wth is wrong with that officer

[Centurion40]

possible link?  :P

Global Warming.

[MikeGER]

JD, guns are legal in Germany and there are 5.5 Mio weapons (of all kind) in the trusted hands of 1,45 Mio proud owners :)
but only very very few citizens are allowed to (conceal) carry a operational weapon for self protection here
(if i remember correctly in the early 90ies they where 36000 gun owners in my 'county' (police district) and only 60 have a carrying licence) of course you can carry transport the weapon to the range but out of reach and stored in a non quick-operational way (like disassembled in a gun case in the trunk)   

here is a detailed but German language pdf  about the police gun usage topic
http://schusswaffeneinsatz.de/Statistiken_files/Statistiken.pdf

for example: in 2013 there were 8 dead, 20 wounded by police officers weapons ...zero! bystanders were killed or hurt so

[Boggit]

You shouldn't have to fear for your life if compliance isn't absolutely 100%.

I get what you're saying and in the couple of encounters I have had with law enforcement in my life, I was very careful in my compliance to avoid finding myself with my face in the pavement or worse.

I agree. Plus the use of force should only be used where appropriate and proportional. You don't want to live in a police state where they can do what they like, while you just tug your forelock? Respect is a two way street.

Slightly OT, and playing devil's advocate - I sometimes wonder at the logic of sending armed police in riot gear to peaceful protests, consisting of unarmed citizens. If protesters learnt from that experience, arguably they would be advised to protest peacefully, but armed for self defence. In order to avoid a potential bloodbath, the police would need to find an alternate solution to confrontation. Would the massacre of unarmed protesters at Tiananmen Square back in 1989 have taken place if the protesters had protested peacefully but had also been armed to the teeth? I'm guessing probably not.

[LongBlade]

Slightly OT, and playing devil's advocate - I sometimes wonder at the logic of sending armed police in riot gear to peaceful protests, consisting of unarmed citizens. If protesters learnt from that experience, arguably they would be advised to protest peacefully, but armed for self defence. In order to avoid a potential bloodbath, the police would need to find an alternate solution to confrontation. Would the massacre of unarmed protesters at Tiananmen Square back in 1989 have taken place if the protesters had protested peacefully but had also been armed to the teeth? I'm guessing probably not.

Unfortunately, as events have proven in Ferguson, it only takes a couple of bad apples armed (in all likelihood illegally) to turn a peaceful demonstration into a violent encounter.

Even without firearms mobs can get out of control. I don't see anything wrong with cops showing up in riot gear to a protest that is held in such tense circumstances. They know how to position themselves (both in body language and in presence) to be in an unprovocative position. If things get bad, they're ready and can form up for a more robust presence. Check out the riots in the 60's in LA and again in the 90's with Rodney King to see how quickly things can get out of control without the strong presence of cops on the street.