http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/06/201162114131825860.html

Unfortunately, not all departments do. Some stick a gun in your face and smash your camera if you record them.

Now, to prevent potential straw-men, I am not arguing that the cops in this case were not justified in shooting up the dude in that car. I do not know, you could not see in the window - for all I know he had wrapped a turban around his head and grabbed something that looked like a bomb detonator.

But as to the cops who went, stuck a gun in the face of the people filming, then smashed their shit; know that this type of behavior is a common occurance. As you said Vuldan, many of the cops you know arent worthy of the badge.

So, offended or not; I find it imperative that authority be held on an extremely tight civilian leash. I know some cops chafe at that, and feel, sometimes rightly - that they could do a better job of protecting if they weren't tied down by pesky things like procedure, and civil rights.

But the fact that they are, is what differentiates a proper USA police officer from a Syrian Shabbiha or Iranian Basiji. If people do not have de facto rights, and accountability is nor enforced, then laws are just so many pretty words.

For who could be free when every other man's humour might domineer over him? - John Locke (2nd Treatise, sect 57)