So I’m sure many of you know about the student at the Kerry Forum at the University of Florida (here’s one of many videos available). What I don’t seem to understand is why everyone is upset that they tasered him for what he was speaking about. From what I saw, they made him leave for not giving up the mic (which was cut off) and possibly what he was speaking about (and the audience applauded for them making him leave). What they tasered him for was for fighting as they were trying to escort him out. There were four or five police trying to get him to leave and he clearly wasn’t leaving. To me, it looked as if he wanted a scene or had some kind of mental instability.
Am I missing something?!? I’m not saying the tasering was or was not excessive, but let’s be clear as to why they zapped him, it wasn’t for his words (I can’t imagine the zappers were even listening that close) it was for resisting to leave. I will agree the extra zaps were probably too much (it sounded like a few), especially if cuffed already, but it didn’t really slow him down so I can’t imagine it set as a regular taser (it never took Veronica Mars more than one zap to get someone in line). I generally don’t mess with the law, but I do know you don’t mess with security / police / secret service when it deals with senators / presidential candidates and when a bunch of people are escorting you out the building, you’re probably going to lose if you fight with them about it.
From this Blog from the Washington Post I get the feeling this student was familiar with the local police.
Here’s a local Miami news survey and 44% (of over 18,000 votes) say he deserved it, cast your vote! The results really surprised me…Random extra thoughts:
It didn’t even seem like he was listening to Kerry when he was talking to him.
When he was screaming “don’t taser me”, I have to assume they were threatening to taser him if he didn’t calm down. Otherwise why scream it?
It’s possible I’m mistaken and the audience was applauding him just for making the scene, but I don’t think they applauded until he was being escorted out. I don’t think he was considered to be under arrest until he was actually resisting leaving, I don’t think they arrested him for his words.
Watch some of the longer versions of the video that show after they get him out of the room and down the stairs (about 2 minutes in). He keeps acting like the “inciting a riot” charge was due to the talking and not the resisting to leave. He wouldn’t give them his name, or ID and acted like they were “going to give him [me] to the government”. It’s all cRaZy talk at the end.
He has his own web site at theandrewmeyer.com , please note his e-mail address if you visit.
The Bloggerheads do a lot of looking at the different angles and timelines.
Hey, i think you missed something… your longer utube version starts when he’s already being detained. But if you want to know more, you should look at an even longer version where one can witness the event from the beginning of the student’s question. This man was allowed not even a minute to articulate his question before he stared being harassed by the security.
And you, naive like a happy child, really think that it had nothing to do with the subject that he was bringing up. Gimme a break. So alright let’s all happily ride our SUVs to picnics in butterfly filled parks while our government is working righteously to bring peace to oppressed people around the world, then we can sleep sound and have beautiful dreams in our soft beds. Alright then.
I don’t think I missed anything…
I still don’t think they tasered him for his topic. They removed him for his talking, no doubt about that (and maybe removed him for the topic). From the link you provided it’s makes it even clearer that he was being difficult and annoying (and 8 months later it’s probably safe to assume if I didn’t see it then, I have since).
I still think they tasered him because he was being “difficult” (PITA) on the way out.