As a citizen of Ames, I am appalled by the constant chatter of “The police overreacted” to the riots of Saturday night. Our men and women in blue deserve our praise for how well they handled the illegal activity that occurred. There was not one serious injury because of their heroic efforts!

The reason tear gas is used is that it is the safest way to regain control of a violent crowd. Tear gas and pepper spray are painful and irritating, but don’t cause serious injury and don’t require any treatment for recovery.

That night, some of the rioters received treatment from the paramedics on scene and then resumed attacking police from behind. If you were there and suffered from tear gas or pepper spray, then take some responsibility! The officers warned the crowd over and over to leave the area. If you remained, then you placed yourself in the middle of the crimes being committed and put yourself at risk.

Count yourself lucky because the officers showed great restraint. Before the use of tear gas and pepper spray, we saw much worse injuries resulting from such a riot. Without the swift response of our local law enforcement, we would now be talking about how tragic and senseless the deaths of that night were.

I have met many law enforcement officers across this country. I can assure you here in Ames we have the nicest, most considerate officers in the country. Next time you see one of our fine officers, please thank him or her for how well he or she does a thankless job.

The community also needs to be careful not to blame the ISU students as a group. This was a riot. It may have included students, alumni, community people and people from other towns. Let’s stop pointing fingers and work together as a community to prevent the recurrence of such violence.

Michael Miller

Emergency Physician