The "Naked Wizard" - Did the Police Use Excessive Force?

I first noticed this story on Huffington Post, about a guy dressed in a wizard costume at a music festival who decided to take off his clothes. He was encountered by three police officers who tried to convince the guy to put his robe back on. When he refused, it got ugly. After unsuccessfully trying to take the guy down and cuff him, they took out the taser.

Whether or not nudity should be against the law is a whole other argument, but the fact remains, it is illegal.

My personal experience with police at festival-type situations like these, is that they are primarily concerned with keeping things from getting out of hand and not out to arrest people if they don't have to.

The police here appeared to give this guy ample opportunity to put his robe back on and go on his way. They only arrested him when it got to the point where they had no choice.

Now, I think three able-bodied police officers should have been able to take this guy down without tasering him, but they were correct in arresting him. He was clearly trying to provoke them.

If I were one of these cops, as obnoxious as this guy was, I may have been tempted to smack him in the head with my nightstick. Not sure if I would want to tase him. I'm not sure whoch is worse.

So, do you think the police were justified in tasering this guy? If you were one of these officers, what would you do?

Here is the link to the video (warning - disturbing to watch)

http://vimeo.com/4273363

Why Do I Find Bratty Kids So Amusing?

I was at the ATM machine this morning, in the bank lobby. There was a woman with a young bou, about three years old. He kept screaming that he wanted a lollipop. His mom kept saying "no", and with each "no", the kid threw himself on the floor, while his mom grabbed his wrist and tried to pull him back up to a standing position. The tantrums got so bad the mom pulled the kid outside the lobby to try to get him to calm down.

For some reason, I found this hilarious. I guess it's funny when it's someone else being embarrassed by a bratty kid.

When I was done, they went back into the ATM lobby, with the kid still screaming for a lollipop. I would bet anything that she eventually took him into the bank and got him a lollipop, which she probably should have just done in the first place.

Area Man Can't Shut the Fuck Up About His New Cell Phone

WASHINGTON TWP, NJ - Local resident Jeff Pickens is now the proud owner of a T-Mobile G1 Android 3G Smartphone, and can't stop telling everyone how great it is. Pickens, 52, suddenly found himself in the market for a new phone this past weekend when his other phone suddenly ceased operating.

After a fight with the asshole at the Clementon, NJ T-Mobile store after the asshole made no attempt to determine what was wrong with the old phone, Pickens, consumed with rage, expelled a string of expletives and walked out of the store. "The guy was such an asshole, I had to get out of there before I did something violent", recalled Pickens, visibly shaken.

Pickens then decided to try another T-Mobile store. "The guy at the Deptford Mall store, Mike, was the exact opposite of the asshole at Clementon", he said. "I really intended to get just a regular phone, but when Mike showed me the G1, and some of the cool things you can do with it, I had to have it. Mike was a great salesman".

Now, Pickens has been singing the praises of the G1 to anyone who will listen, much to the annoyance and embarrassment of his family and friends. "One of the coolest features is 'My Location' on the Maps feature", he gushed. "It shows you exactly where you are by putting a blue dot at your exact location, with mind-blowing accuracy".

"He showed me the map thing" said a family member, who only spoke on condition of anonymity. "He showed me the blue dot, in one room of the house. Then he made me walk over to another room. the dot moved over to the exact spot in the house where we went. I think that's just plain creepy".

Pickens is still exploring the vast array of functionalities and applications available with the G1.

He has yet to make an actual phone call with it.