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On the other hand big destructive displays like this are big signals that it’s not police corruption and theft (like with the perverse incentives “civil forfeit

by JackFr 5y ago

On the other hand big destructive displays like this are big signals that it’s not police corruption and theft (like with the perverse incentives “civil forfeiture” creates in the US)

deleted 5y ago
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whatever_dude 5y ago
This. In a corrupt country, not destroying the seized equipment in theatrical fashion makes everybody assume cops/government just took it and used or re-sold it themselves, individually. Similar reason why drugs are destroyed with a lot of fanfare in most Latin American countries (er, when they are). Surely it'd be easier and cleaner to bury it somewhere after soaking it or something, but no, they need to make a pyramid of drugs and have someone throw a pyre at it to create a big symbolic bonfire that is a toxic mess to clean up.
AmericanChopper 5y ago
My personal view is that the government should never be able to profit from prosecuting a crime. Law enforcement should never be a money making venture, and it would never be possible to implement a system that overcomes the perverse incentives so long as it is. I don't think the financial disincentive is necessarily corrupt, in the form of fines or asset forfeiture, but I think that they should never be allowed to contribute to government revenue in any way. If the government has any incentive to prosecute somebody, other than a well founded and provable basis for believing they committed a crime, then the justice system just becomes a weapon to turn against the citizens it's supposed to be protecting. If the government has a financial incentive to prosecute certain crimes over others, then how the law is enforced is not going to align with community needs. For instance, that's why there's never enough police to attend burglaries, but always enough police for handing out speeding tickets.
Stevvo 5y ago
They can just as easily be signals of corruption. I have a friend who owns a bar on a beach in Malaysia. He isn't willing to pay the requested bribes to the local cops, so every winter they douse it in gasoline and burn it to the ground. He rebuilds every year; it costs less than the bribes.
- lupire 5y ago
  Why do they charge so much?

by JackFr 5y ago

On the other hand big destructive displays like this are big signals that it’s not police corruption and theft (like with the perverse incentives “civil forfeiture” creates in the US)

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

whatever_dude 5y ago

This. In a corrupt country, not destroying the seized equipment in theatrical fashion makes everybody assume cops/government just took it and used or re-sold it themselves, individually. Similar reason why drugs are destroyed with a lot of fanfare in most Latin American countries (er, when they are). Surely it'd be easier and cleaner to bury it somewhere after soaking it or something, but no, they need to make a pyramid of drugs and have someone throw a pyre at it to create a big symbolic bonfire that is a toxic mess to clean up.

AmericanChopper 5y ago

My personal view is that the government should never be able to profit from prosecuting a crime. Law enforcement should never be a money making venture, and it would never be possible to implement a system that overcomes the perverse incentives so long as it is. I don't think the financial disincentive is necessarily corrupt, in the form of fines or asset forfeiture, but I think that they should never be allowed to contribute to government revenue in any way. If the government has any incentive to prosecute somebody, other than a well founded and provable basis for believing they committed a crime, then the justice system just becomes a weapon to turn against the citizens it's supposed to be protecting. If the government has a financial incentive to prosecute certain crimes over others, then how the law is enforced is not going to align with community needs. For instance, that's why there's never enough police to attend burglaries, but always enough police for handing out speeding tickets.

Stevvo 5y ago

They can just as easily be signals of corruption. I have a friend who owns a bar on a beach in Malaysia. He isn't willing to pay the requested bribes to the local cops, so every winter they douse it in gasoline and burn it to the ground. He rebuilds every year; it costs less than the bribes.

lupire 5y ago
Why do they charge so much?