What do we do if the police revolt?

bristol | policing | opinion/analysis Thursday April 30, 2009 23:49 by Blake Lock

Join them?

With public mistrust in the police, and their political paymasters, running at record high levels, it should come as no surprise that your average PC is not a happy bunny. Their sudden lampooning in the media, alongside the hatred they receive at all times from a large percentage of the population, is driving some of them to distraction. It may not therefore come as a total surprise if they revolted.

Turn up the burners!

As we react with righteous anger, and protest in Bristol this Saturday, at the behaviour of the cops and the state over the policing of events like the G20, the summary arrest of campaigners in Nottingham before they actually do anything, the general policing of just about any football match, the return of stop and search (especially for black people), the failure of the war on terror to catch hardly any terrorists (but plenty of innocents), and so on, it is easy to forget that your average PC has feelings too.

As we struggle to smash the state, it's well worth a look at police chat forums, and blogs, such as the Inspector Gadget one (http://inspectorgadget.wordpress.com - plenty of links there too). Scroll down a couple pages to the blogs in early April, and check the comments too, to get a flavour of what the poor put-upon booby feels. Well written, witty even, the anger and frustration seeps out of every blog and comment. They are pissed off at so much - poor equipment, silly rules, crap supervisors, stupid bosses, incompetent political masters, bureaucratic public sector babble, worsening terms and conditions, customer focus and forms, the list is endless. Compare that to the Avon & Somerset website, and its police blog (on the newsroom page) - what utter complete bullshit.

Of course the hyped up automatons and thugs of the TSG are beyond the pale, indeed probably anyone over the rank of sargent is too, and the high-ups are for sure. But your average bobby? Maybe not exactly workers in uniform, but there could be something to work with there. There is certainly disillusionment that can be explored to all our mutual benefits. After all, if we're going to smash the state, it'll be a lot easier if the massed ranks of PC's come over to our side, even if it's just based on the realisation that we do have the numbers. So keep your eyes peeled for signs of overheating PC's and whistling, and be ready with the slogan:

Oficer Friendly! Turn your batons on the real enemies - your bosses, political paymasters, and their corporate backers. You have nothing to lose except maybe some very silly headgear.