Context, Context, Context

I picked this up from LifeSite. The article is actually considerably longer, but the most shocking part is what I’m excerpting:

Australian police slam peaceful anti-lockdown protester headfirst into the ground

MELBOURNE (LifeSiteNews) — A conduct investigation is reportedly underway after a video circulating widely on social media showed police in Melbourne brutally assault a man by slamming his skull into the hard floor of a railway station.

Police allegedly confronted the man last Wednesday after he participated in protests against the harsh measures enacted during the city’s sixth lockdown.

The incident, which immediately went viral on social media, took place at Flinders Station, a railway station in Melbourne, the capital city of Australia’s state of Victoria.

In the video, police officers are seen speaking with a man who appears to be calmly answering questions. Another officer then rapidly moves into the frame and, seemingly without provocation, seizes the man from behind and throws him to the ground.

When you watch the brief video, note that the attacking thug doesn’t just throw the victim down to the floor, he follows him down to the floor. What I mean is, he doesn’t just let him fall, he directs the impact right into the hard floor—a tactic designed to maximize shock—at the least:

Dee @_Dee_1982

🚨⚠️WARNING ⚠️🚨 GRAPHIC CONTENT at Flinders St Station When Shane Patton said they won’t hesitate to use force I think this was his vision 😬😬😬

The police commissioner was interviewed regarding the incident:

Saying he’s not “jumping to any conclusions,” the commissioner said that “there’s always context to everything,” and assured reporters the incident would be investigated “with an open mind.”

Patton said the officers beating back private citizens protesting government lockdowns have been overall “responding proportionately in an environment that was dynamic, threatening and frightening.”

“I couldn’t be prouder of them,” Patton said. “What they’ve done and the way they’ve conducted themselves.”

A criminal lawyer, Sonia Hickey, seemed able to grasp the context:

“The man is standing alone and talking to police officers, when an officer approaches him from behind, grabs him by the shoulders and violently slams him against to the hard floor,” Hickey recounted, noting that “[w]itnesses reported that the man was knocked unconscious, and left in a pool of his own blood and urine.”