"Please, Don't Shoot My Dog!"

I had noticed the story's appearance days prior online and I remember feeling a detached remorse and resignation, reluctantly acknowledging yet another in a long litany of violent abuses of state power. This morning, though, I happened to see the actual police video of the incident and an interview with the victims on a Media-Inc. television morning show.

The shockingly graphic and brutal military style execution of a smallish, apparently spaniel/retriever type family lapdog, bounding like a trusting puppy from the detainees' modest station-wagon, tail wagging amiably and innocently unconcerned, is not what I consider an optimal start to my morning.

In case you missed it, let me recap briefly.

The official police version of the incident (their own video notwithstanding) claims the officers were simply acting in self defence against what they perceived as an imminent deadly attack by a "charging pitbull" while subduing dangerous criminals suspected in a violent highway robbery. No shit! This is a fairly verbatim transcription of the official police report as read by the cutesy Media-Inc. talking head.

[quasi-related note; In the interest of accuracy, and in deference to wanton gratuity, female talking heads, in my opinion, should henceforth be termed, "talking tits," "talking asses," or "talking legs," as the particular case dictates.]

The victims' version is a frightening tale of surreal proportions, an innocent vacation gone somehow terribly awry. Pulled over in a blaze of police lights and blaring loudspeakers a la Brave New World (..or is it 1984?...my bad!), the bewildered family is being handcuffed and arrested for reasons wholly unknown to them. Then, Patton, their frisky beloved pooch, is summarily perforated by a fusillade of deadly riflefire before their very eyes, as they watch in helpless and stunned horror.

The version depicted by the police video is indeed a surreal Orwellian nightmare. Blaring commands from the police PA's drone robotically amidst the cruisers' blinding highbeams and grotesquely flashing colored lights on the dark highway. The kaleidoscopic blaze in the night gloom frames a disbelieving family's humiliating and totalitarian subjugation, and eventually reveals at least six (I think) state soldiers in full battle ready, doing the dubious honors, weapons menacingly trained in deadly posture and poised ready to fire.

Then into the frame comes the little dog to meet his unfortunate and tragic end at the hands of the edgy storm troopers. The video clip ends showing several other of the beefy troopers looking blithely on, then turning to tackle the enraged family as they scream their outrage in helpless protest, obviously hopelessly manacled and harmless, and staring straight into the freshly smoking barrels of the adrenal blacksuited shooters who just butchered their little Patton.

Protect and Serve? Just doing their jobs? ....mmm hmm... Right.

I'm sorry, but blowing away Rover and indiscriminately terrorizing innocent civilians is most certainly not their job, even in Tennessee.

It is probably fortunate for that family that they were already shackled, or partially shackled, or certainly one or all of them may likely have been gunned down in turn by the conscientious and infallibly discerning lawmen, "controlling the situation."

Hypothetically, the victims may well have reacted naturally and spontaneously, i.e., instantaneously and violently---and fatally---in kind, in an understandably righteous indignation upon witnessing point-blank their beloved pet's brutal execution----but, maybe not. At least, any right-thinking self-respecting human being seeing the actual video of the incident for himself, certainly must feel a deeply instinctive outrage and retaliatory sentiment welling up inside on behalf of the hapless vacationers and their unnecessarily cruel and scandalous treatment.

Lest I'm accused of mincing words, I might even sleep better at night if I knew that somewhere, sometime, somehow, oppressed and violated peaceable regular folk like these might exact some measure of justice by lining up a few of these unaccountable and heartless badges against the wall and giving them a substantial taste of their own hot lead-based medicine.

Not that they would probably care to, but they might at least shoot one these subhuman neanderthals' dogs. No, no, I'm sorry ....much better to shoot the blackguards.

Welcome to the New World Order, Brother!

Just remember this--- Government: if you're not in it, it's against you!

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot ....Happy New Year!