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Police brutality is getting out of control both in the United States and abroad. The police, by necessity, are and have always been brutal. Unfortunately, no amount of training will ever keep police from using excessive force; and very little discipline is ever meeted out to those police officers who are obviously guilty of using excessive force.

I would define excessive force as any force used against a defenseless victim; or any antagonistic force - that is, force that is exercised before a suspect has excercised force or shown clear intent to do so.

Americans see police brutality on television every day, where brutality is glorified and the police are cast as heroes doing a job that could be done no other way. Shows like Cops and World's Wildest Police Videos generally contain several depictions of police brutality in every episode. The mainstream media shows unflinching support for the repressive agents of the state. When was the last time you saw an expose on police brutality? Never - you only see the mainstream news organizations reporting on police brutality when the story has been broken by others and has become too big an issue to ignore.

In my opinion, every citizen needs to take responsibility for holding the police responsible for their actions. We can do that by videotaping the police in action whenever possible, filing complaints and reporting abusive police to whatever authorities claim to be in control of them, and filing lawsuits against any we can acquire evidence against. When all of that fails or when faced with a developing situation, I support physical actions taken in self defense and physical intervention in the defense of others.

In the US, nearly 1% of the general population is in prison. That is unthinkable in the rest of the world. America locks up a higher percentage of its population than any other country. As incarceration rates increase, so does the crime rate. Imprisonment is having the opposite effect that it is intended to have. As far as I'm concerned, the police could afford to sit a few out while they study the situation a bit. I believe police should refrain from getting involved in any situation they don't have a clear understanding of.

I understand that as cops their lives are on the line when they are on duty; but as far as I can see instigating violence makes their job more dangerous, not less. When the police don't know who or what they're dealing with and charge in anyway, they end up antagonizing an unstable situation and often they increase the danger to themselves and others.

Policy is No-knock warrants are issued and make people believe their home is being invaded and their family is under attack; often causing firefights that otherwise would not have occurred. In my opinion, police need to refrain from getting involved in a situation until they have a concrete idea of who is who and what is going on. I also believe that a high crime rate is indicative of an unhealthy society. I think a tremendous amount of policy reform is in order in the US and other countries with crime problems. Government needs to start shrinking again and the people need to have control over the police, not the other way around.

Learn more about this author, Matthew Tyler Funk.
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