Answer me this. Should police forces have armored personnel carriers?
If yes, when/what is an appropriate situation to use them?

Originally Posted By: [LoD
Vermithrax]Their display of force and generally the perception the public has when men dressed as soldiers show up in armored vehicles in their neighborhood and aim big ass guns at them is the root of the problem to begin with.

This is what G-Fist (in his less than succinct way) was trying to say before when this was discussed. When police act like they did here, dress as combat soldiers, and ride around in tank like vehicles with heavy weaponry, it creates an air of intimidation. It also affects their attitude and the way they treat the communities they're supposed to serve. They're not on foreign soil. We're not in a civil war. These people are American citizens. They're not the enemy.

The situation was already volatile enough after the shooting. The only thing they did by showing up with this massive show of force was escalate a situation that was already bad enough.
They hardly need MRAPs, sniper rifles and automatic weapons to deal with bottles and Molotov cocktails.


I don't disagree when the cops show up in kit like that, it's a big fucking deal. I think the only time it should happen is when the situation warrants a big fucking response. I don't think Ferguson at the beginning required that response. However when they started to vandalize businesses, throw Molotov cocktails, and shoot at the police, then the situation just became a big fucking deal (quite possibly in response to the police escalating it). I do not know the specific timelines on who started the arms race. Regardless who started it, the police should be the ones to finish it.

I would not agree that there are no scenarios when the police should not have MRAPs, sniper rifles, and automatic weapons. I do think there needs to be a much tighter control on when they are deployed. At the end of the rioting, they were warranted, in my opinion (MRAPs to combat the flames, regular police vehicles are not adequate), sniper rifles to combat any long range shooting at the police/citizenry, and automatic weapons on standby in case they are needed to immediately de-escalate a situation where a criminal employs close quarters firearms.

We're in the same book I think, maybe just different pages.