The UK cops aren't a lot better.

I was a bit perturbed to receive some bad news from one of our regular readers, Bexie, in the UK. Miss Rebecca has been having renovation work done. The builder stupidly gave keys to her home to the low lifes he hired from the local unemployment office.

Early last week Bexie returned to her home only to find herself locked out from the inside. She got home early that day. Her return spooked the builder's employees who were inside the house redistributing the wealth. Of course they were the prime beneficiaries. Using another door, that couldn't be double locked from the inside she discovered a car had just fled the back of her home and it contained all her computer equipment. This includes all her data and business records.

Putting together the make of care and that the criminals gained access with a key it was easy to narrow down the culprits. The police were called and yawned totally uninterested. They didn't want to investigate or press the matter. She was told that if she wanted to get her goods returned she should offer a reward. In other words they were suggesting she pay off the thieves to return her stolen property.

Now precisely what purpose do these cops serve? It is a question that comes up more and more as the police refuse to protect people from crime yet use their power against non-criminals on a regular basis. (The latter is not quite as violent in the UK as it is in the US but this is because most British cops are unarmed.)

My theory is that in the modern police states that are arising in the UK and the US the police have stopped being peace officers who see their duty as protecting the people from criminals. They now see their job as one of protecting the State from the people. Their job is to force you to comply with State regulations and rules in regards to your relationship with government more than protect you in regards to your relationship with other people. This is born out by the zeal they exhibit in prosecuting people for going a couple of miles an hour too fast on government roads while being disinterested in burglaries such as this one.

The duty of the police officer has evolved as government has expanded its powers. Today the police officer is the thin blue line protecting statism from liberty. Only secondly, and a distant second I think, does he see his job as protecting people from criminals. Under the first theory of police functions the officer sees the public as the enemy while under the second he sees them as the client. The driving force behind the multiple incidents of "out of control" cops is because cops increasing see you as the enemy and the government as their client.

Bexie (if you can read this): Sorry again to hear about this. You know I'll do what I can to help.