Hating on the Police...

Originally posted by Andre Neves
I've seen both with my own eyes and in the media WAY too much corruption and abuse of power with police officers.

If it's on the "news", it's probably just that... News.

I.E., it doesn't happen every day. It's rare. I'm sure the nightly news doesn't report on the sun being yellow, and I'm sure they also don't report on oxygen being breathable.



The fact is, out of the million+ police officers in the USA, compared to the amount that are corrupted, law enforcement is one of the most uncorrupted fields to work in.

Originally posted by Stillresearchn911
More and more now you are seeing them wearing these all black military fatigues. This certainly does not help them out with the whole idea of them being there to protect and serve and to be the local peoples police force not the local military.

Garbage.


What do you want them to dress in, hunter's orange? I'm sure that's great, when they are chasing down an armed perp at night, black sure doesn't help does it?

Let's just paint a target on police officers too.

Originally posted by caballero
So many cops each day break the law and no one, NO ONE, does anything about it.

Do you have evidence for that or are you just pulling this out of your sleeve?

Originally posted by caballero
It could be as simple as speeding, the fact is they do it they get away with it and over time they realize that nothing is really holding them back.

As usual, someone who doesn't know what they are talking about.


Police can speed, they are not breaking the law. Police cars are emergency vehicles, and emergency vehicles do not have to obey traffic laws.


Again, please stop making stuff up to justify your unnecessary jaded view of police officers.

Originally posted by thing fish
i have very, and i mean very little respect for police. i think most of them are corrupt and power hungry.. there are real life situations that i have been in with the cops over the years that have led me to feel the way i do feel about them.
again, little to zero respect here

I'm going to guess you are blaming police officers because you broke the law.

Like most people.


I don't know, but when I break the law and get caught I suck it up and just take the fall. I know I did wrong. I always own up to my actions, I'm not like that little kid that blames it on his sister.


People never seem to want to own up to their actions these days. Nation of pussies.


"Hey guys! I broke the law, but I'm just going to go on a cop-hating trip and say they are all corrupt for enforcing the law and busting my law-breaking arse!" - Average ATS Poster





[edit on 7-12-2008 by SuperTruper]

99% of LEOs do their jobs in a professional and dedicated manner. Cops do alot more then just arrest people and write tickets, where I live every officer/deputy/trooper is a certified EMT as well - half of being a cop isent even about police work.

I do agree though on the BDUs mainly because I see them as silly and unprofessional looking. I feel that they should be restricted to specialized units like SWAT, Aviation, Marine, etc.


^ my idea of what every patrol cop should wear - of course different agencies could have different patches, colors, etc and even ditch the jacket in warmer weather for short and long sleeved shirts.

I have always admired the uniforms of the New Jersey State Police ...

[edit on 7-12-2008 by ChrisF231]

reply to post by SuperTruper


( Again, please stop making stuff up to justify your unnecessary jaded view of police officers. )


OK, I will ask my question to you then (from page 3)

Do you think 40,000 freeking military raids a year are needed?
www.cato.org...

Overkill: The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America CATO Institute:
www.cato.org...


What happens if my door gets smashed in at 3 AM? I come out armed... What would happen if cops hit my house by mistake or on a so called "tip"?

Tell me Mr. Cop, I come out armed.... What am I supposed to do now die? I have a pretty good idea that they will gun me down in a heartbeat if I come out with a shotgun... Don't You?

So, what do I do now... die or shoot? Why the hell am I being put in this position of even thinking about it? Because cops are abusing their authority and the peoples constitutional rights by not even knocking or doing a bit of investigation before performing a freeking military raid!!

So, what is the answer... Die by gunfire and not fire back because they have a black/ navy blue uniform on or do I defend my self and family and get charged with murder if I live? At 3 AM, I might not even know they are cops you know... these asses raided that mayors house in street thug cloths.

These increasingly frequent raids, 40,000 per year by one estimate, are needlessly subjecting nonviolent drug offenders, bystanders, and wrongly targeted civilians to the terror of having their homes invaded while they’re sleeping, usually by teams of heavily armed paramilitary units dressed not as police officers but as soldiers. These raids bring unnecessary violence and provocation to nonviolent drug offenders, many of whom were guilty of only misdemeanors. The raids terrorize innocents when police mistakenly target the wrong residence. And they have resulted in dozens of needless deaths and injuries, not only of drug offenders, but also of police officers, children, bystanders, and innocent suspects.

Meantime, a black man named Cory Maye was still sitting on death row in Mississippi, the last I heard, because he heard men trying to break into his Prentiss, Miss. home late at night in December of 2001, where he was alone with his 18-month-old baby daughter.

Mr. Maye, who had no criminal record, got the child down onto the floor and lay down beside her to protect her. When one of the men finally broke into the bedroom, Cory Maye shot and killed him.

The man was hit in the abdomen, just below his bulletproof vest, and died a short time later. It turns out the man who had failed to knock and identify himself before breaking in was a cop, who was really after suspects in the other half of the duplex where Cory Maye lived. Turns out the cop was the white son of the white chief of police. An all-white jury sentenced Cory Maye, who is black, to death for exercising his right to defend his locked home and family against violent invasion by an unknown intruder. The all-white jury took only a few hours to do so, at least one juror explaining he wanted to get home for supper.

The list of such abuses goes on and on – Atlanta police planted marijuana on Fabian Sheats, a "suspected street dealer." They told Sheats they would let him go if he "gave them something." Sheats obligingly lied that he had spotted a kilogram of coc aine nearby, giving them the address of the elderly spinster Miss Kathryn Johnston, who neither used nor dealt drugs, but who did live in fear of break-ins in her crime-infested neighborhood.

Police then lied to a judge, claiming they had actually purchased drugs at the Johnston house, acquired one of those once-rare "no-knock" warrants, and violently battered down the reinforced metal door of a private home where there were no drugs.

Miss Johnston fired a warning shot at the unknown people busting down her door. That bullet lodged in the roof of her porch, injuring no one. Police replied by firing 39 rounds at her, hitting her five times, and wounding each other with another five rounds – though they lied and said they’d been shot by Miss Johnston.

They then handcuffed the old woman as she bled to death on the floor, and searched her house. Finding no drugs, they planted three bags of marijuana.

Next day, the cops picked up one Alex White, an informant, advising him that they needed him to lie, saying that he had purchased coc aine at Johnston’s house. White refused, managed to escape, and went to the media with the story.

Last month, two of those officers pleaded guilty to manslaughter – in deals which helped them escape murder charges – and now face more than 10 years in prison, after authorities demonstrated they lied to get their warrant.

So, what do we do and again why are WE put in this situation?

Originally posted by SeekerOfAUTMN
I've noticed something very disturbing lately.

The police as a whole have been called pigs, compared to Nazis, accused of corruption, and threatened in recent threads. And that doesn't even scratch the surface of the many multi-starred, hate-the-pigs posts I have read since I came to ATS.

I'm disgusted, sickened really. You people are so quick to hate on authority that you fail to recognize the reality; that like EVERY organization known to man, there are bad apples within the police force.

Men and women of the police force join up for many different reasons, some of them good, some bad. Reminds me of the armed forces, except no one hates on soldiers... They live to serve us after all...

But when the police are mentioned, out fly the "pigs!" and "nazis!" and worse. The police take crap from everyone and still manage to keep us relatively safe.

But of course no one thinks of that when they get a speeding ticket...
Bitterness at its finest.

And, by the way, would you rather be tazered or maced? I, for one, would MUCH rather be tazered. I've suffered some pretty nasty electrocutions, and like anyone else who has been shocked knowns, the pain stops as soon as the electricity stops. Mace stings like hell for hours.

And before mace and tazers, it was billy clubs. It's a lot easier to use excessive force with a club than with a tazer.

It seems everyone is so busy hating on authority that they see the book for its cover, which is sad really. I know many awesome cops. In no way am I saying that bad cops don't exist. They certainly do exist, but that does not give anyone a legit excuse to hate the police as a whole. If you do, you're just bitter, quite frankly.

In any case, if you feel the need to post a reply, please keep it civil and reasonable. I don't want a slugfest, I'm simply hoping that there are others on this site that can rise above a childish hatred of authority.

i think the majority of people here have alot of respect for the police and the work they do, and you sound like one of them. having said that, you should know that because police can lawfully used deadly force, a different, and higher set of standards is required for the job, and it is up to the good cops to help rid the force of the very officers that give you a bad rap. i retired from being a computer technician, and i have had my profession cursed at by people that had their computers ruined by un-professional and ill-trained technicians. like you say...there are bad apples in all professions, and i have had to come forward and tell my superiors of a fellow technicians poor performance. i didn't make many friends, but the ones i had, were above board in their jobs.

Originally posted by StevenDye
reply to post by SpacePunk

 

Not true.

I heard an interesting, though fake story on a television drama.

A woman in the army was raped by her sergeant whilst on duty in Iraq. SHe didn't tell anyone until she became pregnant and had no choice...

Why? Because she had to serve still, and she needed to be sure the other men in her unit would cover her just as much as they always had done.


It will be similar for the police, when tackling a suspect they want to be sure their colleagues will protect them fully. I would not want to go out on that job knowing the person I rely on doesn't like me because I( ratted out some police officers who abused thei power sometimes.

and how many times must a fellow officer abuse his power, before you would come forward? and where do you draw the line? and would you want me ratting out my collegue, if my collegue had caused you some type of harm?

simple fact i sthat they are not here for your safety or personal protection. They are code enforcers. They have ticket quotas and are simply designed and trained to bring revenue to the state, city or county they work for.

Even whatthe naive people believe is a "Good Cop" doing his job protecting society is nothing more than them trying to solve a case to put themselves up the ladder. Also if you noticed everytime someone gets arerested. lawyers get paid, judges get paid off, the DA and police have trumped up charges so you plead to a lesser.

Its all a business and nothing more. Many may call me a cop hater but those of you who do, have yet to experience what scum a majority of them really are. Cop hater is an understatment.

short and simple


you wonder why all these sentiments pop up
and people say these things about police and law enforcement
and you wonder why people have those kind of reactions

well its because people are sick of the bull crap


yea there are good cops

doesn't matter
because they are all overshadowed by the corrupt

dont like it? too bad

neither do the people who are the ones on the ends of the police bull crap

thats why they say what they say

thats why the opinion of law enforcement is what it is


come up with all the arguments in the world
come up with all the reasons that cops were in the right in whatever given situation

none of it matters and no one cares, because people are sick and tired of the police bull crap

its not all of them that are "bad" or "corrupt", but its enough of them and people are finally standing up for themselves again at least slightly vocally

right now it is just talk, and instead of talking about how you're sick of the talk, you should be thankful that is all that it is as things could be much worse and i truly dont think it would take much for the situation to quickly become much worse with todays events that are taking place and the state the economy and our country is in

if this was years ago, decades, or centuries ago, these police would have been alot worse off, because citizens would have become mobs, there would be rioting and mob mentalities

the tables would then turn and then the police would be the innocent victims because the mobs would be handing out "justice" for the corruption of a cop/cops to all the cops

and if things continue down the path they are on, thats exactly what will happen, not because its what should, its because that is what history has taught us will happen and trying to argue the case likewise is childish in every sense of the term as only children have no sense of history to which would teach them the way things are

guess its not short and simple, but it is what it is

and what it is is a group of people being seemingly oppressed, and when oppressed, they revolt

reply to post by SuperTruper


This is a typical bS response of people who defend the police on a subject like this.If you had a lot of ecounters with the police you must have been doing something wrong.I got this response myself on a forum when I talked about my experiences with the police.This is not objective at all.hell in one of my encounters with the police I was being evicted from some where I did not even live and even detained as they questioned me.It is a long story but the thing is it was the people I dropped off at that location that lived there.I never lived there and was called a liar for saying so.I have never met a cop that was not a liar.If you want to believe it is just a few bad apples fine,but the rest of us don't need your pro police propaganda.We are just calling it the way we see it.I did not form my opinion based on a couple of encounters nor am I a criminal.I get along with just about everybody and the only time I ever was called a liar was by a policeman that acted like a know it all.The rest of the general population has not been so disrespectful to me.(except on the internet)Not even close.I have a reputation for being honest.

Originally posted by Bringer
There should be no hostility or animosity at all, they're people with the same oppressors. we should try and be there friends to educate them, that the NWO is using them as ponds in there global chess game.

That's not true at all.

Police corruption is bad enough, but a flat-out majority of the police are armpit deep in the drug war mentality. They overwhelmingly think that confiscation of private assets is ok. They believe that black pajamas with absolutely no identifiying individual markings are ok.

Generally, they believe they are above the law. They simply do not care about civil rights. They simply do not care that they serve a criminal government.

This government and their troops declared war on US liberties a long time ago. They are bringing current (and future) problems on themselves.

Let me spell out for you *why* some of us hate the police.

I lived in a place of police corruption for several years. The cops would constantly follow me around, right on my back bumper, so close, I couldn't see headlights, I couldn't see hood- all i could see was windshield. What was my crime? Was I a repeat offender?

HARDLY.

I drove first a beat up old station wagon, and then an equally beat up VW beetle. The cops have been paid off to harass the poor- and send us packing, so the rich may take over completely.

How can you say that?

Easy. I have seen things corruption wise that'd curl your hair, turn it snow white, and THEN make it fall out. Dirty local govt deals, Throwing people out of their homes to throw up condos, Throwing an entire animal shelter off their property for a condo.... Constant harassment of people who make less than $100,000 a year. I have seen and experienced the whole grand spectrum. In fact, I ran someone home once who told me the truck pulling out of a side street belonged to the drug kingpin- and the cops keep him protected at all times. This was easily a $50k truck, BTW.

There are a couple actual good cops on the force- but even they have had a gutful of the nonsense and are giving up.

You wanna know why we hate cops? There you are. It's law abiding citizens who have seen well more than enough of crap like this in their daily lives, making them FEEL like criminals when they arent.

reply to post by SeekerOfAUTMN


You ask "would you rather be tazered or maced?" and referred to billy clubbing as an earlier method of subjugating a target.

I'd rather be treated with respect and have my constitutional rights as a U.S. Citizen and my inherent dignity as a human being respected than as an enemy to be assaulted with electricity, chemicals, or brute force simply because s/he, the police officer, is wearing the uniform and I am not.

Does that answer your question?

I agree that sometimes we sweep with too broad a brush. I dare say that they bring it upon themselves by not being more proactive in educating, disciplining, and culling their own bad apples.

[edit on 12/7/2008 by dubiousone]

I do not hate police or anyone nor anything because it takes away my energy. I dislike their attitude at times. Guess if you go back in time: And remember how a officer came into society; it makes sense. Also even more when one sees that a public servant is actually working against the people and even abusing laws.

reply to post by SuperTruper


Not to hate. Absolutely. I hate hating.

Still, I can only speak about where I live, and most of the cop here ain't worth $#@!. First, it seems to attract the wrong sort of character sometimes, and in any case I'd suspect anyone seeking authority. Yes, where I live they are corrupt, and almost every week at least you get a new story of police corruption or abuse. And I really, really believe that we don't hear most of what happens from the media. I might not be alone in this. Not sure if it was two weeks ago, they killed a kid by beating him to death with their flashlights. I've seen cops stop drug dealers and put a stop to selling in a spot, untill they recieved money, these same drug dealers swear that these cops arrest and confiscate drugs from other spots and then go to these drug dealers so they can sell them. I've seen police interventions, where a handful of police vehicles swarm a corner, where they seize a block with a dozen vans, I've gone into neighborhoods completely occupied by police, where civil rights get trampled by constant searches of every single resident. I've been pulled out of my car by M-4's and shotgun's pointed at my face. I've been arrested, locked inside a car with the windows rolled up in tropical heat. Wearing those stupid hinge cuffs that have little mobility, not read my rights, not fed from a day, then let go. And I am so grateful! I am one of the luckier ones. I got friends with horrible stories about em. But I don't hate them.

They are part of a whole. A problem bigger than their attitudes or ours. Over-equipped and undereducated. I'm not saying they don't get education. I'm saying EVERYONE needs more and better education. It's a hard job too, gotta remember that. Lousy pay and horrible experiences make for nasty people. They need lot's of stuff 'cause the criminals got all sorts of weapons? The solution is not to escalate, because the problem is in the weapons. Too damn unregulated and many. But we pass the buck to cops by giving them some more than usual. Still police abuse of power is a historical constant all around the globe. Both sides can give. We need to be more patient, and cops can try not bashing our heads in, planting evidence, ignoring the law, selling drugs, murdering people and promoting fascism so much.

By the way, I got arrested for possesion of Marijuana (don't even get me started on that b@!#s!$!), which I didn't even have on me. My friend had some and we walked into the end of a mini raid. Bad place to be I guess.

The difference between a corrupt politician and a cop is that the cop is kicking your ass and his partner is booting you in the face.

I think that one important thing is being overlooked here... Location.

Police are different everywhere.

Jacksonille, FL... I was there 2 years, and hardly ever saw the police. The only time I was in the same room with a police officer there was when the nearby gas station was robbed, and they were talking to the clerk.

Las Vegas, NV... The police on The Strip are cool... "Turn down your radio, have a nice day", and "Watch out for the cars if you're drunk in public". If you go to Downtown, or North Las Vegas, they take on an entirely different attitude. If they find out you're a resident, they also treat you completely different than if you were a tourist.

However, to prove my point, it might be best to use my hometown.

Detroit, MI...

Major city, major crime.
8 Mile is the infamous Detroit/"Suburb" border. The police (in general) seem to feel that if you are white, you stay north of 8 Mile, and black stays south of 8 Mile. If you cross 8 Mile to the wrong side, it's usually a red flag to the police. Now when I was young, dumb, and full of (hopes to get rich), I spent a lot of time on the south side, making money however I could. This was a problem for the police, who felt any white kid in Detroit must be there to buy or sell drugs. This kind of stereotyping and profiling was and still is rampant throughout the area. Unfortunately, it was usually true.

Now in "Black" Detroit, there are places where the police fear to tread. There are literally many streets wherethe police do not at any time patrol, for fear of being shot. The people here have such a hatred for the police, a view that they are the enemy, that they will take out the threat without a second thought. A couple years ago, I actually saw a cop get carjacked. Probably not the brightest thing to do, but it definately took a lot of balls and complete lack of respect to steal a police cruiser at gunpoint. These same areas, it's relatively safe to walk around alone, unless you are (or suspected to be) a police officer. The police will usually leave you alone here, unless you commit a major crime. They will NEVER knock on a door without SWAT or another specialized agency.

Now for "White" Detroit, the city of Warren in the 'safe suburbs', apparently resisting the problems of the city with a 10 foot wide grass median in the middle of the street. Here, the police struggle to maintain the virginity of their fair town through the use of racial and socioeconomic profiling, illegal arrest, false imprisonment, and overt physical and mental abuse. We're talking about police who ram suspects with patrol cars in order to "even the playing field". Police who throw you to the ground, hitting you with a baton, and tell you to "Stop Resisting". Police who feel that anyone who is not white is a dope dealer, and anyone who is white and under 30 is a junkie. Police who ask you "What set you roll with?" because you have a blue shirt on. This is not exaggeration; this is personal experience. These police are basically the ones who want to exercise their so-called SWAT skills on the public. A whole army of one-man armies - with cameras on every corner, and choppers in the air. Not a very good place to live; especially when your less likely to be attacked in the ghetto where there is no police presence.

Then you have the "Rural Suburbs"..
This is where all the modern day cowboys live, protecting the land from the savages of the city. You hardly ever see them, and they usually wont do anything to you, but they will occasionally pull you over. And then you will be greeted with mirror shades, spit tobacco, and a healthy dose of being called "boy" and "son", as in "Where y'all goin, boy?". Harmless but always suspicious of those 'city fellers'. [Okay, so they don't have the southern accents; but you get the picture]

So my point is this - It all depends on where you are, but the hype is not hype. The police ARE a-holes, in some places.

Originally posted by dubiousone
reply to post by SeekerOfAUTMN

 

and referred to billy clubbing as an earlier method of subjugating a target.

[edit on 12/7/2008 by dubiousone]

That's a "wood shampoo", cops refer to billy clubs as 'public relations material'

Originally posted by systemic.aberration
I think that one important thing is being overlooked here... Location.

Police are different everywhere.

Jacksonille, FL... I was there 2 years, and hardly ever saw the police. The only time I was in the same room with a police officer there was when the nearby gas station was robbed, and they were talking to the clerk.

Las Vegas, NV... The police on The Strip are cool... "Turn down your radio, have a nice day", and "Watch out for the cars if you're drunk in public". If you go to Downtown, or North Las Vegas, they take on an entirely different attitude. If they find out you're a resident, they also treat you completely different than if you were a tourist.

Absolutely true.

Police departments in the North Eastern states for example tend to be much less corrupt, they do things very professionally.

However, police departments in the southern states tend to be the polar opposite. I'm talking east coast here. They tend to have more corruption problems, mostly because the PD's down in the soutern states are "mom and pop" police departments where everyone in the department is related to each other or are friend with each other. So it's much easier for a bad person to get hired as an officer there, and when they abuse their power, since everyone knows them, it gets covered up. The police departments in the southern states also receive much less funding.


Just look at the Atlanta PD. I think they recently actually started hiring FELONS as police officers. First police department in the nation to do that. Usually anyone with a misdemeanor can't become a police officer, let alone a registered felon!


There are thousands of police departments in America. Just because you've had a bad experience with your local department doesn't mean they are all that way. All departments are not operated under the same people, and they all do things differently. To say the "police are corrupt!" is like saying "restaurants only serve cheeseburgers!" ... well yes, some restaurants do serve cheeseburgers, but many restaurants are different and serve different food items.


And departments aside, it depends even more on the officer himself that you are dealing with. There are bad eggs in any profession. It's like when you go to McDonalds, do you get that worker that says "have a nice day" with a smile, or do you get that worker that spits in your food when you are not looking?





[edit on 8-12-2008 by SuperTruper]