[rsynnott]

> don't appreciate the fact that American police deal with people who are violent, disrespectful, and frequently mentally ill on a sometimes daily basis.

Lots of people have difficult stressful jobs dealing with people who don’t have much respect for them. That’s not an excuse for criminality, though. Take medical professionals. In the public mind, there are few things more horrifying and reprehensible than the doctor or nurse who deliberately kills or neglects their patients. There’s pretty much universal agreement that this is not okay, and that it is in fact a morally worse crime than normal murder or neglect, as it is done by someone in a position of trust. It should be the same for police.

[flippinburgers]

In defense of the OP the interaction between doctor and patient is not at all like the interaction between police officer and criminal.

There has to be a way forward when it comes to police reform, but it is a valid question to ask whether or not policing itself takes a particular toll.

[tomlagier]

I've wondered over the last week whether a strategy to fighting the perverse psychological changes that seem to settle in the minds of many police officers would be term limits? An "up or out" mentality like in the armed forces[1]?

It seems like many of the worst offenders have been mostly stagnant at their posts for many years - surely getting in fresh faces that have had a chance for more modern training would help break some of this mentality of "corps over country".

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up_or_out

[rsynnott]

Patients can be surprisingly abusive to medical staff.

[marcinzm]

>Take medical professionals.

Hell, take minimum wage store clerks.

[rsynnott]

Them too, but I think medical professionals are a better comparison because they’re in a position of trust and authority, like police are (supposed; obviously the ‘trust bit’ is dubious) to be.