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I have to admit that the comments that I read on a daily basis really make me wish I was closer to retirement. Law enforcement has never been a pleasant job, but I have to say it's gotten more unpleasant in the last year or two.
The only place where state or local law enforcement might still be a rewarding career is in small town America. The pay will be low, but then so will the living expenses, and people's attitudes will be more supportive.
WEhat do cop haters do when they are victims of crime?? Do they just blow it off as if it is just the way it is or do they dial 911?
I'm sure those so called "cop haters" would probably call 911... as they most definitely should. But I know a few who would rather handle things themselves....but then, that would be a crime wouldn't it?
I have to admit that the comments that I read on a daily basis really make me wish I was closer to retirement. Law enforcement has never been a pleasant job, but I have to say it's gotten more unpleasant in the last year or two.
The only "us vs. them" that I primarily see is from the populace. Law enforcement is under the gun (no pun intended) every hour of every day now. No matter what they do, people accuse them of being heavy handed, corrupt, and involved in any conspiracy possible. When reading comment on news sites, or forums like this, it's not the police that are bashing citizens. It's the other way around. As I look back on this work week, none of the officers I work with shot anyone. Nobody died in their custody. In fact, none of the officers even came close to getting in any type of physical altercations. However, here is what did happen this week. One of my coworkers was in a store getting a drink. He was given a call involving some pretty serious injuries. As he was walking out, a woman told him she ended a ride home (which was a couple miles away). He told her he had to go to a call. She said it was too hot to walk so he gave her the drinks he had just bought and proceeded to his call. She called the office and wanted him fired for not doing his job. Monday, I opened up a door for a young lady as we were walking into a store. The thanks I received for it was "I can open my own door cracker pig". A coworker stopped a guy for flying down a residential street at nearly double the speed limit and during the stop was told NINE times, "**** you.... and I can say that because it's my right". I've even noticed a marked increase in the number of people that have zero problem passing a marked patrol car that is doing the speed limit. Heck, I don't even pass a marked patrol car when I am driving a marked patrol car. The bottom line is that respect is quickly disappearing from America, and it's not just in law enforcement.
The problem seems to be that many people want law enforcement to do their job and make everyone happy all the time. Being polite and non confrontational is obviously the best outcome. Lord knows that's the outcome that I want on every single citizen contact that I have. But it's not always possible. It's like asking someone to move a pile of dirt without getting the shovel dirty. Some agencies have GPS systems that set off an alert if the officer drives to fast. Some of them have zero tolerance for speeding violations even if they are going to a high priority call with their lights on. Do you really think an officer at one of those departments is going to risk getting in trouble for that? I know I wouldn't. If there is a report of a drunk driver going 80 miles an hour four miles ahead of the officer, how long do you think it would take the officer to catch the guy if the max speed he could go on the interstate was 84 without getting in trouble? Recently, on the west coast of the country, an agency with a "de escalation" policy received a call about a guy on a beach waving around a sword. They made contact with him, but weren't able to get him to drop the sword. So they packed up and left and never found the guy. But at least they didn't get slammed in the news paper and on forums like this. Unfortunately, I think this is what is going to be the norm in the very near future. My only advice to America is to be careful what you wish for, because you are in the process of getting it. And quite frankly, that deeply saddens me.
Perhaps you need to ask why? Why is a sizeable portion of law-abiding citizenry adopting the "us vs. them" attitude? I'm not talking about career criminals or petty criminals or even their families, I'm talking about Joe Public. Availability of numerous media outlets has shown the public, in graphic detail, the abuses of some law enforcement personnel but what probably antagonizes even more than those abusive actions is the blind circle-the-wagons philosophy of so many in police work. Police personnel need to drop the mindset that they are above the law and that the ends justify the means.
In your treatise above you mentioned what all the good guys do but declined to acknowledge problems that certainly do exist and are now available for viewing by the general public on a daily basis that in the recent past were hidden behind lies and the blue wall of silence. No cop should be apologizing for or rationalizing the improper or illegal actions of another, even if they were directed at the scum of the earth.
In your treatise above you mentioned what all the good guys do but declined to acknowledge problems that certainly do exist.
I noticed this as well. I also noticed that while I was super careful to stay away from racism as an issue, and so it seems did everyone else who opined, in the end it was a LEO who unnecessarily inserted it, so to the point that it is always media who fans the flames of discontent..............
Perhaps you need to ask why? Why is a sizeable portion of law-abiding citizenry adopting the "us vs. them" attitude? I'm not talking about career criminals or petty criminals or even their families, I'm talking about Joe Public. Availability of numerous media outlets has shown the public, in graphic detail, the abuses of some law enforcement personnel but what probably antagonizes even more than those abusive actions is the blind circle-the-wagons philosophy of so many in police work. Police personnel need to drop the mindset that they are above the law and that the ends justify the means.
In your treatise above you mentioned what all the good guys do but declined to acknowledge problems that certainly do exist and are now available for viewing by the general public on a daily basis that in the recent past were hidden behind lies and the blue wall of silence. No cop should be apologizing for or rationalizing the improper or illegal actions of another, even if they were directed at the scum of the earth.
This. The "us vs. them" attitude comes about when the "good" cops either defend or turn a blind eye to the "bad" cop. So instead of weeding the bad ones out, they turn the good ones into accomplices. If the police did a better job of policing themselves, then then Joe Public would have a better attitude/opinion of the all police.
Story I linked to earlier in this post was perfect example. Over aggressive K9 cop with dog. Young woman ends up with 30+ stitches and the captain calls it "a little nick". More in the story, but you've got to start wondering why hasn't there been an investigation when one K9 cop and dog are responsible for more than 50% of the dog bites and other departments with K9 units have no bites?
I really didn't want to take it here, but weekly I meet military members, who come back home injured, missing pieces, in some cases begging to go back. almost never do you hear them complain about duty. when they do complain, it is usually about administration at home or VA failing them or their families.
Never heard a fireman complain that fire is hot.
But when LEOs get their feelings hurt, the very FIRST thing they do is complain how hard their jobs are. Almost as if they didn't know this when they applied at the academy.
It was stunning to see those officers turn their backs on Deblasio.
It was again stunning to see those cops let crime and murders spike to make a passive aggressive point while
still drawing a paycheck, again because they felt under siege and unappreciated.
Now, I'm not saying that cops aren't heroic. Of course the vast majority of them are, but what makes them a different animal altogether is they are judged on another level. even among other first responders. They know it, and its why they consistently invoke the "Walk in my shoes my job is hard card".
The LEO who posted, I pray he makes it to his retirement that he spoke of. Im sure he is of the so called "95% good cop" field. unlike Randy Adair from Los angeles, and Harry Schnitzer from New Jersey, both celebrated cops, and both unconnected apprehended bank robbers.
Again all im saying is nothing is 100% good. caramel is sweet stuff, but it has things in it that will kill you eaten in certain quantities.
It would be nothing but good for all concerned, if they purged the bad apples among them, rather than protect them and go after citizens who legitimately call foul.
This law is a lot broader than the verbiage used in the statute. You don't even have to refuse a lawful order to vacate. My wife was arrested And charged with f.s.s 810.09 2a after cutting through a vacant lot between our home and her mother's apartment. The officer was his in the foliage and upon approaching his direct concealment location he jumped out of hiding and identified himself as deputy sheriff informing her that she was trespassing. He asked for consent to search her person and she informed him she was very uncomfortable with the whole event And that she was alone in a secluded location with no witnesses. She's called me at that point and said what was going on. He said if she would consent to search he'd only issue trespass warning but if she refused the request bed charge her. I advised her to agree to consent if he'd radio for a female officer to come and conduct search. Before she could convert convey that request he ordered her to turn around and place hands behind her. She said why add to doing this I'm trying to comply witch your request he said its too late. As he went to cuff her, my wife tried to inform him of surgical Rods in left humorous bone he wrenched left arm behind back with excessive force. at that time my wife than reacted to the natural mental choices of fight it flight and stated again that he was hurting her and she wasn't resisting. The deputy didn't acknowledge my wife's request so she attempted to pull her arm away from him. Be then applied brute force to cuff her and placed cuffs so tight it left cuts, abrasions and bruises to both wrists. He then charged her with f.s.s. 843.02 to justify the excessive force and escalated situation.
These officers who are supposed to be my family's public servants would take a situation and escalate if rather than neutralize all chance of public harm or Threat. Then If using techniques they are trained to use such as that of threat assessment of subject come to conclusion that there was no intent to cause harm or damage to private property and released her. Because she decided to question his request exercise her rights granted her by the constitution he's swore under oath to uphold. He abused the powers that were given to him as a public servant.
I do not know what we would do without the police. My question would be how have the police departments nationwide changed since the 1970's when I was young? Have computerized tracking and constant flooding of crime statistics forced police departments to focus on issues/tickets that cause the citizenry to react differently? Or, are the police simply scapegoats for every social ill a modern society encounters?
I do not know what we would do without the police. My question would be how have the police departments nationwide changed since the 1970's when I was young? Have computerized tracking and constant flooding of crime statistics forced police departments to focus on issues/tickets that cause the citizenry to react differently? Or, are the police simply scapegoats for every social ill a modern society encounters?
A few bad police protected by other police officers, a news media that wants to broadcast every bad case as though it is all police, people who do not want to obey the law and resist at varying levels. It will only get worse.
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