Saturday, September 10, 2016

"War on Cops? Stats show American Police are Safer than they have ever Been, But...the 'FEAR' Remains STRONG!"




On Aug. 18, a 29-year-old man named Daniel K. Harris was shot and killed by a North Carolina state trooper near Charlotte. Harris, who was unarmed, was also deaf.
The shooting, which is currently under investigation, is the kind of case that often sparks protests across the nation. Yet the public response has been relatively muted. Could it be that in the wake of the tragedies in Baton Rouge and Dallas this summer—ambushes in which a total of eight police officers were murdered—journalists and activists are beginning to look at policing differently? Despite a wealth of statistics showing that attacks on police have been steadily decreasing for decades, maybe police are right to be so scared all the time.

There are valid concerns about police safety. But the facts show that there is no national war on cops. That’s hard for me to say—mostly because I’m a cop.
A report commissioned in July by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund found that firearms-related homicides of police officers are up as compared to the same period last year. According to the FBI, of the 41 police officers feloniously murdered in 2015, seven were killed in ambushes or unprovoked attacks. In the first half of 2016, with already 14 already tallied, ambush murders have also spiked as compared to last year.
And yet these numbers don’t tell the full story.
In fact, police officers are safer today then they have ever been. And while ambushes like the ones in Texas and in Louisiana contribute to a large percentage of total police deaths this year, they remain rare. Police officer deaths overall have been declining since the mid-1970s. When it comes to the most dangerous jobs in America, law enforcers barely ever crack the Top Ten.


The facts show that there is no national war on cops. That’s hard for me to say—mostly because I’m a cop.
Yet everywhere I turn, someone is telling me that I’m being targeted for my uniform, that an attack on my brothers and sisters in blue is an attack on the close to half a million full-time sworn police officers in the US. After being inundated with the message that anyone, anywhere, and at any time might ambush me (and that these sorts of attacks are on the rise), is it any surprise that I or other police officers might be fearful on the job? Fear is an emotion. It’s primal and instinctual.
It doesn’t have to be logical or rational. And throughout their careers, police are exposed to all kinds of worse-case scenarios. American police training is a complex venture. In a time-compressed format, the police training takes Joe Citizen and turns him into Joe Cop. His trainers debrief incidents when officers are injured or killed. Joe watches countless dash-cam videos of police officers being murdered in front of their patrol cars. He learns to be skeptical of everyone. Joe participates in scenario drills in which old ladies and young kids ambush him. He is taught to expect the worst
possible outcome—and take precautions in order to prevent becoming another statistic himself.
He will also be trained to shoot to kill, instead of to wound or incapacitate. “Even if an officer shoots [someone] with a lethal firearm, it may not stop a person,” David Klinger, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, told ABC News recently. “When there is a threat to life right now, or serious bodily injury, deadly force is the appropriate response.”
Police are taught to expect the 
worst outcome—and take precautions 
in order to prevent becoming another statistic.
 The idea of a “war on cops” confirms this mindset. Emotional imagery and war stories are more compelling than statistics. Joe Cop becomes even more afraid. He is afraid of people who keep their hands in their pockets; he is wary of people who get too close or videotape him or want to shake hands. Everyone is a potential assailant. When one adds race and unconscious prejudices into the mix, the issues become even more complex. Implicit bias affects both civilians and law enforcement professionals—although civilians are presumably not as emboldened to act upon it in potentially lethal ways. As noted by New York University psychologist David Amodio in 2010: “Recent research in social neuroscience has revealed that prejudiced reactions are linked to rapidly activated structures in the brain—parts of the brain associated with fear and disgust, likely developed long ago in our evolutionary history.” The good news is that training has been shown to help counteract these biases. The bad news is that not all officers will get it. Indeed, a new study conducted by researchers at Harvard University suggests that black men and women are treated differently during police encounters, although the study did not find a significant bias when it came to shootings.
 Cops doesn’t fear the statistical 
improbability of being ambushed. 
They fear the finality of the consequences.
All of this information is difficult to parse for the average layman. So it’s not surprising that police, too, would have difficulty navigating all the data and statistics measuring how safe or dangerous his career is. But does it matter? Joe doesn’t fear the statistical improbability of being ambushed. He fears the finality of the consequences: death.
As a police officer myself, I understand how hard it can be to see my job as a calculable risk management problem, where frequency and importance are weighed objectively. And to be fair, much of policing is subjective. There are few instances in which binary decisions can be applied.
Simply out, police training in America is in dire need of an overhaul. Too many departments still ignore emotional intelligence and behavioral analysis aspects of threat recognition. We need implicit bias training and community outreach. Our training spends too much time and effort on the “exceptions,” and not enough on the “rules.” Police training should emphasize slow-down strategies and tactics that allow for police officers’ critical thinking skills to complement, and, if necessary, override, emotions like fear or prejudice. Above all, we need to adopt evidence-based risk
management modeling that will appropriately train our officers to be aware, prepared, and ready, instead of using biased, anecdotal war-storytelling methods that–unintentionally or not–create an
us-or-them mentality.
Even in 2016, a police officer’s chances of being violently attacked or murdered are statistically very low. But in the battle between fact and fear, fear seems to be winning.

Monday, July 11, 2016

"Hustlers - Cruise Video 2014-2015 'C-2A Greyhound' COD VRC-30 Providers"




Published on Jul 21, 2015-

The 'Hustlers' of VRC-30 DET ONE completed the longest scheduled deployment since Vietnam between 2014 and 2015. This video demonstrates combat logistics at its finest. From cargo and passengers to the occasional distinguished visitor; COD guys and gals move it all with the workhorse of the fleet, the C-2A Greyhound, ensuring victory at sea through logistics. Thanks for watching!

Friday, July 1, 2016

Powerful US B-52 Bomber Escorted by Massive Formation Flight : Eurofigh...

 Published on Jun 15, 2016 -

 US Boeing B-52 Stratofortress escorted by US and Polish Air force F-16, Swedish Saab JAS 39 Gripen, German Eurofighter Typhoon and refuelled by US Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker from 434th Air Refueling Wing.

Videos Credit: Senior Airman Gabriel Stuart, Senior Airman Erin Babis.

Thumbnail credit: Doomych from wikipedia.

Monday, June 13, 2016

William posted an update on "Help A Vet Get Knee Replacement!"

Hi there A new update has been posted to Help A Vet Get Knee Replacement! I've been on this mission for a year and a half now. My height has decreased by a 1/4 inch as the bones in my knees slowly get worn down. I still need help with this, as it...
 
 
 
 
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I've been on this mission for a year and a half now. My height has decreased by a 1/4 inch as the bones in my knees slowly get worn down. I still need help with this, as it...
 
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Monday, May 23, 2016

The oily truth about Exxon's lies!

ell Exxon to come clean and leave ALEC!

is the biggest threat to bold action on climate change.

Stork with bundle of Exxon money

Exxon and other oil companies pay the same PR firms and right wing front groups that helped tobacco companies lie about the risks of smoking.

Tobacco and oil lobbyist are one and the same.

Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporting shows that Exxon has known that burning oil and gas causes catastrophic climate change as far back as 1977.

...man has a time window of five to ten years before the need for hard decisions regarding changes in energy strategies might become critical.


But by the 1990s, Exxon had instead started funding climate disinformation at a massive scale.



All designed to spread confusion about the urgency of climate change and keep their profits high.

Three states (and counting) are investigating Exxon for misleading shareholders about the risks of climate change.

So now Exxon acknowledges human-caused climate change and even claims to support a carbon tax."

In the Los Angeles Times, Exxon wrote that they support a carbon tax.

But in reality, Exxon is quietly blocking progress. The company remains a major funder of denial-promoting groups, including the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

ALEC opposes a carbon tax and misinforms state lawmakers about climate change. But without Exxon's funding, ALEC would lose influence fast.


Come clean and leave ALEC.


Producing carbon emissions is dangerous. But Exxon is producing something else just as dangerous: climate change denial.

Denial is slowing our transition to cleaner energy and harming vulnerable communities.

Exxon continues to spend $27 million a year to spread denial and block climate action.

All eyes will be on Exxon at its annual shareholder meeting in Dallas on May 25, so we need to act fast.

Tell Exxon to come clean and leave the denial-promoting American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).


Truthfully yours,

Elizabeth, and Emily

MORE INFORMATION

"Exxon: The Road Not Taken," InsideClimate News, 09-16-2015
http://act.climatetruth.org/go/1149?t=12&akid=3274.29222.v5atVj

"CMD Submits Evidence of Exxon Mobil Funding ALEC's Climate Change Denial to New York Attorney General," Center for Media and Democracy, 11-17-2015
http://act.climatetruth.org/go/1220?t=14&akid=3274.29222.v5atVj

"Despite what divestment activists say, ExxonMobil is searching for climate solutions," Los Angeles Times, 03-14-2016
http://act.climatetruth.org/go/1221?t=16&akid=3274.29222.v5atVj

"Climate Lobbying by the Fossil Fuel Sector," InfluenceMap.org, April 2016
http://act.climatetruth.org/go/1222?t=18&akid=3274.29222.v5atVj


ClimateTruth.org fights the denial, distortion and disinformation that block bold action on climate change. You can follow us on Twitter, and like us on Facebook. Help us end climate denial once and for all by contributing here.


 

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