ANSWERS: 35
  • They cannot be trusted as there is always corrupt people in every large organisation. A lot of them also have an 'agenda' where certain people will not be prosecuted because of who they are.
  • Pfft no.
  • I guess it depends on where you live in the world. In Canada, 99% of our police are "top cops". Yes, with the resources ($$$$ and staff) they are allotted, they do their utmost to protect us and keep our neighbourhoods safe and laws enforced to maintain the common good.
  • En masse - yes. Individually - no. The last people you tell that you are going on holiday is the police!
  • Well we would like to think so ,and i would hope that they would ,when you think about it it is not the easiest job going i would say that the police do a good job under the circumstances ,now and again there are problems ,and we must also think about how many people are out there breaking the law .+5
  • Absolutely NOT!!! The more power a person or entity has, the less it should be trusted. The government, police, military and courts should be the least trusted bodies in any free country, and should be constantly subject to an alert and critical eye so that when corruption starts it can be nipped in the bud.
  • The police are just thugs hired to fight other thugs. No one should be surprised when they get out of control. So, that's a no from me. I'm not saying any specific police officer is a bad person, or even that they all are. I'm saying that they're all just people like the rest of the citizens, only they are given the authority to use force on everyone else in order to maintain the law. But, it doesn't really matter what they are supposed to use this authority for, it only matters that they have it. The problem is that there is nothing special about cops. I mean, they have training that most other citizens don't have, but they are not morally or ethically better than the rest of the people just by merit of being police officers, but they are given authority over everyone else anyway. Now, there really is no other way to do this; it's not like we could breed a race of morally superior cops who would never abuse their power or act selfishly. That is something that we just cannot do. So, the next best thing is to keep an eye on them, and make sure they act the way they are supposed to. Really, no person or organization that has power over you should be trusted, even if they tell you that they are going to use that power to protect you and serve you.
  • The Police are made up of human beings. Like all human beings, some are selfless, caring, intelligent, people who were born to be heroes in one way or another...large and small...they don't want to die, but if called to be sacrifice, they would step up to do what they see as the right thing needed to protect another. Some pray each day they work, not to need to draw their gun for any reason, they don't want to be faced with having to take a life, they value life, especially young people, who can be on the wrong path and need stopping. Then, you have the other side of the coin. A person who is lazy, or committed to only pleasing themselves in anyway available. Someone who could care a-less, but likes to look good as long as it is convenient and doesn't cost them too much effort. You have abusive bullies, who use their position to cause harm and unhappiness, and are content and happy to do so. Like all of the rest of us...they too are ultimately...JUST FOLKS. Some would risk themselves to protect you or someone you love...and others would spend their energy trying to figure out how to LOOK as if they did the right thing, while looking for a good hole to hide in. I get MY opinion from spending several years working with them, as a Traffic Controller in San Diego.
  • Short answer: NO
  • No. The police tend to follow the letter of the law. Any good that comes from that is purely subjective, and frequently coincidental. Are they helping when a battered wife's husband is put in jail overnight? Possibly, but frequently not. Are they helping when they can legally lie in order to coerce someone into breaking the law? Not at all, at that point they have become enablers. Are they helping by arresting someone for some minor infraction when other, more violent and dangerous criminals are allowed to roam freely and do as they please? In my experience, no. Are they helping when they knowingly ruin someone's life because that person committed the victimless crime of smoking pot rather than drinking alcohol? Not in my book. My daughter was raped in my home by a an acquaintance from school. She was taken to the hospital and the boy's DNA was obtained by the doctor on call. I waited for about three weeks while the police tried to apprehend him, only to be told that the boy denied the crime even though police had DNA and crime scene evidence that proved without a doubt that the rape actually DID occur. Police then told me that they wouldn't prosecute because it was the boy's word against my daughter's word. I'll never, ever trust the police to do the right thing.
  • only to a certain degree and better in some countries than others
  • Having worked with police officers in varying capacities for quite a few years now, most of them are good people who do take their oath seriously, but like any other group you always have a few bad apples. Regrettably it tends to be worse than with most due to the power that police are entrusted with. That said, something I find disturbing overall is the increasing militarization of the police force. This comes about due to their preference for hiring veterans which is something I question as a best practice. Police work is a different animal from a combat environment and this practice is showing in the 'us vs. them' (them being the civilian population) attitude many of the younger generation of officers display. Yes, they need to be cautious, however when this attitude grows to the point of paranoia that interferes with your performing of the job it has gone too far. Further, these officers tend to be more concerned with the letter of the law and view you often not as a victim or someone in need but rather as a potential threat. I tend to get along better with the older officers who are often inclined to just let someone slide for minor offenses, case in point being a couple of DARE officers I'm familiar with. The one that recently took over is miserable in the capacity as he no longer gets to 'bust the bad guys' and it frankly shows. The other one never cared so much about his arrest record but rather felt that programs such as DARE that aim to prevent trouble in the first place are more productive than simply throwing people in the slammer for minor offenses. I know that its not Mayberry anymore (if ever), but this viewing the public at large as an enemy is a very dangerous trend. It encourages distrust of the police and feeds the poor image further.
  • Always? Nope
  • The police are recruited from the local area and reflect what is happening in the community. If we have a violent community it is only reasonable to say that some of these violent thugs will pass the police entrance exam and then carry on their violent behaviour hiding behind a badge. These type of officers give the decent police officer a bad name, and should be removed for the safety of the public which they are supposed to protect. And finally, what type of officer (volunteers) for a Police Support Unit Riot Squad and puts himself in danger?
  • Depends what you call the Police as there are so many departments and sections that its almost a service within a service. I know plenty of Cops from your "beat the street" to your traffic cop from your swat team cop to your drugs squad. One thing is for certain and that is that you either ride with them or collide with them and they are not for turning unless you either know enough cops or play the game. They are the strong arm of the government after all the military and it's secret service can depose the police and government the corporations and their lawyers and oligarchs can disable both.
  • i hope if i ever need them i can count on them
  • Nope. Many of them are crooked.
  • The very nature of how the question is worded makes for a no answer naturally. Police always? Nothing is an always.
  • And thats a big NO!
  • The Police, as a group, are a very reactionary bunch. I don't mean that in the political sense, but in the sense that they are usually called after a crime has been committed. Until they get there, you are stuck protecting yourself.
  • NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I am surrounded by police officers on my small court and could tell you things that would curl your toes! SOME are the sneakiest, cheapest crooks out there and will break any law they can.
  • nope. thats like asking, "can people always be trusted to protect us?" cause police are humans! haha lol
  • I would hope that the public would answer yes. I realize that all police officers are not created equal. I would guess that 95% are honest and the other 5% makes the other 95% look like criminals. When i was 8 years old, i always wanted to be a police officer. i held the police on a pedestial. someone to look up to, someone that would always be there when i needed help. I have tried to carry on my belief for many years in uniform. One event changed my mind, to a degree, with hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. many police officers there abandoned their post, when the hurrican arrived. i assume they were terminated.
  • NO! You must always be prepared to protect yourself. You cannot depend on police to protect you because they are just not there when the SHTF. Calling 911 is a waste of time since we all understand that when seconds count, the police respond in minutes.
  • Police officers are humans, as are doctors, lawyers, pharmacists, waiters etc... Just because they pass some exams doesn't mean they should be trusted. Of course, it's difficult not to trust doctors when someones life is in danger, but not everyone who passes the exams cares. It's sad how many people can just get through a class and get a title with the power to essentially decide the fate of many, many people. We can hope and trust that we are in good hands...
  • No, they do what they can, but they are not always there when you need them. I think there are not enough cops on the job. And I've heard about times when they are forced to make a quick decision and they end up shooting the good guy and letting the bad guy run away! Hey, they are only human!
  • No, not always...
  • No they can't be.
  • Like this one maybe? http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=6467266&page=1
  • Lol. Absolutely not.
  • The police do what the taxpayers want to pay for. Since the taxpayers are so cheap, many times we are left without any protection at all. The Chief of Police for Sacramento CA went on TV and announced that the department would no longer investigate home burglaries because of the massive budget cutbacks. Since then, the crooks literally cruise the streets with pick up trucks and take whatever they want from houses that are easy to break into.
  • seriously, just type in the words "crooked cop" and see how many stories you get of cops guilty of assault, fraud, rape, murder, embezzlement, etc etc...cops are people with power and no person can really be trusted with power..it corrupts. Not to say there aren't good cops but everyone knows cops CAN'T ALWAYS be trusted to protect us or do the right thing...people are people they do bad things, good things, stupid things and negligent things too...sometimes that means they do not protect and serve as well (if at all) as they could have..
  • I don't trust the damn police for jack shit. I rely on me to protect myself and as long as I have a gun handy, I will do so.
  • Only if you are a white upper middle class male.

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