Nick Balzano comments

All I see is how intolerant people are of other people. Most "scandals" that make spokespeople and models get dropped are storms in teacups that don't have anything to do with the customers. Its just stupid cancel culture at work. People need to find some hobbies besides meddling, scapegoating and schadenfreude.

A large increase in teen suicides almost perfectly coincides with the rise of smart phones, social media, and 24-hour connectivity. Hmmmmm......what it could it possibly be?

The loss of physical freedom which also coincides. About the only time I see young people outside is when going to and from school. And I live in the country. They are sheltered in the worst way. They are prisoners in their own homes and I don't think they even consciously realize it, but it just eats at them. They don't know any different to protest since their friends are the same.

For myself I was often gone from the house from noon to dark and no phone was going to reach me. From about 8 years old and through my teen years, I had real freedom in so many ways.

Well we cannot exactly make universal deals with everyone on which of the million statues in the world should be honored and which not. Either its open season on all of them or none of them. I say none of them. The only way I see forward is to change the plaques to reflect the truth as best as a democratic vote on said plaques could offer.

The moment the criminal fired the purloined taser at the officer, he became a lethal threat

I already made the point about that when police have tazers they tell us they are non-lethal, but when its anyone else its suddenly a lethal threat.

I watched three separate videos, each more horrible than the last as far as showing all the details. The body cam footage of one of the cops showed another cop first fishing for an arrest and not telling Mr. Brooks that if he fails the preliminary breathalyzer he will be arrested and cuffed. Nope. He keeps asking Mr. Brooks if he will do it just as part of his investigation. Then its suddenly, "I think you had too much to drink to be driving. Put your hands behind your back for me." That's how you escalate things and they do it on purpose. Then the incompetent cops cannot restrain him, they taze him, he grabs the tazer and runs several yards with the cops chasing him before he turns around at all. None that BS was necessary. Its no wonder the chief resigned. She has a brain and does not want to be a party to the lies and obfuscations that are going to spark violent protests over this, another gross abuse of power and force by cops trying to turn everything into the crime of the century.

And I say again, he was not driving when they found him. And as for him failing the preliminary electronic breathalyzer, those things are garbage. And I too failed an even better test after drinking on an empty stomach as it appears he did, despite not being over the limit at the time. Plus he was obviously sleepy and that does not help.

First you have to question if he was actually guilty and of what exactly. Lots of people are tricked and guilty of only having a low IQ. Others are victims of planting and bag switching totally unknown to them. Fair trial in China? Hard enough to get one anywhere.

Next you have to ask yourselves when the government gained the right to not allow you kids to put what you want in your own bodies. I mean is that what you are? Kids incapable of making your own decisions? Sentencing always seems overdone in these cases but death? Its more like straight up murder.

At first one man needed to go to jail. Now a whole bunch do.

What would drive a 15 year old to commit suicide.

Lots of things. And some of them are not allowed to be talked about, because social decorum or agenda is more important than human life apparently. So some problems will never get solved.

Has society changed much since I was a child?

I remember 15. I wasn't a child but I was extremely stressed and partly for being treated like a child. Everyone grows at different rates, and the difference between different teenagers is especially stark. But some teenagers are not tolerated by society for their growth in some areas, no matter how harmless to others.

Says the drug dealer.

Drug dealers have voluntary customers. Good luck unsubscribing from police "service".

And remember kids, when seconds count, the police are just minutes away. A literal crackhead might have a better response time if you actually need some help.

follow the law, don't resist arrest, don't point any type of gun at a cop.

Tell it to Breonna Taylor. We have gotten where we are today precisely because of this attitude of deferring to the cops no matter what they do, and in fact, willful ignorance of what they do. That's why they are power-tripping.

Its a rare media outlet that will even tell you of Ray Rosas, who shot 3 cops that burst into his home with a military style flash bang grenade as if America is war zone. He spent 2 years in jail but was finally found not guilty by reason of self defence. One might think that obvious but the guy was facing 3 attempted capital murder charges. For all we know he might only be alive today because he fired at those armed intruders. Aiyana Jones was not so lucky when police got the wrong duplex and flash banged her grandma who then, in the temporary deafness and blindness that caused ran into cops who then shot Aiyana in the head. In fact, this man might have been killed in any case just like George Floyd, subdued with a knee on his neck. And Floyd is not a rare case. They did not even give Tamir Rice a chance to respond appropriately. They rushed him and he was instigated to make the "wrong" move.

So your advice is no guarantee of anything with U.S. cops.

he has gone from an internment camp to a highly paid actor all while being gay and Asian in a supposedly racist / homophobic country.

Any idea how many people died on the rough ride to the internment camp? The total amount of family assets lost during his time there? What its like to be a child prisoner in a repurposed horse stable? How many years he spent in the closet? How many homosexuals have been murdered over the years for being homosexuals?

Mr. Takei got married in 2008. He was 70 or 71 years old. That is how long he had to wait just enjoy, as little as an old person can, a pleasure most people get half or less of that age. I don't even expect I will live to be 70.

If all that is the price one must pay to be highly paid in any profession, I will choose to remain poor thank you very much. As for that more or less homophobic and racist country, I am glad I got out. You can keep it.

Progress on diversity is unlikely to prevent the next murder by police. Try and stay focused please.

I wonder how much most commentators drive. Living at top section of a Y intersection without some massive barrier is not a matter of bad luck and neither is the high probability of a car smashing through during inclement weather or even some other sort of accident. Its all risk taken by the individual who takes up residence there. I would not be caught dead dwelling in such a place nor a house on the shore of the east coast of this country either. I sure as heck would not be sleeping on the first floor. My eyes would be wide as saucers every time I went down there with constant glances at that particular wall.

Double standards for all!

Means nothing it the city remains named "Columbus". Silly people.

Stop or I shall scream "Wolf!" again!

(Not to mention the Northern States abolished slavery before Britain.)

That is like saying my left hand shall never harm you but my right hand shall fly of its own accord. Banned in only half the country? That's no laurel to rest on. I believe you are referring to the compromise of 1820. If so bear in mind it was repealed in 1854. Slavery was not solidly banned in America (including northern states) until the 13th Amendment was adopted and that was after the American Civil War.

I am getting tired of people referring to slavery in a America as a South only thing. George Washington was clearly a northerner and had a heap of slaves. The U.S. was a slave nation for over 70 years. The Confederacy only about 4.

Its bad enough this narrow minded attempt to heap slavery on the Confederacy. Worse is the fact that this bickering about ancient history, removal of TV shows and statues, and crackdowns on Twitter comments is not going to do anything to stop police murdering more citizens tomorrow.

Rubbish . I rented.....

You personal anecdote does not disprove the general truth that most expats are finding Tokyo to be a very expensive place to live. Could they live cheaper in Tokyo? Sure. They could live cheaper anywhere by living in a tent in some forgotten corner of a city I am sure. But that's not the point. Tokyo was ranked third via a survey of actual costs of some number of random people. That's how these things work.

Driving under the influence of alcohol, or drugs, is not a nuisance complaint.

He was not driving when police arrived. He was not even on a public road. For all anyone knows he may have been drinking only in the parking lot and drive thru. Basically, I see this as resisting false arrest, which though dangerous, is your right. How is sleeping in your car when drunk a crime worthy of arrest? Oh, I can hear the "but maybe later he would's" coming already! Anybody might do anything later!

They are fake news. What I want to know is who did it and what's going to happen to them.

It would be nice if people could focus on the actual problems. All this statue and video removal is not going to do a single thing to prevent the next George Floyd.

The fact that a tazer was even used on a man who was unarmed and already detained exposes the fact of totally inadequate training and poor hiring practices. If they tested him for sobriety they surely already suspected he wasn't sober. Drunk people are volatile. But drunk people are not Superman. If two or more officers cannot take down a drunk man resisting arrest without a tazer, I suggest a new job in pizza delivery.