Swamp Rabbit wanted to know what I thought of the four Minneapolis cops who were arrested and charged in the killing of George Floyd. I told him lying with impunity used to be one of the perks of the job, but those days might be ending.

“Ain’t it the truth,” he said as we watched another video, this one of Buffalo cops. “Back in the day, cops could knock down a 75-year-old then step over him like he was a piece of trash. They’d say he tripped over his own feet and that would be that, case closed.”

We agreed that the game has changed. Thanks to phone cameras and other gadgets, peace officers can’t even poke white protesters with clubs let alone kill black people just for the hell of it.

“Two of them Buffalo cops got arrested,” Swamp Rabbit said. “Their homeys must be having second thoughts about their jobs. Why be a cop if you can’t beat up the peeps who don’t move when they see you coming?”

I told him he’s right, 57 cops have resigned from the Buffalo Police Department’s Emergency Response Team to protest what happened to their two fellow officers.

Swamp Rabbit stroked his chin whiskers and nodded. “I think that means they’re still on the force, but they don’t have to respond to no emergencies.”

“Nice work if you can get it,” I said.

Footnote: Swamp Rabbit thinks my opinion of cops is too low, there are some good ones, I’d better hope I don’t have to call them someday in an emergency. I told him I did call them once in an emergency but when they arrived, two hours later, they almost arrested me, not the bad guy, who was long gone. “There are good cops, but it’s often safer to take your chances with the bad guys,” I said.