Blue Lies Matter

[FIVR]

https://www.buzzfeed.com/albertsamaha/blue-lies-matter?utm_term=.vkMa0eWya#.rrbYlMpGY


Buzzfeed continues to impress, but where are the other news agencies in covering this epidemic of Police misconduct?


The article is excellent. It is both well written and well sourced. I think the point it makes about Police is interesting; According to this article, for the last 10 or so years Police in the US have slowly been eroding the trust of the American people by constantly getting caught committing crimes, lying a about those crimes, and then not being held accountable. It appears people are finally catching on.


The problem with this issue is there has been a movement towards extending "soldier worship", already a deplorable aspect of the American psyche left over from WWII, to police officers... which has resulted in much undue influence and undue clout being given to these highly unqualified state employees... which they use to commit crimes and abuse the citizens. I'm not sure how you solve that, people might just have to learn that Police tend to be criminals. This is common knowledge in third world countries like mexico or Columbia.

 

[Meghan54]

I really think the first thing that has to be done on the road to "fixing" the problem is get rid of every single police union.

 

[skull]

I really think the first thing that has to be done on the road to "fixing" the problem is get rid of every single police union.

No first thing is the war on drugs. Its 75% of police business these days. Its what puts the land of the free into having more prisoners than any other country in the world. The only victims of drugs are the ones created by it being illegal. Which is both the dealer stuck in cycles of violence and jail and the users getting unknown quality drugs and jail.

 

[skull]

Can't forget the innocent people stuck in between gang wars and cops. You know the kind of things that destroys entire neighborhoods. Legalize it, tax it, close down most jails lay off cops and spend the money and resources solving real crime.

 

[FIVR]

I really think the first thing that has to be done on the road to "fixing" the problem is get rid of every single police union.

Maybe, but I doubt it. I think the real issue is a cultural issue. Their hiring practices are terrible and you can see it easily by having a conversation with any given cop. They're idiots. From what I've seen, most American cops are uneducated and angry white men who tend to have been bullied in school and never were given authority. They finally get through their few months at police academy where they make friends with all the other chipped shoulders and now they are legally entitled to respect they never earned.

 

[Commodus]

I wouldn't say all or even most cops are like that, but it's easy to see that many officers treat policing more as a gang operation than a duty: it's about exerting control over your turf and turning a profit (see: dodgy traffic tickets). That also explains why police unions will eagerly try to cover up or excuse abuses of power instead of bringing those involved to justice.

I want to stress that there are likely plenty of officers who signed up because they wanted to make a difference, and are generally good. Until we tackle cultural and systemic flaws that let bad officers run rampant, though, we shouldn't cling to that outdated stereotype of cops as paragons of virtue.

 

[theeedude]

Good thing we have a "law and order" president, amirite?

 

[imported_tajmahal]

I really think the first thing that has to be done on the road to "fixing" the problem is get rid of every single police union.

I agree, all public/government/teachers etc. workers should be banned from belonging to any and all labor unions.