Prior to a bunch of vets coming home from Iraq where they served as local police forces and getting jobs with their hometown police force, 99% of police officers never fired their weapon on duty. Outside of training anyway. Most rarely even drew their weapons. People who’s job it is to intervene when things are dangerous rarely needing a firearm, means almost no one will ever actually be in a situation where having a gun makes things better.
At the time I believed I wanted to be a cop and was a member of a program to guide young people towards policing as a career. Of all of the police I spoke with during that time, one or two knew a guy who’d fired his weapon on duty.
Then, veterans who had been acting as police in a city where they were literally an invading military give, started getting jobs as police officers and the culture dramatically shifted towards violence. Literally it went from “question and negotiate” to “shoot first.”
Corrupt, yes. Violent, absolutely. But shooting Brown people was much less common then just beating them with a club. Police had to, and likely still do, answer for every round they discharge.
And I can say with confidence you never will be.
Prior to a bunch of vets coming home from Iraq where they served as local police forces and getting jobs with their hometown police force, 99% of police officers never fired their weapon on duty. Outside of training anyway. Most rarely even drew their weapons. People who’s job it is to intervene when things are dangerous rarely needing a firearm, means almost no one will ever actually be in a situation where having a gun makes things better.
At the time I believed I wanted to be a cop and was a member of a program to guide young people towards policing as a career. Of all of the police I spoke with during that time, one or two knew a guy who’d fired his weapon on duty.
Then, veterans who had been acting as police in a city where they were literally an invading military give, started getting jobs as police officers and the culture dramatically shifted towards violence. Literally it went from “question and negotiate” to “shoot first.”
Somewhat paraphrased, but still, wut?
US police officers always have been corrupt as shit, and violent. None of that is a new thing
Corrupt, yes. Violent, absolutely. But shooting Brown people was much less common then just beating them with a club. Police had to, and likely still do, answer for every round they discharge.