What is the lesson for us from this and from other closing
societies, some of them democracies? You can have a working Congress or
Parliament; newspapers; human rights groups; even elections; but when
ordinary people start to be hurt by the state for speaking out, dissent
closes quickly and the shock chills opposition very, very fast. Once
that happens, democracy has been so weakened that major tactical and
strategic incursions — greater violations of democratic process — are
far more likely. If there is dissent about the vote in Florida in this
next presidential election — and the police are tasering voters’ rights
groups — we will still have an election.

What we will not have is liberty.

We have to understand what time it is. When the state starts to hurt
people for asking questions, we can no longer operate on the leisurely
time of a strong democracy — the ‘Oh gosh how awful!’ kind of time. It
is time to take to the streets. It is time to confront those committing
crimes against the Constitution. The window has now dropped several
precipitous inches and once it is closed there is no opening it without
great and sorrowful upheaval.

[A Shocking Moment for Society by Naomi Wolf, Huffington Post, published today.]

I have watched several different videos, looked at a number of still photos, listened to the audio, and listened to the press conference of the university president. I have come to the confident conclusion that this was a gang attack on a citizen, under color of authority. There is no legal justification for what was done to this person. And when the State attacks one of us it attacks all of us.

The actions that have been taken so far – suspension of two cops, investigations launched, committees formed – are merely the kind of actions that placate the herd; they do nothing to address the problem. I am not satisfied. I am angry.

There is only one acceptable solution: criminal charges must be filed – now – against all of the officers involved in this attack. This is an assault on the liberties of all Americans, and we must act. The question is how.