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Anyone who believes cops don't beat, jail and victimize American citizens for no reason other than feeling insulted or "disrespected" is living in a dreamland.
What happened to Henry Gates happens every day in this country. We don't hear about it because the victims are rarely "prominent" and, therefore, don't warrant our concern.
No doubt race played a significant role in the way this specific event unfolded, but the crux of the matter is authoritarianism, a cultural epidemic that grows considerably worse with each passing year.
We live in a police state. Get used to it.
Oh, wait. We're already used to it. It's just verboten to call some things what they truly are - and that goes double when The State is involved.