On: Streetfoto founder Ken Walton arrested at gunpoint

[coldtea]

>because they're empowered by the state.

The state is just the embodiment (imperfect as most things are, but still) of the people's will (and attitudes).

So what the parent said, still holds.

It's that attitude being prevalent that permits it, both in individuals and the state.

[pavel_lishin → coldtea]

Right. So when a police officer is on duty, he's more than just an American citizen - he's the embodiment of the people's desire to enforce law and order, and as such, he or she should be held to a higher burden than "I was scared someone was going to hurt me".

[coldtea → pavel_lishin]

The problem is, the people desire for law and order to be enforced brutally and with "zero tolerance".

And by "the people" I mean, "a heck of a lot of people"...