You never can tell with FR. I posted it in Chat because it really is a vanity more than anything else, Probably would get more if I'd put it in News.
What this means is even though I despise the highly-orchestrated forces that conspire against the Baltimore PD, now I simply roll my eyes and fold my arms when I hear cop jobs there are becoming difficult.
Absolutely. I don't think the agents of the state (that would include everything from police, to FBI, to the faggots at BATF). really understand how much goodwill they've already lost. When the folks at FR can't and won't trust them, they lose a lot more than they think, because we, the responsible God fearing folks of this country are a real force-multiplier for them. We are eyes and ears for them, and are helpful when they ask for assistance or information. What happens as more and more people come to the conclusion that the only thing it is safe to talk to any representative of the state about is football?
Officer: Did you see what happened here?
Citizen: How 'bout them Cowboys?
They depend upon our willing cooperation in ways that they don't even think about.
This is something they really need to start thinking about.
Wow, you've said something very important, there. For a long time I lived in Japan and in very many ways that place polices ITSELF --you don't think twice about turning in bad guys, even guys who really aren't so bad.
The trust of the average Japanese person in the cops is strong, even to a fault, from a democratic perspective. A little-known fact is that Jap cops can pick you up on the street and hold you up to TWENTY THREE DAYS, interrogating you the whole time, even before charging you with a crime.
That's hair-raising, but on the whole this unusual trust goes unabused. Some of the reasons for that I do know, but some (as with many Japanese) I can only guess at.
But the main point is there is very, very high trust between J cops and the people.
Quick example --I have curly blonde hair and sometimes drove a motorcycle. I had wet hair still, and 0.5 km or so I rode with my helmet hanging down somewhat, off of my head in an improper manner, the better to dry my hair. A taxi began FOLLOWING me, honking the whole time...!
Yeah, normal people often ENFORCE laws..! For that reason I think Japan is probably cop paradise, but I digress:
I came back to the US with this same view of "Cops are our partners and one should take pride in turning in bad guys..."
I quickly discovered that if you approach cops with good, detailed information on local crimes often you are in for a huge surprise --they will often react by INVESTIGATING *YOU*.
I think this is mostly laziness, and they were hoping to deter future reports.
Another example:
Japan in many respects is a paragon of good organization, but strangely the address system of cities is hugely, hugely screwed-up and non-intuitive. Finding new places is HARD, and many people commonly pop into tiny police sub-stations to inquire for directions. J cops are hugely familiar with this and indulge nearly every request for directions.
I brought back this habit to the USA, but got a huge shock:
I was either treated with extravagant disdain or even physically THREATENED.
I couldn't believe it, but later after some very much worse American cop experiences I banished all my surprise and doubt.
I loathe criminals, but I'm not so big on cops, either, I discovered.