I think the song needs to be changed to "God help America".
Given the general asshat behaviour of a lot of police, I am more inclined to believe the season ticket holder over those fucktards trying to justify their continued existence, when they need to be sentenced to 3 hours W.O.O. (And if you know that reference, kudos:))
bdaddy: The question is...if either is possible, why do you automatically assume the other is more credible?
First, it turns out there is a "no movement" rule that has been in place for a while. Which is complete bullshit, but it lends credence to his suggestion the police enforced this rule... too aggressively. If there was no such rule, it'd be harder to believe he ran across two jack-booted thugs who decided to attack him for his vague Frenchness.
Second, I think the police are far more likely to lie because they have more to lose: this guy, if the police are telling the truth, has no reason to lie and make a big to-do if all he got was ejected. If the cops are telling the truth, why did this guy even make this into a news item? Lots of people get ejected from stadiums, they usually just quietly leave, or pay a fine depending on their particular offense.
Meaning, it's easier to believe the cops would make up an embellishment after the fact in the hopes that their entirely believable fuck up would not become an ACLU lawsuit, than that some random schmoe would concoct this story out of thin air for no reason, on a matter that was dead until he revived it. If this Bradford Campeau-Laurion was simply ejected, then he'd probably let the matter drop and there's no story there. He has no incentive to manufacture a story as he is not wronged beyond being ejected- if he was ejected for being drunk. It's far less likely he invents a story out of whole cloth when the most likely reaction if he was drunk and disorderly is to simply laugh about it as an anecdote his friends share: "Aw, man, you shoulda seen Brad at the friggin' Yanks game, man. He got SOOO wasted, the cops kicked him out during God Bless America, man- it was friggin' hilarious!!!!"
Whereas, if his story is true, and the cops as they are fond of doing abuse their power, internalize an us/them mentality, and kick out someone for being "un-American"... well, they have all the incentive in the world to make up that he was drunk, and loud, etc. Police do this all the time with protesters or other "undesirables"; filming a cop breaking the law becomes "interfering with the police". Asking a question becomes "resisting arrest". All cops are presumed assholes until proven innocent.
Do you see the disparity there? He has no likely reason to perpetuate a dead matter- pay a fine, tell the story to your friends- while the NYPD has a very clear reason to say that oh, no, that's not what happened.
Yeah, Hal, I remember when NY's finest arrested all of these rioting RNC protesters. One of the cops testified at trial about how they had to arrest one of the protesters for inciting a riot and carry him away. Then the videotape appeared showing none of that. The prosecutors had to drop charges against almost everyone after the videotapes were reviewed.
"God Bless America" is nauseating; I'm surprised the dude didn't vomit on the cops, who are idiots to endanger a plum rotation by playing so tough at the ballpark.
George Washington blessed us enough. Who the hell needs God?
He got what he deserved. He should have taken a leak b-4 the game was to get started.
At least Yankee fans can stand.
Enough is enough with this God Bless America. I see people not putting their hands over their hearts for the national anthem but doing it for God Bless America. Don't get me wrong here, its a nice song but thats all it is. It's not our national anthem and does not deserve the same respect. If we give it the same respect as the national anthem then maybe we should do the same for "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". It's just another mistake by the NYPD. Thankfully it happened to a Yankee Fan and not a Boston fan. Only 79 years until the Yankees win it again!
God Bless America is not the national anthem, and if you stand for it, take off your hat for it, put your hand over your heart for it, or otherwise act as you would/should act for the national anthem, then you're disrespcting the national anthem.
sox1066, all that haterade is gonna give you diabetes, son; better eat some All-Bran and get right with God, or at least with your lower GI tract.
The question is...if either is possible, why do you automatically assume the other is more credible?
So why do you assume that it isn't possible that these cops just over-reacted and proved once again that a few bad apples can spoil the bunch?
Anything is possible but from what's being said, these cops threw this guy out not for "acting like a drunken asshat" but for trying to drain the ol' lizard during God Bless America.
The fan is fortunate. If he not only had a French name but was also originally from Port Au Prince and reached for a cell phone in his pocket when he encountered the cops, he'd be in a drawer in the morgue right now. Or have a busted broomstick up his ass in the latrine at the precinct HQ.
It is a sad day in America when a man/woman can not relieve themselves in fear of retribution from the police. What happened to our Constitutional Rights and/or so called "freedoms"? Oh yeah, The Patriot Act.
Well, I'm a consistent administration basher, but I don't think the Patriot Act can be blamed for what appears to be the overzealous actions of a few misguided cops. The PA is a turd, and sometimes cops get too big for their britches, but they are mutually exclusive in this case. There's plenty of asshattery to hate, keep 'em separate and enjoy!
These words in the linked article scare me:
During the patriotic 7th inning stretch at Yankee Stadium, [snip] he tried to leave his seat during the traditional singing of God Bless America
The Ministry of Truth is cooking up new traditions.
