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I generally agree with the sentiment that police are overbuying toys, but if there is any city where the police are justified in having that kind of stuff, it's

I generally agree with the sentiment that police are overbuying toys, but if there is any city where the police are justified in having that kind of stuff, it's New York. The terrorists are not going to attack St Louis Missouri, but they have attacked New York multiple times. I say this having just seen the NYPD bomb squad show up to investigate a bag outside my apartment this morning.

ceejayoz 12y ago
> The terrorists are not going to attack St Louis Missouri, but they have attacked New York multiple times. Which of these attacks required armored cars to fend off?
- krschultz 12y ago
  Imagine for a second an attack in which a group of people with guns attack a news room and kill a bunch of people. I know that would be hard to believe, but something like that happened literally 12 hours ago in a city on the same level as NYC. In that case, I'd like the police to have armored cars, bullet proof vests, and assault rifles. Or maybe you want to look at the Boston Marathon bombing that ended in a shoot out with a SWAT team. Yes, terrorism is statistically insignificant compared to car crashes or heart disease in terms of deaths. Yes, police over use their equipment. To say that NYC or other cities like it don't have an actual need for this kind of equipment sometimes is just silly.
  - ceejayoz 12y ago
    My point is not "NYC doesn't need them". It's "terrorism isn't much of an argument for them". Bank robberies and hostage situations are far more likely situations to need such a thing.
  - Zigurd 12y ago
    > Or maybe you want to look at the Boston Marathon bombing that ended in a shoot out with a SWAT team In that case, poorly coordinated, heavily-armed police fired hundreds of rounds into a neighborhood of primarily wood-frame houses in Watertown, Massachusetts. That's a good case for disarming all the cops involved in that incident.
- rhino369 12y ago
  Stuff like Mumbai attacks or the North Hollywood Shootout.

ceejayoz 12y ago

> The terrorists are not going to attack St Louis Missouri, but they have attacked New York multiple times. Which of these attacks required armored cars to fend off?

krschultz 12y ago
Imagine for a second an attack in which a group of people with guns attack a news room and kill a bunch of people. I know that would be hard to believe, but something like that happened literally 12 hours ago in a city on the same level as NYC. In that case, I'd like the police to have armored cars, bullet proof vests, and assault rifles. Or maybe you want to look at the Boston Marathon bombing that ended in a shoot out with a SWAT team. Yes, terrorism is statistically insignificant compared to car crashes or heart disease in terms of deaths. Yes, police over use their equipment. To say that NYC or other cities like it don't have an actual need for this kind of equipment sometimes is just silly.
- ceejayoz 12y ago
  My point is not "NYC doesn't need them". It's "terrorism isn't much of an argument for them". Bank robberies and hostage situations are far more likely situations to need such a thing.
- Zigurd 12y ago
  > Or maybe you want to look at the Boston Marathon bombing that ended in a shoot out with a SWAT team In that case, poorly coordinated, heavily-armed police fired hundreds of rounds into a neighborhood of primarily wood-frame houses in Watertown, Massachusetts. That's a good case for disarming all the cops involved in that incident.
rhino369 12y ago
Stuff like Mumbai attacks or the North Hollywood Shootout.