The American Police State

On July 17th, 2014, a man was murdered in broad daylight on the streets of New York.  Nothing was done to stop it.  No one tried to intervene.  Why?  Because the murderer was a NYPD cop.  The victim must have done something pretty terrible to have been killed by a policeman, right?  The man was selling un-taxed cigarettes.

In the early morning hours of June 29th, 2014, police respond to a call about a suspicious vehicle outside of a club.  The police reports claim the man was hitting the car and yelling.  The young man says he was watching videos on his cell phone while waiting for his girlfriend to get off work.  The results of the incident are a broken leg, black eye, and another run-in with the law that escapes significant accountability.

These are just 2 examples of the daily problems that come from over-confident, over-zealous cops that think they are above the law.  Think about it -- if a cop sees an individual make a right turn without signaling, they can make an illegal U-turn and break the speed limit before they pull someone over, search the car, and put them in jail with hefty fines for practically anything they want.

Have you seen an episode of "Cops"?  Think about how many lives are ruined because a cop wants to satisfy his monthly ticket quota.  He pulls over a young, black man -- still in college -- and convinces the man that he has the right to search his car because he "smells something suspicious."  He asks the man to step out of the car, and he is handcuffed for "procedural and safety reasons."  The man acts irritated and annoyed -- which are not crimes -- because he's being treated like a criminal during a routine traffic stop.  Whether the cop finds a joint in the car is irrelevant because at this point the man is going to be booked for something.  His record is going to be permanently blemished, and employers are going to be forever hesitant to hire someone who had issues with the law.  But it sure makes good television.

In the video below, you'll see a cop dramatically change his tone after he is told that he is being filmed.  Watch the cop squirm as he refuses to admit his guilt.  The truck driver signaled for the cop to pull over after the cop car sped past with the officer on his cell phone.  Cops are allowed to break the very law they are supposed to uphold.

Thankfully we live in an age where cameras are everywhere.  It would be incredibly naive to say that police brutality has only recently become a problem in America.  Twenty years ago, if you experienced a case of police brutality, it was commonly your word vs theirs -- and I bet I know who won those arguments.

This is the world we live in.  Cops can enforce the law however they see fit, and if they treat anyone with an unfair amount of force or coercion, they can rely on the lack of media coverage and their "official police report" to protect their heinous actions.  The examples of police brutality in America are practically infinite.  How have we gotten to a point where the police can literally murder a man with a choke hold and the media barely cover it?

July 1, 2014 -- Cop beats a homeless grandmother on the ground
June 16, 2014 -- Cop beats 19 yr old lesbian at a Gay Pride Parade
Jan 4, 2014 -- Cop beats 70 year old man having a diabetic attack
July 26, 2014 -- Cop stomps on the head of a man arrested for smoking weed
Nov 11, 2009 -- 2 Cops beat a man senseless, and were just now fired after a video surfaced in January
May 28, 2014 -- A SWAT team drug raid results in a flash bang nearly killing a child in a crib
May 2014 -- Police taze a sleeping passenger during a DUI stop in the EYE, twice 
April 25, 2014 -- Police break 3 bones in a mans face during a routine traffic stop for a cracked windshield