The recent murder of two police officers is in no way acceptable. It is murder, plain and simple. But we need to look at the cause of cases like this one.

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Violence

I am not and will not condone the murder of anyone, police officer or otherwise. However, this article will probably be misinterpreted by some and some will simply attack me for not blindly protecting The Leviathan. That being as it may, it is important to step back and look at the overall mentality of the American people in regard to the police force. While the murder itself was the work of a mad man, the reaction by eye witnesses is quite telling. According to reports, many of the eye witnesses seemed to side with the killer, even saying that they deserved to die. Why? What could possibly cause people to become so full of hate that they think that two random people deserve to die?

Breaking Point

This is, unfortunately, how people react to an oppressive force. They eventually snap. It happened with the French revolution, and it seems to be happening now. While the majority of police officers are probably hard working people who want to help others, the system itself protects the bad cops, even at the expense of the good ones. The people are afraid of the police force. They certainly do not trust the police to help when they are in need. I have to admit to feeling this way at times. There was certainly at least one occasion where I could have used police assistance and decided not to call out of fear that they would only make the situation worse.

Unfortunately for many, this fear turns to hatred and that hatred turns to violence. There is only one way to quell this violence: put the police force in its place. Remind it that they are here to protect us, not hurt us. When the police force begins to hold bad cops accountable, the people will again side with the officers. Until that happens, this type of scenario will only become increasingly prevalent. This is not a threat to cops. This is a warning. Do the right thing, because quite frankly, the people as a whole, will not.

Ferguson Update (3/12/15)

It didn’t take very long for my predictions to pan out. This was originally posted on December 21st and less than three months later we see another shooting of police officers, in Ferguson no less. The police continue to push back against an ever increasing emotional torrent. Instead of trying to calm the flow, they are making it worse.

Here’s a clip of the story from the AP (Source)

FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) — Two officers were shot in front of the Ferguson Police Department early Thursday, authorities said, as demonstrators gathered after the city’s police chief resigned in the wake of a scathing Justice Department report alleging bias in the police department and court.

A 32-year-old officer from nearby Webster Groves was shot in the face and a 41-year-old officer from St. Louis County was shot in the shoulder, St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar said at a news conference. Both were taken to a hospital, where Belmar said they were conscious. He said he did not have further details about their conditions but described their injuries as “serious.”