Maybe being given a gun and told you’re a “thin blue line” by an insular culture that encourages, trains you for, and gives you legal immunity for most acts of violence make one more sociopathic?
I’d say you’d have to be pretty sociopathic to want to be a cop. But all everything else you described probably polishes up that sociopathy to a fine sheen.
There are little kids out there that want to be cops to be a hero and save the world from bad stuff. I know because I was one of them when I was real young. I know some of these kids must grow up and still have that desire to be the good guy and become cops.
Some of the ones that stick around by their own will and don’t try to change anything probably are just brainwashed into thinking that they are doing what is right and what needs to be done. Don’t get me wrong, there are definitely also some power hungry sociopaths who just enjoy the control that they are given over other people.
Part of the problem is also that everybody’s definition of “bad guy” is a bit different, and it is largely based on how the person was raised and how much critical thinking skills they have(they were gullible enough to fall for the propaganda that cops were good in the first place, so they probably don’t have much of that).
I guess I’m just trying to add that not all cops are sociopaths. Some are just gullible and brainwashed into thinking they are part of the “good guys”, and don’t have the critical thinking skills to reassess. Considering that most Police departments refuse to hire people with high IQs, it seems at least partially designed to work this way.
There are good people who want to be cops. The problem is that the sociopathic assholes who want to abuse others without consequences and cannot get into positions of more power want to be cops too, and police departments are more than willing to protect them no matter what they’ve done.
It probably makes cruel people crueler. But maybe the ones that find they can’t stand to work in such an environment—because they have a conscience—end up leaving, so that only sociopaths remain?
Cops are just another kind of gang. One that has the pretense of being a lawful institution. Once you are “in” the other cops will protect you from consequences and accountability. If you “cross the thin blue line”, you are then out and they will go out of their way to punish you and censor you for speaking out against the group.
And don’t even get me started on if someone kills a cop. It makes open gang warfare look like Sesame Street shit.
Maybe being given a gun and told you’re a “thin blue line” by an insular culture that encourages, trains you for, and gives you legal immunity for most acts of violence make one more sociopathic?
I’d say you’d have to be pretty sociopathic to want to be a cop. But all everything else you described probably polishes up that sociopathy to a fine sheen.
There are little kids out there that want to be cops to be a hero and save the world from bad stuff. I know because I was one of them when I was real young. I know some of these kids must grow up and still have that desire to be the good guy and become cops.
Some of the ones that stick around by their own will and don’t try to change anything probably are just brainwashed into thinking that they are doing what is right and what needs to be done. Don’t get me wrong, there are definitely also some power hungry sociopaths who just enjoy the control that they are given over other people.
Part of the problem is also that everybody’s definition of “bad guy” is a bit different, and it is largely based on how the person was raised and how much critical thinking skills they have(they were gullible enough to fall for the propaganda that cops were good in the first place, so they probably don’t have much of that).
I guess I’m just trying to add that not all cops are sociopaths. Some are just gullible and brainwashed into thinking they are part of the “good guys”, and don’t have the critical thinking skills to reassess. Considering that most Police departments refuse to hire people with high IQs, it seems at least partially designed to work this way.
There are good people who want to be cops. The problem is that the sociopathic assholes who want to abuse others without consequences and cannot get into positions of more power want to be cops too, and police departments are more than willing to protect them no matter what they’ve done.
That reminded me of something:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiJ9fy1qSFI
It probably makes cruel people crueler. But maybe the ones that find they can’t stand to work in such an environment—because they have a conscience—end up leaving, so that only sociopaths remain?
More likely they’re forced out by other officers. And if they blow the whistle, they will ruin your life and harass you and your family.
Cops are just another kind of gang. One that has the pretense of being a lawful institution. Once you are “in” the other cops will protect you from consequences and accountability. If you “cross the thin blue line”, you are then out and they will go out of their way to punish you and censor you for speaking out against the group.
And don’t even get me started on if someone kills a cop. It makes open gang warfare look like Sesame Street shit.