Today everyone and their brother is watching this video and attacking the police for firing shots when no officer was in danger and when the van was packed with children.

I'll let everyone and their brother take that ball and run with it; I've got nothing further to add.

However, I do have a different point to make:

As much as I dislike police culture, as much as I dislike 95% of the laws that they enforce, and more, I think that some criticisms of police ignore the fact that bad encounters with police sometimes – not always, but sometimes – are baked with a heaping cup of stupid citizen behavior mixed into the batter.

If you're hiding a Jew in your car and getting pulled over by the cops is a death sentence for both you and the refugee, yes, you might as well try evading, fist fighting, and resisting arrest.

…but for pretty much anything short of that, your smartest tactic is

* pull over

* speak calmly

* answer no questions

* consent to no searches

Even if you've got a pipe w pot residue in the car, there's a good chance that you won't get searched. Worst case, yes, the cops bring in a dog, manufacture "probable cause", search the car, find the pot, and arrest you. And, yes, your kids may go to foster care for a week and you may spend thousands of dollars in legal fees – thousands of dollars you don't have.

But, again, aside from the hidden-Jew scenario, there is no way that fighting, evading, and resisting is a better strategy.

I would think that this would be so obvious as to not need explaining, and yet, of the dozen or so websites I've seen covering this story, not one has said that while in bad police encounters it only takes one to tango, you're a lot more likely to get a newsworthy dance if there are two of you going through the movements.

Don't leave food near your tent in bear country.

Don't stick your hands into hollow logs in snake country.

Don't evade, fight, and resist cops.

Last 5 posts by Clark