you should try to be a better person

right now you're kind of a horrible one so any improvement at all should be a breeze

@KnowFuture

Most people feel that the response to a given thing should match the seriousness of that thing. For example, when someone is jaywalking the police don't call in the SWAT team and blast him apart with automatic fire.

Seriously, what is the "kneejerk OMG HUMAN RIGHTS" side to this? There are mockable views like Sweden's "porn is a human right", but what is being said against an officer murdering a kid that comes across as ridiculous?

The person we trusted with power and responsibility acted way dumber than a group of teenagers, and now the rest of those people are coming to try and justify his action rather than hold him accountable. The lesson for me is that if we keep looking for reasons to excuse murder for officers, then we damn well deserve what we have coming.

@KnowFuture There are doubts whether rocks were really thrown and if they were whether or not the kid threw them.

@Nikon Rocks can be deadly in the right circumstances, especially if one person is surrounded by many. My biggest question is why the hell this border agent was acting along. That's a fucking recipe for disaster.

There's another video that shows the border agent shooting (but not the poor kid getting shot). It's really debatable whether or not the agent was "surrounded" or if the Mexican citizens were throwing rocks.

I would never defend the police in a situation like this.

But the kid threw a rock at a guy who (a) has a gun and (b) has been trained to shoot people. Cause and effect.

Its cause and effect only if killing someone is a logical or reasonable reaction to having rocks thrown at you. Which it isn't. I know arguing with a cop could result in harm to me, but that never justifies his beating me up.

Its like walking through an alley with money, and getting violently mugged. Your actions led to it, and it may have involved bad judgment. But there's no way that mugger should ever be allowed to use that to justify his own actions.

The fact that the cop was next to his car, wasn't in danger, and that the kid was never observed throwing rocks but only being near kids doing so, it all incidental and irrelevant compared to the fundamental injustice.

OK.

But you still shouldn't throw rocks at people with guns.

If I walk my ferret past an apartment building where a crazy person lives and that crazy person comes out and attacks me with a knife, then clearly I should not be walking my ferret. Cause and effect.

Also: I try not to walk him past that apartment building any more even though I think the crazy person is gone now.

Cause and effect my ass. We're talking about a human being with a gun, not a force of nature. Humans have the ability to use their judgement in order to avoid doing tremendously stupid things.

Shooting at kids who are (possibly) throwing rocks would fall under that "tremendously stupid" category.

"There's another video that shows the border agent shooting..." Do you have a link? I'm just wondering if the agent had any protective gear on. The difference being whether he was a twitchy baby who shouldn't be trusted with a gun, or a raging murderous asshole.

Link to cellphone video of the shooting from Mexico's side of the border:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCFGy1brI4w

There was another upload on CNN or somewhere without commentary. I heard talking, running and the gunshots but no rocks hitting anything the ground.

INS and boarder patrol are full of Cenamarks without internet savvy.

"This video contains content from Univision, who has blocked it in your country on copyright grounds. "

What is this fuck!? Justice can know no borders!

TY for link... I'll try again later with a proxy.

KnowFuture, even assuming that he did throw rocks at the officer (which, I agree, is not the smartest thing to do) this kid was 14 years old, and he was in his own country. What kind of psychotic dumbfuck racist does it take to fire through international boundaries at a kid who is throwing rocks from a distance.

A kid is just a kid, does not represent any higher authority, and to an extent is excused for his stupidity, an Immigration officer is representing the Government for which he works.

I don't want to sound like a fucking dirty hippie or anything, but I don't think you should murder children.

"the kneejerk OMG HUMAN RIGHTS sides of this [is] retarded to me"

The mind boggles.

--==TROPHY UNLOCKED==--
DISPROPORTIONATE RESPONDER

obviously meant to go above

Interesting though.
The elite CIA trained narco-warriors who are known for their beheadings (the Guatemalan kaibiles) as a trademark would have no problem escaping these police or having them all killed.

What they might do, however, is hire kids to die in their place in the same way the Taliban use human shields to create positive agitprop for their own causes. They are very smart.