Fuck tha police

[Donkey]

Forgive the profane title, but it sort of epitomizes what I want to address in this thread. There is a general dislike/hatred/resentment of cops. I don't have scientific evidence, but I would guess that it is the majority that has their hackles rise when they see a cop, especially in a car (or a "Deceptacon as my brother calls them when they're driving chargers), even when you are doing nothing wrong. I think people go out of their ways to avoid police officers in this country, even when their actions are entirely within the scope of legality.

And yet, nobody, and I'm pretty sure this is true, wants to do away with law enforcement. Now I'm sure some will/would say that that is the price we pay for having law enforcement, which is necessary: we have to put up with being uncomfortable around them.

I don't buy that. I agree with the premise of police officers, but what can we do to make the system better or more user friendly? If it was just gang bangers and crack dealers who didn't like them I would be inclined to not worry about it, but if your average middle class white dude is afraid of cop cooties, there has to be a way to do it better.

ETA: if anybody happens to be unfamiliar with the reference, here is Fuck tha Police (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TiMtDhiJ2o&feature=related).

[partofme]

Forgive the profane title, but it sort of epitomizes what I want to address in this thread. There is a general dislike/hatred/resentment of cops. I don't have scientific evidence, but I would guess that it is the majority that has their hackles rise when they see a cop, especially in a car (or a "Deceptacon as my brother calls them when they're driving chargers), even when you are doing nothing wrong. I think people go out of their ways to avoid police officers in this country, even when their actions are entirely within the scope of legality.

And yet, nobody, and I'm pretty sure this is true, wants to do away with law enforcement. Now I'm sure some will/would say that that is the price we pay for having law enforcement, which is necessary: we have to put up with being uncomfortable around them.

I don't buy that. I agree with the premise of police officers, but what can we do to make the system better or more user friendly? If it was just gang bangers and crack dealers who didn't like them I would be inclined to not worry about it, but if your average middle class white dude is afraid of cop cooties, there has to be a way to do it better.

ETA: if anybody happens to be unfamiliar with the reference, here is Fuck tha Police (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TiMtDhiJ2o&feature=related).

It depends on the police force. In the town I grew up in the police where really active to the point that they suspected everybody. I had been searched many times for no reason and then let go. In the town I live in now I have not had a single bad incident involving the police and in fact know and like many police officers in this town. It could be because I am older that I haven't had a problem but from what I can tell the cops here are lazy and only respond to anything if they get a call which means they have to. It probably also has to do with the fact that the crime rate here is much lower than my old town.

[phungus420]

This is one that always kinds of surprises me. On the whole, my experiences with police have been positive. I've never gotten a ticket and the two times I was picked up and taken to Juvie to spend the night for curfew, I was in fact breaking the law in much more serious ways (so I deserved it). I've had cops give me rides places when I was stranded, and just in general be helpful. I suppose there was one time I was at a party and the cops started macing people and giving out MIPs, but I slashed a couple cruisers tires, and felt I got my revenge. So didn't hold a grudge (also didn't get maced or ticked myself, I know how to scale a fence quickly).

Overall though I'd say the reason people have such a low oppinion of police is the fact most of the time they have to deal with them is when they are getting busted in one way or another. Or at the very least they associate police with being hassled. There are bad cops out there, and I really think there should be easier ways to deal with the crooked cops (case in point, here in Portland a cop killed by beating to death a retard, and this was like the 5th time he'd been officialy repremanded for using excessesive force! And they still didn't fire him! --He was forced to resign after the paper picked up the story), but on the whole I think cops really just try to do their job, and believe they are trying to make the word a better place.

[Michael]

Perhaps the police have a bad reputation due to the many decades that (all) police forces were assumed/known to be corrupt (1930's to the 1970's in particular).

The evidence for massive and systemic police corruption throughout that time period is overwhelming (large cities or county sheriffs, doesn't matter).

The present high rate of DNA-exhoneration cases also tends to breed contempt for the abilities and integrity of the police (and tends to show up evidence of systemic racial-class bias).

[The Drunk Guy]

Perhaps the police have a bad reputation due to the many decades that (all) police forces were assumed/known to be corrupt (1930's to the 1970's in particular).

The evidence for massive and systemic police corruption throughout that time period is overwhelming (large cities or county sheriffs, doesn't matter).

The present high rate of DNA-exhoneration cases also tends to breed contempt for the abilities and integrity of the police (and tends to show up evidence of systemic racial-class bias).
I think their violent reactions during the activist era helped fuel the dislike on both sides. And, let's face it, America was founded on a "fuck tha police" mentality.

By the way, I often refer to them as "pigs" and "Storm Troopers." I don't think I would mind a world where police solved crimes and responded to calls, but pigs are prone to victimizing the innocent and disrupting lives.

[Dominick]

In my experience, perception of the police is almost entirely a matter of social class. The wealthy, the affluent, the middle class will tend to have a positive view while the lower classes, the poor, will have a negative view. Nothing surprising here as essentially the police forces are historically and factually defenders of landed property and thus a conservative and reactionary force. It's their job to combat 'change', especially social change, social evolution let alone revolution.

The poor

will not even bother to make charges when a crime is committed against them because they're aware that the chance that it will be investigated is quasi nihil and that the possibility exists the plaintiff him- or herself will be accused and convicted of the crime if only to improve the performance statistics of the police force.
will evade the police as much as possible because of the 'usual suspects' syndrome. Once someone is convicted of a certain type of crime, he or she will without question be tried and convicted again for such crimes, completely independent of whether he or she actually commits any.
are very likely to receive physical abuse from police forces. Rodney King wasn't an exception, it is the rule. The exception is that the cops got caught. I've personally witnessed an unprovoked raid on the homeless of a UK city that would have got a nod of approval from the Gestapo. And that's just 'civilized' countries. In many other countries the police have death squads and other paramilitary groups specifically to terrorize the poor, to 'disappear' emerging union leaders, left wing politicians, and many more.

[Michael]

In my experience, perception of the police is almost entirely a matter of social class. The wealthy, the affluent, the middle class will tend to have a positive view while the lower classes, the poor, will have a negative view. Nothing surprising here as essentially the police forces are historically and factually defenders of landed property and thus a conservative and reactionary force. It's their job to combat 'change', especially social change, social evolution let alone revolution.

The poor

will not even bother to make charges when a crime is committed against them because they're aware that the chance that it will be investigated is quasi nihil and that the possibility exists the plaintiff him- or herself will be accused and convicted of the crime if only to improve the performance statistics of the police force.
will evade the police as much as possible because of the 'usual suspects' syndrome. Once someone is convicted of a certain type of crime, he or she will without question be tried and convicted again for such crimes, completely independent of whether he or she actually commits any.
are very likely to receive physical abuse from police forces. Rodney King wasn't an exception, it is the rule. The exception is that the cops got caught. I've personally witnessed an unprovoked raid on the homeless of a UK city that would have got a nod of approval from the Gestapo. And that's just 'civilized' countries. In many other countries the police have death squads and other paramilitary groups specifically to terrorize the poor, to 'disappear' emerging union leaders, left wing politicians, and many more.

Yes, as I noted above, social class is a major factor here (which means 'racial class' since the two correlate very closely in almost every western country).

Perhaps the USA has a particular problem here because of the massive (and fake) middle class they pretend they have. There are literally tens' of millions of people in the USA who are 100% working class by social status and education (i.e. no education, no skills), but because of some union protected job, make middle class-type wages.

Fact is, middle class wages do not make a middle class. Working class people with middle class wages still act just like working class people. And they have the same socio-cultural biases of their social class. And that means they hate the police - even though they have middle class wages (because they are not really middle class people to begin with).

Ergo, since the US middle class is so heavily filled with working class people, middle class values are out the window and working class values are in the ascent. Ergo, US middle class people distrust the police as a matter of culture.