, its the book! they were doing their job and looked just as confused as this kid (this isnt something that they deal with often)


From dailykos:

The forum was going to be over at 2 pm, and Kerry spoke for so long that the Q and A portion had to be shortened. He only got through about 7 of the 50 people who were waiting to ask questions. While the final question was being read, some douchebag ran down the aisle, grabbed the mic from the other side of the room, interrupted the kid who was talking, and started yelling at Kerry, demanding that his questions be heard. He started ranting about how Kerry talks in circles or something, and everyone was getting annoyed. The cops are all over him in no time and try to escort him out, but he starts yelling and resisting. Kerry insists that they let him stay and even agrees to answer his question.

After the interrupted guy's question was answered, Kerry keeps his promise and lets the angry guy talk. This is the point where people started taking their cameras and phones out. All the videos floating around youtube start around here. You can see in the videos that his questioning gets kind of inappropriate, so somebody cut his mic. Instead of shutting up, he starts yelling and making an even bigger scene. He struggled all the way up the aisle, and started violently trying to free himself. They threatened to taze him and he wouldnt stop fighting, so he got tazed. They only had to arrest him because he was causing a disruption and wouldn't leave peacefully. He wasn't being silenced for asking tough questions, trust me.

I never downvote things, seriously, this was my first (IIRC). I'm downvoting this because that kid resisted, struggled, and baited the police so that he would get the attention he is getting here. I don't believe he deserves that attention. The police did their job, he was unharmed, and if you can think of another way to remove a kid who is running around, struggling even with 5 police on top of him, and yelling things simply to provoke a mob reaction, you tell me. I'm sure I'll get some responses, but I'm going to state that I doubt any of them are realistic, since I'll probably not going to come back and view this again to read the comments.

It Skull and Bones either way.

eric,

The police abuse is the obvious part. Politically, it has to do with the content of his questions and the same impotence that the democratic congress is displaying now that they exhibited after the election. Eveidentlly they get a pass for this at our expense. No questions asked. I just want the spotlight pointed everywhere.

I hope Kerry's response isn't an indication of how effective he would be as a president.


Incidently, as I write this reponse, the local radio station is replaying the audio to this event and they are laughing it up like it's entertainment. Mocking his statement "Don't tase me, bro." And they mock any callers who call in to support the student with a taser audio in the background. How pathetic things are...

I posted up another one of these from a different angle and the camera isn't as shaky. http://www.videosift.com/video/Student-Tasered-After-Asking-Jo
hn-Kerry-Questions

see kids, this is what happens when liberals and meth mix

This shows more of the aftermath: http://youtube.com/watch?v=7NWukZhsiBw

Thank you arrendek, I'm glad I'm not the only person who thought that. He was abusing the Q&A set up, then when they tried to stop him, he struggled and resisted. Yes, his questions should be asked, but this isn't about the questions or free speech or the politics, this is about resisting the police. blankfist's linked video is even worse. "There are people who know I'm here, you can't just like kill me", "They're going to try and kill me", ok I'm sure the guy was scared but come on. "You're going to break my arm" - then don't struggle! Ultimately the cops are humans who don't want to be hurt or humiliated and that's not going to change until the robots take over the world. If I had a choice between risking being kicked in the nuts or tasering someone, they're going down. The police must be trained in dealing with these situations and on using appropriate measures but I'm quite ready to believe they did just that.

If the police decide they're going to arrest you, don't mess with them. Regardless of whether or not they are right, once they decide to take action, they're going to carry it through and so they damn well should - should the police let go of someone because they don't think they deserve to be arrested?

If the cops are after you, don't make it harder for them. What happens should be documented as much as possible (as has happened here with multiple cameras) and then inappropriate actions can be dealt with in due course. Of course, the police must be policed and if they go too far they must face very serious consequences so they know before they act that they are responsible.

I'm a left wing democrat terrorist loving pussy, but I think the only things likely to have been done wrongly here is not telling him firmly and clearly that he should step down, and the description "inciting a riot". I think the police just intended to take him to one side or just outside the hall, but he left them without that choice (both my theory and that there wasn't clear instruction is guesswork on my part). That he was inciting a riot is ridiculous, there must be a better charge, some sort of disorderly conduct, I'll give him that but I still think the only person who deserved to be tased more than this guy is whoever mentioned Rodney King.

So the guy is obviously an idiot but I must point out that if this guy was a liberal and the candidate was a republican he would have been hailed as a hero and all the police officers involved would have been suspended by now. The left likes the scream and whine about free speech but not when some one speaks out against them.

*politics !!

Adding video to channels (Politics) - requested by ant.

I take it you don't agree with me then Ant

I've seen this sort of video and reaction on here and on Youtube a few times and it's always the same thing, claims of a trivial action countered by inappropriate force. People always miss why the force is applied. It's not because of asking awkward questions and refusing to step down, or because of skateboarding in the wrong place, the force is because by struggling or running, the cops aren't left with the nice options.

rent-cop gone wild-taser not necessary-ridiculous actions on the part of either unilateral act of reant a cop, or instructions from Kerry's goons.....
Crapcop 2000

These things happen all the time on CSPAN. The difference here is the police at events in the capital have experience manhandling people out the door real quick, and the activists understand they will be jailed if they resist even slightly.

Agreed that Kerry should have interrupted pretty early with a sharp "Thats enough." Maybe followed by... "I've answered your first question many times; despite my feelings that I was the better presidential candidate I did not think it was in the Nation's interest to have a protracted and divisive courtroom battle for the Presidency. I did join one of the more prestigious of the ten or more different exclusionary social groups as a student at Yale and it helped me later to meet and catch the attention of other Yale graduates as I became interested in a career in politics. To entertain the idea that contacts through this college group were influential in my decision to stop my presidential bid is silly; the legends surrounding these groups are myths, they are simply invite-only social groups. Please have a seat and let one of your colleagues approach the mic... or I'll come down there and choke the shit out of you."... woah, got out of hand there at the end.

Hey Reason, this video has nothing to do with liberals or conservatives, but for some reason you have to make up some lame hypothetical situation that has nothing to do with this topic. Your argument about liberals cant be taken to seriously when your doing all the whining.

Kerry should have stopped them. That is terrible. He should not have resisted.

and the assholes clapped...

I wouldn't say oppressed. I understand that these guys are frustrated and want some answers.

But that doesn't justify his outburst behavior. He clearly resisted the blue uniforms. When you resist the proper authorities and take matter into your own hands, nobody knows what is going to happen except for you, who now makes the next move.

It could be an egg being thrown at the senator, maybe harmless mooning. Or maybe an assassination attempt.

Either way, the student's resistance was stupid. You guys may defend his political opinion, but don't defend his abrupt action.

the point is, does a student being an ass hijacking a forum really need 5 cops dressed in black to give him an electric shock?
answer: no.
before tasers existed, this video would have been the same, but without the electric shock.
does the electric shock shut him up? no. Could he have been ejected without it? yes. Did he pose a danger to the police? Apart from maybe accidentally hitting someone with his elbow, no.

I have seen drunk, powerful, violent men ejected from a nightclub by two security guys without a taser. The drunk guy's intention was to cause violence not just hijack a debate with some words. Get some perspective.

Being an ass in uni is not cause for this treatment. Heck, students used to lock out the lecturers and have orgies. Would you go in and gas them all or what?

Heck, students used to lock out the lecturers and have orgies.

Huh? Where? When? What?

Before tasers existed, this video would have been the same, ... but he would have been sprayed with pepper spray or beaten with a nightstick.

HA! Famous last words:
"Don't Tase me, bro!"

This video is scary but that has me rolling.

His only offense prior to the cops' attempt to arrest him was cutting to the front of the queue of questioners. Though he should have done more listening and less yelling, resisting fraudulent arrest is morally right. It does not look like he commited any *crime* before the officers began trying to arrest him, unless you categorize legitimate political speech as incitement to riot, which is just a fascist excuse for censorship.

[Insert whiny over-reaction here]

This is Andrew Meyer's website:

http://theandrewmeyer.com/

Ok, I really don't care that he was man-handled. In my opinion, this former-gifted-student was out to get attention and could care less what Kerry had to say. Everyone has to agree he wasn't going to stop talking ever.

So, we have some guy who jumps up and runs to the second mic (after no more questions), he starts yelling and interrupts the guy on the stage right mic, and the police start talking to him, and Kerry says, "that's ok, just shut up and I'll let you ask a question". So Kerry answer the previous question, and that is where the videos all start. With him standing there waiting (after he pushed in front of five people and then yelled until he got attention).

He hands his camera to the girl standing there who he doesn't really know. He talks to the cops while he is waiting for Kerry to finish answering the last question, and even makes a comment about getting arrested.

Then he rambles on, won't shut up or let Kerry answer a question. He doesn't get the hint when the cop says, you're taking too long. He doesn't shut up after they cut his mic.

Now, should the cops just waited for him at the exit? would he shut up to listen to Kerry? Clearly they should never use a taser unless someone's life is threatened. Obviously tasers can kill, so duh, don't use them except in a situation where you would otherwise be putting a bullet in someone. It's that simple.

ummm....... what ever happened to freedom of speech or is that just out the window in the united states?

As a police officer, aren't you required to tell someone what you're arresting them for? Why did Andrew Meyer have to keep asking "what are you arresting me for?"

Tags for this video have been changed from 'John Kerry, taser, police, student' to 'John Kerry, taser, police, student, dont taser me bro' - edited by karaidl

Re: BrknPhoenix

[satirically insert inane apathetic nihilistic comment here]

An obvious media stunt by a well-known kollij prankster punk media wannabe. One of the cops mentions that he only acted like a jackass when cameras were recording.

Even that weenie Kerry told the cops "You did the right thing".

"the point is, does a student being an ass hijacking a forum really need 5 cops dressed in black to give him an electric shock?" - MINK

You'd never know what's going to happen when an unstable person starts to let loose in open public. The key word here being 'unstable'. Many of you guys are defending him saying that he was asking legitimate questions. Well, while he was saying that he was screaming and face turning red, a sign of 'i'm going nuts!!! ahh!!'. Yea, if I was the hall monitor, I'd pull the plug on that.


And Kerry is a publicly well known political figure who has his own bodyguards for a reason because public figures like him are always in danger. I mean America had our share of political assassinations and assault whenever nation was going through some major political differences. Ronald Reagan, Bill Gates (who suffered a lot of hate crime when Microsoft was monopolizing), Martin Luther King Jr., Garfield etc etc etc etc etc....

I really can't see this particular event as 'oppression'. Perhaps you're fed up with the 'other political figures' that enforces strict crowd control. I agree with you on that. But this particular incident in UF? It's not oppression, it's the hotheaded student's stupidity.

He has a reason to be angry. There was no sign that he intended any violence.

MINK, what does the color of the uniform really have to do with any of this? Is black the new color of supposed oppression?

From issue 2623 of New Scientist magazine, 29 September 2007, page 3:

'IS IT safe to use Tasers to restrain people? The debate has been growing as more and more police forces have started using the electro-stun weapon. The latest research appears to show that while tasering does increase heart and breathing rates, it has few if any long-term effects (see "Taser studies begin to address health concerns"). End of story? Not at all.

Whether a weapon is safe to use is not the only question police officers should be asking. Just as relevant is whether it is appropriate or necessary. A Taser causes severe pain and muscle contractions, and temporary paralysis. Using it is unquestionably a violent act.

Granted, it can save lives: where it is used in place of lethal force, for example, or to prevent someone committing suicide. But a guarantee that it is safe should not be a ticket for police to use it indiscriminately. Like all tools of violence, it should remain a weapon of last resort.'

*promote

Promoting this video back to the front page; last published Tuesday, September 18th, 2007 2:07am PDT - promote requested by dotdude.

Uh-huh, now that I have my star, I can finally downvote this attention-whore. Life is good.

Tags for this video have been changed from 'John Kerry, taser, police, student, dont taser me bro' to 'John Kerry, taser, police, student, dont tase me bro' - edited by calvados