Why Do the Police Have Tanks? The Strange and Dangerous Militarization of the US Police Force - Polidicks

[QUOTE=Apache249;31222327]This is a tank. [img]http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/m1a1-980120-A-0000K-002.jpg[/img] This is not a motherfucking tank. [img]http://media.northjersey.com/images/0215L_SWAT1.jpg[/img][/QUOTE] To the average person who isn't an armchair general, the two are one in the same. If it can be driven and is bullet proof, it's a tank.

They aren't tanks. They are armored vehicles that they employ to tear down obstacles, breach walls, or approach shooters without dying horribly. Virtually every SWAT team will yell "police, search warrant" or "police, warrant service" upon breaching a home. They are employed after so many uniformed officers were shot serving potentially high risk warrants. Fuck the guy who wrote the article. He is an idiot who knows absolutely nothing. [editline]20th July 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=RR_Raptor65;31222348]To the average person who isn't an armchair general, the two are one in the same. If it can be driven and is bullet proof, it's a tank.[/QUOTE] And the average person is deeply incorrect on the matter. They are massively different things and it is an important difference for this article.

Looks like they brought a tank to a gunfight But seriously, how else do you think they'll control riots? Silly string and batons?

The entire article is bullshit fearmongering.

Yeah, they're totally protecting the peace...That 7-year-old could've had an AK47.. -__- Stupid ass, SWAT.. [editline]20th July 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=lulzbocksV2;31222547]The entire article is bullshit fearmongering.[/QUOTE] Hey, I think I've seen that guy in your avatar, wtf?

[QUOTE=GameDev;31222509]Looks like they brought a tank to a gunfight But seriously, how else do you think they'll control riots? Silly string and batons?[/QUOTE] In the event of a riot, if the vehicle was going to be employed at all, it would be employed to defend key locations, not actively suppressing the riot. Mounted officers are for riot control. Obviously all officers in the area get pushed into riot cop service and water cannons on fire trucks are deployed. Grenade launchers launching tear gas and flash bangs are employed by the riot cops as well. If you watch a riot, they are incredibly medieval in nature. The police march slowly banging on their shields, shoulder to shoulder, towards the crowd. Meanwhile the grenade launcher officer(s) is lobbing shells over them. The mounted officers charge crowds in order to break morale, which is exactly why they were used in medieval warfare. Riots are like a bizarre time machine.

For when High School Parties get out of hand.

I'd have less problems if the SWAT Team actually got their addresses right half the time

staticmans headlines remind me of fox news

[QUOTE=Generous Feller;31222013]I don't see anything wrong with this other than it seems like a waste of money.[/QUOTE] Hypothetical time! It's the middle of the night. You're asleep. Suddenly, someone breaks down your door and you hear people storming the place. You grab your shotgun and run downstairs to see what the hell is going on, and you get shot by four different people fifty times. Later, in court, your death is ruled justified, despite the raid being unannounced, and despite the fact that you are not a criminal. Every officer involved, from the team members themselves to the people who fucked up the address, get off with a stern warning and maybe some paid leave for psychological counseling. Even better: It's the middle of the day. You hear someone yell "POLICE!" before your door gets battered in. You get on the ground with your hands over your head, like any law-abiding citizen would do. A team of ten armed and armored men walks in, shoots your dog, looks around, and leaves. The case doesn't even make it to court. If you give a fuck about this country - even a little bit - you should be fucking pissed that this can happen. Legally. You are not safe in your own home. And if you shoot one of the unidentified people invading your home? You're going to prison. For a very long time. [QUOTE=Trunk Monkay;31222092]Do you guys remember that time those 2 nuts with full auto AK47's with 100-200 round box mags using armor piercing ammo and covered from head to toe in kevlar and body armor, robbed a bank and wounded dozens of police officers? Yah, we couldn't take those 2 down because we DIDN'T have police officers with Assault rifles, and our guys were wounded because we DIDN'T have armored vehicles.[/QUOTE] thank god we're putting that firepower to work in people's homes, where they most need protection from bank robbers gotta keep that weed off the streets somehow

[QUOTE=Sector 7;31223361]Hypothetical time![/QUOTE] I am pretty sure their main goal is to get you alive, despite anything. They're not out there to get through everything with guns (like most such forces in other countries, rightfully do).

[QUOTE=Lachz0r;31221940]i don't see how a more militarized police force could have stopped columbine[/QUOTE] Considering the firepower the Branch Davidians had access to at Waco and those two ass-hats at columbine had, A well-equipped SWAT Team with access to full body armor, automatic weaponry and armored vehicles would have solved the problems with far less bloodshed.

[QUOTE=Generous Feller;31222013]I don't see anything wrong with this other than it seems like a waste of money.[/QUOTE] uh [quote]July 5th 2011 | Just after midnight on May 16, 2010, a SWAT team threw a flash-bang grenade through the window of a 25-year-old man while his 7-year-old daughter slept on the couch as her grandmother watched television. The grenade landed so close to the child that it burned her blanket. The SWAT team leader then burst into the house and fired a single shot which struck the child in the throat, killing her. The police were there to apprehend a man suspected of murdering a teenage boy days earlier. The man they were after lived in the unit above the girl's family.[/quote] yeah with military weapons comes military "intelligence"

[QUOTE=DainBramageStudios;31223606]uh yeah with military weapons comes military "intelligence"[/QUOTE] Ok they made a mistake with the address? That could happen either way. It's not like when people get more tools, they get dumber.

I don't care, I just use AEZAKMI.

USA military state :v: [QUOTE=Generous Feller;31223983]Ok they made a mistake with the address? That could happen either way. It's not like when people get more tools, they get dumber.[/QUOTE] Your military intelligence personnel must be just dumb by default then.

Detroit is terrible. They need tanks.

[QUOTE=Generous Feller;31223983]Ok they made a mistake with the address? That could happen either way.[/QUOTE] are you actually defending this

I came into this thread with a bizzare mental image of an M1 Abrams painted navy blue with sirens on top. Slightly disappointed.

Good read, sad story.

[QUOTE=Hiccuper;31224613]I came into this thread with a bizzare mental image of an M1 Abrams painted navy blue with sirens on top. Slightly disappointed.[/QUOTE] I want one of those.

Having SWAT teams are important because they're paramilitary forces that can deal with high-profile and dangerous targets, in a time where criminals are becoming easily equipped with dangerous weaponry. The idea is the brainchid of Daryl Gates, and the teams are built more around the idea of being counter-terrorism units: just simply on a local level. Mistakes can happen, both with attaining the right intelligence and execution among the SWAT team, but generally speaking these guys are trained very well and they know what they're doing. Some kinks simply need to be ironed out in the system.

[QUOTE=Hiccuper;31224613]I came into this thread with a bizzare mental image of an M1 Abrams painted navy blue with sirens on top. Slightly disappointed.[/QUOTE] Arizona's toughest sheriff actually has a tank. [url=http://matchbin-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/public/sites/529/assets/98WZ_RP_hunt_arizona_tank.jpg]It's black, though.[/url] Edit: apparently it is a self-propelled howitzer, not a tank. I stand corrected.

the some of the British police have guns, but i believe they fire non lethal rounds

[QUOTE=RR_Raptor65;31222348]To the average person who isn't an armchair general, the two are one in the same. If it can be driven and is bullet proof, it's a tank.[/QUOTE] That's an armored car. Tanks have giant cannons mounted on them and are meant to survive high-powered explosive rounds.

[QUOTE=RR_Raptor65;31222348]To the average person who isn't an armchair general, the two are one in the same. If it can be driven and is bullet proof, it's a tank.[/QUOTE] It gets egregious and annoying when major news networks confuse the two. An a wheeled armored personnel carrier or an armored truck are not tanks.

a tank is just any armoured vehicle with tracks, it doesn't have to have any sort of cannon on it. an Sd.Kfz. is technically a tank [editline]20th July 2011[/editline] of course the reason for them calling it a tank was to put the image of strapped down supercops patrolling the inner-city streets in a P. 1000 Ratte but that isn't the point I'm trying to make

[QUOTE=Tunak Mk. II;31223051]staticmans headlines remind me of fox news[/QUOTE] I quote from the site: "AlterNet has developed a unique model of journalism to confront the failures of corporate media, as well as the vitriol and disinformation of right wing media, especially “hate talk” media. Not only do we keep our readers highly informed on a wide array of topics, from hundreds of experts and sources, but we also provide laser focus on the most compelling issues of the day. We offer our readers comprehensive information, a positive vision for the future, and concrete action steps towards change. [B]AlterNet believes that media must have a higher purpose beyond the essential goal of keeping people informed[/B]. We insist on playing an active role in helping our community funnel its energy into change." Translation: "Our journalism is left-wing biased because we think that's right." [QUOTE=Reimu;31225725]Having SWAT teams are important because they're paramilitary forces that can deal with high-profile and dangerous targets, in a time where criminals are becoming easily equipped with dangerous weaponry. The idea is the brainchid of Daryl Gates, and the teams are built more around the idea of being counter-terrorism units: just simply on a local level. Mistakes can happen, both with attaining the right intelligence and execution among the SWAT team, but generally speaking these guys are trained very well and they know what they're doing. Some kinks simply need to be ironed out in the system.[/QUOTE] Agreed. Callous as it may come off, it's really a knee-jerk reaction to condemn all highly-armed police paramilitary forces due to a few horrible accidents. What these proponents often forget, or fail to mention, is that there is actually a NEED for a high-powered law enforcement team in today's climate, and it's, at best, wishful thinking to think otherwise. Those AK-wielding gangbangers aren't going to come quietly if you send PC Plod around to knock on the door and tell them they're under arrest. Horrible incidents such as the shooting of innocents are, frankly, due to incidental failures in police intelligence; they are not indicative of any failure in the concept of official paramilitary units. We like to talk about the failures of SWAT - how about its successes?

[QUOTE=RR_Raptor65;31222348]To the average person who isn't an armchair general, the two are one in the same. If it can be driven and is bullet proof, it's a tank.[/QUOTE] You don't have to be a fucking general to know the difference.

People here keep referring to WACO. There was no SWAT teams there. It was all federal agencies like the FBI and ATF... Personally, I hate seeing the police outfitted like this. Under what possible circumstances would a patrol officer need to flip his M-16 to automatic and unleash a hellstorm of bullets? What can it do that a civilian semi auto AR-15 cannot? And SWAT was originally designed to be used in case of hostage situations and attacking known armed fugitives. Not the bullshit they are used for now like kicking down a door in a suburban neighborhood to bust someone for pot. Personally, it IS frightening to see such a militarized police force in every town.