Source: https://goldismoney2.com/threads/police-issues-news-views.60770/page-65
Timestamp: 2019-04-26 00:49:04+00:00

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One of the most surprising developments in the wake of February's Florida school shooting is the willingness by many generally police-friendly commentators to denounce the lack of action by local police against the shooter.
From National Review, to The Federalist, to Donald Trump, many of the law enforcement officers involved in the shooting are being accused of outright "cowardice."
Part of this is agenda-driven. The inaction on the part of law-enforcement organizations demonstrates that it is not enough to "call 911" and hope the police show up to protect the victims. As Michael Graham notes, the Florida situation is part of a "pattern of police cowardice" which was also apparent at the 2016 Orlando shooting and at the Newtown, Connecticut shooting. In both cases, police stood outside while gunmen worked freely inside the building in question.
In the past, however, the right-wing's knee-jerk tendency to always defend the police would likely have prevented much direct criticism of police agencies themselves. That reticence, however, appears to be falling away, and the cowardice of government law enforcement officials has now become become an open question.
Naturally, this does not bode well for the position of police agencies in the political hierarchy. Law enforcement agencies have long depended on their "hero" status as an important factor in ensuring that police organizations get whatever they want from local governments and state legislatures.
"We're Experts, Do What We Say"
In response, many defenders of police have become testy and defensive, resorting to slipshod arguments that amount to little more than "you people who aren't police should just shut up."
A typical example of this can be found in USA Today where Tim Vogt, a former border patrol officer and current instructor at a "law enforcement academy," denounces any criticism of the sheriff's deputies involved.
Vogt's argument? Police should not be subject to criticism "from the unqualified and spineless peanut gallery."
In other words, Vogt holds that government agents are unassailable experts who ought not be forced to suffer commentary from the ignorant taxpayers who, it seems, aren't good for much other than paying the bills for law-enforcement agencies.
Vogt's article resorts to perpetuating myths about police agencies, as well. He claims that "we also take more risks than most of you choose to on a daily basis," implying that most Americans can't fathom the risks that police officers take. In reality, millions of Americans are employed daily in lines of work that are more dangerous than being a police officer — including truck drivers, landscape maintenance workers, farmers, roofers, and construction workers.
Vogt resorts to outright deception when he claims that police "risk their lives on behalf of others each day, all for a lower middle-class wage." This is not true outside the tiniest, most rural police forces. A typical police organization pays police well above median wages, and benefits are even greater when the extremely generous police pensions are included in the calculation. Scot Peterson, the police officer that Vogt is specifically defending, was being paid double the local median income.
This sort of lashing out, however, is nothing new for defenders of law enforcement after rank police incompetence becomes apparent.
In his book defending the police response to the Columbine Massacre, former SWAT officer Grant Whitus declared: "I want to say to the critics: Okay, if you think it's so damn easy, then you go patrol a beat...I bet you wouldn't make one day with me before you pissed yourself."
It's a standard cop refrain: You haven't been where I've been, so shut your piehole.
Significantly, Whitus invokes the movie A Few Good Men as an illustration of how police actions should be immune to criticism.
In the film, when questioned about his abuse of military power, the Jack Nicholson characters screams "You can't handle the truth!" and goes on to explain how the general public is too yellow-bellied and ignorant to understand the real threats that are out there in the world. Thus, the military, his reasoning goes, should be left unquestioned in regards to how it goes about doing its business.
It is not surprising that Whitus wants this same rationale to apply to police work as well. The pain-in-the-neck general public doesn't possess the secret wisdom government agents have, so the public's opinions are all just the idle speculations of a "worthless peanut gallery."
Should Police Be Immune from Political Opposition?
In foreign and military affairs, those who want citizens and taxpayers to keep quiet and do as their told invoke the phrase "politics stop at the water's edge."
The self-sufficiency, the civic independence, of the citizens of a republic, the idea that the citizens should support themselves economically, should be able to defend themselves,educate themselves, and discipline themselves, is closely connected to the idea of public virtue…A self governing people is simply too busy, as a rule, with the concerns of self-government to take much interest in other peoples’ business…A self-governing people generally abhors secrecy in government and rightly distrusts it. The only way, then, in which those intent upon…the expansion of their power over other peoples, can succeed is by diminishing the degree of self-government in their own society. They must persuade the self-governing people that there is too much self-government going around, that the people themselves simply are not smart enough or well-informed enough to deserve much say in such complicated matters as foreign policy…We hear it…every time an American President intones that “politics stop at the water’s edge.” Of course, politics do not stop at the water’s edge unless we as a people are willing to surrender a vast amount of control over what the government does in military, foreign, economic, and intelligence affairs.
Francis's critique applies to police matters as well, of course. Politics do not stop at the front door of the police station or sheriff's office unless we are "willing to surrender a vast amount" of citizen control over what the government does to us.
Many Americans are willing to surrender their civic responsibility to others, though. Francis contends that the modern American government relies heavily on citizen deference to the state's "incumbent managerial elite." This elite asserts it deserves a special exalted status above the taxpayers because the elites are, well, elites. And they know best.
This is the same claim now being made by current defenders of the police.
Deference to the "experts" in police and military organizations, however, has not always been a given in America.
Indeed, among citizens in the nineteenth century, it was considered unbecoming to step aside and allow government agents to set the terms of national defense and public safety.
In the nineteenth century, critics of excessive deference to state "expertise" on matters of keeping the peace spoke in terms of "manliness" in resisting usurpation of privately-supplied community order. This measure of things never quite went away, although now the bravado comes largely from defenders of government agents. Thus, we see that critics of police are denounced as "spineless" nobodies who will "piss themselves" if faced with the dangers police face. On the surface, the debate is about courage, but the subtext behind apologists like Whitus and Vogt is one of "we're real men, and the rest of you aren't."
Standing armies were viewed with "suspicion," and much of this grew out of ideas passed down from Revolution-era opposition to occupying British soldiers who were seen as being of "low moral character."
It was only after the Civil War, Carroll notes, that the very large numbers of veterans in the general population began to create a "mystique" around military service, and to encourage a culture that "glorified military service" above activities in the private sector.
Because law enforcement agencies in their modern form were extremely rare in the US before the late nineteenth century, the functions of police were also largely viewed as a matter of private self-defense, and not a matter for "experts" who were to be unquestioned by the general public.
Today, the language of "manliness" or "virtue" has been replaced by the language of "expertise." And, from the government's point of view, expertise is even better as a standard of police and military power because it can be readily used to exclude all outsiders from exercising influence over internal government matters.
The attempt at having the experts take over, of course, has not been totally successful. There is still a well-established tradition in the United States of civilian oversight for military affairs, and non-police oversight for law-enforcement. County sheriffs are subject to voters and police forces are subject to civilian mayors and city councils.
Nevertheless, the claim that critics of police inaction are part of a unqualified "peanut gallery" has been successful for decades. It is an indication of a cowed and passive citizenry, but we may be finally witnessing some pushback from the non-experts who aren't buying the pro-government myths any longer.
Dear overweight and out of shape cop isn’t just about cops. It’s about those interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement and really for anyone who wants to be better prepared in their own lives, no matter their career path, to be the best version of themselves they can be and ready to take care of others if and when the unexpected time comes.
Being physically and mentally fit is a benefit for all of us, especially those in a position where they are regularly called upon to use those skills.
Allegations are surfacing against hundreds of NYPD officers who committed fireable offenses but were allowed to keep working. RT America’s Trinity Chavez reports.
Topic 1 concerns a video of an unnamed female Myrtle Beach (South Carolina) Police Officer ejecting a homeless man and Yossi Gallo who bought him food from a McDonald's restaurant. Mayor Brenda Berthune and McDonald's restaurant owner Joe Pellicci were referenced in the story.
Topic 2 concerns a video on FACEBOOK.COM showing Italian police in riot gear battling Antifa in Pisa. A rare Antifa rant is presented by panelist and attorney Ward Meythaler in gest.
Topic 1 concerns a video of Fulton (Kentucky) Police Officer James Buckingham fatally shooting Chris McClure after he attacked him with a pole and a knife. Attorney Larry Forman is referenced in the story.
Topic 2 concerns a video of San Francisco (California) Police firing approximately 65 shots at armed murder suspect Joel Armstrong who was inside an RV. Police Commander Greg McEachern was quoted in the story. Reference was made to SWAT, TAC and SPEC guys.
Topic 1 concerns courts across the country determining that law enforcement show of force can be considered excessive. Reference is made to the U.S. Supreme Court, Graham v. Connor, objective reasonableness, Baird v. Renbarger (7th Circuit), Jacobs v. City of Chicago (7th Circuit), Robinson v. Solano County (9th Circuit), Holland v. Harrington (10th Circuit), Baker v. Monroe Township (3rd Circuit), Binay v. Bettendorf (6th Circuit), Mlodzinski v. Lewis (1st Circuit), L.A. County v. Rettele, Aponte Matos v. Toledo Davila (1st Circuit), Sharrar v. Felsing (3rd Circuit), Edwards v. Giles (8th Circuit), Collins v. Nagle (6th Circuit), Stiegel v. Collins (3rd Circuit), Estate of Bennett v. Wainwright, Estate of Redd v. Love 10th Circuit), search warrants and the Graham Factor.
Topic 1 concerns Lone Tree (Colorado) Police Officer Robert Chamberlain who was fired after coming back to work from an accident that could have been caused by a work related seizure. Chief Kirk Wilson is quoted in the story.
Topic 2 concerns a video of an unnamed Sacramento (California) Police officer confronting suspect Juan Carlos Heras-Castro at Mercy General Hospital who was there for a mental health evaluation. Heras-Castro fled on foot and, when caught by the officer, wrestled his gun from him and fired three (3) shots in an attempt to kill him. Police Chief Daniel Hahn is referenced in the story.
Topic 1 concerns the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) beginning to record height, weight and waist measurements of it's 4,297 sworn officers in an effort to identify and address obesity issues. Deputy Director of Administration and Services Skylor Hearn is quoted and DPS Director Steve McCraw is referenced in the story.
When to use force & how much force to use.
Topic 1 concerns U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions firing former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe two (2) days before his eligibility for a planned full retirement. Reference is made to President Donald Trump, the Hillary Clinton email investigation, the Inspector General's report, Robert Mueller's probe and former FBI Director James Comey in the story.
Topic 2 concerns a new study by the Force Science Institute that examines the speed with which a suspect can convert from a proned-out position to a flight-or-fight stance. Reference is made to Dr. John O'Neill and Dr. Anthony Pinizzotto in the story.
Stephon Clark Shot By Police In South Sacramento ... Was It Racial Discrimination?
A black man fatally shot by officers in his own backyard was carrying a cell phone, and not a “tool bar," Sacramento police said this week.
Stephon Clark, 22, was shot and killed Sunday night in the backyard of his family’s home after police responded to a call of someone breaking car windows, the Sacramento Bee reported.
Austin bomber: ‘Challenged young man’ or ‘terrorist’?
Topic 1 concerns a video of suicidal and armed driver Jihad Mustafa Merrick fighting with Iowa law enforcement officers and running over Bremer County Sheriff's Deputy Glenn Beenblossom's foot before being fatally shot by Deputy Beenblossom and Chickasaw County Sheriff's Deputy Adam Hanson. Nashua Police Chief Travis Marvin, Officer Ben Scholl and Iowa troopers Ken Haut, Nathaniel Miller and Chris Forsyth were also referenced in the story.
Topic 2 concerns California teacher Dennis Alexander accidentally firing a gun inside a Seaside High School classroom while teaching a gun safety class. Alexander is also a reserve officer with the Sand City Police Department, a Seaside city councilman and mayor pro tem of Seaside. Seaside Police Chief Abdul D. Pridgen is quoted in the story.
Violence has become our government’s calling card, from the more than 80,000 SWAT team raids carried out every year on unsuspecting Americans to the military’s endless wars abroad.
With more than $700 billion earmarked for the military, including $144.3 billion for new military equipment, you can be sure this financial windfall for America’s military empire will be used to expand the police state here at home.
This will put more militarized guns and weapons in the hands of local police and government bureaucrats who have been trained to shoot first and ask questions later.
Under the auspices of this military “recycling” program, which was instituted decades ago, more than $4.2 billion worth of equipment has been transferred from the Defense Department to domestic police agencies.
More police shootings. More SWAT team raids.
Growing numbers of unarmed people are being shot and killed by police for just standing a certain way, or moving a certain way, or holding something—anything—that police could misinterpret to be a gun, or igniting some trigger-centric fear in a police officer’s mind that has nothing to do with an actual threat to their safety.
With alarming regularity, unarmed men, women, children and even pets are being gunned down by twitchy, hyper-sensitive, easily-spooked police officers who shoot first and ask questions later.
For holding a cell phone.
For carrying a baseball bat.
For opening the front door.
For running towards police with a metal spoon.
For running while holding a tree branch.
For wearing dark pants and a basketball jersey.
For having your car break down on the road.
For holding a garden hose.
For looking for a parking spot.
Topic 1 concerns Austin (Texas) bombing suspect Mark Anthony Conditt being tracked down and fatally blowing himself up when SWAT was moving in to apprehend him. Austin Police Chief Brian Manley, Representative Michael McCaul and Fred Milanowski from ATF were referenced and/or quoted in the story.
Topic 2 concerns a new study by Dr. Lois James at Washington State University's Sleep and Performance Research Center. It determined that encounters with police escalate to violence due to a subject's demeanor and not because of race, ethnicity or attire. This article was reprinted from Force Science News 320 and reference was made to the Force Science Institute.
Topic 1 concerns a recent study by Associate Professor George Mohler of the Indiana University - Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) School of Science's Computer and Information Science. In it he determines that there is no evidence of racial bias in predictive policing. Reference is made to UCLA and the LAPD in the article.
Topic 2 concerns Minneapolis (Minnesota) Police Officer Mohamed Noor being charged with murder and manslaughter in the 07/15/2017 shooting death of Australian complainant Justine Ruszczyk Damond. Former Police Chief Janee Harteau, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and partner Officer Matthew Harrity were referenced in the story.

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