So over thanksgiving my brother-in-law was talking about how he's currently going through the training to become a cop (being fast tracked for reason below) and I'm not quite sure how I feel about that. On one hand, I'm firmly in the ACAB camp. On the other hand, if somebody is going to be hired a cop, he seems like the kind of person that would do the least harm.
Frist off, he is an MP in the army and has been for several years so he already has more and better training/dicipline than most cops out there. He has actual training in conflict deescalation and proper restraint methods that don't kill people. Unlike most cops he actually has real firearm training so he can be trusted not to shoot at falling acorns or blow an infants head off in an altercation. He has actual medical training, which most cops aren't required to have.
Outside of training he also does seem like a decent guy. He's not an agressive macho shitbag like most cops and he does what he can to help people. He does strike me as leaning slightly conservative but he also lives in a rural area of a red state so that's to be expected. I don't think he's a trump supporter but if he is then he's smart enough to keep his mouth completely shut about it even after the election (which trump supporters usually aren't).
So I'm kind of torn on this one. On one hand, our current policing system is rotten to the core and he's someone looking to be a part of that. On the other hand, even though the current system needs to be burned down and rebuilt, we do need some form of police force and he seems like someone who would do the least harm in that roll.
So yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about that. I would be interested to hear what y'all think though. Have any other lemmings experienced similar or have family members who are cops?
Nothing will ever change if only rotten people go into the system. Of course, there's a high chance he will become corrupt himself, but it's a necessary risk.
You can't hope for some higher power to come down and fix things. Nobody is going to magically dismantle the police and form a new one. The best you can do is make the police as diverse as possible, especially in the personality profile of it members.
Hey why can't we hope for a larger reform? It's not like police reform is an impossible concept, just having oversight boards staffed with the civilians cops are meant to be protecting would go a long way towards curbing police brutality, as it would actually allow prosecution and consequences for bad officers.
Sending good people to get framed/killed/terrorized by bad cops on an individual basis is far less likely to enact any meaningful change than supporting and voting for local police reform.
That's kind of where I'm at right now. He is the best person to be working a bad job.
As far as the higher power coming down and fixing things, I am hoping for that. That higher power being our government. The only way things are going to improve is with proper oversight and accountability which can't come from within. As it is the rotten system isn't going to un-rot itself. The few decent cops out there are more likely to be fired for it than to change anything. The change needs to be forced upon them from the outside.