This may stem from the fact that police forces are running around with, essentially, military hardware.

There is also a lack of oversight when employing this hardware.

Hell, a cop could unload a magazine at a child holding a stuffed toy, and just say he was scared, and get a month or longer off paid while the department “investigates” itself, and finds no wrong doing.

Police frequently go to the wrong house, and go in guns blazing on innocent sleeping people.

These are militaristic actions performed by a group of people who hire, in part, by the LACK of intelligence in their staff.

Yes, being too smart can disqualify you from police work.

So yes, they get conflated. Have a problem with that? Good, so do I.

Fuck it, require special training to carry a firearm on duty.

And that training shouldn’t include learned paranoia, like current training does.

The UK, as a middle ground for training requirements requires 2250 hours of training. Aren’t they known for carrying the frightfully lethal whistle? You know, the same basic kind that gym teachers and children’s sports coaches use?

US police require 672 hours. 3.35 (rounded) times LESS training than the UK police.

Source: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/police-training-requirements-by-country