**in the news yet again.
i say yes…AGAIN!.
in fact, all officer’s to be armed.
that’s why we’re in the state we’re in…:pinch:
hurry it up!.
:)**
My answer is YES!
Arm them with tasers, but not all with firearms as ex forces I know the great responsibility of walking round with a loaded weapon, and too many accidents would occur we need more armed response teams who are stringently tested.
hmmm…i reckon yes to the tasers kinda -ish-sorta-maybe, because thesedays everyon else is tooled up so it makes sense they have a way of “defending” themselves. but impose harsh penalties if any officers get caught abusing it as a deterent for the hot headed trigger happy officers out there…
Surely if a weopon is in a “Made safe” condition there would be no chance of an accident:cool:
I’m in favour of arming all our cops. It’s second nature on the continent. You don’t even notice the cop’s side arms. Even Securicor fellas have guns in Spain… bring it on, i say:cool:
it’s about time the UK police force’s get back the respect they once had & very much deserve & this sure is one of them ways.
all this rubbish about looking after the criminal’s, & paying them out compensation…it’s about time the police play the system back, & speak up instead of worrying about ‘red taped’ issues!.
However they never used to be armed but had respect so how does that work? :ermm:
gaining respect back, back then ain’t so easy nowdays.
Tazers are probably a good idea.
The only thing that would concern me with proper fire arms is the trigger happy police officers that may come about from carrying them. The prime example of what I mean is that US pillock in the video you posted before.
Don’t get me wrong, I agree that the police force has lost the respect it deserves but people being people mean that even police officers can abuse their power and I’d hate to see the UK become like the US.
On the otherhand they should actually be allowed to do their job and deal with criminals instead of having to let them off with a harsh word.
Creating a fully armed force is a big mistake. Far better to maintain what we have which are highly trained units that can deploy quickly. More money needs to be spent on them.
I’m sorry but the thought of an armed force scares me. And the reasoning that goes along the line of ‘everyone else does it so why don’t we…’ just doesn’t add up.
It’s classic wanger waving - arm the police and the scum will just go one better and bear in mind how easy it is to get a gun these days you can bet your harris that they’ll get these weapons faster then the police can improve theres.
More thought / money needs to be spent on stopping the flow of weapons to the scum and that should a weapon be involved it should be punished. At the moment carrying a gun is nothing to these people - these people need switching off - stretch a few necks and you could argue that carrying ‘a piece’ will lose its appeal…
I have every respect for the police on these boards however growing up in a police flat surrounded by all sorts of coppers - my dad was a copper and my brother is now so I know that the police are just like you and me - good and bad in all of them and some are complete wastes of space that I wouldn’t trust with a ball point pen - let alone a firearm.
So keep the highly trained specialists !
all other’s fine, but i wouldn’t trust an armed PCSO!..
Its one of those vicous circle situations where if the police arent armed, the gang are basically taking shots at moving targets…but then arm them and watch how all gangs will double/tripple thier cache of firearms in response… i dont think firearms will bring back respect, more like convert it into fear and resentment amongst a lot of people… macp’s idea of training more Armed Response units sounds like a step in the right direction,
I would get to see them being used all the time with my job and tbh I would like to see the muppets suffer a touch when they kick off and cause a bad vibe. 
Yes to tasers, no to general firearms. We cannot be fooled into following the American route. Frankly that’s just scary. The American Police force is not a shining example of justice and public service, it’s virtually a totalitarian civil subduing force.
Tasers will help quickly deal with mindless thugs and nutters. Our Police are very well equipped and trained, this is a good thing for us. If you spend any time watching American police tv programs, you will be shocked at how under-equipped and ill-trained they are, not to mention excessively violent and unforgiving.
Why do people think that if our coppers were all armed they would turn into Americans?:w00t:
When was the last time you heard of a French, German or Spanish cop going gun crazy?
We are after all, Europeans and not Sceptics:P
lets go back to the old days when officers could draw a firearm on night duty, or even a cutlass!!!
dont arm all police officers, keep the ARV’s and have a small group of firearms trained officers on borough for immediate containment , weapons locked away in vehicle gun safe unless required, like the initial days of ARV’s.
and tazer should be issued to trained officers not to all.
and of course will the law be changed so that a Police officer in the course of his duty cannot be tried for murder when he does shoot someone!!!
We are missing the point…Darryl is partially right…we need to give the Police more respect…they do an awful job (at times) and have to deal with some awful people (at times) But guns will not make it any easier…that is complete madness.
I have little or no respect for every policeman that tells a lie to gain a conviction. I know of a few. I no respect for anyone who would even think of striking a police man let alone shooting them…
Quick reaction forces trained and focused on firearms in this country have gotten it wrong so many times its scary…how on earth would the everyday copper cope…no guns are nuts tasers are okay because they dont kill, and if the policeman has it wrong he is in ****…but at least the man is alive… however if it stops a man from having a go at a policeman then I am all for it…section 5a however can not be a reason to use a taser…
Guns are bad, crime is bad just becuase one has them and the other may or may not will not make the crimes go away…we have to educate, teach people the right way and cut off their hands feet and ******** if they eventually decide to go the wrong way…
After watching some of the programs on tv I have seen occasions where the police have been completely out of order and in my opinion caused the crime…tasers would only make them more aggressive when aggression is the least likely action needed. So I think yes but with very clear usage guidelines…
But on another note…when do we ever hear about initiatives to catch drug dealers or burglers…they do happen now and again, but it seems that every day there is something about new regulations about parking, speeding, box junctions etc etc…we are forcing our police and the law system to focus on the wrong things…lets get rid of criminals…make them all build new roads so we can all go about our daily grind more easily…
Why not pick random foreign citizens every so often and just shoot them… I don’t know, maybe 7 or 8 times to the head should prove the point.
Surely this police policy would calm the situation down a bit?
I’d prefer if they carried real firearms.
Whats the use having a taser if they confront a gun wielding loony?