*could have

Come on, you trolls can do better than that. You have used this as an opportunity to hijack the thread to talk about vaccines and anti-vaxxers.

" Isn't it standard in civil, liberal and socialist societies, where the social compact includes an acknowledgement of our obligation as members of the community to obey lawful orders of law enforcement officers?"

This is a fair point. It's also a fair point that it's unacceptable for law enforcement to angrily engage in excessive and punitive behavior just because someone disobeyed an order and disrespected their authoritai.

Still, it's far from the first time the Smithsonian has been involved in political controversy.

In addition to the recent removal of Donald Trump's impeachment text and the inclusion of material from Robin DiAngelo in 2020, the Smithsonian Institution has a long history of facing accusations of political bias and bowing to external political pressures.

Recent Controversies (2023"2026)

Removal of Slavery-Related Artifacts (2025): Under pressure to focus on "American exceptionalism," the Smithsonian reportedly removed approximately 30 artifacts related to slavery and African American history from displays in August 2025. Items removed included a hymn book used by Harriet Tubman and instruments used on plantations.

Amy Sherald Exhibition Cancellation (2025): Artist Amy Sherald canceled a planned 2025 exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery after the museum requested a "contextualizing video" for a painting of the Statue of Liberty modeled by a transgender artist, which Sherald viewed as censorship.

"Entertainment Nation" Exhibit Criticism (2025): This exhibit at the National Museum of American History has been criticized for portraying 19th-century circuses as expressions of "colonial impulse" and for praising Anthony Fauci without addressing criticisms of his pandemic response.

"The Shape of Power" Exhibition (2025): An exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum was criticized by the Trump administration for "divisive" content, specifically for promoting the idea that race is a "human invention".

Pro-Life Student Incident (2023): The Smithsonian faced a lawsuit and public outcry after staff at the National Air and Space Museum reportedly ordered a group of students to remove pro-life hats, which was later characterized as a violation of free speech.

Landmark Historical Controversies

The Enola Gay Exhibition (1994"1995): In what is often cited as the most significant instance of political pressure, the National Air and Space Museum was forced to cancel a planned 50th-anniversary exhibit of the B-29 bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Critics and veterans' groups argued the exhibit focused too much on Japanese casualties and not enough on American lives saved; the controversy led to the resignation of the museum's director.

"The West as America" (1991): An exhibition at the National Museum of American Art was condemned by several U.S. Senators as "perverse" and "historically inaccurate" for its revisionist interpretation of westward expansion as a process of conquest rather than heroic discovery.

"Science in American Life" (1994): This exhibit was heavily criticized by scientific organizations and lawmakers for presenting a "negative" view of science, specifically highlighting environmental disasters and the development of nuclear weapons.

Clarence Thomas Exhibit Omission (2016): At its opening, the National Museum of African American History and Culture faced backlash for initially excluding Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas from its displays while featuring figures like Anita Hill, leading to accusations of partisan bias.

The text about his "two" impeachments would probably need to be updated anyway after the midterms.

Can legitimate protesters wear masks? Again, we can't have it both ways. You can't make absolutist statements about one without applying it to the other, no matter which way you're trying to apply the double standard.

"reiterating warnings against travel to Venezuela dating to 2019"

So what's the story here?

"In the video you could see the ICE goons acting like Japanese tourists zealously photographing their fellow citizens,"

You mean they were behaving just like the protesters, in this particular case? You can't have it both ways. Collecting information with cameras is not the same thing as being a terrorist. Neither is being passive aggressive. This rhetoric doesn't wash, no matter which side is using it.

After watching his cellphone video, I think a case could be made for first degree.

"molly conger
@socialistdogmom.bsky.social
thinking a lot lately about our surprise when the victim of state violence is white, a citizen, a priest, a veteran, some category viewed as exempt from that violence. it's time to understand you aren't. no one is. whiteness isn't the color of your skin it is a conditional privilege you can lose."

Oh, FFS. Stuff like this is what helped got Trump elected in the first place.

"molly conger
@socialistdogmom.bsky.social
thinking a lot lately about our surprise when the victim of state violence is white, a citizen, a priest, a veteran, some category viewed as exempt from that violence. it's time to understand you aren't. no one is. whiteness isn't the color of your skin it is a conditional privilege you can lose."

Oh, FFS. Stuff like this is what helped got Trump elected in the first place.

The full headline article is: "Renee Good didn't have to die, but be honest about ICE shooting"

Unfortunately, the author of the article is not being honest about it, nor is anyone who keeps parroting the lies coming from DHS and the WH.

Someone on CNN made a fair point that the ICE agent may not have seen which the direction the wheels of the car were pointing, so he might be able to make a reasonable defense that he believed the car was coming directly at him. However, anyone who's actually watched the multiple angles of the videos and claims she was aiming for him is blatantly lying.

Unfortunately instagram won't let us watch videos on their web site unless we download their app, which I refuse to do. Got a different source?

I've lost track, how many points have all you lefties and righties scored on the internet today?

You know when Tucker Carlson comes across as more reasonable and humane than you, then you've lost the plot.

"flamethrower"

Is that what you call that little thing?

"My guess is that prior incident had a role in his state of mind with this incident."

I'm sure his attorneys will try to mount a PTSD defense, if this ever goes to trial.

There's not really any point in arguing with these people about what we can all see objectively happened. They're either trolling to win the ------ game, of if they actually believe what they're writing then their brains have become just as addled as those of you who gaslit everyone about what actually happened with Rittenhouse and others because you disagreed with their politics or perceived politics.

"The vehicle struck the officer."

I disagree, based on what I've seen.

"The officers state of mind is the only thing relevant."

As I said, he could possibly make a reasonable doubt defense for the first shot that went through the far-left (no pun intended) windshield, but not the other three shots through the driver side window.

Trumpers are going to rue the day when Hunter B and Conquistadora Cortez come after them with the same federal powers that are being abused now.

"Can local law enforcement arrest and charge an ICE agent?"

"You can't be against illegal immigration, but for keeping them in the country"

One can still be for deporting all illegal immigrants, but NOT in the ---- show way Trump and Noem have been doing it.

"But keep in mind, a protestor came at Kyle Rittenhouse with something a lot smaller - a skateboard - and a jury justified him shooting the aggressor."

There was never any dispute that the protester was assaulting Rittenhouse with the skateboard. The leftists on this site argued it was justified. The claim that Good was assaulting the agent with her car is definitely in dispute. You're just as wrong here as the leftists were with Rittenhouse, IMO.

"You can't be against illegal immigration, but for keeping them in the country"

One can still be for deporting all illegal immigrants, but in the ---- show way Trump and Noem have been doing it.

Those of you who have enough brain cells to remember my actual posting history know that I've been consistently against illegal immigration, and I still am, regardless of whether or not they're violent criminals. This stupid ---- show by Trump and Noem is actually hurting immigration enforcement in the long run.

It's also going to come back and bite the right wing (and the rest of us) in the ass when the type of powers they're abusing eventually fall into the hands of an extremists in the other party. I can actually see a Marxist coming to power in response to the excesses of this retardation.