Quote Originally Posted by Rosuav View Post
But "never short of work" doesn't say anything about the number of good police officers there are. How many cops are there in the US, and how many have come to your attention? Yes, there are criminals in the police force. Do we treat police officers as vermin because of that? What if you found that there were large numbers of petty thieves among supermarket cashiers? Do you treat them every single one of them as guilty until proven innocent? Certainly not. Why should the police be any different?

Now, I do see your argument about *covering for* the bad cops. But just because Fred saw Joe use excessive force doesn't mean that Fred, when he uses force, was going beyond the acceptable limits. Fred's actions should be evaluated separately from everyone else's, and on the usual principles of criminal trials. Is that too much to ask?
When Fred, the police officer, sees Joe use excessive force and does nothing about it then Fred becomes just as much a criminal as Joe. Fred has a legal obligation to prevent such abuses, and because of the power of the police unions this almost never happens.

One thing I remember from doing a ride along with a Vice unit about to do a drug bust was "see those black guys over there? I bet they have drugs." Me: "Why" Cops: "All black guys in this area have drugs. And this is a 'high drug area' so we're covered." The cops went on to approach this group, and when one ran he was promptly dragged to the ground and arrested. All were charged with drug trafficking. One of the guys standing in the group had less than a gram of weed on him. Everyone had their wallets emptied, and their money described as a criminal tool subject to forfieture.

This type of behavior happens ... all ... the ... time. The "good" cops are far and in between, the vast majority of cops are either outright horrible or they just turn the other eye. But since the aftermath of the Vietnam war we've become a society that idolizes and worships military and police as if they are infallible. The real irony is that the police force, in general, in this country has a rich and vast tradition of being outrageously corrupt, violent, and willing to do anything they want at any time... you can go back to Boss Joe, through the gangsters of the prohibition era, through Jim Crow, the Kent State riots, to modern America.

People seem to ignore the obvious truth because they are afraid if they criticize cops that they're going to be labeled a hater or a troll...