In Praise of Police

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

After the recent bout of discussion focusing on the things we don’t like about police, I thought I’d take a little time to say something positive.

I’ve been pulled over for traffic violations of various sorts, and almost every time the officer was polite and professional. Once in my teens I had an officer who was a bit rude, but other than that they’ve all been very friendly. I’ve been given warnings for things I could have been ticketed for on many occasions.

Basically, I’ve never felt threatened or even that an officer was ‘out to get me.’

I have been pulled over in circumstances where I know that the officer was pretty much looking for any excuse to pull people over, because he was specifically looking to get drunk drivers off the road. A small conversation and a warning and that’s it.

The two times in my life I have called the police for various things they’ve been fine as well.

I have a buddy who is a cop, and I’ve seen some cruiser footage of him, and frankly, I’m amazed at the patience and tolerance that he (and I assume other officers) are able to maintain in high-stress situations. Similarly, the number of traffic stops or calls that involve people being beligerant or openly hostile towards the police is surprising. Certainly not a job I could handle.

So, that’s that. Most every experience I have had with the police (even when I have been ticketed) has left me feeling well-treated and respected. Certainly there are jerks out there, and it’s unfortunate that they seem to be able to use their positions of power to let out frustrations/prejudices/attitudes on those of us who are at the mercy of law enforcement. Still, in general the profession deserves a hand, IMO.

2

Therer’s a heck of a lot of great dops out there. I don’t know how they manage to do their job day after day but I’m glad they’re doing it.

As with any group of people, the bad apples spoil it for the rest. Here’s to all the good cops out there!

3

Well there was the time a police officer stopped a thief who was stealing about $200 worth of school supplies from my car. He left his business card on my door and told me to come to the station to pick my stuff up. He must’ve gone through the project manager of the apartment complex to find out where I lived so he could give me my stuff back as my name wasn’t on my apartment door.

4

I deal with 6 or 7 different law enforcement agencies at work on a regular basis and by and large they’re all wonderful to work with. They’re always there to help us out when we need them, too.

5

It is neither unfair condemnation, nor excessive praise.