Good Cop Thread
brianlux
Posts: 42,024
While visiting good friends in a neighboring town, the daughter of the couple showed up and a while later the son-in-law came by as well. I hadn't seen my friend's daughter and son-in-law since the young couple got married and I had never had opportunity to talk to the son-in-law. As it turns out, he is a Sheriff's Deputy for Sacramento County. Now, Sac county is not the roughest beat nor the grittiest town in the country but it has some very tough neighborhoods and has it's fair share of high risk crime, murders, etc. Talking with this young officer, I was impressed by how much he likes his job, doing it because he sees it as a way to help the community. I felt very comfortable talking with this guy. I had a real sense that he truly wants to be a helper and do good things. I felt like I could trust him greatly if need be. I was really glad to have had the opportunity to meet him.
Since we've heard plenty about bad cops (and yes, there are some really, really bad one's out there, for sure) I thought it might be a good idea to share stories we have about the good cops we meet out there as well. If we want them to do a good job, let's give them credit where credit is due. I'm sure the goods one's get a lot of flack and could use some support.
Since we've heard plenty about bad cops (and yes, there are some really, really bad one's out there, for sure) I thought it might be a good idea to share stories we have about the good cops we meet out there as well. If we want them to do a good job, let's give them credit where credit is due. I'm sure the goods one's get a lot of flack and could use some support.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.
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"Life Is What Happens To You When Your Busy Making Other Plans" John Lennon
I'm of the opinion that people who consistently hate cops are those that settle on their views very easily and are stubborn to move from them- even when presented with sound reason and logic.
It is a foolish mistake to think that cops are collectively 'bad'. There are some bad cops- we definitely hear of them when they perform poorly- but the overwhelming majority are good.
I'd echo what Lukin stated, you couldn't pay me enough to do that job. To that end, we don't pay cops enough. Our RCMP used to be a very respected position in our society with a stringent application process that managed to solicit the finest people for the profession (with occasional errors made of course). Nowadays, the RCMP recruit like mad because nobody sees the value in placing your life on the line and being generally disrespected for a career that sees one make less than a Loomis driver (nothing against Loomis drivers).
Outside of fanatical lunatics, we all want cops, but we don't want to pay them and we don't actively support them. A real tough gig- just try asking the two cops in Vegas or the three in Moncton.
We're fortunate to have an excellent organization in town called The Center for Violence-free Relationships (formerly the El Dorado Women's Center). They do great work in helping protect people- most often women- from abuse.
Our police department is also generally made up of good, hardworking men and women. They were supportive of me when I organized our 350.org "Step it Up" rally on the steps of city hall. They gave me the ok to do it and told me to contact them if we were harassed (which fortunately didn't happen).
While I applaud the effort of this thread, it strikes me as sad it even needs to be said.
I mean, we don't slap the "good/bad" label on other groups of people or vocations...do we? Should we?
No one, from any walk of life, could be completely characterized as either.
Given their profession, I do hold the police to a higher standard (and am more than willing to pay them for their service; I have as long as I've been paying taxes!) but at the same time I realize they're human beings. Fallible. Prone to adrenalin, to emotion.
Not discounting others' experiences and aside from one incident in my teens, my encounters with the police have ultimately been positive and left me with a decent feeling about the them as individuals - caring, professional, gentle, and when needed, pretty kickass.
Yes, it is sad but to me also that we even need to have this thread but it's even more sad that on a fan site of a band that is socially conscious, that I would feel the need to offset all the hateful threads about this particular group of people. That kind of baffles me.
I think bands - art in general - is subjective. Open to perception, soul, experience...kind of a take-it-as-you-will thing.
Passive? Probably.
Either way, OK by me.
(though I too am not a fan of Nickelback - and I may or may not have said I think they're bland and blow)
Whereas actions - words too in a sense - much more measurable...solid is a word that fits for now.
Able to see / feel the ripple-effects. Get a sense of the person, their character, behind those actions and the badge.
So back to your intent, in a nutshell...with ya
Anyone that thinks getting this done is easy, is crazy.
Hmmm, funny how this is morphing into into a g-u-n thread. Can we please not go there? =;
Thank you.
"Life Is What Happens To You When Your Busy Making Other Plans" John Lennon
Yeah, kind of weird having noise guitar and cop drummer in the woods. I feel the same way about people shooting in national, and state forests and BLM land, all of which is generally allowable and better than my neighbors shooting (which is what woke me up this morning thanks a lot assholes) but that kind of thing does make the woods less accessible for those of us who want to enjoy nature without the human noise factor.
If you want to get away from the yahoos you gotta get a few miles from the nearest parking lot.
"You can't see anything from your car. You've got to get out of the damn thing and walk!"
-Edward Abbey
This video probably also belongs in the "The Idiot Thread". Haha!