The last two days in the blogosphere have seen some visceral and over the top reactions to the actions of the police and Andrew Meyers at Senator Kerry's speech given at the University of Florida-Gainsville. We at KV think that a bit of perspective is in order.
Was it wrong to tase Meyer? Possibly.
However, it is not up to John Kerry to determine this. That particular task lies with the school and the police's Internal Affairs Department.
Senator Kerry did what was within his power to do: he attempted to diffuse the situation and answer the young man's questions. To claim as some have, that Senator Kerry was advocating police violence and the suppression of free speech because he didn't leap off the stage in an attempt to save the young man from being arrested is just ludicrous.
Fortunately and surprisingly, the unfair attacks on Senator Kerry that permeated some of the blogs did not extend to the media. This time, they were the levelheaded ones, reporting fairly and without attempt to sensationalize. One excellent example was the Taser Segment in last night's Countdown with Keith Olbermann:
Lest we forget, the senator is a champion of dissent.
John Kerry at Faneuil Hall, 4-22-2006
