McPherson: Police Are Dangerous

Around this country police officers swagger like bullies, acting with near impunity, demanding a level of deferential treatment and complete submission that is inconsistent with a free society. Knowing your rights is an irritation to them, and standing your ground is contempt of cop. Unnecessarily approaching many a situation with an aggressive attitude, their demeanor often generates conflict. They seem to relish the moment it escalates to physical contact and violence.

Why should they show people respect when they simply don’t have to, and when so few are held accountable for their actions? Nothing says “Boo-ya!” like a flash-bang grenade in a baby’s crib.

Police also see themselves as above the judgment of those they claim to serve. For example, the president of the Cleveland Police Patrolman’s Association said in an interview last December that non-violent protest of questionable police behavior is “disrespectul.” That’s downright disturbing.

Cops receive generous salaries, benefits, and retirement packages, and civil service protection, well beyond that enjoyed by any mere citizen, and they have no legal duty to protect anyone – yet they screech like whipped toddlers when criticized by taxpayers or public officials. Something’s terribly backward here.

Police departments regularly fail to report how many people their officers kill, but some folks are paying attention. It looks like over a thousand people are shot by cops each year, and the number is probably higher than that. Crime and violence rates go down, but police remain dangerously charged up. And this doesn’t even account for the people who die while in police custody, like Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Troy Goode, and too many others.

Cops have lots of laws to enforce, and unprecedented power – a deadly cocktail.