Weaponized Cops and the Future of Freedom

[Savannahmann]

19. Part of it is the image of "manly" or Macho.

The Air Force did a study and found that contrary to the instinctive idea, that Black was not a good color for painting things that you wanted to make as difficult to see at night as possible. This study was done prior to the fielding of the F-117 Stealth that was going to fly only at night on operational missions. So this study suggested that grey would be a much better color to use, and the advocates pointed out the obvious question, why make something as difficult to see on radar, easier to see by eye?

It seems that real men fly black aircraft. In the 1980's, you used to see the aircraft painted with camouflage, or with some colorful logo on the tail usually with a skeleton or some other symbol of death. Yet all of these techniques some of which make some sense are gone. No aircraft have camouflage any longer. Perhaps someone decided that it restricted the deployment of the aircraft, I mean, one painted to blend in when viewed from above with a forrest would stand out like a neon sign over the desert or the ocean. Perhaps they decided that universal pain jobs were the most efficient, and we didn't expect to have the enemy above us any longer considering the power and accuracy of radar.

However along the same time period, you will notice an increase in the development of the SWAT teams in the world of police. Before that, it was common for police officers to wear distinctive and visible uniforms. Generally speaking, city police wore light blue. Sheriff's wore brown or tan, and state police wore green or tan. Now, very few departments wear these colors. Most have switched to black. They no longer wear the heavy uniform trousers, but most wear a variation of tactical, which can be read as military style pants with cargo pockets on the thigh.

I mentioned the 1980's, and as a boy reaching the adult threshold I was in Anaheim California then. The police there wore tan uniforms. Today, those uniforms are like everyone else's, black. The situations in which a black uniform would be useful are very limited. It is restricted to a situation in which you would be able to blend into a shadow. Yet, the most you could hope to do that would be half the time, daylight does exist after all, and even then it wouldn't hurt to be wearing tan hiding in a shadow. It would be much better to hide behind something in that situation because then not only is vision blocked, but so are those pesky bullets that the police worry about frantically.

Someone decided that black was a more intimidating color for the uniforms, and scary is better than not when all things are considered. Yet, is it really better is the question. In 2013, eleven officers were struck by vehicles. Thirty one were shot and killed. We don't know how many were injured, so we'll stay with the dead. How many of those eleven officers would be alive today if they had been wearing the same sort of safety visibility equipment that is required for people who pick up the trash along the side of the road? How many would be alive if they were wearing don't run me over stuff?

The image of the police, the visual image is an important one. If you are wearing something easily visible, and recognizable, the message is simple, I'm here to help. The picture above of the British Police. They are exceedingly visible, and the message you get from that is what can I do to help? Contrast that with the standard uniform we see every day and the message there is I'm in charge, and you will obey me or else. Everyone resents authority that demands blind obedience.

Uniforms are important, they present the image of organization. Mess with me, and the entire organization will come down on you. Business executives have their uniform, expensive suit, tie, and shoes. The more they cost, the more important the person is. I read an article about doing business in the Russian Federation a few years ago. The politician they were interviewing about meeting with foreign businessmen said he looked out the window, and if the person he was meeting did not arrive in a German Sedan, read that to mean Mercedes or Audi, a luxury sedan, then the meeting was canceled. The advice of the article was to wear Armani, or some other designer suits, and drive an expensive car. Presumably a guy driving a Ford couldn't afford the bribes the individual expected.

Look at the Army. The beret is intended to show membership in an elite community. We got that from the British Army. The Paratroopers wore Maroon Berets. The Rangers wore Black. The Special Forces wore Green. Then the entire army decided they were special, elite, and switched to black berets. The Rangers being outraged at this switched to Tan berets to make sure the people know they were more elite than the regular army. But it's interesting isn't it that the Army went with Black berets for their soldiers. Black, the scary color, the intimidating color.

Even when looking at skin color, many people instinctively gravitate toward the lighter colors. Someone did a study a few years ago, and found that the more desirable African-Americans were the ones with lighter skin tone. The darker ones were viewed with suspicion, even distrust. In other words, fear. This is an instinctive response, not learned racism, but a fear we have of darkness. People are afraid of the dark, they can't see, they are left to imagine things in the dark. Danger lurks in the dark.

The police uniforms then are obvious. Fear me, I am the one with power. I am wearing black uniform, and you should be afraid of us all. The British police uniforms on the other hand are different, see me, I am here to help you, and provide you with whatever assistance you may need. British police want to be seen, and they want you to know they are there. American police want to hide, want to intimidate, and want you to be afraid of them on an instinctive level.