To protect and serve
In the aftermath of the Toronto G20 meetings, Mark Steyn considers "Le tout rightosphere up north" on what the police should have done but didn't and didn't do but should have done (via Five Feet of Fury).
One reason I oppose the paramilitarization of the police is that it encourages the mindset on display in Toronto last weekend. Its defenders, in many comments at Small Dead Animals, say, well, sorry, but it's necessary in order to keep the Queen's peace. I think not. The disruption to the Queen's peace, in Queen's Park, in the shadow of the building that embodies the idea of a state accountable to its citizens, came from cops rending the air with their cheery cry of "I DON'T GIVE A FUCK WHAT YOU THINK". Actually, the very minimum that law-abiding citizens are entitled to demand from police officers is that they give a fuck what we think.
Much more at the link including, and especially, Steyn's description of a pushy police officer as "a minor municipal functionary". Quite right.
Related: Jay Currie and I are in complete agreement. A civil society must have confidence in the police.
I don't anymore. Not to tell the truth.
The disgrace in Toronto where the police were not allowed to protect the property of store owners, then spent two days randomly arresting and harassing people, shook the confidence of Torontonians and Canadian in general. But to have the Chief of Police simply lie finished that confidence off.
Perhaps I was the fool to imagine these minor municipal functionaries could be relied upon to uphold civil liberties when they can't recover a stolen bicycle. Never ascribe to malice that which can be explained by incompetence.
Extra credit: Kelly McParland on Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair's trouble with the truth (via Blazing Cat Fur).
Lying does nothing to help the police. It undermines their credibility with law-abiding members of the public and leads to suspicion and distrust. How can Torontonians have faith in the police when it becomes clear they can’t be trusted to tell the truth? And who wants to cooperate with people who lie?
Not me. Not with this police force under this Chief of Police.
Posted by Ghost of a flea at July 1, 2010 10:08 AM
