It is true, you have no experience, living far from what I would call "crap" and you're grateful you do not have to deal with it, others take care of it instead

Quite so.

Had I followed what two traffic police had leaned on me to say, I'd have a criminal record now.
But no, they were set on doing more than just their job; which should have been to give me a producer and send me on my way - should I fail to meet the requirements of said producer, the courts would deal with me appropriately - that was not good enough for them though.
I spent almost an hour in the back of a panda car being threatened with the law and spoken to in a coercive manner, all because I did not have the correct 'papers' (which I was not obliged to carry anyway), whilst these two goons thought they'd earn some brownie points back at the station. In their eyes I was guilty of an offence and they were determined to pursue that regardless of the facts.

Right or wrong, that incident coloured my view of the police, all police, from then on.
I had been brought up to respect the office of the law, and for the most part still do so, but I have no illusions that it is there for my benefit if push should come to shove. Too many young gung-ho officers who are far too arrogant and cocky to deserve the respect of the man in the street.... standards are obviously lacking, as some of the old boys I have had encounters with have been, for the most part, quite reasonable people and not facsimiles of 2 dimensional action figures you see in american cop shows (fictional and that dog bounty hunter thing).

Stuff happens on youtube and everyone gets all bent out of shape from one side or another. Fact is (and no offence to anyone previous or currently serving - besides it should not be uncomfortable to hear this if you're a genuinely dedicated professional) I do not trust the police to act in my interests, based upon my own personal experience noted above and in other situations. This, I think, is partly to do with current legislation and how certain laws are made and how they are enforced. It's not just a dislike of authority on some arbitrary point.
You may not like my view, but it's not your job to like it, and any man or woman acting as a professional will clearly see past that and understand that this is just another part of the job they must accept: as a representative of the state and by extension, if people don't trust the state, they will not trust you, no matter your values and integrity as an individual, they will see a uniform and all that it does or does not represent.

Three other things worth saying - literacy, and the shocking lack of it with most of the current officers I have met, and failure to qualify to understand the law that they are supposed to uphold. PCSO's are a shining paragon of these deficits, but I'll not go there. And finally, fingerprints and dna being retained following arrest and release without charge... to my mind something is very very wrong there. All of those people who peddle the 'nothing to hide nothing to fear' line of nonsense had better keep their mouths shut and behave in a meek and compliant manner when they eventually fall foul of their own maxim.
We have already seen how the law in the UK has changed with the effect of criminalising large parts of the community, so whilst you might be a law abiding citizen today, you might find yourself a criminal tomorrow - I firmly lay that at the door of meddling politicians and ill considered legislation.

Perhaps I can sum it up best by saying I trust no-one (except a few blood relatives) to look out for me and mine - foolish and misplaced trust (blind loyalty, if you will), be it in authority or those you might feel a certain loyalty for, is asking for trouble.
That's a pretty dim view of the world, I'll admit. But as Ducimus has just said, nobody ever said life was fair; a sentiment that works for all walks of life, be you an ordinary bloke, a copper or a politician.



EDIT:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-13268633

This is exactly the sort of thing that makes me edgy when it comes to accepting the explanations of authority and law enforcement. This and other high profile cases where law abiding citizens have been killed by police or died in police custody, whilst often with the most complex and difficult circumstances I'll grant you, none the less leaves me ill at ease.
Anyone remember the lies told by senior police figures regarding the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes? This even extended to doctoring photos of the man to make him look more like the suspect they were really after, and finally the grossest insult to an innocent man shot dead by police was for the story that came out later on in the investigation into menezes killing, alleging that he had rapped a woman, all to discredit his innocence and to divert blame in a catastrophic ---- up by many ground level and senior policemen and intelligence organisations.
There was no conviction for his killing, and I hold no serious hope that the family of Ian Tomlinson will see one either.

In law enforcement, no i don't. Although I do have a couple relatives who are in LE. Three relatives actually, now that i think of it. I contemplated LE work myself for awhile, but decided that A.) I don't care to have a job where im required to carry a weapon, and most importantly, B.) I would have a hard time "serving and protecting" the general public. I've always had what we refer to in my house as "PH level" or "public hatred level". Some days its higher then others. Suffice to say, i hate the general public.


Yes i am. Ive seen enough of the world to know how lucky i really am. I am far far far removed from the crap of the world. In fact im sheltered from it working an offiice job, living in a cubicle, and i know it. I know it because i wasn't always sheltered. By my standards, i haven't been living in the "real world" for some time. Ive seen it before, and it sure as s _ _ t aint the life im living now. My biggest concern is if ill get laid off, thats IT. Comparitively, that's a trivial worry.

Yes i am. I know how ugly the world, and people, can be.

Thats why they have the badge, and I respect that.

fixed that for you:O:

Duc! What I wrote in my post was not directed personally, as I think you already understood, what I am saying is that some times there are many things involved, and in terms of jobs, it is often about timing, and the chance to do everything , interest naturally,but I'm glad you mention the word respect, which many take for granted that there is only so must be."Thats why they have the badge, and I respect that",very good :yep:

See, I learned it the other way around:

1. Yes sir.
2. No sir.

That's about all that really needs to be said unless giving them a statement. Get mouthy with them over a simple moving violation and you're only asking for trouble. ;)

I saw no bullets flying in that video either august. Before the person even got out of the car the cop was already being extremely rude to him.

why don't you stop comparing apples to oranges, because a simple traffic stop is not a gunfight. you're "dangerous Job" argument really doesn't apply in this case. why you might ask? Because if a cop does what he is supposed to do, he is trying not to provoke people. Yelling at otherwise peaceful citizens is counter to what a cop is supposed to do, and can only provoke violence.

For about 2 milliseconds, then he went into roid rage mode.

The situation was turned violent - by the policeman.

Imagine how things might have turned out if the officer had actually listened and not gotten into an argument. You know, if he had acted like a professional, and not pointlessly escalated the situation.

I guess that's too much to ask from so many of today's police.

I've no idea about US law but over here in the UK we call it 'threatening a breach of the peace'....not a serious offence in itself but one that empowers you to yake the instigator into custody if you feel it justified or necessary.

Yet you don't know what happened other than what was filmed on the officers return to the car.
It is very easy to get someone well wound up and then trigger them over something apparently little once you get the situation right.

You don't want to tell us that you never got into trouble with the authorities because of sarcasm?! - and I'm not talking about the subsim authorities....:03:

If you want to wind a copper up by doing absolutely nothing wrong then just ask him the time or ask for directions:up:

:haha:

what felony would that be: confusing and overexerting?

Same goes for the inhabitants of Essen: if you ever go there (why would anybody?): never ask for directions...:88) - though I have to try to ask a cop from there...;)

:up:
It works best when the policeman is stood under a clock

Well you're wrong.

Every traffic stop has the potential to turn deadly. Every one. If you don't realize that you have no conception of what a policemans job entails.

did you not notice how the cop instigated things bell yelling at the person? He had no right to do that, if he had not yelled at them nothing would have happened. He started it, he was wrong to do so...cut and dry.

I never had an issue yet personally with cops when I was pulled over. he didn't even have to ask I had the papers readied. We both knew what I did wrong. So there was no need to argue. I think he knew that I knew I was caught. My damn squeaky wheels when I turned from a wrong lane and cut off another lane.. ---- For a month everybody was doing it.. I figured I take the chance.. That damn day there was cops at the corner.. I would have made it but my wheels squealed when I turned hard. :nope::damn:

$51 dollars ticket.. never did it again hehe..

You cannot say that as you don't know what went on before the cop returned to the car.

I'll bet that statement can be applied to the majority of threads like this on the internet. People don't care what went on before hand, particularly if it would justify any actions the cop took. All they want is the slightest reason to be able shake their fist in the air and yell fight the power. Especially on the internet. Its like a fad. They want to be able to tell cops how to do their jobs, without walking even a 50 yards in their shoes, let alone a mile. Far too many people think their special, and cops are an object of hatred because they're the ones who remind folks they aren't.

And in california, there are A LOT of special people. They must be special, because the way they act, apparently the rules don't apply to them.

Oh, right, like the SoCal desert grows 'em exclusively.:D