Question regarding LEO's

[Derby FALs]

Got coffee?

 

[f4t9r]

I am a Correctional Sergeant - hate us; everyone else does. We don't care anymore who hates us, as the inmates do, the people on the streets, and a large percentage of street LE despise us. It's OK, go for it. Thick skin comes in prison....

ease up a little , You can not speak for everyone
I do not hate you or any other Correctional officer (At this Time , maybe later)

 

[CAS700850]

When I started as a prosecuting attorney, I was told that on any given day, someone will hate you. Cops hate you for turning down cases. Defendant's hate you for taking cases. Defense Attorneys hate you for not doing things their way (making deals, etc.). Victims hate you for making deals, or not seeking the death penalty because thier collectible snow globes were stolen. Reporters hate you because you know everything and say nothing. Politicians hate you because you truly do know everything, and are a risk to say something. Judges hate you because you're the reason their docket is full, and you probably want their job anyways. Pro RKBA eople hate you because you took away that defendan't's guns. Anti-gun people hate you because you gave that assault weapon back to the person it was stolen from.

Get it? Every day, in any job you do, you are going to very likely make someone unhappy. For LEO's, it's more ofetn than not that someone you come into contact with will be very unhappy to see you.

By the way, in my career, I have met some cops that I would hand my wallet to, take it back the next day, and not check to make sure everything was still there. I know it would be. Then again, I've met others that I prefer not to leave alone in my office...

 

[Tequila_Sauer]

I had a corrections officer in my International Organization class and she was insanely rude, from day one. Very loud, very up front, and very demanding of personal attention. She was all business and she loved relaying stories about the things her inmates do and how she responded.

That's actually the only corrections officer I've ever met. Most LEOs I know, including the 3 friends I mentioned, are complete and total goofballs. Very funny, and all around, good guys. With many of them, it's hard to imagine them being d***s to people. Their stories, by contrast, are actually awesome.

 

[Biker]

Much depends upon location. In my neck of the woods, cops, with few exceptions, are pretty down home. A few even come down to the local scooter shop and sneak back to the fridge for a brew - off duty, of course. However, if a few of us hit Boise, or head to Portland, things change drastically. It's an 'us V them' thing. Ya just gotta adjust your tactics according to terrain and situation. It does no good to whine about it. Roll with the punches leave the BS behind ya.
Biker

 

[Universal]

I actually find the High Road to have a lot less anti-police comments and such compared to some other sites. I am a retired police officer and have worked with some great individuals and with some complete boneheads. Cops are people and not all people are the same. I know that I was never considered a typical cop because I did not share many interests and views with most of my co-workers. However, I believe I was respected as being a clean (i.e. by the book) and fair officer in my community and that is what really matters to me. I am very proud of my service but I am also critical of other officers when they screw up. I do not miss everything about the job but I would certainly do it all over again if I had the chance. It made me part of who I am today and I would not trade that for anything.

 

[MrDig]

I am truly thankful for the replies thus far. I started this thread to find out if I was off the mark or what, (In Psychobabble speak they call it "Reality Testing" ) and I may have been misreading some of the statements I saw.
Another reason was my Oldest Brother was a LEO now retired. What he did for 30+ yrs I find truly amazing. The things he has seen would have had me in therapy.
I know that from a numbers standpoint with any population group, a census will turn up Idiots, A@#holes, Criminals and Citizens, Geniuses, Heroes and Jerks. On some days depending on who you ask I could be any of these.
Thanks for the responses.

 

[orionengnr]

okay, I'll take a bite at that hook

I have known several LEOs and have a deep and abiding respect for what they do. I can easily see how dealing with the worst society has to offer, day in, day out can take a tool on a person. Hell, I'm pretty cynical myself and I've never seen 1% of what these guys see every day.

Now, on the other side: On this board or any other, you will have that small percentage who will rationalise and defend any behavior no matter how outrageous. Case in point, the convoy of NY/(NJ?) LEOs that was stopped in VA(?) returning home from NO at high speed, lights a-flashing. Boy, there were some animated discussions over that one.

Look, I do not defend or rationalise unacceptable behavior by anyone. Not by criminals, certainly not by my elected officials, not by those appointed to positions of responsibility. Anyone who has the class to say, "Look, I screwed up..." has my respect. Anyone who makes excuses, or worse yet, believes "the rules don't apply to me..." makes me ill.

My .02.

 

[Jim K]

I have been on both sides of a badge, and I see one of the problems with LE recently as the influence of the Vietnam era military people hired by the police as officers and instructors. Many of those are retired, but they have indoctrinated a generation of police with the "us and them" attitude of the military.

A LE officer typically sees the world as us (cops), them (crooks) and everyone else (sheep). That is not good, and armed sheep are not in the cops' rulebook; they don't know how to handle that.

But the military sees the world as us (our side) and them (the enemy). And "our" job is to kill "them." Third parties are not in the picture; if they get in the way, so what, it is "collateral damage" and besides, anyone who is not "us" either is "them" or will become "them" when it gets dark. There are no neutrals, no "sheep" to be protected, only enemies to be harassed or killed.

So the cops who are ex-military or trained by ex-military tend to see "the mission" first, and to hell with anyone or anything that stands in the way. An enemy on the battlefield has no constitutional rights, and a civilian who gets in the way gets stomped. That attitude may be necessary for winning wars; in civilian life police work, it is a disaster for honest citizens who "get in the way."

Jim

 

[M-Rex]

Personally it is a case by case attitude problem.

If I support a cop in a thread nobody notices.

If I take a cops actions to task I'm a cop basher or cop bigot.

Regarding my experiences, my police contact has been 1/3 neutral 1/3 really good 1/3 really bad. I'll ignore the other 1%.

The bad experiences really stick out for me and since I am not or have never been a criminal or disrespectful to a police officer.

My life experience tells me there are certain professions that attract those who seek power and dominance over others.

To summarize you can't paint all police officers with a broad brush.

All police officers are NOT JBT's

You also cannot assume that all police are there to protect and serve.

Criticizing a specific incident does not a cop-bigot make. Broad brushed, paranoia based, and non-factual blanket assumptions largely based on emotion or 'get-even-with-them-ism' are bigotry, regardless of class.

There's a lot of that on THR. Merely defending or offering an alternative view of something is often grounds to get the coplophobes all frothy. I would propose that posting numerous obscure anti-cop news threads for no other reason than to boost thread count would drift into that territory as well.