Comments

1

"The officer can only wear the flag or insignia of the city or county that pays them. The function of such a rule is it disconnects policing from soldiering. A member of the US Army/Navy/Air Force/Space Force is, of course, working for a government that's represented by the US flag. The same is true for a mail carrier. But it's certainly not true for a cop in the North Precinct, or South Precinct, or what have you."

Seattle requires police officers to swear an oath to support the Constitution of the United States. Anyone taking on that responsibility should be allowed to wear the flag.

2

That was one mean article Charles.

3

@2: Indeed, how many grocery workers are killed in the Line of Checkout?

4

This article is written in such bad faith it’s not even worth countering any of the “points” being made. Only someone who is so jaded and consumed by their own bile would suggest individuals who commit themselves to law enforcement and public safety is not worthy of honor or respect. I get Charles has an eccentric take on things due to his bourgeoisie lifestyle but this is a steaming pile of crap.

5

Proud liberal, I fly the American flag next to my Black Lives Matter lawn sign! Why did we roll over and let fascists take our symbol? Nope. Passing laws about police flying flags is a waste of time. My flag. Just try and take it, I dare you.

6

Bingo let your freak Flag fucking FLY
stars and stripes too if ya got 'em
my relly's got a neighbor with a
GIANT Trumpf flag last I saw
and I thought that was
Awesome -- not the
manchild, the
Statement.

Fuck Yeah.

7

@3 -- Hmmmm. Let's see, garbage workers work for the city. There job is more dangerous than police work (https://www.ishn.com/articles/112748-top-25-most-dangerous-jobs-in-the-united-states). So every time I see someone picking up the trash I should salute them. Thank you for your service, brave sanitation worker!

Charles is right. This isn't about risk. This isn't about the benefit to society. Good teachers or social workers are more important to reducing crime, but we don't treat them the same way. It is about the perception that they are braver, and more badass than the rest of us, since they are willing to face "the bad guys". It leads to a militarization of the police. Of course the police play an important role in a well functioning society. So do people who pick up the trash. They both should be paid well, but neither shoudl be treated like a soldier.

8

@7: Why not just teat everyone with respect and not evaluate amounts of it given the profession?

Geez, so nasty and petty. This article is pure trash.

9

*treat

10

"These men and women of the badge are simply pissed about the perceived lack of admiration from the city they serve."

Last year cops in Seattle had to stand for hours while being insulted, racially abused, told to quit, and encouraged to commit suicide. They were shot by commercial grade fireworks, had bricks, rocks, and bottles thrown at them. One was hit by a baseball bat, a few guys also tried to glue a door shut to trap some cops in a building which others were trying to light on fire. Calling this a "perceived lack of admiration" is dishonest even for Charles. I suspect if grocery clerks or dentists were expecting to spend the summer shot by commercial fireworks and having rocks and bottles thrown at them, they'd perceive a similar lack of admiration and looks for employment at places where they weren't being assaulted on a daily basis.

11

@8 I agree that everyone should be treated with respect regardless of their profession. The issue with that is many police officers believe they deserve more respect and deference than other professions, and are willing to respond to perceived slights with (sometimes lethal) violence.

Everyone respects firefighters because (as far as I know) there are no videos of them going on a power trip and assaulting the people they are supposed to serve. I will wave a friendly hello at sanitation workers when I see them in appreciation of their service, which is made easier because I have no reason to think that they'll ever shoot me.

I think it makes sense to try to deflate the outsized egos/macho attitudes that many police officers have, which could make interactions more positive and gain them more respect overall. Even better, how about officers who interact with the public just don't have guns?

12

That is basically what Charles wrote. Treat the cops with respect. Treat the dentists with respect. Treat the sanitation workers with respect.

Just don't treat cops like they are in the military, as that increases the likelihood that they will act like they are.

13

@12: Yes, Charles always leaves himself a rather contorted "out" that his admirers are trained to pick up on while the rest of us are appalled.

15

Hey Charles, how about we start at the top of the alphabet with "A" for accountability? And while we are on "D" how about discipline? We do not have that and this last year there has been a nationwide movement for real police accountability & 100% civilian oversight. Defund, decriminalize, & deflate might, at best, leave us with fewer officers hurting more people. Why are we ignoring this when folks in Nashville, Newark, Oakland, San Diego, Portland, OR & so many other cities creating real civilian citizens for investigating & disciplining cops?

16

Are not police heroes when they take abusive husbands to jail? Or is even that a stretch for Charles?

17

@14 great example of false equivalence. If you want to compare correctly how many pretestors were killed last summer? TWO and it wasn’t by the police numbnuts. How many people have police killed over the years? How many have criminals killed? I betcha a lot more. There are bad police who do fucked up shit but this bigoted, deliberately false warped view needs to stop.

18

@17 Not false equivalence, just false logic. How many SPD officers killed in the last 10 yrs.? Exactly 0 (see odmp.org). How many people have SPD killed in the last 10 yrs.? 29. But this misses the point: people living in Seattle are not trained and funded to interact w/cops, but police are an organized force trained & funded to serve people. So regardless of how many police are hurt or killed by people, the police should not be hurting or killing without really good cause. Roofing is a super dangerous & deadly profession. Should we allow roofers to kill people because they die putting roofs on our house. This is not a game or a competition you fucking moron.

19

@18: "the police should not be hurting or killing without really good cause."

They try not to, but tragedies do happen.

Hating cops doesn't add credence to your arguments.

20

@19 What in my statement suggests hate in any way shape or form? Nothing. Absolutely fucking nothing. But I get it: for folks like you logic & facts are irrelevant. As is empathy & understanding.

21

@20: Ok, you don't hate cops. Good. Accordingly, I trust you give them some empathy and understanding as well.


Please wait...

and remember to be decent to everyone
all of the time.

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