Ryan Waller, a 22-year-old man who, despite having a bullet in his eye, endured 4 hours of interrogation by cops who thought he was lying—only to receive medical help too late.

[u/SilkenSeraph]

[u/Henderson-McHastur]

Some of the trainees hesitate and question the instructor during a simulation of a dangerous encounter with an unstable, possibly armed subject. The first instincts of the trainees are to hold their ground and try talking her down, because they don't want to shoot a woman who might just be having a really, really bad day.

The instructor loudly reprimands them for not emptying their pistol into the lady. Something about endangering their own life and the lives of their fellow officers. They are taught to prioritize themselves.

The people who are supposed to protect you are trained to think of themselves as more worthy of life than you.

[u/Rambozo77 → u/Henderson-McHastur]

Fire fighters and paramedics are trained that way too. So are doctors and nurses. If one of those people gets hurt, now there’s no one to help you, and there’s another victim who now needs help, and all the people that you called for help are going to help they’re own first.

[u/throwfarfaraway1818 → u/Rambozo77]

Disagree. Fire fighters and paramedics are taught to ensure their safety, yes. Thats not the same as police being taught civilian lives are literally worth less than theirs. You can tell the difference in the way they speak and report things. Seattle cop who hit someone with their car and said it was a worthless life is one example, the phrase "NHI" or "no humans involved" is another.

[u/iordseyton → u/throwfarfaraway1818]

Agreed. They are taught to protect themselves their own saftey, usually by not engaging in a situation they cant safely be in, but not to intentionally jeopardize yours in the process.

Cop training would be analogous to an EMT showing up for someone with an infectious disease and euthanized them to prevent contamination, or the fire dept showing up to you trapped in a burning building, and deciding to knock it down with you still in it to prevent the fire from spreading.

[u/Nathan_Calebman → u/Rambozo77]

Fire fighters are trained to stay away from burning buildings, and paramedics don't go near people who've been shot?

You fix a burning building by putting the fire out, not by blowing up the neighborhood. You save gunshot victims by treating their wounds, not by shooting everyone nearby. And you handle crazy ranting people by talking them down and empathizing with them, not by shooting them.

This is obvious to every first world country outside the US.

[u/LyKosa91 → u/Nathan_Calebman]

Not to play devil's advocate here, but in any job role that involves any amount of danger, the bottom line that you'll always be taught is that your own safety is paramount and that the most important thing is that you make it home safely at the end of the day.

Unfortunately I think a big part of the problem for the US is down to widespread gun ownership. The fact that the likelihood of just about anyone having a gun is infinitely higher than it is here in the UK for example, means that officers are facing both a much greater hazard and more significant risk. I've seen bodycam footage of officers who've had someone spin round and shoot them in a split second while trying to peacefully de escalate, it happens.

Not that I'm condoning the general conduct of US police, just saying, it seems like a pretty shitty situation for all involved. A much more dangerous situation to police effectively and safely, and the risk control method that best ensures officer safety is inherently bad for the general public. It's a lose lose situation.