It would be a horrible precedent to make it OK to scream and yell at cops. For one thing, police vigor in pursuing crime might go way way down. Can you imagine some of those screaming women (and my mother was one) going off on the police? Some people would rather crime were not pursued and some would rather it would be pursued. Also, if a policewoman has to listen to tirades it means she can not respond quickly to the next incident, greatly reducing efficiency and response times etc. This is not something just the police must take -- it is something endangered citizens, particularly in crime-ridden neighborhoods -- must take if people are allowed to scream at police. And what is the line between that and resisting arrest?

Part of the answer is to have many police officers from both the predominant ethnic groups in the community and the ones with the greatest crime history..viscious circle sometimes because there is not always a great correlation...but anyway, way more represenation of various ethnic and cultural groups. Remove the ethnic and racial components to this overall problem and have a citizenry that expects to be pretty docile around police and of course have recourse if their rights are trampled etc. and hopefully some transparency etc.

I am really a law and order type of Democrat..it is the first and foremost social service we have and from it flows all sorts of economic benefits -- greater business opportunities and employment will flow into safe neighborhoods and out of unsafe ones. Greater health care opportunities. Better schools. It is the foundation of a society and can be either voluntary or unvoluntary and resisted, but without it you have awful scary places to live. mg