# Rodney King, wife beater. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 15, 2003, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483 "2003-10-15T00:42:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Beagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Beagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beagle)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/61 "2003-10-15T16:55:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by World Eater \* > \*\*Sure was a violent outburst that time he was laying on the ground getting the shit kicked out of him. \*\* Nice wisecrack but for the fact I already said I would have convicted the officers of “excessive force.” Problem is, they probably did have a reasonable belief he was on PCP. So, it’s more like crocodile wrestling than arresting a normal suspect. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/62 "2003-10-15T17:08:57Z")
> [@](#): > > I see that you have recently amended your position on character assessments to simply asking that people “comments to his persona online, not IRL.” I amended nothing; that was my position from the start. > [@](#): > > . Something that Airman fails to realize is that there is no logical connection between whether or not King is an asshole, on the one hand, and whether or not police brutality against him is acceptable, on the other. To quote your own words, “Also, if you can’t stand a bit of hyperbole like that offered by **Airman** in this case, then maybe you should stick to GD.” I have no doubt that **Airman** is not seriously advocating police beatdowns as a matter of course. He was, IMO, expressing frustration that Rodney King continues to walk the streets and commit crimes, seemingly with impunity. [quotThe only inference i can draw from this sentence is that those who oppose violence against King must therefore be in favour of his beating of his wife. [/quote] That’s some mighty tall stretching for offense there, Tex. I have no doubt that you are firmly against vioolence to women, But I am equally convinced that your reverence for the minutiae of legal procedure may blind you to the actual moral weight of a case. ---
**Author:** ![GaWd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f08c70/32.png) [@GaWd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaWd)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/63 "2003-10-15T17:26:49Z")
> [@](#): > > Say what? Apparently you missed the part where I mentioned that I have disagreements with him, too. One can disagree with someone and still like him and stick up for him. Goodness knows I detest religion, yet I defend Christian dopers against idiots like Badchad. Bet you think I put Christian dopers on a pedestal, too. You’re allowed to have disagreements with him, unfortunately, they have nothing to do with his board behavior or me. I also don’t think your defense of christians has any bearing on this either-you’ve stood up for AD, personally-Not as a bystander standing up for Christians. Huge difference from my point of view. > [@](#): > > And, my semiliterate friend, you missed the bit where I supported hat exact point. My disagrement with you is this: you said that you feel sorry for anybody who knows him IRL because you think he’s a jerk to everyone he knows, and I’m saying that is not so. You don’t know him IRL, hence you cannot speak on his life or how he is viewed IRL because, as I said, you do not know what you are talking about. Nice dig with the literacy comment, but I still don’t see whereyou said “You’re right, you can say whatever you want”. You’ve yet again imposed the condition that I can’t say something like “You must be a miserable person IRL because you’re such an asshole on the SDMB”. Instead I’m now supposed to qualify every comment about Airman because you know him personally. Now I’m supposed to say something more like this: “You’re such a miserable person online Airman, but I’m sure you’re a fucking **swell** dude in person”. Also, I never asked for a character reference, I’m not giving him a fucking job, so lay off it. I don’t care that you or MsRobyn will vouch for him. Hell, he could airfreight me his fucking cheesesteaks and no matter my love for a good cheesesteak(trust me I do have love for the cheesesteaks), it still wouldn’t change my opinion that he gets diarrhea of the fingers and shits all over the board with them. Don’t like it? Well, to paraphrase you, **blow**. Sam ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/64 "2003-10-15T17:30:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beagle \* > \*\*Nice wisecrack but for the fact I already said I would have convicted the officers of “excessive force.” > > Problem is, they probably did have a reasonable belief he was on PCP. So, it’s more like crocodile wrestling than arresting a normal suspect. \*\* So which is it then? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/65 "2003-10-15T17:51:23Z")
Well, **gobear** , i’m sorry that my aversion to police brutality constitutes excessive concern for minutiae in your view. It’s interesting that you accuse me of moral blindness, but are apparently willing to let **Airman** slide because he makes a good cheesesteak. What is also interesting is that the only part of my argument that you failed to address was the most important part–the interpretation of **Airman** ’s OP. You continue to maintain that you know what **Airman** meant, and your apparent refusal to counter alternative interpretations suggests that you believe that no other interpretation is possible. And all this despite the fact that i’m far from the only person who has interpreted the OP as tacit support of police brutality. Your continued insistence that **Airman** was “not seriously advocating police beatdowns as a matter of course” is touching. This claim would carry a little more weight if the OP himself had actually taken the time make such a clarification. So far, however, he’s been rather silent on the issue. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/66 "2003-10-15T17:55:16Z")
> [@](#): > > it still wouldn’t change my opinion that he gets diarrhea of the fingers and shits all over the board with them. And, as I have said several times already, there’s no reason why it should. You may say anything you like about his posts > [@](#): > > You’ve yet again imposed the condition that I can’t say something like “You must be a miserable person IRL because you’re such an asshole on the SDMB”. I’m not imposing a condition, I’m clearing up a misconception. You do not know what he is like in person, you’ve never met him. How can your opinion be worth anything when it is based on ignorance? Let me repeat: you can hate his guts, go right ahead, but you do not know what he is like in person, so your opinion on his IRL behavior, as opposed to his online behavior, isn’t worth very much. ---
**Author:** ![Beagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Beagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beagle)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/67 "2003-10-15T18:02:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by World Eater \* > \*\*So which is it then? \*\* Things aren’t that simple, IMO. You are arguing that two positions which are not mutually exclusive, are. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/68 "2003-10-15T18:09:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GaWd \* > \*\*Airman, do you even read the shit you spew onto the boards sometimes? I feel sorry for your family, friends, coworkers or anyone who has to be in intimate contact with you on a regular basis. > > Sam \*\* Thanks, but no thanks. I don’t need your pity, and neither does Aaron, or the rest of our family. Yes, Airman loves to argue. Yes, he says stuff that I disagree with. A lot of stuff, actually. However, to condemn him to assholery because of what he says on a message board is really stupid. Argumentum ad hominem, anyone? **gobear** , thanks for the character references. Second cheesesteak at Dope-A-Ween’s got your name on it. (After our host’s, of course) 🙂 Robin ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/69 "2003-10-15T18:14:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beagle \* > \*\*Things aren’t that simple, IMO. You are arguing that two positions which are not mutually exclusive, are. \*\* Not implying they are mutually exclusive. I think it’s silly to say using those drugs _always_ end up in violent confrontation, because anyone could see that Rodney was getting the living shit kicked out of him, and was putting up zilch of a fight. Who cares if the cops though he was on whatever drugs, the beatdown was not justified. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/70 "2003-10-15T18:16:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MsRobyn \* > **However, to condemn him to assholery because of what he says on a message board is really stupid. Argumentum ad hominem, anyone?** Why is it stupid? What the fuck else _could_ we judge a poster on? ---
**Author:** ![Isabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b5a626/32.png) [@Isabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isabelle)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/71 "2003-10-15T18:19:07Z")
Ok everyone. Take a deep breath…now let it out…relax:D ---
**Author:** ![GaWd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f08c70/32.png) [@GaWd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaWd)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/72 "2003-10-15T18:23:20Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m not imposing a condition, I’m clearing up a misconception. You do not know what he is like in person, you’ve never met him. Once again, I am not asking for a character reference. I don’t care that you love him so much. As mhendo said(which you’ve ignored), his online self is a reflection of his IRL self to people who’ve not met him. To the rest of us who’ve not met him, what we see is what he types. Hyperbole is allowed and I’m sorry you’re so thin-skinned about it. > [@](#): > > Let me repeat: you can hate his guts, go right ahead, but you do not know what he is like in person, so your opinion on his IRL behavior, as opposed to his online behavior, isn’t worth very much. Let me clear up a misconception you have here. I think he’s an asshole, I do not hate him. Hating is for guys like you and he to do. Your opinion on his IRL behavior isn’t worth much to someone who sees what he spews on a daily basis online, either. He may dress up as santa clause and give gifts to terminally ill kids, but that still doesn’t excuse his behavior, nor does it change my opinion. Sam ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/73 "2003-10-15T18:44:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gobear \* > And as I said, his post seemed to me to be a facetious wish for a wife-beater to receive condign punishment and not an actual advocation of judicial torture by the cops. And yes, beating wife-beaters seems like a suitable punishment to me. I take a dim view of men who hit women. Dude, are you serious? Tell me what’s “facetious” about this statement by Airman: > [@](#): > > OK. Here’s why I think it was justified. > > What you didn’t see on that tape was Rodney King drunk off his ass fleeing from the police at 100+ miles per hour, taunting the cops after he was pulled over, scuffling with the four cops, rendering them unable to put the cuffs on, and taking two high-voltage taser shots. And he kept trying to get up. He’s advocating vigilantism, plain and simple, and you seem to be agreeing with him. We all saw the tape - King was lying on the ground, and they beat the shit out of him. Those fuckers only got off because they moved the trial to Simi Valley, the biggest collection of rednecks this side of the Mississippi. > [@](#): > > Could we maybe ease up off Airman for a sec? He is not seriously advocating a policy of judicial torture by the police; he is merely expressing irritation that Rodney King, who is indeed a waste of oxygen, has learned nothing from past mistakes and is now a wife-beater. And, yes, IMO any man who beats a woman deserves to have his ass stomped in return. No, what a man who beats a woman _deserves_ is to be prosecuted according to the law. Airman seems to think it’s O.K. for cops to administer a little street justice, as long as the guy “deserved” it, and you defended him. Now you’re trying to say “Just a joke, folks.” Don’t fucking piss on our leg and tell us it’s raining. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/74 "2003-10-15T18:55:06Z")
My perspective in the matter is, as far as I know, unique. I am the only person (apparently) in the Western hemisphere who **only** saw the famous videotape of Mr. King unedited, and from the beginning. And I only saw the thing after I knew the circumstances of King’s arrest. He was struck (IIRC) 56 times in total. Findings at the first trial were that all but the last 5 or 6 blows were justified. As far as I am concerned, King richly deserved the first fifty cracks on his thick head, and I am willing to throw the last six in for good measure. If he resisted arrest for his latest episode, I would hope and expect that he would be treated similarly. Not for wife-beating (although my contempt for a man who would raise his hand to his wife is deep and heartfelt) but for resisting arrest, which is what he got it for the last time. This is a person who has demonstrated beyond any possibility of doubt that he is a dangerous, habitual criminal. Drunk driving, armed robbery, assault, wife-beating - can there be any doubt that he is a danger to the public, despite the millions he collected from LA in his settlement? The LAPD has to deal with people like this _all the time_. And yet, if they cannot stop on a dime when it comes to subduing someone who continually jumps up from the ground and charges the police, they are excoriated as racist and thrown into prison. The only people I can think of who deserved less blame in the videotaped beating were the other black guys in the car when King was arrested. Neither of them resisted arrest - and the police didn’t lay a finger on either of them. And who got sent to prison? The guy who resisted arrest while on parole for robbery - or the police who arrested him? What a fucked-up world we live in. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/75 "2003-10-15T18:56:02Z")
> [@](#): > > As mhendo said(which you’ve ignored), his online self is a reflection of his IRL self to people who’ve not met him. No, his onlone self reflects. . . his online self. I know this because he has posted opinions that annoy me yet he is a great guy IRL. Let me repeat, no matter how much of an asshole he is online, unless you have met him, you have no basis for judging his IRL behavior. > [@](#): > > To the rest of us who’ve not met him, what we see is what he types. Again, you’re missing the point. I am not saying that his IRL _bonhomie_ mitigates his online persona. What I’m saying is that his online persona does not tell you what he is like IRL. Online and IRL are two entirely separate critters. > [@](#): > > I think he’s an asshole, I do not hate him. I take it you do not perceive the disconnect between those two sentences. > [@](#): > > Hating is for guys like you and he to do. Hate? I’m hating nobody. I and I got nothing but one love for all of Jah’s iration. > [@](#): > > Your opinion on his IRL behavior isn’t worth much to someone who sees what he spews on a daily basis online, either. He may dress up as santa clause and give gifts to terminally ill kids, but that still doesn’t excuse his behavior, nor does it change my opinion. And once more you bear out my idea that you are not paying attention. I will even bold my remarks so they will be easy to read. **I do not want you to change your opinion of Airman. I want you to understand that your dislike of Airman does not mean that nobody likes him in real life. Your comment, "I feel sorry for his family and friends** is completely unwarranted. \*\* And agian, I don’t have a thin skin. I only take the energy to rebut your remarks to defend a pal. But you as a poster mean nothing to me. ---
**Author:** ![Elza\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Elza\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elza_B)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/76 "2003-10-15T18:58:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DogMom \* > \*\* > > What _difference_ would it really make to him if they do revoke his license permanently? Heck, i read in the papers around here _all the time_ about such-and-so was arrested for driving while license suspended, (whether temporary or permanent suspension.) They get…oh…maybe a month in the slammer for it. I do agree that they _need_ to revoke his license, but I really don’t see what ultimate difference it would make. > I mean, it’s not like the guy’s suddenly going to say, “Whoa, they took away my license. I better straighten up.” nope, it’ll be just one more thing added to the long, long list of illegalities he’s committed. \*\* Well, not to get into the thread since I don’t necessarily agree with the OP, but I do work in my parents’ bail bonding company and I can guarantee you that 3/4 of our clients who’ve been arrested for serious traffic violations are arrested for driving on a suspended operator’s license. Taking away their license doesn’t stop them from driving, it just means if they get caught, there’s more hell to pay. I’d be willing to bet money that unless he’s in jail, King will continue to drive on his suspended OL. It doesn’t stop the others with a suspended license. Ava ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/77 "2003-10-15T19:10:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GaWd \* > **Once again, I am not asking for a character reference. I don’t care that you love him so much. As mhendo said(which you’ve ignored), his online self is a reflection of his IRL self to people who’ve not met him. To the rest of us who’ve not met him, what we see is what he types. _Hyperbole is allowed and I’m sorry you’re so thin-skinned about it._** (emphasis mine) Then why can’t you give Airman the benefit of the doubt? This was hyperbole, plain and simple. It’s a shame you’re so thin-skinned about it, however. > [@](#): > > \*\*Let me clear up a misconception you have here. I think he’s an asshole, I do not hate him. Hating is for guys like you and he to do. Your opinion on his IRL behavior isn’t worth much to someone who sees what he spews on a daily basis online, either. He may dress up as santa clause and give gifts to terminally ill kids, but that still doesn’t excuse his behavior, nor does it change my opinion. > > Sam \*\* Well, la-de-fucking-da. Yeah, I know that we are judged on our posts on this message board. Yeah, I know Airman has posted some outlandish things. I’m not defending those statements. Lord knows I disagree with about 99% of it, if I had to assign a number. And you can think he’s an asshole all you want, because you’re not the only one. That said, your original post, the one I quoted above, is flat-out unconscionable. I am a poster here, and have been for quite some time. Airman and I met on this board, in fact, and we’ve had a fairly public relationship since we met. Posting that you “feel sorry for [his] family” when his family also posts (and I’m including his sister, **soccerbaby** in here, because she lurks) is also assholish behavior. We don’t need or want your pity. Whatever your opinion of Airman is, it’s _your_ opinion. Got it? Robin ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/78 "2003-10-15T19:10:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TwistofFate \* > so Zenster, when exactly is voilent retribution allowed, and when is it not? … > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gobear \* > … And, yes, IMO any man who beats a woman deserves to have his ass stomped in return … I think **gobear** speaks rather eloquently to the point under discussion. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gobear \* > … You might condemn his posts, but attacking his character is crossing the line. Oh come now, it’s never stopped people from doing the same thing in my Pit threads. Why do you think they’ll show any restraint now? It’s not like **Airman** can call in a strafing run on them. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DogMom \* > Not disagreeing with you, **Zenster** , but I gotta say that this rather makes me laugh. He’s already been in more trouble than you can shake a cop at, including buying and using PCP, beating up on his girlfriend, and DUI, as well as speeding. > > What _difference_ would it really make to him if they do revoke his license permanently? … I know, I know. It’s just that the system is obliged to make some sort of move to curtail this fuckwit’s behavior. In the absence of legitimate conviction and incarceration, revoking his driving privileges would be a good first step. For one thing, the instant he was caught operating another motor vehicle, he could be taken into immediate custody. If the next judge has a single yet-to-be-excreted neuron still firing, a probationary condition that King never operate a motor vehicle again should be included as a condition of his release. There should be a minimum **ten year suspended sentence** left in place for at least five or more years so this guy can figure out a way to off himself without taking anyone else with him. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The\_Raven \* > … How come the Offenderati are over here, instead of spending their time singing a hearty chorus of “Look For The Union Label” over in the “I Crossed A Picket Line” thread? > > Oh, easy target, I see… Geez, I’m glad I never in my life said that a reprehensible scumbag deserved a beating, aren’t you all? I’m sure Fred Phelps and his ilk will appreciate the fresh new aroma of tolerance and civility that is wafting through the Pit… Great post, **Raven**! Any of this getting through, **chique**? > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by World Eater \* > Sure was a violent outburst that time he was laying on the ground getting the shit kicked out of him. Did you miss the part where he charges at the officers? Or does that not constitute a “violent outburst” in your book? Leading police on 100+ MPH chases and operating another vehicle at speeds of 100+ MPH doesn’t demonstrate a reckless and callous disregard for human life? Have you and King been hanging in the same den? Here’s an interesting observation from [this](http://www.totse.com/en/politics/police/afrodkng.html) site: > [@](#): > > After Rodney King: Police Use of Force > by Greg Meyer > After Rodney King: What Have We Learned? > > by Greg Meyer > > … The federal civil jury awarded King 3.8 million tax dollars from the Los Angeles city treasury for general damages **but not a dime from the involved officers for punitive damages**. The jury learned during the punitive damages phase that the roots of the King beating were to be found in poor policy which encouraged Los Angeles police officers who encountered resisting suspects to hit them with metal pipes (“police batons,” if one prefers to minimize the impact). **Most people are surprised to learn that nearly all the procedures caught on the King video tape were deemed proper by use-of-force experts who testified on both sides of the case** , in view of policies sanctioned by municipal leaders more than a decade ago. > > Some Los Angeles officials specifically predicted that baton beatings would be the result of taking out of routine use the most- used police tactics, commonly known as “chokeholds.” A number of arrested suspects on whom the holds had been used, later died while in police custody during the late 1970s and early 1980s, when society found its streets knee-deep in PCP and cocaine. Some influential people theorized the chokehold (not the drugs) to be the cause of the deaths, and this view prevailed. > > The mass media played these in-custody deaths to the hilt. The city leaders wanted the chokehold controversy off the front pages and off the six o’clock news. With encouragement from the media, the holds were banned from routine use. But the policy makers and news editors (in Los Angeles, they appear to be one and the same) hadn’t read their Sherlock Holmes: “It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data.” **The stage was set for Rodney King and thousands of less famous resisting suspects to be struck with batons and kicked with boots**. > > First, those who seek to understand the King incident should make no mistake about Mr. King and what happened the night of March 3, 1991. **The undisputed facts as established by three jury trials (two criminal and one civil) are these: King was a drunken paroled robber, briefly out of prison and by his own testimony intent on not going back. He led police on a lengthy chase, driving in excess of 100 miles per hour. He exhibited bizarre behavior, resisted arrest, and pushed away four officers before the video began and before any significant force was used on him. He was not struck while handcuffed, contrary to continuing talk-show blather**. He has been arrested several times (twice for violent crimes) since the famous incident. In short, Mr. King was something more than what the media calls “a motorist.” Still, he should never have been subjected to the tactics we see on the video … [sup]BOLDING ADDED[/sup] ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/79 "2003-10-15T19:14:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Shodan \* > My perspective in the matter is, as far as I know, unique. No, sadly it’s not unique. > [@](#): > > What a fucked-up world we live in. That’s the _one_ sentence in your post with which I agree. ---
**Author:** ![GaWd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f08c70/32.png) [@GaWd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaWd)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2003, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483/80 "2003-10-15T19:15:14Z")
> [@](#): > > I take it you do not perceive the disconnect between those two sentences. So you think that if I have a negative opinion of say, the Pope, that means I ‘hate’ him? I think the world is full of assholes, but that doesn’t mean I hate them. I’m sorry you can’t separate more passionate feelings like dislike or assholishness from hate. I can. As for the rest of your post…insert rolleyes smiley… here. There’s no reason to re-hash what’s been said by both sides at least 10 times. Good day. Sam [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rodney-king-wife-beater/207483.md?page=5)