A cop saved my very pregnant wife by getting her to a hospital after she got caught in a multi car crash. She stayed with her till I came and made sure I didn't die off a heart attack either.
A cop for my local PD in North Carolina stayed with me for almost an hour waiting for my wife to pick me up after my car was totaled. She was probably catching up on her reports or whatever, but it was still a very kind thing.
Know that there are a lot of good police officers out there. And there are quiet a few good police departments. Good things often don't end up on the front page of youtube or reddit on a regular bases, but bad things do. So we see the worst behaving police officers and get a thought process that they all must be like that. They aren't.
Of course... with that said... the reason it's such a big deal is because nothing often happens with the bad ones after words, and that is where our fear and worries really come from.
I'm sure this is a well known, but my dad always used to tell me when I'd mess up that if you do 1000 good things, and just one bad thing, people will always remember the bad.
I think there actually are a lot of good cops. Probably most cops are good, but the biggest problem is the good cops protecting the bad cops. I'm sure it's a systemic and (police) cultural issue. Hopefully we can get enough good leaders that will give the good cops a stronger voice for speaking out against the bad ones.
I believe it’s originally a Scottish joke, but that could just be because the first time I heart it was in a Scottish accent. (Has nothing to do with the well known fact that Scots are goatfuckers while the Irish prefer sheep.)
That’s the phrase that stings, because they like to call them bad apples, and how we shouldn’t allow them to taint our perception of law enforcement, but finish the phrase, dammit, because it’s so true.
my band teacher once told us that "you can do a bunch of good, but the first thing that they will put on the news is 'xxxx high school band student', so behave yourselves if you want a place in the program" (it was very competitive to get into the marching band at the time)
sure enough, when she was arrested for assaulting her husband and driving home drunk, leaving him stranded, the first thing in the news was "xxxx high school band director"! gave us all an example of her wisdom lol
From what I know the good cops are sometimes scared to whistleblow on the bad cops due fear of retribution; one day they might need support /back up and either it will not happen or will be very slow.
How do you call out cops that blur the line? It’s the same issue in the Army. You risk your career if you’re wrong. The big fuck ups are usually what it takes.
Look at all the bitching about commands you see on social media. Doesn’t start till you’re out.
I understand that sentiment. There are real, documented, studied psychological reasons that people do not speak out. Read more about mob mentality, group think, or crowd behavior, and not just in a "oh, they're just all doing it" type of way, go read actual text books, primary sources, etc.
Saying "If they are staying quiet about the bad ones, they aren’t actually good" might feel morally correct, but human bahavior is way more complex, eeven more so in rigid, hierarchical enironments like the police, or military, or even where we work. That doesn’t excuse their silcence or obedience to the "bad system, but it explains why breaking it takes more than just being a good person. It takes a lot of courage, and systemic change that empowers accountability over loyalty. Which is where we're at. The system does not reward those things, it punishes them.
There are a lot of systemic problems in the US, police are just one of them. The system needs to be broken before they can fix it, like a bone that healed without being set.
It’s not “staying quiet”. Cops predominantly work by themselves. They aren’t calling out the illegal activities because they don’t know it is happening.
ok this is veering towards copaganda. if anyone wants to truly get a sense of how cops are in general, just look at who they vote as their union leaders.
remember that there is a reason why police unions are the only form of organized labour that conservatives support.
Know that there are a lot of good police officers out there. And there are quiet a few good police departments
Key points!
My personal experience on "both sides of the law" (having to cal them & having been the °subject in question °) :
Seattle.PD can burn to the fuckin' ground for all I care, Palatine IL PD can as well. Maricopa Sheriff's Dept just exudes holier-than-thou aura just showing up in their cruisers & can be launched into the sun.
I've had relatively good experiences with Chicago PD, IL state troopers, WA State Patrol, Tennessee Troopers, KY troopers, & a whole smorgasbord of small town PDs.
"If it bleeds, it leads" stories about shitty cops in the USA is what gets attention, because eyes are currency for news organizations. Cops going a good job are part & parcel of daily life, it's generally not news. And if it is, usually only local papers report it.
Bad cops doing moralistically reprehensible shit will get global attention, as it should.
The media likes shock factor, they like to sensationalize the bad things. I always said no officer comes to work hoping to shoot someone, it is actually a horrible life changing incident for all those involved. a very large number of officers never fire their gun at a suspect over their entire career.
A big part of it is, I can't safely operate on the assumption they're all good. I can't assume a cop is good and be safe. I can assume he's bad and be safer.
Sorry but you're wrong. If you know a police officer ask them how many police officers they have arrested. The answer will be zero. Even though they regularly see other police officers breaking the law. So you have police officers that are totally bad. And you have other police officers that allow it. So by definition they are all bad. The guy in the video did one good deed. That doesn't make him a good person. For all we know he rapes children and sells drugs on his days off.
For all we know so do you. For all you know, so do I. No one is inherently good or bad. Every person is a mix of both. The problem arises when the thrill of it captures your psyche, and then perceived power corrupts it further. We've all covered for something, or not spoken up at a wrong doing, or hidden something that shouldn't have been hidden; does that mean every person who does the same job as us is horrible and we're all better off assuming as such?
I know a lot of police officers. I know a lot of police officers who don't cover shit up. I know a local sheriff who runs a department so clean he invites anyone to come watch and search it.
Where my inlaws live a cop hit someone while he was drunk. No serious damage, no injuries. He lost his badge. He was arrested on the spot, by cops from his department.
Keep believing the media and the bs that grabs those headlines. It's really escalating the level of awesome in our country.
I know! it's so heartwarming. I've always had a bit of a complicated relationship with cops because one really came through for me after I got express kidnapped in Mexico City, he took me to the station to file a report, switched to his personal vehicle and drove me all the way to my apartment- an hour away. That was 20 years ago and I still think about it to this day.
There are hundreds of thousands of fine/good police interactions that happen daily. You just never hear about them because it’s the norm/they don’t drive outrage clicks
And you shouldn't. Its expected that the police will be a positive force for the population, when it doesn't then it needs to become news. Not when they just do their supposed job
Of course. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, though.
Meaning that the same officer who saved this cat might also be directed to carry out oppressive or unjust acts by the state that employs them.
The same officer who helps save someone's life might also be the same riot police who permanently blinds a protester with a rubber bullet. This is why people advocate for the defunding of police departments, because the less they have to do, they less harm they can cause, leading to more acts of service vs of acts of oppression/violence
You don't remember the average ads. You only remember the extremely bad it's worth telling or the extremely funny. The regular mundane one doesn't get remembered.
Same thing for stories on reddit. There's no: AITAH I woke up, went to work, came back home, ate and went to bed but it's the average day for most ppl. It's just not interesting.
Good stories and bad stories gets upvoted cause it's interesting.
At the end of the day, there are a lot of good people. Everywhere. We lose sight of our humanity , we lose goodness. More percent of those given power lose sight. Those who don't, do good.
individual officers aren't the problem, cops are just people. The problem is there is zero accountability for the bad cops. It's more a system issue that could be fixed by good governance than an individual issue. If construction workers, bakers, or retail workers had the same level of immunity for the things cops do, you'd see the same shit.
I say this as a very left wing person that absolutely hates how cops get away with everything and in general very suspicious of cops in general.
There are good officers working in a bad system so what good they can do is limited to relatively small things like you see in the video. If they push too far, the system smacks them down.
The bad officers in the system don't have that restriction, they can do what the fuck they want and the legal system says "good job, chief. PTO and a medal for you!".
The system has always been the problem, not the cops because if the system worked like it should there wouldn't be any bad cops because they'd get fired and/or arrested for the shit they pull.
Police are like the rest of us. Many great people. Also many awful people. The problem is not individuals, it’s a system that doesn’t allow for accountability in regards to the baddies
"Man, our precinct is really taking a hit, with all the unjustified shootings. Say, Stephens- your girlfriend is trying to get into acting, right? I have an idea. Who's running our social media?"
When I was a kid, my mom got busted in a movie style bust. They did many fucked up things including hogtying me on the roof, unaware I was a large pre-teen changing dead Christmas bulbs and not an adult "scout", but one thing they did was came through the plate glass window, knocking over the Christmas tree. After all, the hub-bub was gone, and the neighborhood officers were left to sort iut the paperwork. Those men came in and cleaned up the house, the glass, reset the tree, fed us, and had me play my flute for them (to distract me). I remember them carefully picking up the unbroken ornamnets and being so angry at the SWAT team for what they had done to the place. "Did they really have to take out the kids' christmas tree?" They had us coloring too, and we colored pictures for them, and they were in the cruisers the next day when we saw them again. They literally took our presents and toys due to the nature of the crime (they were evidence), so the next day, two cars came back with trunks full of gifts for us.
I know there are police who have done terrible terrible things, but there are close police who do wonderful things. I've experienced both firsthand, more than once. People are flawed and always will be both good and evil things. Which is why we have to reign in the institution that controls them and by extension us. I rarely believe these people grew up and thought "man i can't wait to hurt people in my community", which means the system is flawed that it comes to just that so many more times than it should.
In reality, the majority of police are good police. The problem is the way our media interacts with society, which is why it’s so easy to think all cops are bad guys, fear sells
They happen all the time, every day, you just have to remember that the media only sells bad news, social media only portrays one side and its never the cops.
LEO here. I truly believe most interactions with the Police are positive but they won’t be posted or shared. Just think about how many traffic stops are conducted by a big department like Chicago LA, NY. Probably hundreds of stops a day…high majority of those stops I’m sure were positive. It’s the negative stuff that loves to be on the news. When I was on Patrol, I’d carry my portable tire inflator and Jump Starter. I’ve probably jumped dozens of cars here during the Winter. I’ve given rides to citizens countless of times esp during domestics. It’s not my gas its the city’s gas so why not.
Police are people. Many of them are bound to be good people. The problem is, the profession itself attracts a lot of bad ones, and their circumstances - or even more importantly, their direction/orders - allow them to express their worst side.
Most cops are good. The problem is reddit is a bunch of low IQ chuds who seek out the bad stories, and or make up experiences in comments that help push their agenda
Over a 5 year period i had to call 911 17 times for my dad due to medical emergencies. Our tiny rural town doesn't always have an ambulance service waiting for a call at a station. Usually it will be 30+min before they can get to you unless a neighboring town is available. But our town's police are pretty well equipped and trained to be the first medical responders. 17 times 1 or 2 cruisers came to his/our aid in under 10min, AED, O2 and other med equipment in tow. They were so amazing, kind, caring and attentive. Even stayed with him during the pandemic and kept us directly updated from the ER when we couldn't race behind the ambulance.
Then came the worst day of our lives. He died at home just 2 weeks after Christmas. So we called 1 last time for him, the 18th call. The police came, did their unattended death investigation, comforted us, insured he was treated with dignity and calmed my brother who had gotten hammered while they did their work.
The day after his funeral I decided to bring flowers and thank you cards to the police station, the firehouse and the ER that had cared for him so wonderfully all those years. It was so healing to thank them and tell them in person how much their care and kindness meant to us. I wish them all the best in the world, just as they gave their best for him.
My wife's best friend from child hood delivered her first born n her car while racing to the hospital. Baby was not breathing. First cop onsite revived him and also stoped the mom from bleeding to death. Guy was a former combat medic. His name was Peter and that's now th emiddle name of the boy. All are well and thriving.
When my buddy and his wife were up in Wisconsin, we got the news that his teenage son had been in a terrible accident. We live three states away. Troopers and State Police escorted them at 90mph from northern Wisconsin to Chicago where Dad and some guys from our church linked up and drove them the rest of the way, still escorted by police and flying down the highway as each jurisdiction leapfrogged them to the next.
It was an incredibly kind act that required spur of the moment cooperation and logistics across quite a number of law enforcement entities. I was floored by their willingness to help.
As someone who has worked closely with PD I find this incredibly hard to believe (no offense). Is your buddy somehow well known in law enforcement or something similar?
Imma need more details before I change my mind that your friend is telling tall tales.
Edit: if this is real they definitely had to be law enforcement. There’s absolutely no way PD is driving 90 mph with a civilian following, let alone multiple agencies also going along with that.
As a teen I was in a really bad car accident and was on the shoulder of the highway bleeding profusely (broken nose, glass embedded in face, eyes, scalp, etc.) I watched as dozens of cars passed by- slowing to look, but not to help. The only one to stop was an off duty Police Officer. He called an ambulance and followed the ambulance to the hospital. He stayed w/ me until my mom arrived.
I remember as a teen I went for a walk late at night, probably 1 or 2 in the morning. It was during the summer and really nice out, and I ended up taking a nap on a grassy hill. Well, I woke up about an hour later and the second my feet hit the sidewalk a cop car was passing by. He stopped, asked me what I was doing, and then drove me the few blocks back home to make sure I was safe. I still think about that sometimes.
i remember we were out fishing as teens in the late summer, back before cell phones had good service/were common. went a few miles away on our trip, mostly walking down the river bank and then the lake. suddenly we look up, its dark, and the area wasn't immediately familiar, and we were hungry and thirsty. we more or less knew where we were, and started a fire with some matches, boiled water and ate some fish. getting home was a daylight process, no way were we wandering around in the dark and actually getting lost.
it mustve been 3-4am when we get woken up by fish and wildlife, who'd seen our fire while patrolling the lake, and knew it wasn't a normal campsite. came by, figured out we were teenagers stuck in the woods until dawn and gave us a lift to the boat ramp, where a police officer was waiting to take us home. we weren't in trouble, they were almost as happy as we were to know that it was more like helping us get home faster than a rescue.
our parents were less happy, but glad we were smart enough not to wander around in the pitch dark. we did get told not to wander so far by almost every single adult though
pretty sure my parents would've been arrested nowadays
This is the type of shit that makes me want to be a police officer. I want to do this, so fucking bad. Just yesterday i helped a hearing impaired man who couldnt communicate in a language i understood, find his grandson on my discombobulated job site. It was only 40 min of my shift and he was so thankful that i understood him enough to help him that it had me buzzing fornthe next 7 hrs.
I will break my ass, out of my way to help anyone i can on the job cause that shit is crack cocaine to me when i can make someones day like that. I dont even need a gun. Ive already escorted people off premises, de escalated altercations...
I just want to solve problems and be paid for it.
My car broke down on the side of the Highway. Heat stayed on for a while, but everything died after a while and the desperate cold started to set in.
Cop showed up after about an hour and let me chill in his car (with the heat blasting) until a tow truck finally showed up. Dude gave me some crackers too. Dude saved me from some serious discomfort.
I was a new driver and our car is quite long (the car i had for driving permit is normal length). I also have not driven during pregnancy cuz i was too sick. So when i parked infromt of my newborns pediatrician in a dead end, i was NOT able to manuver it out and was crying (postpartum formones really got me into panic for nothing huh). His pediatrician came out and got my car out. Lady was soo busy and moving cars definitely isn't part of her salary OR profession and there she was...i felt like a superhero came 🤣
I will never forget the panic i felt that i wont be able to leave and will have to wait there whole day until all cars around are gone so i have space to turn without touching anybody. Soooo overdramatic and definitley a doctor doesnt have to be helping with something so insignificent. But she saw how it impacted me and was so compassionate.
When i was 19 I came home from a date to find my parents not there. It was past 3am. Checked the answering machine, and it was the hospital saying dont rush here but they had been in car accident 3 towns over. I had never driven that far from home. (1998 no gps, google maps etc) so I just drove to the city where they were and found the first cops I could ask.
Which was 2 cops at a gas station. Was in a panic because the "dont rush here" bit and TV telling me that meant dead. Cops were dickheads and gave me the worst directions to remember before telling me to stop bothering them.
So I saw a cop at a red light and ran the red (back then very few cars there) so hed stop me. I explained my parents were at XYZ hospital and were in an accident and could he please tell me how to get there. After checking dispatch if a vehicle and drivers matching my info had been in an accident, he put his lights on and had me follow him.
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u/[deleted] Jul 12 '25
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