I had a conversation with an experienced and seasoned investigator for the public defenders office in a major city. He said to beware of this younger generation of police that were former military. All volunteer military, no draft. According to him, these guys grew up playing Call of Duty, they joined up to make the video fantasy of killing real. Heads up.
I've read about this before. Indeed -- a problem. Too many ex-soldiers who are recruited into police forces and bring a "warrior mentality" to their police work. They see civilians as the "enemy." We're all seen as potential insurgents. Thank you, Army and Marines!
Not totally but partially related-the absolute refusal of the Pentagon to stop giving the cops military grade weapons and other items to further militarize the police-they think they are in the military, or the majority have been in the military, thus the authoritarian ideals are maintained. Now we know why 'Defund the Police" is so scary to the cops-it takes their toys and their power away from them, and it's about time we did so.
By the way, those cops who quit because they don't want to get vaccinated? Go for it, and quit-anyone who doesn't believe in protecting the public they serve by keeping the public safe from a virus doesn't deserve to be a cop or in public safety.
And "driving while black ' is a way of life many black people have to endure-and it's the strangest thing-some black cops start acting like their white counterparts in terrorizing drivers-I guess the white authoritarian mindset is just so attractive.
Sorry for going off on tangents, and I've only been stopped for minor things like inspection stickers or registration-but never have I been ever pulled out of my car and arrested for being mouthy or non-compliant. I think it has to do with my being a white female. Cops don't usually do that. Or if they do, I've not heard of it.
In September of 1969 I shared a ride from Florida, where we both lived, to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where we were both in law school, with a guy named Phil. After we crossed the border from Connecticut to Massachusetts on I-91 we were on a long downhill stretch. Phil was driving, and we got pulled over. After telling Phil he was going over the speed limit, he asked where we were going, and why. Phil told him, and the trooper, in a terrific "Southie" Boston accent, said, "Y'know, Phillip, it's a good thing you're going to Hah-vahd. Otherwise, I'd have to put you in jail."
I worked as a 9-1-1 dispatcher for 23 years in a suburb of Detroit. It was an all white community. I would get calls about a black man , walking down the street, and he looked “suspicious” according to the caller. I can’t tell you how many times I tried to explain that walking down the block and being black was not suspicious. I would have to send a car to investigate because “I pay your salary”. There was another time an officer had me run a plate because he was following a black male driving a Ferrari. It turned out to be a famous jazz musician who lived in an even whiter suburb north. As I look back, there were so many instances like this. I left that career and began a second career as a teacher.
Good piece. As a retired officer I hate, and regret, how our us-versus-them culture of fear and aggression makes cops dangerous to our public. Reform and change are coming. Philadelphia just suspended traffic stops for a number of minor moving violations, and there is of course a downside to that. But it may save lives, which is our goal. Or should be.
Great dovetail with the shocking but not surprising article in the NYT, which you reference. We’ve all heard rumors about quotas, but the article shows that many police departments are almost fully funded by “traffic violations” of one ilk or another. Telling also is that many DWIs are downgraded so as to hoard the penalty locally. So, in brief summation, a lot of black drivers are being pulled over and fined, and sometimes killed, for insignificant stuff, and a bunch of drunk drivers are given a near pass in order to fund the local police station. I hope, but am not hopeful, for a proper investigation into Sandra Bland’s “suicide.”
In addition to training, hiring individuals not prone to authoritarian behavior (it can be done) and proper supervision can go a long way to improving police contacts with citizens.
Not very many years ago, we would visit friends who lived in So. Mississippi and when we'd be out driving at night, coming back from a day trip to see some sights out of town, our hosts would tell us to be careful when we came across the inevitable police checkpoints. (Ostensibly they are looking for drunk drivers, but Miss, is one of those states that allows for police roadblocks at whim, evidently, and you're guilty until proven innocent.) Mainly, they said, "These are an excuse to harass black people." They didn't like it -- yes, Mississippi has liberals and Democratic voters, esp, in the college towns -- but since we are all white, and older, and two couples, they told us we didn't have to worry about this much. We weren't in the target categories. Sure enough a couple of times, driving back to their Hattiesburg home, we got stopped by random police checkpoints on the major roadways. They'd shine their flashlights in the vehicle, ask a few questions, we'd be polite, we weren't drunk or smelled TOO much like pot, so they'd let us go on our way. But wow. This is a thing. Especially in some places more than others. In Texas, these things are used to check for brown people. You'd think these arbitrary, "no refusal" police stops and questionings would be unconstitutional, but no.
Just proves the racial profiling that the African American community has been shouting about for years. Let’s face the facts: White people didn’t believe anything until the murder video of George Floyd. None of us really thought things were as bad as it was, am I right?? The most important thing that that video did is show how white police culture reacts to people of another race. It was appalling, obnoxious, uncaring behavior. Our eyes are wide-opened. We are fully aware that these police clubs have just a flavor of Nazism and the KKK in them.
This is both incredible and not at all surprising. I wonder about all those unvaccinated cops who die of COVID. Do they get death in the line of duty benefits? Is any cop who dies of COVID considered to have died in the line of duty? Does vaccination status make a difference?
A good and valuable article (again). I have noted from our old HOA newsletter that the Constable's Report section frequently had notice about a "complaint" being made by a homeowner that required a constable to go investigate. Usually anyone of the wrong color in the neighborhood, walking or parked or going door to door.
I don't have it handy on this laptop but if you search the web, there is a guide I've seen posted before that lists the essential things to do or say when/if you're ever stopped by police. It's a handy primer to your real civil rights (and how not to say or do anything that might jeopardize them in court. I'll look tomorrow and post it here if I can find it salted away.
This same guy said most people in trouble with the law made some poor choices, mental health issues, etc. In all his almost 35 years he only ran into evil twice.
Meanwhile… Congress has undermined mandatory sentencing for drug dealing, repeat felons carrying guns. The white ones, anyway. The privatization of probation facilities and “programs” has been an investment windfall for “law makers.” Tax payers get screwed twice-fold: not only is there no justice, but we keep paying enormous amounts of money to let these sociopaths loose AND they use the 1099 IRS tax form to claim they are employed. It’s quite a scam… Let’s face it: there is no justice in this country. None. If you were a cop under these circumstances, you’d be burned out, too.
I had a conversation with an experienced and seasoned investigator for the public defenders office in a major city. He said to beware of this younger generation of police that were former military. All volunteer military, no draft. According to him, these guys grew up playing Call of Duty, they joined up to make the video fantasy of killing real. Heads up.
I've read about this before. Indeed -- a problem. Too many ex-soldiers who are recruited into police forces and bring a "warrior mentality" to their police work. They see civilians as the "enemy." We're all seen as potential insurgents. Thank you, Army and Marines!
Not totally but partially related-the absolute refusal of the Pentagon to stop giving the cops military grade weapons and other items to further militarize the police-they think they are in the military, or the majority have been in the military, thus the authoritarian ideals are maintained. Now we know why 'Defund the Police" is so scary to the cops-it takes their toys and their power away from them, and it's about time we did so.
By the way, those cops who quit because they don't want to get vaccinated? Go for it, and quit-anyone who doesn't believe in protecting the public they serve by keeping the public safe from a virus doesn't deserve to be a cop or in public safety.
And "driving while black ' is a way of life many black people have to endure-and it's the strangest thing-some black cops start acting like their white counterparts in terrorizing drivers-I guess the white authoritarian mindset is just so attractive.
Sorry for going off on tangents, and I've only been stopped for minor things like inspection stickers or registration-but never have I been ever pulled out of my car and arrested for being mouthy or non-compliant. I think it has to do with my being a white female. Cops don't usually do that. Or if they do, I've not heard of it.
Good reportage, Lucian!
Dual storylines with a common theme. We need Congressional intervention, as no amount of lawsuits or citizens' oversight seems to work.
In September of 1969 I shared a ride from Florida, where we both lived, to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where we were both in law school, with a guy named Phil. After we crossed the border from Connecticut to Massachusetts on I-91 we were on a long downhill stretch. Phil was driving, and we got pulled over. After telling Phil he was going over the speed limit, he asked where we were going, and why. Phil told him, and the trooper, in a terrific "Southie" Boston accent, said, "Y'know, Phillip, it's a good thing you're going to Hah-vahd. Otherwise, I'd have to put you in jail."
Such are the blessings of Driving While White.
I worked as a 9-1-1 dispatcher for 23 years in a suburb of Detroit. It was an all white community. I would get calls about a black man , walking down the street, and he looked “suspicious” according to the caller. I can’t tell you how many times I tried to explain that walking down the block and being black was not suspicious. I would have to send a car to investigate because “I pay your salary”. There was another time an officer had me run a plate because he was following a black male driving a Ferrari. It turned out to be a famous jazz musician who lived in an even whiter suburb north. As I look back, there were so many instances like this. I left that career and began a second career as a teacher.
Good piece. As a retired officer I hate, and regret, how our us-versus-them culture of fear and aggression makes cops dangerous to our public. Reform and change are coming. Philadelphia just suspended traffic stops for a number of minor moving violations, and there is of course a downside to that. But it may save lives, which is our goal. Or should be.
Great dovetail with the shocking but not surprising article in the NYT, which you reference. We’ve all heard rumors about quotas, but the article shows that many police departments are almost fully funded by “traffic violations” of one ilk or another. Telling also is that many DWIs are downgraded so as to hoard the penalty locally. So, in brief summation, a lot of black drivers are being pulled over and fined, and sometimes killed, for insignificant stuff, and a bunch of drunk drivers are given a near pass in order to fund the local police station. I hope, but am not hopeful, for a proper investigation into Sandra Bland’s “suicide.”
In addition to training, hiring individuals not prone to authoritarian behavior (it can be done) and proper supervision can go a long way to improving police contacts with citizens.
This article should be disseminated nationwide to all police training departments and national and local newspapers.
Not very many years ago, we would visit friends who lived in So. Mississippi and when we'd be out driving at night, coming back from a day trip to see some sights out of town, our hosts would tell us to be careful when we came across the inevitable police checkpoints. (Ostensibly they are looking for drunk drivers, but Miss, is one of those states that allows for police roadblocks at whim, evidently, and you're guilty until proven innocent.) Mainly, they said, "These are an excuse to harass black people." They didn't like it -- yes, Mississippi has liberals and Democratic voters, esp, in the college towns -- but since we are all white, and older, and two couples, they told us we didn't have to worry about this much. We weren't in the target categories. Sure enough a couple of times, driving back to their Hattiesburg home, we got stopped by random police checkpoints on the major roadways. They'd shine their flashlights in the vehicle, ask a few questions, we'd be polite, we weren't drunk or smelled TOO much like pot, so they'd let us go on our way. But wow. This is a thing. Especially in some places more than others. In Texas, these things are used to check for brown people. You'd think these arbitrary, "no refusal" police stops and questionings would be unconstitutional, but no.
Just proves the racial profiling that the African American community has been shouting about for years. Let’s face the facts: White people didn’t believe anything until the murder video of George Floyd. None of us really thought things were as bad as it was, am I right?? The most important thing that that video did is show how white police culture reacts to people of another race. It was appalling, obnoxious, uncaring behavior. Our eyes are wide-opened. We are fully aware that these police clubs have just a flavor of Nazism and the KKK in them.
Like Lucian said, “nobody is safe out there”.
Thank you.
This is both incredible and not at all surprising. I wonder about all those unvaccinated cops who die of COVID. Do they get death in the line of duty benefits? Is any cop who dies of COVID considered to have died in the line of duty? Does vaccination status make a difference?
A good and valuable article (again). I have noted from our old HOA newsletter that the Constable's Report section frequently had notice about a "complaint" being made by a homeowner that required a constable to go investigate. Usually anyone of the wrong color in the neighborhood, walking or parked or going door to door.
I don't have it handy on this laptop but if you search the web, there is a guide I've seen posted before that lists the essential things to do or say when/if you're ever stopped by police. It's a handy primer to your real civil rights (and how not to say or do anything that might jeopardize them in court. I'll look tomorrow and post it here if I can find it salted away.
This same guy said most people in trouble with the law made some poor choices, mental health issues, etc. In all his almost 35 years he only ran into evil twice.
Meanwhile… Congress has undermined mandatory sentencing for drug dealing, repeat felons carrying guns. The white ones, anyway. The privatization of probation facilities and “programs” has been an investment windfall for “law makers.” Tax payers get screwed twice-fold: not only is there no justice, but we keep paying enormous amounts of money to let these sociopaths loose AND they use the 1099 IRS tax form to claim they are employed. It’s quite a scam… Let’s face it: there is no justice in this country. None. If you were a cop under these circumstances, you’d be burned out, too.