I work on in an office at Pearl & Broadway and spend most of my day staring at a computer screen. Within the past two years, my vision degredation has finally become advanced enough that I need vision correction in order to (safely) drive. While I was discussing this with my eyedoctor, she told me that this is a relatively new phenomenon, but they suspect that people (like me) who stare at a computer all day long and don't make a concerted effort to focus on things further away become nearsighted over time.
Anyhow, I've gotten into a habit of taking a couple short walks each day now in an effort to counter any further vision degredation. I generally go grab a chai or wander around a bookstore or something. Today I walked east on Pearl towards Alison's and I noticed that there were both a patrol car and a fire truck parked in the road at 13th. I was listening to my iPod and not paying a huge amount of attention, but I noticed that it appeared that an officer was arresting a black woman and had her pressed against the car and was searching her. Right after crossing 13th, I ran into (almost literally, because I was watching the cop) a friend of mine and we stood there and watched while not one but two cops each of whom was easily twice the size of this poor, small, older black woman manhandled and yelled at her.
I'll be the first to admit, I'm not the biggest fan of police and I'll also admit that I have no idea what this woman did or did not do to bring this upon herself, but all that aside, these two officers seemed to be using a reasonable amount more than 'the minimal force necessary' to secure the situation judging from the looks on everyone else who was watching's faces.
It's seriously about time that we ask ourselves as a society a serious question:
Who's watching the watchers?
Anyhow, I've gotten into a habit of taking a couple short walks each day now in an effort to counter any further vision degredation. I generally go grab a chai or wander around a bookstore or something. Today I walked east on Pearl towards Alison's and I noticed that there were both a patrol car and a fire truck parked in the road at 13th. I was listening to my iPod and not paying a huge amount of attention, but I noticed that it appeared that an officer was arresting a black woman and had her pressed against the car and was searching her. Right after crossing 13th, I ran into (almost literally, because I was watching the cop) a friend of mine and we stood there and watched while not one but two cops each of whom was easily twice the size of this poor, small, older black woman manhandled and yelled at her.
I'll be the first to admit, I'm not the biggest fan of police and I'll also admit that I have no idea what this woman did or did not do to bring this upon herself, but all that aside, these two officers seemed to be using a reasonable amount more than 'the minimal force necessary' to secure the situation judging from the looks on everyone else who was watching's faces.
It's seriously about time that we ask ourselves as a society a serious question:
Who's watching the watchers?