COPS OUT OF LINE IN MASEL FIASCO

Dear Editor: I would just like to say thanks for reporting on Ben
Masel's treatment by police at the Union Terrace. I was sitting
within earshot of this embarrassing fiasco involving two UW-Madison
police officers and Masel at the Union Terrace last week.

I happened to look over and see two cops approach Masel and was
baffled, to say the least, when I saw them suddenly grab him, whip
him around and shoot pepper spray less than 5 inches from his eyes.
As they proceeded to push him down on the concrete with unwarranted
force, I found myself wishing these young power-hungry officers would
spend more time "serving and protecting" their country by honoring a
peaceful exercise in democracy rather than trying their hardest to
re-create an episode of "Cops" in the middle of a show.

They created much more of a disturbance than Masel, who had been
standing quietly in the same place all night.