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There's a whole mythology around policing. Myths about cops, myths about the work of policing, myths about the public, and like 95% of it is harmful garbage. https://twitter.com/radleybalko/status/1381694802224422918
First of all, it's not remotely the most dangerous job. You probably knew it was more dangerous to be a logger or a roofer than a cop.
It's also more dangerous to be a crossing guard. https://www.ishn.com/articles/112748-top-25-most-dangerous-jobs-in-the-united-states
It's also more dangerous to be a crossing guard. https://www.ishn.com/articles/112748-top-25-most-dangerous-jobs-in-the-united-states
You're significantly more likely to get murdered as a taxi driver (or rideshare driver) than as a police officer.
But there's also this whole mythology about police SOLVING CRIMES, which mostly they do not. I have friends who've offered up literal photos, video, matched paint chips, and more, as evidence that THEY solved the crime, and the police have consistently blown them off.
Like, the police take police reports, which you need in order to make an insurance claim, so there's that.
Years ago, I had a friend whose car was broken into, and the car radio stolen, one night. This was in a small town, so the police caught the perpetrator. My friend had bought a new radio, but returned it when he found the answering machine message from the police.
Returning the radio turned out to be a tactical error as IIRC he did not get the recovered radio back for TWO YEARS. It was evidence!
Inasmuch as police work is dangerous, it's mostly because you spend a lot of time driving, or around other people's cars. https://twitter.com/CZEdwards/status/1381713868070785028
Given this you'd think that "drive an extra quarter mile and pull in to a well-lit parking lot when the police are pulling me over" would be something the cops appreciate, but not so much. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/12/caron-nazario-windsor-police-officer-fired-pepper-spray-traffic-stop
There's a whole mythology around police officers' willingness to put themselves between danger and civilians when in fact they are explicitly trained to treat themselves as the most important person on the scene.
And there are ways in which this is fair! I remember being taught in CPR class that as a person responding to an emergency, we needed to check the scene for safety and not ADD to the casualty list.
But the police are not being told "don't make the situation worse," they're being told, "you, and your fellow officers, have an absolute right to go home alive at the end of the day, and to take ANY steps you deem necessary to make that happen."
All of us, not just cops, should have an equal right to go home alive at the end of the day.
And none of us, including cops, should have absolute carte blanche to defend ourselves against perceived threats with deadly force.
And none of us, including cops, should have absolute carte blanche to defend ourselves against perceived threats with deadly force.
The mythology says that because the police put their lives on the line every day to protect us, they have the right to use deadly force to respond to perceived threats.
In fact, the Supreme Court literally ruled in 1981 that the police have no obligation to protect citizens.
They're trained, instead, to protect themselves first.
And yet they STILL get to use "I perceived a threat" as a defense when they murder unarmed Black men.
They're trained, instead, to protect themselves first.
And yet they STILL get to use "I perceived a threat" as a defense when they murder unarmed Black men.
And yeah, this is the thing.
Cops want it both ways. They want us to accept that their top responsibility is to themselves, but they also want unlimited leeway for being the protectors who run into danger. https://twitter.com/laffertylib/status/1381717220515053569
Cops want it both ways. They want us to accept that their top responsibility is to themselves, but they also want unlimited leeway for being the protectors who run into danger. https://twitter.com/laffertylib/status/1381717220515053569
This is kind of what it comes down to, for me, right here. https://twitter.com/gonnabechef/status/1381720858729664513
