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Geotpf · 05-01-2002, 04:37 PM

I'm sorry, I disagree. The first three incidents occurred all about the same time, with a year or two before the riots. They all came out into the open simply because they happened to be caught on videotape. Now, how many other incidents occurred that were *NOT* caught on videotape? We will never know, but I suspect it was many, many times more. Probably dozens of times more, possibly hundreds. We can never prove it one way or the other, because the people filing the claims were always be considered less trustworthy than the police (at least, at the time), so the cops were believed over the complaintants. And, sure, lots of false claims are filed; that's why the cops think they can get away with it-and they usually can. Plus, the more recent convictions show that the problems in the LAPD have not gone away, just mutated in form.

Let's put in another way.

Let's say there is a white man driving down the street, following all traffic laws, in a upper class area, in a Lexus. Let's say there is a black man driving down that same street in that same Lexus, again obeying all traffic laws. Who will be pulled over more often? In any area that the answer is not "neither", the cops are corrupt and racist. Now, you can't tell me with a straight face that the answer is "neither" in LA, or probably most other cities in the US.

Basically, power corrupts. Cops have lots of power.

Now, I'm not saying that all LAPD officers are corrupt racists; just 1% (or less), and the overall policy is to cover up the problems, not to bring it into the open. Similiar problem with the Catholic church and the pedophile scandals. The problem isn't just the fact that occasionally there is bad apples. The problem is also that upper management and other officers/priests cover up the problem. That's what I mean by it's corrupt to the bone. With police, you are supposed to cover for your partner and other officers, no matter what evil they have done. This is the problem, it just encourages the bad apples.

05-01-2002, 04:37 PM	#9 (permalink)
Geotpf Registered User Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Riverside, CA, USA Posts: 515	I'm sorry, I disagree. The first three incidents occurred all about the same time, with a year or two before the riots. They all came out into the open simply because they happened to be caught on videotape. Now, how many other incidents occurred that were NOT caught on videotape? We will never know, but I suspect it was many, many times more. Probably dozens of times more, possibly hundreds. We can never prove it one way or the other, because the people filing the claims were always be considered less trustworthy than the police (at least, at the time), so the cops were believed over the complaintants. And, sure, lots of false claims are filed; that's why the cops think they can get away with it-and they usually can. Plus, the more recent convictions show that the problems in the LAPD have not gone away, just mutated in form. Let's put in another way. Let's say there is a white man driving down the street, following all traffic laws, in a upper class area, in a Lexus. Let's say there is a black man driving down that same street in that same Lexus, again obeying all traffic laws. Who will be pulled over more often? In any area that the answer is not "neither", the cops are corrupt and racist. Now, you can't tell me with a straight face that the answer is "neither" in LA, or probably most other cities in the US. Basically, power corrupts. Cops have lots of power. Now, I'm not saying that all LAPD officers are corrupt racists; just 1% (or less), and the overall policy is to cover up the problems, not to bring it into the open. Similiar problem with the Catholic church and the pedophile scandals. The problem isn't just the fact that occasionally there is bad apples. The problem is also that upper management and other officers/priests cover up the problem. That's what I mean by it's corrupt to the bone. With police, you are supposed to cover for your partner and other officers, no matter what evil they have done. This is the problem, it just encourages the bad apples.