What do you think about the police?

[FlatAssembler]

I think so. Either that or killing them outright. Temporarily putting them in prisons, places from which they will return with even more psychological problems, makes no sense.

Mass executions? Since the first execution at Jamestown over 4 centuries ago, less than 20K people have been put to death in the continental United States. What you are proposing is an apocalyptic nightmare.

Then let's just do nothing. When trying to address the problem of crime, we are in the position of medieval physicians. And, as disappointing as it may seem, it's better for us to stop trying to solve the societal problems.

[The Architect Of Fate]

Then let's just do nothing. When trying to address the problem of crime, we are in the position of medieval physicians. And, as disappointing as it may seem, it's better for us to stop trying to solve the societal problems.

This makes the ridiculous assumption no one comes out of prison better. We can't not stop trying to solve the societal problems 

[FlatAssembler]

Then let's just do nothing. When trying to address the problem of crime, we are in the position of medieval physicians. And, as disappointing as it may seem, it's better for us to stop trying to solve the societal problems.

This makes the ridiculous assumption no one comes out of prison better. We can't not stop trying to solve the societal problems 

Why is that a ridiculous assumption?

[The Architect Of Fate]

Why is that a ridiculous assumption?

Because it's inaccurate 

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

I disagree.  Had a cop found out about Tim McVeigh's truck and bomb before he blew up a building a lot of lives would have been saved.  Had law enforcement known about September 11 before it happened and arrested the terrorists, a lot more lives would have been saved.  Stopping crimes before they happen should be a goal of law enforcement if you ask me.

Unfortunately, any real-world attempt at predictive policing will end up being a disaster. Red-flag laws are ineffective at preventing terrorism, but are perfectly capable of destroying peoples' lives.

I'm confused. You criticized cops for only showing up after the fact, but now you're saying that showing up before a crime is committed would be disastrous. You can't have it both ways.

Boru

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

But your complaint about cops only getting there after the fact is just plain dumb and stupid - that what cops are there for. I wouldn’t care to live in a society where the police arrested people before crimes were committed. And the police aren’t the ones putting psychopaths into prisons instead of hospitals, that’s done by judges and juries.

I disagree.  Had a cop found out about Tim McVeigh's truck and bomb before he blew up a building a lot of lives would have been saved.  Had law enforcement known about September 11 before it happened and arrested the terrorists, a lot more lives would have been saved.  Stopping crimes before they happen should be a goal of law enforcement if you ask me.

In both of those cases, crimes had already been committed: building a truck bomb is a crime whether or not the bomb is detonated; engaging in a conspiracy to commit terrorist acts in a crime in and of itself even if the act is never carried out.

Boru

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Cops don’t actually make citizens less safe or more safe (study after study show that putting more cops on the street has no effect on crime rates). 

But your complaint about cops only getting there after the fact is just plain dumb and stupid - that what cops are there for. I wouldn’t care to live in a society where the police arrested people before crimes were committed. And the police aren’t the ones putting psychopaths into prisons instead of hospitals, that’s done by judges and juries.

Boru

Then what's the point of the police? What are cops there for?

To investigate crimes and catch criminals.

Boru

[Jehanne]

I don't think police are inherently bad, but I can see why people don't like them.

Yeah, a lot of laws that they enforce aren't just. I can get past that, somewhat, by chalking it up to the price to live in a society with other people whose values aren't always the same as mine.

But I do think they get away with WAY too much. If I'm walking down the street, minding my own business, a cop could probably just walk up on me, shoot me dead for no reason and get away with it. A random stranger couldn't get away with that, but cops will.

Personally, I think, with all the training and equipment and backup cops get, they should be held to a higher standard than the general public, not a lesser standard. If we're going to accept as justification for killing someone that a cop feared for their life or they panicked, why can't we accept that justification from the general public? Better question is this: if fearing for your life is justification to kill someone and we've all see cops kill people under questionable circumstances, couldn't you justify killing a cop because you're afraid for your life?

And that's not even going into the racial differences in how cops treat black people vs white people or the reaction cops have towards violent right wing protests vs peaceful left wing protests.

Yeah, police are a necessity but they need major reform.

You get what you pay for. To be a cop, one only needs a high school diploma. In Iowa, you could get hired immediately without even having to go to the Iowa police academy right away. One reform that could take place is to do what sheriff departments do and that is to make all police officers deputies; if a sheriff wants to get rid of an officer, all he/she has to do is to not redeputize that person. Make police chiefs elected officials as local city sheriffs and see what that does.

[FlatAssembler]

Why is that a ridiculous assumption?

Because it's inaccurate 

Why do you think it is inaccurate? Tuum id dicere id non facit.

[FlatAssembler]

Then what's the point of the police? What are cops there for?

To investigate crimes and catch criminals.

Boru

Why investigate crimes and catch criminals? Is there any reason to think it will lead to less crime?