I've been discussing this on another forum (in the UK) and some people think that the police being armed is a very bad idea (it's a trust thing). I personally believe that arming the police is a good thing but appreciate that accidents happen and innocent people sometimes get killed.

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if you're a petty criminal, and you know the cop isn't carrying, you'll be that much less likely to shoot him.

of course, that doesn't apply for organized crime, but that shouldn't be fought by regular street cops anyway

that said, I like our system ok. They carry, but are not allowed to even take the gun out of the holster except in some specific situations.

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Originally posted by FS:
Wow, I can't believe I'm agreeing with FS on this one

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Originally posted by RoGuEBoB:
I'm working for a police dept in central MA and I couldn't imagine why anyone would consider disarming the police. Each item the officer carries is used for a specific purpose depending on what the situation calls for. pepperspray, baton, gun (some departments carry the tazers too - not us though). How could people expect police to deal with dangerous situations when they aren't as well equipped as the criminals. Take a basic m/v stop - let's say its a slow night and i got a guy for a headlight out. When I approach the car I've got to be cautious because there isn't a such thing as a "routine" stop. Who know's what he's got in the car - maybe he's got some drugs in the car... maybe he's got a warrant and doesn't want to go to jail. Or even a domestic... who wants someone going into their house and telling them what to do. Whether they have a gun hidden in a drawer or a kitchen full of knives. No matter what the officer should have the advantage and be one step ahead of the criminal.

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can you help me with a speeding ticket?

I find your point valid but then again, I support cops armed to the teeth.

The reason for the question is a debate about the Brazilian lad who was shot to death on the tube in London a couple of weeks ago. He was innocent so, of course, people start debating the fact that cops should [not] be armed. Funny how the media only concentrates on the incidents where things go wrong i.e. innocent people killed by cops, rather than the countless times guns have helped save lives and prevented crimes being committed.

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Originally posted by doublefresh:
I think they should carry bigger guns and exterminate all the trash you see on tv shows like cops. What % of the country (US) is unemployed white and black trash?

If you can't graduate high school, don't have a job and are a thief to boot you should be shot on site.

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A couple years ago we had a Dirty Harry scenario in downtown Calgary. An off duty cop happened to be in a drugstore in a downtown mall when some nutso drugged up fool all of a sudden grabbed a woman and held her from behind with a knife to her throat (might have been a gun to the head, I forget). I don't remember what caused the whole scenario either but the cop said he saw the crazed look in the dudes eyes so he pulled out his pistol and when the guy wouldn't drop his knife he promptly planted a bullet right between his eyes over the womans shoulder. Suprisingly, there was very little investigation or reviewing of this incident. Everybody just said gg and called him a hero.
Note: I'll see if I can dig the story up to get the details.

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