Well, it seems I have been put on the local newspaper's shit list since I wrote in a while back and sought to rein in my column-writing duties: Several columns have simply disappeared into the newspaper maw without remark...
Oh well,
Here's the latest un-run maundering:
Oh well,
Here's the latest un-run maundering:
Strange to think that at the same time others are calling
(as in Minneapolis) for the
shutdown of their police departments, my son is doing everything he can to get
into the police academy in Amherst:
He wants to be a cop.
He wants to be a cop and I support him. Me, a card-carrying
liberal.
Why?
Because by the time the current chaos shakes out, there is
going to have to be someone to keep order and the police, however imperfect,
are probably the best instrument of that order. All of the other options I can
think of smell of Donald Trump or some religious franchise or of an anarchy
that will be more discombobulating than the Covid-19 virus.
It’s a little early in the game to say who is best equipped
to lead the next parade, but I think it needs to be an entity for everyone.
Will this hypothetical leader make mistakes? I think we can count on it – cops (among others) are
people too and people make mistakes. OK, so the question is not so much how
many, but which mistakes will be made. That, and the willingness to
admit to errors where and when they are made.
Someone is bound to iron out these wrinkles and I would like
to think that my son, mistakes and all, would be part of a ‘solution,’ however
fragile. He has wanted to be a police officer for a long time, so … like others
… he gets my vote and my best wishes.
My son has probably heard enough of my arguments against
becoming a cop: every day, you get out of bed suspecting the world – a soul-searing
point of view. Now is the time to dive right in. As Winston Churchill once
observed, “Democracy is the worst form of government … except for all the rest.”
Until someone proposes a more universal solution, I think I
will say that cops stand the best chance of helping to turn lemons into
lemonade.
PS The potential militaristic faux pas may loom large in the police scenario, but compared to the others ... well, it's just a thought.
Given: Society has essential needs that will be met one way or another.
ReplyDeleteGiven: Complex systems are always in need of periodic, discrete refinement.
The creation of a system of Law is one of the means to meet society's needs.
Laws need to be enforced.
Policing is one way to enforce a subset of the laws.
Policing is a complex system in desperate need of numerous refinements:
* Hiring & Screening
* Training
* Methodology
* Supervision
Unfortunately the “police," without using the label and, at least seemingly, largely without understanding the practices, has become a Cult. Like many cults, it is unreasonably resistent to criticism much less willing or able to change.This flies in the face of the needs of any complex system. It opposes some of the needs of society like fairness, justice, mercy.
I wonder if a given person’s character flaws drawn him or her to policing as much if not more than the more altruistic aspirations often articulated. This is likely true for most if not all professions.
I cannot envision a society without laws and law enforcement. I expect mistakes. I expect a willingness to rigorously address mistakes, especially mistakes frequently made. However the Cult of the Police is too resistant to address its mistakes. That unwillingness is sickening.
Hopefully, but not realistically, young people going into that needed profession, will pick their police department to apply for and join wisely.
I agree that cops stand the best chance of helping to turn lemons into lemonade.
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