Rise of the Warrior Cop: How America's Police Forces Became Militarized

FuzzNugget writes "An awakening piece in the Wall Street Journal paints a grim picture of how America's police departments went from community officers walking the beat to full-on, militarized SWAT operations breaking down the doors of non-violent offenders. From the article: 'In the 1970s, there were just a few hundred [raids] a year; by the early 1980s, there were some 3,000 a year. In 2005, there were approximately 50,000 raids.' It goes on to detail examples of aggressive, SWAT-style raids on non-violent offenders and how many have ended in unnecessary deaths. Last year, after a Utah man's home was raided for having 16 small marijuana plants, nearly 300 bullets in total were fired (most of them by the police) in the ensuing gunfight, the homeowner believing he was a victim of a home invasion by criminals. The U.S. military veteran later hanged himself in his jail cell while the prosecution sought the death sentence for the murder of one officer he believed to be an criminal assailant. In 2006, a man in Virginia was shot and killed after an undercover detective overheard the man discussing bets on college football games with buddies in a bar. The 38-year-old optometrist had no criminal record and no history of violence. The reports range from incredulous to outrageous; from the raid on the Gibson guitar factory for violation of conservational law, to the infiltration of a bar where underage youth were believed to be drinking, to the Tibetan monks who were apprehended by police in full SWAT gear for overstaying their visas on a peace mission. Then there's the one about the woman who was subject to a raid for failing to pay her student loan bills. It's a small wonder why few respect police anymore. SWAT-style raids aren't just for defense against similarly-armed criminals anymore; it's now a standard ops intimidation tactic. How much bloodshed will it take for America to realize such a disproportionate response is unwarranted and disastrous?"

Comments

Re:Summary of TFS

[Trepidity]

It's probably news because white people are being raided now, whereas previously it was only scary black people like Fred Hampton who got murdered by militarized police.

Re:IRS Too?

[peragrin]

As an american I watched in disgust as the brits did nothing for 25 minutes as one man hacked up another in the middle of the street while being recorded. In the end special police units with guns had to be called and they still used the same amount of overkill american police use.

Which is scarier?

fuck old people

[eyenot]

What's worst about all this is that the oldest generations don't give a fuck. Anybody over forty right now could care less about what the police are doing. If you tell them what's going on with innocent people being killed, maimed, hurt, sexually assaulted, etc. they'll just say --

"Good! I like to hear my taxes are working!"

"Good! They're keeping us safe!"

That's why I love it every time I hear about some retiree getting the shit scared out of them and having their head smacked in by a gung-ho, drug-addicted SWAT team. I love hearing about these old worthless shit-eaters who are now sitting there, nursing their concussions, going --

"Oh my god, I was so wrong!"

"They're not police! They're m-m-monsters!"

"Look at this cut on my pretty financial-echelon face! Get my lawyer, I'm withdrawing my yearly donation to the FOP! Not my criminal lawyer you dipshit, my financial attorney! OOF! THE PIGS PUNCHED MY BALLS! Quick get the criminal, tooooo!"

ALL of these old, dried-out sacks of shit should have THEIR shit raided and THEIR asses kicked up and down their neighborhood streets, stripped nude, and then come back around and see if they still vote that way and still donate that money.

Drive the new police force tank up to most of those old fogey's houses and they just go "oh wow cool it's finally here!"

But I bet if they had to lay on the ground with a boot on their head for twenty minutes because they asked why they should be expected to wear handcuffs during a search of their house, and they'll think differently.