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US police receive large amounts of hand down military equipment and are routinely armed. Some US citizens are routinely armed, so the potential for lethal harm

US police receive large amounts of hand down military equipment and are routinely armed. Some US citizens are routinely armed, so the potential for lethal harm is much greater in any scenario. US domestic policy has encouraged the police to be at war (vs crime, drugs etc). US domestic policy has encouraged a criminalization of large amounts of petty stuff (truancy / three strikes policies) which encourages this. This all encourages a us vs them attitude in police forces, where the police are fighting a 'war' against citizens. US police are highly trained to stop a criminal with force, and rarely focus on de-escalation. US police are rarely funded and motivated to make a visible presence beyond arrest etc, and don't perform much of a community role afaict. Almost any civilian action (e.g. filming police / protests) encourages the 'us vs them' attitude and encourages police to close ranks.

bbctol 10y ago
Also, a lot of cops themselves are ex-military, a consequence of maintaining decade-long wars.
- bougiefever 10y ago
  It's too bad that more of them don't have better military training where you are trained to not start shooting wildly in stressful and dangerous situations. Being a cop is not that dangerous of a job in America. Being a farmer or a roofer is far more deadly. Being a dog catcher is a more dangerous job than being a cop, and you don't hear story after story of them shooting indiscriminately at dogs. Cops should not be killing and injuring so many people, and the only way that is going to stop is if they are held accountable.
- krtkush 10y ago
  There was a recent episode on radio lab[1] in which it was highlighted that ex-military policemen are actually better than their counterpart because they have better control over there emotions and actions during a confrontation. On the other hand, non-military people these days are not as well trained and are hence are more likely to shoot. [1] http://www.radiolab.org/story/shots-fired-part-1/ http://www.radiolab.org/story/shots-fired-part-1/
rectang 10y ago
With varying degrees depending on which part of the country you're in, police and the criminal justice system are also a means of political suppression of minorities, through uneven enforcement and felony disenfranchisement.
vidarh 10y ago
> US police are highly trained to stop a criminal with force, and rarely focus on de-escalation. I think this has the largest part of the blame, even though I agree with a lot of the rest you wrote too. I live in the UK. We called the police in conjunction with an ongoing assault near our house. About five minutes later there were at least 8 police officers on the scene, slowly and calmly surrounding the suspect. Nobody ever raised a hand, and he quickly surrendered. It always stands out to me in stark contrast whenever I see reports about US police.
- Broken_Hippo 10y ago
  I've been surrounded by cops a few times when I was younger. Once I was taking a guy home, plus a couple of his friends. He lived in a housing complex. I got surrounded by cops with guns and drug dogs. They insisted that it was a crack-infested area (public housing) and they found out, "white people do it too". I was let go, but I don't know what happened afterwards. Another time - I'm not even sure why I was pulled over. I was sitting in a park and a park employee told me the park was closed and I had to leave. Nevermind the dude and his son looking in the telescope or the sign saying it was closed a couple hours later in the evening. Anyhow, I eventually left and had the guy following closely, flashing his headlights behind me. Not knowing the park well, I ran over a small patch of grass. But I left. A little down the road, I was pulled over and surrounded by cops, guns drawn. I still have no clue why this was the case. They pulled the person I was with out and talked to them seperately, but in the end let us go. My ex tried to commit suicide. One of the cops told me it was part my fault, commented on my messy house, swore there was a meth lab there, and wanted to search my house. The ex wound up being schizo-affective, and years later I still hate that cop. I've never quite understood this stuff. I suppose racism had a bit to do with it, as I've never really cared what color skin someone had, but it doesn't explain the last story. The worst thing I did back then was smoke pot. I've never even had a speeding ticket nor been in a fistfight. Ever. In stark contrast, I've had my bags searched coming back to Norway from Amsterdam and got treated like a person. I've never been so relaxed around a cop. It was weird. And I don't feel like a target as much here like I did in the states.
sgift 10y ago
> Almost any civilian action (e.g. filming police / protests) encourages the 'us vs them' attitude and encourages police to close ranks. IMO, if you are not able to shrug off people exercising their rights even if it bothers you you are unfit of being a police officer. Or any civil servant for that matter.
- richardwhiuk 10y ago
  Being (knowingly) filmed constantly is extremely off putting to lots of people. Protests are extremely volatile environments, and often a small number of people in them are there to cause trouble. Protestors often equivocate attacking the government as attacking the police (sometimes reasonsably, as the police are effectively a state instrument). It's quite difficult not to create an us versus them attitude when some people in a protest are throwing projectiles.

bbctol 10y ago

Also, a lot of cops themselves are ex-military, a consequence of maintaining decade-long wars.

bougiefever 10y ago
It's too bad that more of them don't have better military training where you are trained to not start shooting wildly in stressful and dangerous situations. Being a cop is not that dangerous of a job in America. Being a farmer or a roofer is far more deadly. Being a dog catcher is a more dangerous job than being a cop, and you don't hear story after story of them shooting indiscriminately at dogs. Cops should not be killing and injuring so many people, and the only way that is going to stop is if they are held accountable.
krtkush 10y ago
There was a recent episode on radio lab[1] in which it was highlighted that ex-military policemen are actually better than their counterpart because they have better control over there emotions and actions during a confrontation. On the other hand, non-military people these days are not as well trained and are hence are more likely to shoot. [1] http://www.radiolab.org/story/shots-fired-part-1/ http://www.radiolab.org/story/shots-fired-part-1/

rectang 10y ago

With varying degrees depending on which part of the country you're in, police and the criminal justice system are also a means of political suppression of minorities, through uneven enforcement and felony disenfranchisement.

vidarh 10y ago

> US police are highly trained to stop a criminal with force, and rarely focus on de-escalation. I think this has the largest part of the blame, even though I agree with a lot of the rest you wrote too. I live in the UK. We called the police in conjunction with an ongoing assault near our house. About five minutes later there were at least 8 police officers on the scene, slowly and calmly surrounding the suspect. Nobody ever raised a hand, and he quickly surrendered. It always stands out to me in stark contrast whenever I see reports about US police.

Broken_Hippo 10y ago
I've been surrounded by cops a few times when I was younger. Once I was taking a guy home, plus a couple of his friends. He lived in a housing complex. I got surrounded by cops with guns and drug dogs. They insisted that it was a crack-infested area (public housing) and they found out, "white people do it too". I was let go, but I don't know what happened afterwards. Another time - I'm not even sure why I was pulled over. I was sitting in a park and a park employee told me the park was closed and I had to leave. Nevermind the dude and his son looking in the telescope or the sign saying it was closed a couple hours later in the evening. Anyhow, I eventually left and had the guy following closely, flashing his headlights behind me. Not knowing the park well, I ran over a small patch of grass. But I left. A little down the road, I was pulled over and surrounded by cops, guns drawn. I still have no clue why this was the case. They pulled the person I was with out and talked to them seperately, but in the end let us go. My ex tried to commit suicide. One of the cops told me it was part my fault, commented on my messy house, swore there was a meth lab there, and wanted to search my house. The ex wound up being schizo-affective, and years later I still hate that cop. I've never quite understood this stuff. I suppose racism had a bit to do with it, as I've never really cared what color skin someone had, but it doesn't explain the last story. The worst thing I did back then was smoke pot. I've never even had a speeding ticket nor been in a fistfight. Ever. In stark contrast, I've had my bags searched coming back to Norway from Amsterdam and got treated like a person. I've never been so relaxed around a cop. It was weird. And I don't feel like a target as much here like I did in the states.

sgift 10y ago

> Almost any civilian action (e.g. filming police / protests) encourages the 'us vs them' attitude and encourages police to close ranks. IMO, if you are not able to shrug off people exercising their rights even if it bothers you you are unfit of being a police officer. Or any civil servant for that matter.

richardwhiuk 10y ago
Being (knowingly) filmed constantly is extremely off putting to lots of people. Protests are extremely volatile environments, and often a small number of people in them are there to cause trouble. Protestors often equivocate attacking the government as attacking the police (sometimes reasonsably, as the police are effectively a state instrument). It's quite difficult not to create an us versus them attitude when some people in a protest are throwing projectiles.