I Support Police Protecting All People

 Whenever I see people out to support the police I am mystified.

I support the police and I want them to do the job they were hired for.  It has danger associated with it and for that we let them retire earlier than most and provide good benefits.  When one of them get hurt or killed in the line of duty they should get all the care we can provide to them and their familie.

They are still our employees, hired to protect all of us, not some of us against others.  Any time they use lethal force they need to do so as the very last resort, not because they imagine things that could happen.

Honest mistakes might happen and they are entitled to consideration for that.  Shooting unarmed suspects in the back or kneeling on their throats until they die is just not acceptable.

Executing a search warrant without allowing the innocent people inside time to respond and then shooting them is problematic.

The life of everyone is precious, police and suspects.  Unfortunately we now see over and over that the police treat black lives as if they don't matter.

They do.

Cautious behavior is not risky behavior.  Getting additional support if needed should be an accepted part of the job.

I can't imagine the impact of seeing their father shot in the back seven times is going to have on his children who were in the car.  As much as I try to imagine the imminent threat that officer felt I just can't.  It has been reported that he might have had a knife but even if he did, backing up a safe distance while the other police there supported you would have been quite effective.

I don't support the police who kill citizens because they somehow think their lives matter more.  These are the citizens they are hired to protect, although not all of them feel that way.

If you want to hold up a sign supporting the police, fine you have the right to peacefully assemble, but are you supporting them even when they murder people?