RE: http://www.military.com/opinion/0,15202,156142,00.html

Police Academies are not known for their social science education. In fact, they qualify more as training than as education. Similarly, college CJ and AJ departments are notoriously tunnel-visioned inre their breadth requirements.

Despite being a start in the right direction, the limitted focus of the subject report merely demonstrates more of the same.

The "dumbing-down" of the U.S.A. continues.

Something this author said to me is one of things wrong in the US today. People have done way to much to disconnect themselves from the military to the point that they fail to see that the military is an extention of themselves. To the point that civil police forces are stuck with antiquated ideas about uniform that have no functionality.

Hunt down these homgrown terror cells and destroy them. No Gitmo.

Kinda a narrow view, home grown terror cells aren't all there is.

I'm confused; was he insulting cops or supporting them? Maybe both?

Another excellent article. One has only so much space here on military.com to present a point of view. The article certainly points out just who is on the front line of 4GW, the local cop and FBI. Our troops may be fighting the bad guys overseas but terrorism is a civilian matter here in the US. Let us all hope all police departments get the picture.

S/F Gordon

quote:

Originally posted by crzymdc:
I'm confused; was he insulting cops or supporting them? Maybe both?

Insulting isn't the right word. More like constructive criticism.

Lind is right on target here in that the frontline is local, not overseas.

Alot of people want civilian law enforcement to stop every crime before it happens with out the intrusive and insanely expensive methods it would take to accomplish it. Can't have your cake and eat it to.

EXACTLY!!!! I am a Patrol Officer in a large, metropolitan department. I used to work for a small, rural department, as a supervisor. We are REQUIRED to work within the limits of the US Constitution. If you are on the West coast, like me, you have to abide by the 9th Circus Court of Appeals decisions, which are notoriously idiotic. In my city, we have an "Intelligence" ordinance, enacted by the City Council (some say to protect themselves) which PROHIBITS (makes it a crime, misdemeanor)the police from keeping intelligence files, unless there is an ACTIVE criminal investigation, SPECIFIC to that group/person. AND, our intel files are subject to review, so, nobody wants to give us critical info, for fear of it leaking. This, by the way, is common knowledge, so there is no opsec issue here.

Anyway, we have a fine line to toe. Our actions as police are severly hampered, rightly, by the Constitution. It's either tight security in a police state, or, freedom for less security. I would rather have my freedom.

As far as Lind's smart-arse remarks about cops and donuts, he can go eff himself. He's obviously an intellectual snob, and, I'll bet he's the first one to call 911 when someone scary shows up in his neighborhood. And, I'll bet he's happy to see those stupid, moron, donut-stained cops he recently insulted.

quote:

Originally posted by somethintobraggabout:
Alot of people want civilian law enforcement to stop every crime before it happens with out the intrusive and insanely expensive methods it would take to accomplish it. Can't have your cake and eat it to.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: GeneSchubeck,

Well, speaking as a former detentions deputy, with the pay offered all to often departments end up with those who really are undesirables or those who are distracted by school work or a second job.

When will the American public wake up and realize that when any bozo, cute 'lil gangsta' or deviant opens fire on a public street, in a school or anywhere else in the country he/she has declared war on us all, collectively, as a nation and a culture?

Para-militarizing the civilian police isn't a laudable excersize, it's Orwellian. I think we've all seen, at least read about, where a national police force leads.

...In my city, we have an "Intelligence" ordinance, enacted by the City Council (some say to protect themselves) which PROHIBITS (makes it a crime, misdemeanor)the police from keeping intelligence files, unless there is an ACTIVE criminal investigation, SPECIFIC to that group/person. AND, our intel files are subject to review, so, nobody wants to give us critical info, for fear of it leaking. This, by the way, is common knowledge, so there is no opsec issue here....



I feel for you, they might as well take away your car, cuffs, gun, and arrest powers and when you are not effective blame it all on you.

quote:

Originally posted by enetman1000:

quote:

Originally posted by crzymdc:
I'm confused; was he insulting cops or supporting them? Maybe both?

Insulting isn't the right word. More like constructive criticism.

Lind is right on target here in that the frontline is local, not overseas.

Okay, that works. And I'll agree with Mr. Lind that police need to be the major defense for the homefront.

>Like most militaries, most police departments are not famous for their intellectual attainments. Doughnuts, it seems, are not brain food.<

I am not sure if it is possible for this individual to have started off his article with a more insulting sentence. I'm sure, if he put his mind to it, he could have been more insulting, but, perhaps not.

To introduce such an important topic by immediately angering any police reader with any self respect is ludicrous. And let's be sure to include Commissioner Kelly in there for good measure. Every writer in the past 30 years that wants to have any credibility in this realm seems to think they have to include his name in their article.

Please write something that will actually help the police to do their job, they already know what the job is. As stated by other posters local knotheads are doing their level best to prevent the police from doing anything that even relates to what this article advocates. What a collosal waste of time.

Unfortunately I have to disagree that home is the frontline. In this type of situation there is no frontline, history repeats itself and they will come here if we don't stay vigilant on both ends.

quote:

Para-militarizing the civilian police isn't a laudable excersize, it's Orwellian. I think we've all seen, at least read about, where a national police force leads.

Exactly, totalitarian communism and faschism.

quote:

Para-militarizing the civilian police isn't a laudable excersize, it's Orwellian. I think we've all seen, at least read about, where a national police force leads.


Exactly, totalitarian communism and faschism.

I agree entirely. Here in Michigan, we lived with a police force that spent decades on the payroll of the former industrial giants. Anyone looking for a fair wage was a "Red". When FOIA was introduced, we found the police had been doing illegal surveillance on hundreds of labor leaders including those we name our stadiums and highways after.

In Michigan and Northwest Ohio, the police and Klan (read "Black Legion") were one in the same.
http://forums.detnews.com/history/story/index.cfm?category=events&id=151

I spent a couple of years as a cop during the 70s. Anyone who trusts police other than the patrolmen they meet daily, is insane.

Law enforcement has chenged significantly since the 70's. Yes, we still have our problems, but the amount of public accountability and oversight is comforting. I agree, do not paramilitarize the police. Unfortunately, with the direction society is going, it is inevitable. It's only a matter of time until it looks like something out of one of those bleak, futuristic sci-fi movies, where cops are wearing combat gear ALL THE TIME, and many other bad things have occurred. Jeez, just look at what the police did in N.O. during Katrina aftermath...going door to door and confiscating firearms, illegally??? We are CIVIL police, not soldiers. Don't task us with stuff that is not in our charter...