# Tribal behavior by police and some professionals but not others ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 29, 2020, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691 "2020-05-29T19:17:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Deeg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/deeg/32/2955_2.png) [@Deeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deeg)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2020, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691/21 "2020-06-03T17:03:44Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Yes, there’s the concept of “professional courtesy”, but the question is why it applies to some professions but not others. When a scientist violates professional ethical norms, other scientists want them out of the profession. When a police officer violates professional ethical norms, other police officers circle the wagons in defense. Why the difference? What if the scientists are in the same lab? My guess (strictly a guess, I have no proof one way or the other) is that the scientists would be much more likely to cover for their colleagues, or at least turn a blind eye to it. I don’t think there’s a lot of difference between humans in this regard. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2020, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691/22 "2020-06-03T17:22:12Z")
You can’t compare police work to professions. Police officers aren’t professionals. They’re trained, not educated. Expecting them to act like scientists or lawyers or doctors is pointless, they’re not the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2020, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691/23 "2020-06-03T17:47:42Z")
If scientists thought their work was under attack from people who didn’t want them to succeed, they would be alot more tribal and reticent to criticize other scientists. An example is historians who are loathe to criticize the 1619 project because even though it gets a bunch of stuff wrong their hearts are in the right place and they don’t want to be on the side of those criticizing. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2020, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691/24 "2020-06-03T17:49:32Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2020, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691/25 "2020-06-04T18:40:05Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > An example is historians who are loathe to criticize the 1619 project because even though it gets a bunch of stuff wrong their hearts are in the right place and they don’t want to be on the side of those criticizing. Exactly. As historical analysis, the 1619 Project is absolute flaming garbage, but as historical/social commentary, it’s spot on. So historians are probably loath to criticize it for fear of their criticism of the history being misinterpreted as criticism of the message. + [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tribal-behavior-by-police-and-some-professionals-but-not-others/854691.md?page=1)