As it is, New York officialdom is vowing to punish any derelict cops. Given the furor, it is likely that there will be a scapegoat or two in NYPD blue. Perhaps it has reached a point of diminishing police aggressiveness, and not just in New York. And perhaps that is inevitable when we fractionate into belligerent ethnic and racial groups and consensual moral and ethical standards unravel. That s a no-winner for police and for the rest of us.
Civilization is fragile.
Police who do the rough and risky chores of keeping barbarism at bay know this. Some of the rest of us seem to have forgotten. All of which reminded some of us old-timers of the days when Hillary Clinton was doing volunteer work for the Black Panthers who were promising in song and slogan to off the pigs. Click here for reprint information. Email this article to a friend.