Agree with @Athene on this one

In a world where someone can actually be shot by the police in a simple traffic stop, fear of the police is a pretty reasonable feeling.

Unfortunately, I've had some pretty terrible interactions with the police, as well as one or two good ones. So, sure, good cops are out there, but when the bad cops are literally killing people, it overshadows the good ones a bit, no?

I have friends who fear the police a lot more than I do, and rightfully so. I've had times where I jumped out of my car (was being pursued by police for armed robbery + kidnapping charge), walked toward the cops and told them "Fuck you, you don't have the balls to shoot me" and miraculously survived the encounters.

Would my friends have survived those encounters? Probably not.

And it speaks to how police treat white people versus African-Americans and other people of color. It's not to say that white people don't experience discrimination by the police - they do. I have. But I doubt it's because I'm white. It's more because the police in the area may know who I am and have a beef with me. It's more personal than racial.

Overall, I can't say I have a very high opinion of cops. Yes, good ones are out there. But they're like a gang. They support each other no matter what - right, wrong or left, they make sure to have each other's backs. A cop is a cop is a cop. The thin blue line. If you're not a cop, you're a perp. If you don't have a badge, you're a suspect. And unfortunately, people of color, and particularly black people, have gotten the raw end of the deal as a result of these toxic attitudes, along with a lot of good, old fashioned racism.

So, yes, until the day I die, I will tell police, fuck you, suck my dick. But some people don't have that liberty. Some people mouth off to the police and get the shit beat out of them while the body cameras are coincidentally turned off.

Are there good cops out there? Absolutely. But they're too few and far in between... and when the bad cops are out here literally murdering people, it overshadows the good quite a bit.

edit:

Actually, I should have said, "in a world where you can be shot by the police in a simple traffic stop,OR IN YOUR OWN HOME"

Once again, on average three people are killed in the US every day. For all reasons.

Okay?

(October 15, 2019 at 2:37 pm)EgoDeath Wrote: Okay?

That means you have a 1 in 110,000,000 chance of being killed by a cop on any given day.

(October 15, 2019 at 2:39 pm)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote: That means you have a 1 in 110,000,000 chance of being killed by a cop on any given day.

Yeah, I get it. I've even argued the same point before because personally I don't fear the police. What you're saying is statistically true (though I'm not 100% sure about the one in one hundred and ten million specifically).

But try telling that to the families of Micheal Brown, Dontre Hamilton, Eric Garner... so on and so forth.

I don't really know anyone who fears the police in that way, but it's not necessarily an irrational fear.

(October 15, 2019 at 1:41 pm)Athene Wrote:

(October 15, 2019 at 8:30 am)Brian37 Wrote: This smacks of delusional paranoia. Power will arise in any system. Even closed states like North Korea have police. If you think America's system is fucked up, North Korea doesn't have such a thing as "due process". Over there if the government wants you dead, your dead. At least here the victims of abuse have far more of an opportunity to seek justice, and in this case the officer has been charged with murder.

There certainly are things that can be improved here. We can add more non lethal training. Add more deescalation training. End private prisons. End long prison sentences for non violent crimes. But also pay workers livable wages that meet the cost of living. And provide universal health care. And provide quality education.

Nope, that's not delusional paranoia talking.

I didn't arrived at that conclusion as a result of liberal indoctrination or a few isolated incidents, but from years of personal and professional experience in dealing with police officers/departments. When bad cops lie and demand that you aid and assist or corroborate them in their bullshit, the "good" officers will turn a blind eye. Complaints to the department are routinely dismissed/swept under the rug.

These are far from being "occasional" occurrences.
You don't buy it? That's fine.

I know what I've seen and heard with my own ears and eyes though.

Shit, at least racism there is open wide. Here the racism is more subtle, more devious than that. But then, its the land of the free and the brave so yhey say.

(October 15, 2019 at 2:39 pm)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote:

(October 15, 2019 at 2:37 pm)EgoDeath Wrote: Okay?

That means you have a 1 in 110,000,000 chance of being killed by a cop on any given day.

I don't think the issue is how many people on average are killed by the police; killing people is sometimes necessary for the public good and (if we're honest) some waterheads are just begging to be killed.

This issue is when people are killed by police for no good reason.  Like, playing video games with your nephew, or being black, unarmed and running away.

Boru

(October 15, 2019 at 3:20 pm)EgoDeath Wrote:

(October 15, 2019 at 2:39 pm)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote: That means you have a 1 in 110,000,000 chance of being killed by a cop on any given day.

Yeah, I get it. I've even argued the same point before because personally I don't fear the police. What you're saying is statistically true (though I'm not 100% sure about the one in one hundred and ten million specifically).

But try telling that to the families of Micheal Brown, Dontre Hamilton, Eric Garner... so on and so forth.

I don't really know anyone who fears the police in that way, but it's not necessarily an irrational fear.

It's an internet furor.

---

(October 15, 2019 at 3:40 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(October 15, 2019 at 2:39 pm)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote: That means you have a 1 in 110,000,000 chance of being killed by a cop on any given day.

I don't think the issue is how many people on average are killed by the police; killing people is sometimes necessary for the public good and (if we're honest) some waterheads are just begging to be killed.

This issue is when people are killed by police for no good reason.  Like, playing video games with your nephew, or being black, unarmed and running away.

Boru

Give us the number of people who are killed by the police for no good reason, please. Number per year. Remember that my number was "for all reasons", meaning your number will be a subset of mine. Minimalist can't post one such item per days as dearly as he would like to.

(October 15, 2019 at 2:39 pm)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote:

(October 15, 2019 at 2:37 pm)EgoDeath Wrote: Okay?

That means you have a 1 in 110,000,000 chance of being killed by a cop on any given day.

You are far more likely to die in a traffic accident than be shot by a cop.....

Oddly - you don't hear much about people fearing cars....


Go figure.