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Im Not Against Police Officers Im Against Jerks

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I want to point out that Im not against police officers as a whole, rather Im against jerks and that you will find jerks in just about all walks of life and that there are some jerks that just happen to be police officers.

I also want to point out that with police officers that there are some people in that line of work that take advantage of the position they're in, those are the police officers that are jerks.
 
I agree. There are some people who become cops for the wrong reasons. I'm confident that the police academies have ways of weeding out such candidates, but obviously (based on news accounts) some people get past the checks.
 
To be fair to the police academies, I need to add that sometimes good cops let the pressure get to them. Copping (if that's a thing :) ) is a very high-stress job and sometimes even the most qualified people can't handle it and something snaps.
 
I want to point out that Im not against police officers as a whole, rather Im against jerks and that you will find jerks in just about all walks of life and that there are some jerks that just happen to be police officers.

I also want to point out that with police officers that there are some people in that line of work that take advantage of the position they're in, those are the police officers that are jerks.

I am very supportive of good cops, which is MOST cops.
I expect police UNIONS to stop meddling in civilian oversight, and to stop attempting to override civilian oversight, and I expect them to stop protecting KNOWN BAD cops.

And if they refuse to go back to doing what they're supposed to do (better wages, benefits, overtime, labor contract negotiations, etc) then I expect Congress and the various state houses to do something about it to correct the issue.
The problem is not with cops as a whole, it's with the blue line of silence that no good cop wishes to go up against, for obvious reasons related to their continuing good health.
It is the police unions who are responsible for much of the problem.
 
To be fair to the police academies, I need to add that sometimes good cops let the pressure get to them. Copping (if that's a thing :) ) is a very high-stress job and sometimes even the most qualified people can't handle it and something snaps.
Anybody who can't handle the pressure shouldn't be in that line of work. Your occupation is something you choose. A person is a police officer because they chose to do it.
 
I am very supportive of good cops, which is MOST cops.
I expect police UNIONS to stop meddling in civilian oversight, and to stop attempting to override civilian oversight, and I expect them to stop protecting KNOWN BAD cops.

And if they refuse to go back to doing what they're supposed to do (better wages, benefits, overtime, labor contract negotiations, etc) then I expect Congress and the various state houses to do something about it to correct the issue.
The problem is not with cops as a whole, it's with the blue line of silence that no good cop wishes to go up against, for obvious reasons related to their continuing good health.
It is the police unions who are responsible for much of the problem.
I am against any kind of unions for government jobs. People who don't work for the government, Im not particularly against them forming unions, but for people who do work for the government, including police officers, Im against them having unions.
 
Anybody who can't handle the pressure shouldn't be in that line of work. Your occupation is something you choose. A person is a police officer because they chose to do it.

You're certainly right, DC, but I was thinking about those who have the best intentions (to serve others by enforcing laws) and believe that they've got what it takes, but then find out that the stress was just too much.
 
I am against any kind of unions for government jobs. People who don't work for the government, Im not particularly against them forming unions, but for people who do work for the government, including police officers, Im against them having unions.
As long as those unions focus on things they are normally involved in, labor contract negotations, worker rights, working conditions, pay, overtime, and benefits, I think they're great.
It's when they move outside of those issues that I begin to have a problem, because the people did not vote for the union officers, they voted to ELECT their civilian oversight, which is how policing works.
 
As long as those unions focus on things they are normally involved in, labor contract negotations, worker rights, working conditions, pay, overtime, and benefits, I think they're great.
It's when they move outside of those issues that I begin to have a problem, because the people did not vote for the union officers, they voted to ELECT their civilian oversight, which is how policing works.
Here's the thing, when they form a union and demand more pay that leaves us with two choices, we can either have less of a vital service or we can raise taxes.
 
I am very supportive of good cops, which is MOST cops.
I expect police UNIONS to stop meddling in civilian oversight, and to stop attempting to override civilian oversight, and I expect them to stop protecting KNOWN BAD cops.

And if they refuse to go back to doing what they're supposed to do (better wages, benefits, overtime, labor contract negotiations, etc) then I expect Congress and the various state houses to do something about it to correct the issue.
The problem is not with cops as a whole, it's with the blue line of silence that no good cop wishes to go up against, for obvious reasons related to their continuing good health.
It is the police unions who are responsible for much of the problem.
I know that's hard tto say as a union member. But if one of our riggers is dangerous for any reason they don't go up. Dnagerous in a lift? No more lift operation.

In other words we hold our own accountable. And I expect the police unions to do the same. I hold the good officers responsible for failing to deal with their own when they are bad. I would suspect that a safety call is always addressed and dealt with as it in our union, without reprisal, even if it turns out you were mistaken. Better safe than sorry.

IMO, combat soldiers from our recent asymmetrical conflicts are no longer suited for police work. I'm not saying they're bad or dishonorable or anything, just that their reflexes have been honed in an environment where life and death hangs on reactions measured in milliseconds and their muscle memory becomes problematic. As well as spending their entire tours dealing with adversaries, not fellow citizens with rights. Wrong reflexes again.

I wish the left would drop the phase "defund the police". It's just too easy to propagandize to mean something it doesn't. Pick something like "overhaul" or "restructure" or something that more accurately describes what is being called for. Less tanks, more social workers so cops don't kill another human being suffering some kind of mental episode. More community policing, which just fell out of favor because prosecutors weren't getting enough convictions with the kind of "catch and release" I enjoyed more than once. When the same cops are in a neighborhood they get to know folks, have opportunities to gain their trust. Can actually reach some semblance of the "Andy Taylor" kind of policing from The Andy Griffith Show. Where he didn't need to carry a gun because everybody knew he had everybody's best interests at heart. I remember encountering cops like that when i was a kid.
 
I want to point out that Im not against police officers as a whole, rather Im against jerks and that you will find jerks in just about all walks of life and that there are some jerks that just happen to be police officers.

I also want to point out that with police officers that there are some people in that line of work that take advantage of the position they're in, those are the police officers that are jerks.

Agree, some of them were little dweebs in HS and were picked on so they decided to go into a profession that gave them power.
 
Here's the thing, when they form a union and demand more pay that leaves us with two choices, we can either have less of a vital service or we can raise taxes.
It's a dangerous, stressful job.They deserve to be compensated accordingly. Cost of living is always going up. Tax haters would prefer they work for minimum wage except where they're protecting the rich and their assets. They want us to pay for that protection, because they sure aren't going to do it.
 
I wish the left would drop the phase "defund the police". It's just too easy to propagandize to mean something it doesn't. Pick something like "overhaul" or "restructure" or something that more accurately describes what is being called for. Less tanks, more social workers so cops don't kill another human being suffering some kind of mental episode. More community policing, which just fell out of favor because prosecutors weren't getting enough convictions with the kind of "catch and release" I enjoyed more than once. When the same cops are in a neighborhood they get to know folks, have opportunities to gain their trust. Can actually reach some semblance of the "Andy Taylor" kind of policing from The Andy Griffith Show. Where he didn't need to carry a gun because everybody knew he had everybody's best interests at heart. I remember encountering cops like that when i was a kid.

Whoever the "genius" was that came up with that phrase should never be allowed to invent another.
Sheer idiocy.
RETHINK POLICE would have been better.
REFORM POLICE would have been ideal.
 
Agree, some of them were little dweebs in HS and were picked on so they decided to go into a profession that gave them power.
I would say some of them were HS bullies, and by becoming police officers that way they could take advantage of the position they're in.
 
It's a dangerous, stressful job.They deserve to be compensated accordingly. Cost of living is always going up. Tax haters would prefer they work for minimum wage except where they're protecting the rich and their assets. They want us to pay for that protection, because they sure aren't going to do it.
So you want to pay more taxes? If we're to pay them more its either that or cut back on other stuff.
 
So you want to pay more taxes? If we're to pay them more its either that or cut back on other stuff.
They can have fewer tanks. Those are super expensive.

And of course you are aware that cities that pay out huge settlements when cops **** up pay them with tax dollars, right?

You get what you pay for, and you just might end up saving money in lawsuits in the long run.

I'm not a tax hater. Spend my money wisely and I might be willing to give up half. College for those who keep their grades up. Healthcare with an option for pet sitting and latte level upgrades for those who want to pay for them. That kind of stuff.

And I don't want people to be afraid of the police anywhere. I wasn't when I was a kid,

Keeping people safe should never make them afraid. If it does the system is broken and needs changing.

And it does. Many law abiding citizens are afraid of cops now. Because cop culture is broken.
 
I'm not a tax hater. Spend my money wisely and I might be willing to give up half. College for those who keep their grades up. Healthcare with an option for pet sitting and latte level upgrades for those who want to pay for them. That kind of stuff.
Im not willing to give up any of my money whether its taxes or something else if Im not going to get something in return. If Im going to pay taxes I want to get something out of it. Often I do get stuff out of tax money that I pay, the roads I drive on, the protection of the country from foreign invaders, services such as the rescue squad, the fire department, and yes the police. However, I see no point in me paying for somebody else's college tuition. After all, what's in it for me?
 
Im not willing to give up any of my money whether its taxes or something else if Im not going to get something in return. If Im going to pay taxes I want to get something out of it. Often I do get stuff out of tax money that I pay, the roads I drive on, the protection of the country from foreign invaders, services such as the rescue squad, the fire department, and yes the police. However, I see no point in me paying for somebody else's college tuition. After all, what's in it for me?
Having to deal with fewer ignorant people is my personal favorite.
 
I want to point out that Im not against police officers as a whole, rather Im against jerks and that you will find jerks in just about all walks of life and that there are some jerks that just happen to be police officers.

I also want to point out that with police officers that there are some people in that line of work that take advantage of the position they're in, those are the police officers that are jerks.
As is the case in all walks of life, all walks. However doing something stupid, like defunding police, no money bail, failure to prosecute criminals, taking the side of criminals over police because of skin color, all these are BS. If there are bad cops and the evidence is there against them, then pursue it in the courts. Do the same with criminals.
 
I want to point out that Im not against police officers as a whole, rather Im against jerks and that you will find jerks in just about all walks of life and that there are some jerks that just happen to be police officers.

I also want to point out that with police officers that there are some people in that line of work that take advantage of the position they're in, those are the police officers that are jerks.
The question is what do you consider a jerk?
 
Having to deal with fewer ignorant people is my personal favorite.

That is elitist nonsense. HS graduates without college educations are not ignorant unless they were handed HS diplomas without merit (which is another problem entirely).
 
As is the case in all walks of life, all walks. However doing something stupid, like defunding police, no money bail, failure to prosecute criminals, taking the side of criminals over police because of skin color, all these are BS. If there are bad cops and the evidence is there against them, then pursue it in the courts. Do the same with criminals.

The problem is that only the state can initiate criminal charges.
 
There are a-holes in every profession, the guy kneeling on necks being one of them - and he will pay for his crime.

That being said, police work sometimes isn't pretty and there's a reason cops put on a vest and carry a gun on them. They're also the only profession I can think of that the majority has to wear a body-camera when they do their job - because no one trusts cops.

What happens when a law needs to be enforced and the guy or gal on the other end of that law does not want to comply? Does the officer use force or let them go? If force is used and it's proper, will that officer's career and freedom be in jeapordy if the suspect ends up seriously injured or the force used doesn't look pretty to people judging the situation from the comfort of their chair? Will people crucify the cop if he was attempting to enforce a "low level" crime amd they percieve that the force used doesn't match the offense?

I think society needs to get its head out of its ass and decide what kind of level of law enforcement they want: Dirty Harry, a stereotypical DMV employee, or something in between.
 
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