Non sequitur award

MIAMI (AP) - Police were accused Friday of overreacting and using excessive force in clashes with demonstrators at this week's trade talks.

Police defended their actions, saying Miami averted the kind of widespread violence that rocked the World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle in 1999. Seattle was hit with five days of rioting that caused millions in damage.

"All you have to do is look at the videotapes from Seattle and realize the potential for destruction," Lt. Bill Schwartz said.

Ah. So police were justfied in using "tear gas, rubber bullets, batons, concussion grenades and stun guns," resulting in 140 injuries (as compared to three police), because of what another group of people did on the other side of the country four years earlier.

I guess that means we can use tapes of the Rodney King beating as evidence against the Miami police, huh.

What's really distressing is how many people will read Schwartz's statement and go "Yeah, that makes sense."