Angelus: Ahh being a male with an actual butt instead of a flat plank. I know the feeling. Das booty helps with those foot patrols.

I am thoroughly amused you can find parallels in Terminal Lance.

I am told that that kind of ultra light sentencing is "We agree with what you did morally, but legally we are required to say that it was bad"

It's Switzerland as well. That neutrality clause is taken very seriously.

Edited by TerminusEst on Feb 22nd 2019 at 10:51:27 AM

I am on the military police after all.

It has some really strong parallels with the military in general.

Edited by AngelusNox on Feb 23rd 2019 at 5:27:25 PM

In Central Asia’s forbidding highlands, a quiet newcomer: Chinese troops

Oh dear.

Isn't Tajikstan supposed to be in Russia's sphere of influence as it was formerly part of the USSR?

China made sure to ask the Russians where the red lines are. However, with Chinese money pouring in to the various states, the "ex-USSR" tag means less and less.

Edited by TerminusEst on Feb 23rd 2019 at 9:20:24 AM

A more succinct summary of military service has never been uttered.

Stay safe out there on patrol, and congrats. The one piece of advice I’d offer for a career in law enforcement of any kind is to never forget the “civilian” outlook. Becoming an LEO changes you, not always for the better, and remembering that outlook is critical to doing your job fairly.

I can see what you are referring to. I am beginning to understand part of the resentment police and military have towards civilians. Specially related to the amount of things you have to renounce to join the police/military life and still get shit for how worthless or how easy our jobs are.

Still, I am focused on keeping my critical thinking in place but my mouth shut for my own good.

This place for better or worse instills a siege mentality towards both civilians, which are more than willing to turn their backs on you when it is convenient and the potential criminal elements who are constantly on the attack. Normally I wouldn't pay too much attention to this kind of thinking, but after spending some time observing the regular interactions and the stories, it is a needed attitude to safeguard both your job and your life.

I am way more liberal than most of my peers, specially after the elections in Brazil being a huge shitshow, the first thing I've learned is to keep my mouth shut.

Rooting for you, Angelus

Keep quiet for now. Maybe one day you will be able to use your experiences to help cause positive change.

That “us vs. them” mentality is so prevalent in law enforcement it’s unbelivable. I worked in law enforcement for over a decade and you really do begin to look down on civilians after a while.

They say out of every 100 people you address only 3 will be difficult and only 1 will be violent. Of course, you can’t exactly tell which is which. After a while you just begin to assume that every person you see is that 1, and that’s how you get cops who shoot first and ask questions later.

Stay frosty, but use your head.

And for what it’s worth, more liberal officers is a great thing. Make some change in your department.

Edited by archonspeaks on Feb 23rd 2019 at 7:04:03 AM

When it comes to naval infantrymen/marines being stationed on a warship for security, while it depends on ship and the country's armed forces, what's the highest rank for the commanding officer of all naval infantrymen/marines on-board an aircraft carrier?

I mean, it's helpful for me to keep that in mind too. I come from a city where the police are largely appreciated for being competent and doing their jobs well. The HKPD may not do crazy stuff like going nuts with dual Berettas or beating thugs up with mackerals, but for the most part they're decent, and a lot of young men and women willingly sign up for them.

I'm currently attending a liberal arts college in Washington state, and while the cops over there are pretty decent, as students it's in our nature to have some level of distrust for the police. Media don't really help - every day, you see stories about cops looking like they're using excessive force or emptying almost an entire double-stack mag into anything that moves. There's also a lot of POCs who are understandably very nervous of going to the police for help.

Hell, I have a little bit of that youthful distrust regarding American cops, even though I know there's plenty of good folks in there too - I never forgot the story about this guy, God bless his soul.

Edited by TheWildWestPyro on Feb 23rd 2019 at 10:34:29 AM

Amusingly enough this is the exact mentality that many civilians end up having about cops, sure most of them are good but all it takes is one angry racist with a badge and you’re dead, so people end up assuming that every cop is that 1 murderous racist, because any cop could be that 1.

Some OSINT and news on the Russian (deep breath) Poseidon Intercontinental Nuclear-Powered Nuclear-Armed Autonomous Torpedo.

Edited by TerminusEst on Feb 24th 2019 at 9:17:07 AM

That’s why there’s no room for error for police. They need to be held to an incredibly high standard, because people only see the uniform and if 1 officer is behaving poorly it casts doubt on everyone.

The line between mini-sub and torpedo is getting a little blurry here. Either way, it’s more Russian silliness, the strategic status quo isn’t changing.

The line has always been blury if you think about it, a torpedo is just a little suicide sub.

With women in combat roles, a federal court rules male-only draft unconstitutional

Edited by TairaMai on Feb 24th 2019 at 8:00:42 PM

Apparently the Swiss guy who fought against ISIS in Syria has been acquitted. Although I'm not entirely clear on what that means, since he still has to pay a fine of some sort.

Edited by TerminusEst on Feb 25th 2019 at 2:56:38 AM

If he found family links to the mercenary groups, he might actually have a loophole to wriggle through.

A small one, though.

Because he probably didn't jump through all the paperwork to get sufficiently hired by Swiss standards. In short: heaven help him if he messes up on his taxes even slightly for the next forty years — this ruling will haunt him.

Also, side-note: I got surprisingly nostalgic over the shape of those trees. Even though I've never liked the maintenance "copsing" done to them.

Edited by Euodiachloris on Feb 25th 2019 at 12:23:38 PM

The ruling is interesting.

At the same time, god help him if that happens. Since he became infamous with his arrest and all...

Can you imagine how well that past will go down when trying to wrangle alterations to a generational mortgage agreement? <winces>

Reminds me of that article I read when the Swiss military was investigating someone on whether he did war crimes while working for Blackwater.