it could be many different things, from movies we watch where cops sometimes are made out to be the bad guys. some of them are bad, yet they can control things. it may be that they have power/law over you, so you may feel threatened by them. there could be lots of reasons.

How they have more authority than you, but you know they're probably the same as you, or even worse. And when they screw up bad, they get suspended for a few weeks, unlike a normal person getting put into jail for years. My uncle is a cop and they can get away with a lot more than just anybody, it's screwed up.

i think it probly comes from the multiple gunshot wounds to criminal and non-criminal alike. although im joking to a degree, im sure ur fear does stem from the power that they have over others and like a previouse answer said, they are still human. but its not just cops u should be weary of, its the thirst for power and abuse of it that a select type of human has

well latly the cops havnt been right beating up people and Drinkimg and driving cant trust all cops and did u know if ur walking and u need a ride u can stop a cop and tell htem to give u a ride cuz they r there to help the citizens right i heard u can do that

Your not alone, and a problem arises as the absence of public trust in police increases and that citizens characterizes police and community relations throughout U.S. Without public trust in the police, our duties are difficult or impossible and public safety suffers. You may at some point in your life had a negative contact with an officer. There are some bad apples in the basket but don't judge all of us, there are alot more good ones than bad ones.

It's not so much the individual cop we don't like, whether he's nice or an ass. Rather, its the oppressive nature of police presence that disturbs us. Some may get more disturbed than others (some could be doing something illegal), but we all get that paranoid feeling when we see a cop. We become suddenly aware of ourselves. We watch the speed we're driving at, stay within the lane much straighter, etc. Symbolically, we perceive police as representative of the state (police comes from the Greek word 'polis' = "city-state"). Chances are if you don't trust the state you belong to, you won't trust it's cops. "Bad boys, bad boys, watcha gonna do? ...Watcha gonna do when they come for you?" - Inner Circle

I am African American and was raised to not entirely trust "Officer Friendly." In the history of this country, police officers have done some pretty horrible things, individually and aggregately entire forces have impeded the law. The police forces, for instance, were instrumental in repressing the names of lynch mob members in the south and were none too helpful in integrating the public schools south of the Mason Dixon line, thereby mandating federal assistance be implimented in what should have been local-assist situations. I don't encourage my own children to dwell on these things. But if some families can't get it out of their systems, it does not surprise me. My father marched on Washington with Martin Luther King. I do not blame him for teaching me wariness regarding police. But I do believe that it is time to work in concert with the healthy parts of the force to bring bad policeman/women to justice.

If you have ever had any encounter with the police where you were not a victim, you quickly learn that, unless they have achieved rank of LT or CPT, they are juvenile, poorly trained, insecure and are allowed the ability to be manipulative, duplicitious and frankly to lie about anything to get you to say anything you want them to say. They must be this way to be effective at their job, but it does not change the fact that they are simply pricks when they deal with you. If you haven't had contact with them, it's probably a meme from your family from those who have had contact with them.

Oh, the Rodney King video, those lights in your morror, the long lines at Duncan Donuts, the Simpsons for a few reasons. Shall I continue? Ok, when your house got robbed AFTER you called the police, um... when the expressway is jammed because a cop pulled someone over for speeding-like there wasn't enough to choose from!(even though the national speed limit was repealed so there is no speed limit on the books!) Shall I continue?... I thought not! Have a nice day officer.. sir! JK!

I wish a police officer or nine would respond to this question. We really do want to know.

I was married to a detective and not a good cop at all. However, there are good police officers and bad ones, just like any other profession. Some use excessive force, some dont. Cops represent authority and alot of people have a problem with that. One of my best friends is a Lieutenant on the force where I live. He said he became a cop cause he hated authority figures. But regardless, when you need them they are THERE.

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You know, I had a mail man kick my door in, shotgun in hand (like he needed a gun he was 6ft 11in. and 280lbs) and I had to get the gun away from him (good thing I caught him comming around the corner-we both were comming around the corner so he had the gun a bit up and I grabbed it at both ends so I had leverage on him). He was trying to get my sister whom he broke up with recently. Good I had all my friends over, and they helped me (one of them helped-while another called the cops) -the rest dove behind tables or ran, while the guy unloaded the gun into the cieling becuase I kept it pointed up, while another friend grabbed him from behind, both of us wrestilng him. Anyway.. the cops stole 900 bucks out of my sisters room while we were all at the station telling our versions in separate rooms. Oh ya, and they kept asking me for my keys, like they were not already inside my house when I left, so I kept thinking why do they want me to give them the keys>maybe so they have permission for anything they find?? so I get home after not giving them my keys, and find a big bag of pot in the middle of my living room-like a set up or something, or maybe from someone I rented a room to?? but u see now why I hate the Glenview police! (thieves!) I did not report the theft because it would have affected the trial no doubt, like OJ's trial where the guy had said the N word a million times on a tape of his interview, and they played the interview tape right after he said he never said the N word (under oath) so it DESTROYED the credibility of the police. Now I see that same N word cop always being consulted on CNN news! Didn't THEY watch the news? or the trial? (then came the stroke of brilliance, they tried to make up for it by admitting they brought OJ's blood sample TO THE CRIME SCENE)-wow!-where they found his blood dripped down the sidewalk. Anyway now I believe about the going postal thing. Make sure you have adequite postage on your mail!

Don't you just know that i am going to answer this question? This is what i do for a living. my daughter was born hating authority figures. boy, was she born into the wrong family. somehow, we have all made it together, until she left home and married. Sometimes, its strictly when you were born and your astrological sign. I hope your question is not associated with a bad encounter with the police. if this did occur, please remember that all officers are not alike. please do not judge us all, by the actions of a few. we have families and live our life, just as yours. the only difference is we enforce the laws. A lot of people have the same opinion as you. maybe, this is because they have never had a one on one with a police officer. to actually get to know a police officer. The criminals naturally do not like the police and we all know why. you may have your likes and dislikes for the police. i promise you this, we would give our life in a heartbeat to save yours. Don't judge us all, by the actions of a few. we are all different and abide by the oath we have sworn to uphold.....and always will.

I don't like or trust cops either, so wherever you're getting it, we're shopping at the same store!

Most people feel unprepared to deal with a cop because cops are usually intimidating. When dealing with police officers just keep in mind they are there to protect us most of the time or responding to a call. This video usually makes people feel better prepared to deal and if you have nothing to hide the cop won't have to waste time with you and can respond to calls.

If your not doing something against the law don't worry about it. I'm a blonde women, fairly attractive, all my life I've been treated like I'm stupid, thats their first mistake! I don't sit around and moun about it all the time, jeez people need to live and let live.Stop already with the poor me crap. Everybody has something to get over, be ye old, blonde, black, green, red, white, female, male, smart, stupid, yellow, fat, skinny, or whatever, you get my drift. So stop the tunnel vision, look at the big picture, we all live under the same sky, we all walk on the same earth, we all are born and will die someday so in between try to enjoy what ever you can.

There could be several sources. If you are a person who is perfectly capable of policing yourself, you may see the police force as unnecessary and intrusive - someone out there watching you when you don't need to be watched. You don't see yourself in circumstances where you might need protection from law enforcement. You are independent, responsible and accountable for your actions, and you take care of your own problems without official interference. So why does a cop need to be involved? If you are a person who falls into one of the "profiling" categories this could explain why you don't trust cops - you are in the minority in some way in your locale and therefore you stand out. Maybe you have a Harley and you live in an area where everyone else drives a pickup truck. That makes people wonder "what's he doing here?" This could cause you to resent the additional attention paid to you by law enforcement, when all you've done is exercise a personal choice. There are times when others may need cops, even if you don't. Not everyone is independently capable of handling everything that happens in their lives, nor are they in control of events. I'm thinking of abusive relationships, especially involving kids, and unassuming folks who don't see themselves as targets for scams, robbery, rape and so on. And not all of us police ourselves either, obviously!

Woah! Who you gonna' call when you need somebody? In all professions there are good ones and bad ones. I like to think that there are more good ones. I know if I see a uniform around when there looks like trouble, I am quite relieved. I suppose what you have been exposed to watching tv or incidents that have happened in your life could be a factor in why you feel this way. All the apples in the barrel are not rotten. Imagine life without them.

Living in the UK perhaps, where they have been given powers to stop someone for any reason they damn well care to think of

I feel the same way. Maybe it's because of the movies and the news. Cops make me nervous. When I see a cop, I shake. I try to stay calm while I'm driving. I know there were a lot of police brutality and corruption in South Central Los Angeles, back in the day. I get the feeling they're trying to claim their badge through harrassment.

Fear of authority. Sometimes this is supported by experience, too.