Next time there's a police funeral the collected officers might consider how the bad seeds they protect grow. People know cops do this kind of abuse all the time and only recently have these events been caught on videotape. A civilian who assaulted a bicycle cop in this fashion would be lucky to not get shot and then would be charged with multiple felonies.

The sad thing is that a "good cop" is just as likely to catch the fruits of this kind of behavior as a bad cop. When people go off all they see is the uniform.

Fighting the forces of rather dim lighting wherever they may be found!!

Deleted. double post.

Very true, Pangoli.

Patrick Pogan is one VERY DIRTY COP and deserves to be in prison where the inmates can let him know what the think of him. They say that many men and women who become cops would be criminals, but the police dept. gives them the outlet for their hostility which would land them in jail if they were not cops. It's time these Fascists get removed from the police force and sent to prison where they belonged all along.

I get so disgusted when I see cops these days, and then I remember one really great cop I came across once on the street. I have to keep remembering that one. Too bad they all aren't like that.

As a bicycist (2000 miles in Uruguay and Brazil last southern hemisphere summer), I state that critical mass people are sh!theads. Their in your face tactics, especially the blocking of intersections, only cause the general public to dislike us cyclists.

"Officer Pogan said that the cyclist rode straight into him. But the video, ... showed Officer Pogan lunging toward Mr. Long."

Not only did the cyclist NOT ride straight into the PIG, but he actively tried to avoid the PIG. Maybe now the PIG will get his bacon fried. And, since PIGS are often said to be smarter than dogs, maybe the next PIG will think twice before assaulting a citizen. Any PIGS reading this? Tell us what you think, PIG.

-- EKATON --

Violent police criminality happens every day in every city in the world. Usually even the dumbest cops take a quick look around first to see if anyone is videotaping their deeds. As for the poster who clings to the memory of the one good one that he once knew, I suppose anything is possible. There are posthumous reports of good Nazis. But as for American cops, I've known quite a few and none of them are fit for fertilizer.

I can't understand why bystanders did not physically chastise these policemen.

Seriously, anyone that watches this and believe the cop's story is blind. He clearly stretches his arms out, the guy clearly swerves to avoid the cop - I mean, it's just absurd. But how many people in America will believe the cop anyway?

There are a lot of good cops out there, yes (I know some of them), but they really need to start standing up against this crap *vocally*. We've all seen it at least once. In my own hometown I once got stopped at a DUI checkpoint, harassed, and detained for limping (I had a sprained ankle) - and I was *walking*! Show me the law where I can be detained for walking around with a limp. And America's not alone in this... in Munich in 2003 I got some pretty nasty gas thrown at me while at a protest. What was I doing? Stopping and obeying the police officers asking us to stop, along with everyone else around me. Nothing was even thrown at us until everyone was fully halted and moving backwards already. Exactly why are these intimidation tactics necessary, boys? What are you trying to achieve?

Absolute power corrupts absolutely. As long as the police act like a bloc and never criticize themselves, forgive the cliches but who will police the police? All over the west, we really need to ask ourselves, what kind of security are we asking for here? I think we need security against out of control police. Maybe they should start arming citizens with tasers instead.

It would appear as if the NYC branch of Critical Mass just had their Rodney King moment.

www.wunderman-comics.com

This cop obviously is a violent aggressive brute, lacking knowledge of the Constitution and the rights of citizens to travel freely without police interference. He should be fired. Him and others like him give all cops a bad name
The video camera has allowed the public and the courts to actually see what goes on in the streets when confrontations between citizens and cops happen. Cops should remember that there are cameras everywhere, and they never know when one is pointed at them.
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I guess that I missed something: Did the people calling cyclists names watch the video?

There is no doubt that the street was shut down for a cycling event. There is no doubt that the police were in the middle of the street and I question their placement there. There is no doubt the cyclist was avoiding the moving policeman. And, there is no doubt the policeman pushed the cyclist into the crowd.

I do not care what names you use for cyclists. However, to justify injuring another human being because you have the power to do it and know that you will not be punished is what happened in Iraq.

All American soldiers and contractors were immunized from any crimes including: theft, kidnapping, torture, and murder of Iraqi Citizens.

New York is a test case for that plan to take effect in the United States. So far, no police convicted of murder. And, people will not come to the defense of anyone being unjustly arrested.

People need to know that this pattern of assault on Critical Mass bike riders happens in every big city these days.

My guess is that there is a policy being passed around police forces in which Critical Mass bike riders are viewed as law breakers a priori. My hope is that any court case with discovery can turn up the records indicating such a policy.

This behavior needs to end. It is not a crime for one bicyclist to ride in the street, and it is also not a crime if 200 bicyclists also do the same.

-TIA