Political Police

There have been a few instances over the past few week that have made me question the current state of Policing in the UK, especially with regard to Bias, either political or otherwise.

Being a working class lad, I've seen the move away from community Policing where the officers on the beat were a complete cross-section of the community and therefore "one of us", to the "professional Police" we have now with degree-waving graduates with no common sense, no skills, and no life experience put into situations that no training course could replicate.

Now it's all about absolutes: black and white. Now Policing is much more about enforcement rather than common sense and human rights. 

Now we have a Police force with little experience of working class life. Instead the grim estates are something alien to modern coppers and in effect they have moved from being one of those people on the estates Policing by consent, to a bunch of thugs with a war-like mentality against the citizens of the lower classes. Phrases like "War on crime", "War on drugs", only fuel the "Us and them" mentality that pervades the modern Police force.

Aided and abetted by the absolutes of fixed penalty notices introduced by Tony Blair, the Police are no longer interested in keeping the Peace. They regularly break the peace themselves, assaulting citizens to enforce wrongful arrests. 

The mentality of training that says every citizen, from a young kid to a granny should have their hands forcefully jammed up their backs, or be thrown to the ground, when making an arrest is wrong-headed. That's not Policing by consent: that is assault, that is bullying, that is just plain wrong.

Then we have bias in the Police: letting one section of the population off even when causing criminal damage and assault, to Baton-charging another section of the population when being peaceful.

Don't think we don't see the bias. Don't think we don't see the political interference. Not from politicians, but the political animals at the top of the Police Force. From inspector upwards, office politics and then political influences from various organisations sways everyone from inspector upwards.

How else do you explain one protest against lockdown being baton-charged. Yet a black lives matter protest mere days later being left alone by the Police? The same goes for the disruption and criminal damage done by extinction rebellion: untouched by the Police. But who is calling the shots? Who is making the decision to wade into one protest and back off from another? Are the pet political interests of Cressida Dick getting preferential treatment? Who is calling the shots and exactly how and why are those decisions being made?

Politically sensitive agendas are given preferential treatment, I assume to avoid political fallout.

This is not what the Police force should be doing. Their remit is to enforce the law without fear or favour. There should be no bias, no preferential treatment of political causes over others. There should be no abuse of people based on class or colour.

The Police needs shaking up. Those currently at the head of the Police need to be sacked and a new, unbiased leadership brought in.

I would utter the words "Common Purpose" again, but I've already blogged on that organisation and it's influence among the Police and other governmental organisations.