Discouraged by the rather stormtrooper black and white decor of the Calgary Police Force's vehicles, a mirror of their US counterparts, it occurs to me that what if we conducted a small social experiment...???
There's some precedent for this - In the early 1970's Professor Philip G. Zimbardo conducted what would become later known as the infamous Stanford Prison Experiment, in which he probed how ordinary people would act when outfitted with the trappings and privileges of authority and helplessness. It revealed the rather dismal results of conformity to "social" expectations and roles.
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In lieu of the Black and White police vehicles we have now, which are designed, I suspect, not just to be readily identifiable but as well to somewhat intimidate future "victims" of the Justice system, and arguably the black and white coloring is too often mirrored in the black and white thinking of members of the force (when was the last time you witnessed a police officer using discretion?), I'd suggest a few changes.
Beginning with the Motto...IN the US (on Television at least), it's "To Serve and Protect". (well, no, it isn't, but we'll pretend and you can do your own research there...). In Calgary it's "Vigilance • Courage • Pride". Taking Issue with all of the above - Vigilance - too similar to vigilante, think the burning crosses of the KKK, we should all be vigilant of the rights and privileges we give the police. This should be our motto, not theirs. And "Vigilance" is nothing if you're every sense and intuition is misinformed. "Courage". Well, let's be real, "Courage" is an easy virtue when you've been outfitted with tasers, nightsticks, handguns, Kevlar Vests and a trigger happy partner. Give me all of the above and we'll go head to head and see who has courage...and no you calling for backup...
And finally..."Pride", The first of the 7 deadly sins. Nope, I, as a member of the public that pays your salary, am not even remotely interested in endorsing this. Not a bit, not even a whit...
Here's a few alternate mottos that give me about the same sense of security. "Coercive • Judgemental • Above the Law". Or: "Well Armed • Well Equipped • By You".
We are aiding the instruments of our own destruction...
Here are some new mottos: "Love • Harmony • Agreement" or "Friendly • Helpful • Paid For by You" or "Nurture • Encourage • Assist" or "Caring • Attentive • Supportive". Even with these few short words we're developing a completely different imaginings of the police. Now lets re-imagine their cars. Instead of the Black and White Imperial Cruisers they now patrol with, how's about floral VW bugs, or color schemes based upon pink and purple. What kind of policing would these cars face, and what kind of officers would they attract to the force, and more importantly, what kind of reaction would they generate from the public that required their assistance? I'm thinking criminals might feel a lot less criminal, and we might be getting a little closer to the grey and colored world you find when you drop all absolutes...
And the uniforms, lets get away from the black (I know, it hides the blood well), but lets try, an experiment, some more real, hippy, floral patterns. Why not? Try it out, we've nothing to lose...
There's a world of change in tiny details...
And other tiny details, too, like you can't shoot anyone you haven't hugged first, and if you haven't hugged them, they're too dangerous and crazy, well, too bad, that's what we pay you for. Lets get away from the polarities and realize the nuances of people, and hire the police on the same basis. Knowing you have to be hugged first will probably make you a lot less likely to shoot someone trying to hug you. It's easy to shoot someone trying to kill you.
Watch policing change and see what happens to crime. Hire cops that don't see the world in black and white and give them back the power of discretion and see how we can change the world...
Crazy Ideas. Maybe they'll work, maybe they won't, but surely they're worth the experiment...