# Should U.S. police be given excess military weapons?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-u-s-police-be-given-excess-military-weapons/794938>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [August 28, 2017, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-u-s-police-be-given-excess-military-weapons/794938 "2017-08-28T15:06:24Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 6

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**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2017, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-u-s-police-be-given-excess-military-weapons/794938/101 "2017-08-29T14:59:28Z")

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> [@RTFirefly](#):
>
> When the police come into a nonviolent situation like they’re the fucking Imperial Sardaukaur instead of human beings in uniforms, where the military draws the line between the definition of ‘tank’ and stuff that’s indistinguishable from a civilian POV hardly matters.

Meh. I am generally considered “anti-cop”. I’ve actually been banned from other forums for making statements that are too derogatory of police. It’s only here that I get backed into defending the police. In this case, those “nonviolent situations” have recently featured Antifa thugs throwing bottles of urine at the police. Given that, I don’t fault them at all for donning helmets, shields, and gas masks before showing up to work.

It would be better for everyone if people on all sides were actually nonviolent and respectful of their political opponents and the people paid to show up and keep the peace, but as recent events have shown, things can turn violent in the blink of an eye, and it’s not unreasonable for the police to be prepared for that potential outcome.

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**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-u-s-police-be-given-excess-military-weapons/794938/102 "2017-08-29T17:25:32Z")

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> [@HurricaneDitka](#):
>
> In this case, those “nonviolent situations” have recently featured Antifa thugs throwing bottles of urine at the police.

In \*what \*case? In every case where the police have shown up in gear where they don’t even look like people because they’re so armored up? I don’t think so.

This has been happening for years, and nobody’d even heard of Antifa this time last year.

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