2011: Starting out to be a very violent year! [Archive]

12voltman59

Jan 20, 2011, 8:15 PM

So far 2011 is just a few weeks old and in that time---in the US--there have been a number of high profile cases of some very violent incidents--with the worst thus far being the shootings in Tucson, but in my area on January 1 we had an incident of a mentally disturbed man having fired a shotgun at neighbors in his trailer park----one of the first officers on the scene--a female Clark County (Ohio) Sheriff's Deputy got on scene and was told that the shooter was gone--she had started taking photos and processing evidence. The man was still inside his trailer and as the deputy walked past his unit--he fired the shotgun through the door, hitting the deputy in the face, killing her instantly---her partner immediately took cover and called in the code to say "officer down" which brought individual police units from departments all over along with several SWAT teams and in the course of more gunfire--another police officer was wounded.
The suspect was found dead and to my knowledge, they believe he killed himself.

Then the next weekend--there was the shooting incident in Tucson.

Today---there was an incident that two long time Metro-Dade Police (Miami, Florida) officers were killed and a third wounded when they went out to serve an arrest warrant on a suspect.

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/20/two-officers-one-suspect-killed-in-miami-shootout/?ncid=webmail

I have heard of several other cases of law enforcement officers being killed in the line of duty since the first of the year due to the violent actions of criminals.

It does sorta seem in so many ways---things are really starting to spin way out of control.

Let us put the families of the fallen officers in our thoughts and hope like hell that this sort of violence goes back to being more of an exception than the way it seems to be going that it is becoming "the rule."

Long Duck Dong

Jan 20, 2011, 9:07 PM

oh shit.........

my flatmate watches a lot of the US cop shows on our criminal investigation channel, and many times there is the cops dash cam showing a cop pulling over a car, and going down in a hail of bullets.....

I do not envy the cops, they have families and loved ones and they want to go home at the end of the day....and by god, if they have to draw a gun and blow some mofo to hell... they have my support... cos the crims just do not give a rats ass who they shoot.....

often I hear about ny's finest... etc etc.... and yes....definately yes... cops are some of the finest men and women I know... they walk the walk, they talk the talk... and while they screw up, more often, they do not come home......

god bless those men and women out there on the streets......

hugs the families of the fallen, their fellow officers and all those that work to keep the streets safe......

and to all the human rights activists, anti gun crew and the greenies..... there are a couple more job openings for police now.... so step up... or shut up.... cos if you have not walked the walk, don't try to talk the talk.....

Cherokee_Mountaincat

Jan 20, 2011, 9:40 PM

Wow Voltie, I didnt hear about the Deputy, and my heart goes out to her family, and the families of other police and Fire personal as well. And also to the families that lost loved ones with the tragedy in Tucson...:(
Sad Cat

bizel

Jan 20, 2011, 11:19 PM

people who 'bag' the police and put them down really get my blood boiling. these HEROES, and i don't use that word lightly, are the first ones we call when we're in trouble and want saving. they are the ones that have to bring bad news to us and witness our pain. they are the ones that usually see road accidents first, where innocent people, children have to be 'scraped off the roads' because we don't think we've drunk too much, or smoked anything too bad etc. i'm continually surprised and grateful that people become cops. and as our society gets more violent, i become more grateful that they do their thankless job with the awful risks involved.

people who hold their heads high and try to justify their bad behaviour should have to accompany the police and witness the horrors involved, then maybe they'll shut their mouth and hang their heads in shame!! all police are trying to do is save our lives.

another of my soap-box topics!!!!!

DuckiesDarling

Jan 21, 2011, 2:32 AM

Long Duck Dong

Jan 21, 2011, 3:02 AM

Cops are your enemy. This country has more people locked up that communist China and they have well over a billion people.

The cops work for your masters the banker gangster class that rule you and have robbed this country blind. You are all useless eaters to these people and they want you dead.

Back to you tv sets nothing to see here.

yeah... they write you tickets for speeding when you are speeding.... they arrest you for crimes when you commit them..... they protect your right to be a pain in the ass like the WBC has the right to be a pain in the ass......

and shock horror... they are human just like us.....

for all of your slamming the cops.... they are just people like you and me, protecting people like you and me, from criminals, like you and me......

they are not perfect and nor is the law.... but I would rather have the police, than the criminals, protecting me and society as best they can........

I have to question if you think that condoms are some type of alien invention specially designed to prevent people with above average IQ, being born, so that way the world will be full of halfwits that will think that 6 armed, 4 eyed blue skinned 3 legged next door neighbours are normal......

I hope that if aliens ever come to earth looking for intelligent life, they never meet you...... first impressions are most important and if they run into you, the aliens will get the impression that primordial ooze is more intelligent than the human race....

Hephaestion

Jan 21, 2011, 3:53 AM

Cops are your enemy. This country has more people locked up that communist China and they have well over a billion people.

The cops work for your masters the banker gangster class that rule you and have robbed this country blind. You are all useless eaters to these people and they want you dead.

Back to you tv sets nothing to see here.

Is there not a separation between the Police and the judiciary? Is it not the juducuary who sentence people to prison whilst the police investigate dispassionately.

Although Policing claims to be similar around the world, there are differences. In most, the policeman is taken to be an approved member of the society standing up for its the general good.

However, It is appreciated that there are corrupt people in all walks of life. In some countries children disappear because they are derelict. In some there are scams and extortion. The police may be seen, even recorded, battering an innocent passing man to his death for no good reason and then the judiciary declare that there is no case to answer, as was seen on British TV of a British policeman in a London demonstration.

The words "Rat faced little shit" and "Thomlinson" come to mind. But precedent had been set when being a Brazilian elctrician on his way to work proved hazardous to health.

The police and society co-evolve and violence begets violence. One wonders how much brainwashing is taking place through entertainment. One wonders how much rebellionis induced through one or other side pushing the boundaries of acceptability.

Oh for the days.

"I say Sir, is that not a bag of swag over your shoulder pulling on your striped jersey and mask? I am afraid I must ask you to accompany me to the station for a chat albeit at this early hour of the morning."

"It's a fair cop I'll come quietly. Might I ask you to summon a Black Maria to save walking? So kind, these valuables are somewhat heavy"

darkeyes

Jan 21, 2011, 8:27 AM

"The representatives of law and order on the street, our wonderful police service, has within its ranks a predominance of those who are marginally better than those they try to catch, and far too often, those who are far worse.. it is a service of sociopaths and thoroughly unpleasant human beings within which far too few are interested in the preservation of law and order and defence of the innocent, but in power over those they are pledged to protect."

These words were spoken to a friend and I by Defence Advocate some weeks before her trial. It is something I have always believed and have seen far too many instances if it in practice. Maybe having a service full of thugs is some peoples idea of a police force, but it certainly isnt mine. The nostalgic view of the good old fashioned incorruptable British bobby always was an illusion, but never more so than in this the early part of the 21st century.. and the British media has exposed this all too aften in my lifetime. respect for our beloved "boys in blue" has never been lower in our society..

Yes, it saddens me when any policeman, nutjob or honest copper loses his or her life, as is the case when any human being loses his or her life, law abiding citizen or criminal, but I do not hold them up on a pedestal as do so many. That we need a police force is indisputable.. what we should always question is why about every aspect of their activities.. and yes, Voltie, it is a very nasty start to this year.. but my darling, it is a very nasty start to every year... some day the peoples of our countries will ask themselves "just why is this?" in a little more depth, and "How do we make it better?"

tenni

Jan 21, 2011, 1:33 PM

My first reaction to reading this thread topic was that it didn't apply to where I live. Specifically, where I live we have not had a murder in at least five years. That murder bordered on young guys being idiots and fighting another guy. The second young man died when he hit his head. So, no we don't have a violent year so far where I live.

Then again, for the first time since about 2001, Toronto just buried a 35 year old police officer who was killed by man on a stolen snow remover. The guy in the snow remover refused to stop when the officer tried to get him. He pushed the officer into a car and the officer died. He left a two year old son and wife. His father had also served as a police officer. More than ten thousand attended his funeral that that included police and firemen and EMO's from across Canada and the USA. The people of Toronto and surrounding area spoke like some on here with the most positive words in recognition of the service the police provide a community (uh..that a real physical community to btw...:bigrin:)

On the other hand, this summer Toronto experienced the most violent police brutality with more than a thousand arrest taking away citizens civil rights and right to protest at the G20 meeting. Very few of the arrests seem to be headed to trial. It shocked the community and Canada. We found ourselves in a violent police state and people were arrested regardless of age for simple things like walking on a street no where near the G20 meeting. The police tried to hide their physical abuse of citizens. Special forces investigated and dismissed some of the citizens accusations about police brutality. Other citizens stepped forward with cell phone videos. Finally, one police officer has been suspended with pay and I think that he will be charged with assault. Just last week there was another police brutality shown on youtube and that officer is suspended. An immigrant man was tasered to death by the RCMP at the Vancouver airport a few years ago. The police tried to hide their guilt and it is now clear that charges may/will also be laid. Indigenous women are found dead and the trail has gone back in some cases to the police who ignored the signs of mass murders of female indigenous sex trade workers.

So, it seems to be a mixed bag as to the violence in Canada this past year or so. Still, the community does mourn the death of a police officer who dies while serving and protecting us.

12voltman59

Jan 24, 2011, 7:38 PM

It keeps on going---now I just saw a report on the news in the last few minutes that in the last few days in America----11 police officers across the country have either been killed or severely injured in the line of duty shootings with one police official saying: "It looks like a war against police officers now!!"

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/41241552#41241552

DuckiesDarling

Jan 24, 2011, 7:43 PM

12voltman59

Jan 24, 2011, 8:29 PM

It's pretty much always been a war against the cops, and they treat it as such. When a cop goes down in the line of duty it becomes the number one priorty to find the killer. Being a cop killer in prison is status, so they no longer think about the consequences of shooting a cop *most states make it an automatic capital offense to kill a police officer in the line of duty* they think about "I'm going down anyway, I'm gonna have cred before I get there"

It's just insane.

What is scary is that we have all these politico and talking head types who even in the aftermath of the Tucson shootings are ramping up the rhetoric like "lock and load" "we have to take back our country by force if necessary" to an unprecedented level.

One more thing in regards to all the police getting shot--in the law enforcement circles--it is a maxim that if people will take on and fight the cops to such a degree--what chance does the average person have??

We cannot just say---"well--maybe more people need to arm themselves??" That just adds to the ever increasing spiral of violence and mayhem or certainly increases the possibility of such!!!!

DuckiesDarling

Jan 24, 2011, 8:40 PM

I am a firm believer in the right to bear arms, but I also firmly believe that guns don't kill people, people kill people. The political idiots make me cringe, they are the first to run their mouth and then the first to hide when shit hits the fan.

Long Duck Dong

Jan 24, 2011, 9:06 PM

What is scary is that we have all these politico and talking head types who even in the aftermath of the Tucson shootings are ramping up the rhetoric like "lock and load" "we have to take back our country by force if necessary" to an unprecedented level.

One more thing in regards to all the police getting shot--in the law enforcement circles--it is a maxim that if people will take on and fight the cops to such a degree--what chance does the average person have??

We cannot just say---"well--maybe more people need to arm themselves??" That just adds to the ever increasing spiral of violence and mayhem or certainly increases the possibility of such!!!!

put a gun in my hands and you have a experienced and highly trained killer.....
the danger becomes what side of the fence am I walking on.....

unfortunately the cops are governed by laws and critics..... if we remove their power to restore order.. the criminals get free rein.... if we increase it, we become like saudi arabia where your first drink drinking offence becomes your last, cos it carries the death penalty

the criminals... they only have loyalty and ego.... and a shit load of targets to choose from.....

and then you have me.... ex military... the baddest of the bad, cos we are trained to take down targets and survive.......

I will protect my home, i will protect the people in the home and if a cop needs help I will aid the cops...... fuck the legal laws and bs.... they only matter when I am standing in the dock......

I used to be a person, the boys in blue hated and feared, now.... they regard me as a brother in arms..... and as long as they are out there keeping the streets safe from assholes like I used to be like.... then I have the cops back........

if push come to shove tho... and civil war broke out..... I am in it for myself.... I will protect my own.......

bizel

Jan 24, 2011, 10:10 PM

haven't looked at this thread for a little while and am shocked at where it's at. what i thought was originally just feeling of sadness for senseless violence is at almost anarchy. i can see both sides and it makes me sad. i am forever grateful that i haven't experienced either side. i dislike guns but understand they are part of our community. i know my hubby knows how to use one, and wouldn't hesitate like ldd, but i don't want to see anyone's life dramatically cut short - be they either police or citizen. people who flap their gums about respect have absolutely none themselves. i'm not even sure if they know what the word means.

and dark eyes, if you are referring to my post, i don't hold anyone on a pedestal - we're all human and as such imperfect. i do understand there is corruption in the police force, as we hear every now and then in the news. but there's bad in everything - even occassionally here, a little nasty raises it's head. i just think there are more good than bad. and for the good, a lot of horrors can await them and their family unlike us who go about our daily lives. we expect a lot out of our police force. that's a big burden for anyone. i am prepared to cut them some slack. it's a thankless job and i couldn't do it. i think most essential services are underrated until we need them.

if you have a gun in your hand ldd, i would put a beautiful flower in the end of your nozzle (is that what they call the end of the long thingy the bullet comes out of??).

Bicuriousity

Jan 24, 2011, 10:27 PM

bizel

Jan 24, 2011, 10:51 PM

And now the moscow airport bombing. Cant believe how horrible people can be .

I had the gruesome thought today that if one nut could destroy the whole world singlehandedly by pushing a button, someone would have done that already.

So many mentally ill people in this world

talking about not-so-stable people, how's that north korea situation going? if you really want to feel ill, think about what could happen there. if you want to feel good, then do yourself a favour. get some fresh air, play with a puppy (or cat) and stroke a child - or stroke a puppy(or cat) and play with a child - i get muddled. get your feet in the grass or sea water (if you're not in the winter side of the world), and start counting the things you're grateful for. if you want a happy life, don't focus on what you can't fix.

Long Duck Dong

Jan 24, 2011, 10:58 PM

if you have a gun in your hand ldd, i would put a beautiful flower in the end of your nozzle (is that what they call the end of the long thingy the bullet comes out of??).

the long thingy is the barrel, the end is called the muzzle.......

if you put a flower in the end of my gun, I would go apeshit.... not cos of you... but dirt and muck in me gun, lol but I would have no issue with you as a person as long as it was peaceful and quiet.... and you were not standing in harms way......

I am afraid I have no time for pacifists that have the stance of they are peace loving people so they will stand up and fight for their beliefs.....

it makes about as much sense to me as a soldier that is fully armed and com ready.... so goes and lays down his rifle in the middle of a fire fight......

I do not expect people to understand as many of us ex service men and women will say, many of the people that have all the ideas of how to do things better, are the ones that have never done it......

its a bit like in NZ, with the greenies and pacifists opposing cops with guns and tasers..... then we lost another cop... damm near two cops when they tried to serve a warrant on a ex vet that was armed and dangerous......
a taser would have saved the cops life...... instead we had a 3 day firefight until a sniper put a bullet in the vet and the vet then took his own life......

the prime minister immediately said, the front line cops get guns and tasers, we have lost 5 cops now.... deaths that could have been prevented, cos of people with guns and weapons.... its past the time of talking about how cops having guns will encourage crims to have guns too... cos they already have them and we are losing cops cos of it.....

its something I understand...... cos its the same as a warzone... you have no idea what you are facing and if they are armed, so you have to be ready to shoot first and ask questions later, cos the crims are not interested in afternoon tea with scones and polite chat......

but I have to ask... if the greenies and pacifists ideas of sitting down and talking, works so well..... why hasn't it worked..... cos there has been a shit load of talking and talking and talking and talking.... experts, specialists, bloggers etc.... all talking about how to fix it and how to resolve the issues....... way back in the 60's by my reckoning, they were talking and talking and talking.... now in 2011, they are talking and talking and talking .... and we are burying cops and other people...... and being told talking works

DuckiesDarling

Jan 24, 2011, 11:01 PM

Personally, I am a member of the NRA, I shoot. I shoot well. Would I pull the trigger on a random person? No. Would I shoot someone trying to hurt me or mine? Hell yeah. And since I was told specifically by a police officer that if you are going to shoot, empty the clip. I'll follow that advice.

And if you don't like it, DILLIGAF?

DuckiesDarling

Jan 24, 2011, 11:50 PM

You empty the clip and his two buddies are hiding near by they will probably kill you for killing their friend.

Some times that might be good idea other times you might end up dead. In some cities and states you might be put in prison for twenty plus years for what they would call over kill or disregard for human life.

As stated a police officer told me that, so I'll believe him over you. Thanks :)

bizel

Jan 24, 2011, 11:56 PM

i'm getting a lesson. alright duckie, what is dilligaf? thanks for the muzzle bit ldd. thought afterwards i might be talking about a hose by accident. then i wondered if it was a barrel. and i never thought of dirt in your muzzle. hubby used to roll his eyes at me with his rifle. it just felt so alien to me. he has experienced fighting first hand from his teenage days to now, and wouldn't hesitate to do like you. me, i saw one punch up at kings cross, and the sound of the fist hitting a head nearly made me throw up, and the sight as that man hit the ground, i will never forget it to my dying day. this doesn't mean i'm a pacifist. it means if i see someone being picked on, i will intervene and try to stop the fight before someone gets seriously hurt. i've seen the pain and damage of afterwards. hubby has held me back before when i wanted to get involved in one fight. what gets me is, it's ok for him to get into a fight, and then ring me sheepishly from the police station. but when i try to bring calm to a tense situation, he stops me! don't get me wrong. if i saw someone attacking my loved ones, it's game on!! guns freak me out, but i understand they serve a purpose. i'm all for tazers. better that than a bullet anyday. civil libertarians really get my goat when they complain about tazers!

i know i have a reservoir of anger in me, and i'm scared i may get pushed and not be able to stop. and then i'll become no better than thugs.

DuckiesDarling

Jan 24, 2011, 11:59 PM

DILLIGAF? Acronym for Do I look like I give a fuck :)

AidanS57

Jan 25, 2011, 12:02 AM

There is an upswing in violence around the world, or is there? Is it the fact that now there is no place to hide, that the word will get out somehow someway? Times have changed a lot in my years on this earth, we now have live and in color on tv the things that used to be a news blurb in the world news section of the paper.

I believe in the right to bear arms, but more than that I believe in the right to bear arms respectfully. Should there ever come a time when I am forced to take up arms to defend my country or my life, I wouldn't hesitate.

Does that make me better or worse than the next human? I guess I'll find out when I die.:2cents:

Aidan

Long Duck Dong

Jan 25, 2011, 12:06 AM

AidanS57

Jan 25, 2011, 12:48 AM

Cookies!! wait are these man cookies or Cat cookies? I have it on good authority the Cat cookies have no calories. :bigrin:

Aidan

Long Duck Dong

Jan 25, 2011, 1:07 AM

I haz a secret ingredient..... grins evilly.... its been handed down to me and it has been in my family for generations.........

hides the cookie dough wrapper under DD's butt.....

Long Duck Dong

Jan 25, 2011, 1:22 AM

Just type into google "police tazer old lady' I would guess a 100,000 hit will show up. Then type into google "police tazer old man" Then yype in cop beat child. Then Cops kill old lady. On and on just go to youtube and watch when you type stuff like that. The police and the politicians, banker, elites are the criminals. Go back to you tv set nothing to see here..

ok, mr google freak...... go to google and google police dog blaze, or how about len snee ... or all the other cops that have died.......

then go onto google and search for all the cops that have died in the line of duty......

then google the words * we are not perfect and not are the cops.... but they are out there on the streets dealing with more assholes than a lgbt bottoms convention *

now I belong to the local rsa ( returned services assocation ) with all the other vets.... and we have recently added the police force to the list of members....and you wanna know something...... ????

they are human.... the police are actually human beings... with feelings and emotions.... and they hurt and they feel pain....... and they have to put up with people like me that were complete assholes to the cops, and making their lives hell on earth......

the cops are no different to soldiers, they fight in a warzone, yet their biggest problem is not the criminals... its the wankers that bash the cops for blowing a gasket and that forget that the cops are in one of the highest stressed jobs around, every day they face not coming home... and they are human.... most people would crack under that pressure.....

so happyfriends... I put it to you.... if you can handle the pressure better and do the job better, and deal with people better.... why the hell are you not out doing giving the cops a hand........

there is not a day that goes by, that I do not regret the shit I gave the cops, cos they were doing their jobs and I have no excuse for the fact that I was a complete asshole to them......

and while you sit safe behind your computer, slamming a few bad cops, there are still a few 10'000 out there, on the streets, doing their job... and taking shit from so many assholes... and the very next day, they are out there again....and you will never hear about them.... until one day, they do not come home......

so you can take your cop bashing and shove it right up the thing you sit on..... cos the cops are out there now.... keeping you safe, which is a shame.. cos you would never appreciate them..... so i have to ask... who do you support ?? MS 13, the bloods, the crips ....... take your pick

AidanS57

Jan 25, 2011, 2:58 AM

I think happyfriends had a stash confiscated or something, dude go get some more so you have a reason to be delusional. :2cents:

Aidan

Long Duck Dong

Jan 25, 2011, 2:59 AM

bizel

Jan 25, 2011, 3:31 AM

cops are agents of satans systems???? happyfriends, are you for real? please tell me you're joking. how can you have a nickname like that, with that attitude? i think this is where this thread is going haywire. cops are just people too. take them out of their uniforms and you can't tell them apart from the average person on the street. cut them and they bleed red same as everyone else. it's not us and them cos they are us. maybe if you believe in satans system, you bleed green. jeez, i hope i'm wrong but that's just weird and being brought up amongst the brethren, i've seen and heard plenty of weird.

darkeyes

Jan 25, 2011, 4:11 AM

I believe in the right to bear arms.. and also the right to bare arms.. and these are the only arms I believe I have the right to bear. Firearms as such do not kill people I agree.. they do however make it so much easier... and any state which allows easy access to them will by definition inevitably be a very violent state.. my own is violent enough with very tough and rigid gun controls.. do they work? It is arguable but gun crime has been dropping in recent years and before anyone jumps down my throat, in Scotland at least so is knife crime..

.. but you know where I stand on violence.. and on weapons.. you would expect me to have said little different..:)

darkeyes

Jan 25, 2011, 5:48 AM

Almost all cop are agents of satans systems and I want nothing to do with the criminals. Cops have never kept me safe from any thing. Cops are the criminals but brainwashed, brain-dead, programmed people with low iqs will never see the truth.

Back to you tv programming and every thing will be fine:-)

I don't agree with much of that happyfriends, but i know where u are coming from..

.. I too have a healthy mistrust of the police.. I have seen them far too often do their own thing on innocent bystanders, and also be outrageously tough of those who are less than innocent.. more than once have I intervened when I have seen them behave outwith what I believe policing should be.. and more than once watched and listened as they stood by and did nothing when their assistance was required and implored them to do something.. once I was laughed at and humiliated when placing a complaint.. I have watched them intimidate people at demonstrations, football matches, pop concerts, festivals and other public gatherings/

No they are not agents of satan's sytem.. they are however agents of the political system and are there to protect the establishment from anything which threatens it.. that they often protect and deal with ordinary people's problems and often quite successfully, is almost incidental since ordinary people must be kept in order and reasonably happy to make the system work. They are not there primarily to protect not we plebs, but the lives and property, and preserve the power of those who rule over us. A cynical view certainly, but recent events in the UK have done nothing to change that view.. in fact have rather reinforced it.

The police in the UK are regarded very suspiciously by most people in this country, not all by any means, and huge numbers still have the illusion that our police are wonderful.. many are criminals and many are near criminal.. ny previous post on the issue deals with that.. but not all. There are many decent policmen and women in this country and in all countries.. but the police force like the military tends to attract a certain kind of person, and not all are of the kind we would think of as honest and law abiding..

.. yet, I may dislike the police of my country, be extremely suspicious of them and very critical, and often oppose how they operate.. but until we get policing which is for all, properly and fairly dispensed for all people, and the police begin to respect people properly and not their own sense of power over us.. not the system, not the ruling elite, but people.. I may not like it, but am in no doubt were it to disappear, and there was no police force, our lifes would be much more unhappy and difficult than they are.

Hephaestion

Jan 25, 2011, 8:10 AM

Almost all cop are agents of satans systems and I want nothing to do with the criminals. Cops have never kept me safe from any thing. Cops are the criminals but brainwashed, brain-dead, programmed people with low iqs will never see the truth.

Back to you tv programming and every thing will be fine:-)

Maybe a litte "whacky 'baccy" is lubricating things here but perhaps the words are borne of experience i.e. mistreatment by the police encountered.

Some are indeed pompous pricks. When one requests any visit / encounter be done in plain clothes and an umarked vehicle and the gherkin turns up in full regalia and in the latest most shiny squad car avaliable. That is indeed helpfull. Of course neighbours good and bad want to know what has happened.

Then there are the threats to people's safety and well being. One approaches the home beat officers and asks a) if they are aware of a situation and b)could they make the odd extra patrol. "I am sorry sir we do not patrol anymore. We only react to calls". Put that alongside shutting police stations down and others operating only 9am to 5pm (akin to what happns in the USA where recorded violence is picked up on their answerphones). "Cops never kept me safe from anything" begins to sound very credible.

I attended a recent murder / manslaughter trial in which the collusion between the police and the criminal world was fairly overt. There have been recorded incidences of widespread strange behaviour in which corruption was the underlying theme but then the police do have to interface with the criminal world. There's me thinking that "Serpico" was just a film.

Previous objection to the use of the 'intelligence' measure "IQ" stands firm. However, with that said, reading, writing and ability to reason have been profound challenges in other incidents in which the police have been involved

e.g. "Officer, I would suggest that the man now on the ground shouldn't be manhandled anymore as (the victim of a road traffic accident) his collarbone and arm are broken"

e.g. "You need to change what you have written in your notes because it's the other way around. The criminal broke in and this lady is the victim"

e.g. "NO! Do not hit that man. If he has done anything wrong then call the police. Oh I see. You are the police in plain clothes and there is nothing to see here". What's that? Go back to my TV?

All this said. It does take tremendous courage to wear that uniform and to try to be the expected decent upright figure and to place one's trust in others who may be less than youself.

12voltman59

Jan 25, 2011, 1:46 PM

To make a sweeping generalization about any people whether it is about people of a certain race, class, sexual orientation or gender, occupation or profession is simply wrong.

Just like in any group of people--there are good ones, bad ones, idiot ones, nice ones, nasty ones and on and on.

Without going into a big huge thing about it---in recent years in the law enforcement world, at least here in the states---there has been a huge move to "professionalizing" law enforcement that includes all aspects of policing from the training and hiring of officers, to departments and training academies undergoing accreditation from CALEA.

http://www.calea.org/

Sure----there are "bad apples" among cops--just like in any group of human beings---but I dare say that with the move to professionalize law enforcement---a process begun in earnest in the 1980s----I think that the quality of those who put on the badge are of the highest quality people in the history of law enforcement.

Thankfully---the bad old days when the only criteria to being a cop was "not what you know (or your quality of character or mental state) but who ya know!!" is long gone. It used to be pretty much the case until not all that long ago---you hit the right age and if you knew someone---you went down to the courthouse where the police chief or Sheriff were on hand to witness and "vouch for ya," then the county judge swore ya in, ya went back to the station, got a uniform and they pinned a badge on your chest, they issued you a S&W six shooter .38 handgun, belt and cuffs, you went out on patrol with a senior guy on your watch for a few days, then you were a cop or Sheriff's deputy!!

As far as I know, every state has put in place a set of high standards for the selection, training and hiring of those who would be cops and with more and more local, state and federal law enforcement agencies attaining CAELA certification and accreditation, they are much better run than in the past with those departments and agencies accepting a set of standards that make those who run those entities more accountable for their actions.

I totally reject the notion that all those who are in law enforcement are themselves some kind of "bad apples" just because of the work they do.

Cops may not be perfect---but could anyone imagine what the world would be like without them???!!!!!!!