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Date Posted: 13:10:29 05/27/04 Thu
Author: Adilbrand
Subject: I think there is more to it than that
In reply to: mvd 's message, "Every cop is a criminal" on 07:22:14 05/25/04 Tue

Police officers deal with stresses that many of us do not have to face - they get hit, shot at, etc. Also, they are trained to take that attitude (yelling, intimidation) because it often activates a person's "fight or flight" tendencies. The person either backs down and leaves, which makes the police officer's job easier, or he fights, which lets the police officer take appropriate action. Diplomacy and politeness leaves too much of a guessing game for the officer - and, in the short run, the officer's life is much easier if he can just make people back down.

I am not saying the above is true in all cases, surely there are small and weak officers just as there are fraudulent accountants, preying ministers, and other unsavory sorts. I am just saying the above is an alternative possibility. The officer's reaction may be the result of training more than the natural inclination of the man who first joined the force.

I think anyone who stays long in their duties starts to incorporate their training into their own personality, forgetting why they joined in the first place or why they do certain things.

Habits form from repeated use of techniques and methods. I have met young ministers, full of enthusiasm and sincerity, and met older ones, who use the lines that work out of habit, and forget about the enthusiasm and sincerity they once had. I have met young teachers who go in, ready to change the world, and old teachers who have just given in to the system, habits trained in them for so long they don't even realize it. The same works for some police officers. I do not think that makes any of the above (which by no means describes all people in those vocations) small or weak.

I don't think many people who join these vocations do it because they feel they are missing something. They may just feel they have a contribution to make. Some join for the power and authority. Some join because they want to be like TJ Hooker or some other TV cop. Some do it for the adventure. I am sure there are some who do it out of familial expectation. They may have never even seriously considered another vocation. Every person has a unique motivation, but habits tend to make the "uniformed" person act like a stereotype sometimes.

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