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This whole 250 comment thread is basically people discussing what they'd do or what you should do when finding yourself in a police encounter. My counterpoint i

This whole 250 comment thread is basically people discussing what they'd do or what you should do when finding yourself in a police encounter. My counterpoint is that none of that discussion actually applies. As for most people wanting it that way, I think it is because most people have not actually encountered it. They want it in the abstract, likely not so much when it happens to them. Kind of the classic...the people who want wars typically don't want their children in those wars.

rootusrootus 5y ago
I agree with you, everyone wants the cops to be be all powerful, because everyone assumes they will never be on the business end of that gun. It's basically the same advice Dr. Phil gave, and just about the only advice of his that ever resonated with me. Some people get it, some people don't, and when the cop is putting his boot on your face you aren't going to back talk. People fantasize online about all the things they will do in such a situation, but only people who have a good bit of experience with cops are going to be comfortable enough to talk smack to them. And frankly, for most of us, "don't ever talk to the police, never, never, never" will actually lead to worse outcomes on average. The trick is to recognize when you should follow that advice, and when you should not. Sometimes it's obvious.
- jandrese 5y ago
  The danger is that the policeman in question may not be all that interested in the truth of the situation, only in catching a "bad guy". So even if you are innocent they may assume you are guilty and look for anything at all that would get a conviction. You might think that the courts would sort this out, since the cop obviously won't have any solid evidence, but it turns out that they don't have solid evidence in a great many cases and still manage to get convictions. The truth matters less than the system, and the system is designed to put people in jail.
stackbutterflow 5y ago
This is a very USian take. There are many countries in the world where people aren't scared to death when police come knock on their door. There are many countries where police officers are actually scared of using their weapon. In these countries it helps to know the law and how to deal with these situations.
- foxfluff 5y ago
  Yep. Where I live it's very rare for cops to use their guns, and when it happens, you hear about it in the news. And if it wasn't just a warning shot to the air, you're going to hear about it again when they try to find out whether the gun use was justified.
  - rootusrootus 5y ago
    I'm guessing that where you live, guns have been effectively outlawed. Imagine arming your citizens to the teeth, what affect do you think that would have on your police?
- rootusrootus 5y ago
  I'm not frightened at all when the police come knock on my door. Why do you think that's normal in the US? > There are many countries where police officers are actually scared of using their weapon. I'm curious 1) the countries, and 2) why the officers are afraid.
  - jandrese 5y ago
    If every time you fire your weapon you are brought before a review board that treats firearm discharge as a serious matter and may lose your job if you acted in a panic or without reasonable justification then it's going to make you think twice about blasting that perp that maybe twitched his arm when you told him to hand over his driver's license and registration.
- fencepost 5y ago
  "Impunity" In the US there are almost no significant repercussions for any actions taken by a police officer whether correct or not. See also "qualified immunity," where things can happen like officers literally stealing from a crime scene and the victim having no recourse because there's not a previous decided case with exactly that scenario within the same jurisdiction. https://reason.com/2020/05/19/qualified-immunity-supreme-court-jessop-theft-kelsay-police-brutality/ https://reason.com/2020/05/19/qualified-immunity-supreme-cou...

rootusrootus 5y ago

I agree with you, everyone wants the cops to be be all powerful, because everyone assumes they will never be on the business end of that gun. It's basically the same advice Dr. Phil gave, and just about the only advice of his that ever resonated with me. Some people get it, some people don't, and when the cop is putting his boot on your face you aren't going to back talk. People fantasize online about all the things they will do in such a situation, but only people who have a good bit of experience with cops are going to be comfortable enough to talk smack to them. And frankly, for most of us, "don't ever talk to the police, never, never, never" will actually lead to worse outcomes on average. The trick is to recognize when you should follow that advice, and when you should not. Sometimes it's obvious.

jandrese 5y ago
The danger is that the policeman in question may not be all that interested in the truth of the situation, only in catching a "bad guy". So even if you are innocent they may assume you are guilty and look for anything at all that would get a conviction. You might think that the courts would sort this out, since the cop obviously won't have any solid evidence, but it turns out that they don't have solid evidence in a great many cases and still manage to get convictions. The truth matters less than the system, and the system is designed to put people in jail.

stackbutterflow 5y ago

This is a very USian take. There are many countries in the world where people aren't scared to death when police come knock on their door. There are many countries where police officers are actually scared of using their weapon. In these countries it helps to know the law and how to deal with these situations.

foxfluff 5y ago
Yep. Where I live it's very rare for cops to use their guns, and when it happens, you hear about it in the news. And if it wasn't just a warning shot to the air, you're going to hear about it again when they try to find out whether the gun use was justified.
- rootusrootus 5y ago
  I'm guessing that where you live, guns have been effectively outlawed. Imagine arming your citizens to the teeth, what affect do you think that would have on your police?
rootusrootus 5y ago
I'm not frightened at all when the police come knock on my door. Why do you think that's normal in the US? > There are many countries where police officers are actually scared of using their weapon. I'm curious 1) the countries, and 2) why the officers are afraid.
- jandrese 5y ago
  If every time you fire your weapon you are brought before a review board that treats firearm discharge as a serious matter and may lose your job if you acted in a panic or without reasonable justification then it's going to make you think twice about blasting that perp that maybe twitched his arm when you told him to hand over his driver's license and registration.
fencepost 5y ago
"Impunity" In the US there are almost no significant repercussions for any actions taken by a police officer whether correct or not. See also "qualified immunity," where things can happen like officers literally stealing from a crime scene and the victim having no recourse because there's not a previous decided case with exactly that scenario within the same jurisdiction. https://reason.com/2020/05/19/qualified-immunity-supreme-court-jessop-theft-kelsay-police-brutality/ https://reason.com/2020/05/19/qualified-immunity-supreme-cou...