If you've kept up with the news this past week you probably heard about the tasering of a University of Florida student when he was being removed from a "Town Hall Forum" featuring Senator John Kerry (D-MA).

Here are links to the videos: http://www.savage-productions.com/Tasering_videos.html

Well first of all, if you know me at all you'd know I don't have much use for Mr. Kerry, and frankly the questions I thought the student was asking him (as well as the points he was attempting to make) was rather nutty.

However this is the USA, and he had as much right to say what he was saying as anyone else does. In fact Mr. Kerry appeared to be open to answering the questions the the student posed, even as the student's mike was cut and he was being dragged from the podium.

Alright, now I can understand a time limit being imposed because a lot of students probably wanted to ask Mr. Kerry some questions, I could probably ask him some questions, though he probably wouldn't like them. However the security guards / campus police behind the student were being obviously advasarial with the student as he was coming to his point. I could tell the student was making a case for the question he was posing. The ghestappo like action of the guards was somewhat uncalled for. Whether this treatment was something that was mandated by Kerry's handlers or the faculty of the university is not known (to me), but it seemed to be because the student was asking radical questions. 

My point here is, what is wrong with asking these kind of questions to our government officials? This is not Stalinist Russia or Mao's China, this is the USA. Senator Kerry is in the service of the people of Massachussets and under their employ, something I think he might forget from time to time and something WE might forget from time to time.

Now when the officers removed the student, I agree he should have peacefully complied. However the ghestappo apparently were unable to say with authority if you do not leave we will remove you, if you resist we will arrest you. They never warned the student with any threat of force they simply began manhandling him after cutting of the mic. I would have been pissed off too, to be honest. There was no clear moderation of this proceeding allowing for this behavior to get out of hand. 

However the Gehstappo dragged him away and he resisted somewhat so they attempted to arrest him so they wrestled him to the ground and handcuffed him. This is awfully excessive, they should have just removed him. I don't know why 7 guards had to wrestle him to the ground for going overtime on his question.

The tasering was in my mind, over the top. Perhaps removing the student from the meeting hall was the right course of action, but I think ultimately the treatment of the student was excessive and wrong.

What has happened to open discourse in this country?