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Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by fastball on Monday October 12, 2020 @10:25AM (#24754634)
I was under the impression that one of the main reason police forces are getting "military gear" is because they're getting it at a steep discount due to the actual military not having anything else to do with it once they're done.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by jakelazaroff on Monday October 12, 2020 @11:44AM (#24755608)
IMO this is even less charitable, since it implies that more violent police departments are seeking out surplus military equipment to better subjugate civilians.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by fastball on Monday October 12, 2020 @12:14PM (#24755981)
If you require a firearm, and you can buy a military surplus weapon which is cheaper than a new "civilian" firearm, wouldn't you?
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by jakelazaroff on Monday October 12, 2020 @12:34PM (#24756211)
Based on the study, it seems like the answer is "yes" for violent police departments and "no" for everyone else.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by numpad0 on Monday October 12, 2020 @01:17PM (#24756768)
There’s not much technical difference in “military rifles” from civilian AR15 other than military version has an extra pin and the finger groove
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by jakelazaroff on Monday October 12, 2020 @01:50PM (#24757196)
On the other hand, there's presumably a significant technical difference between police cars and mine-resistant vehicles created for military operations in the Middle East.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by numpad0 on Tuesday October 13, 2020 @06:46AM (#24764190)
True. It’s sad that they hastily sourced tons of MRAPs that turned out useless, but they probably belong to museums and scrapyards.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by fastball on Monday October 12, 2020 @09:19PM (#24761345)
Not very intuitive that a mine-resistant vehicle would encourage anyone to kill more civilians tho.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by yeetawayhn on Monday October 12, 2020 @01:46PM (#24757143)
Not exactly, surplus weapons are really popular among civilians.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by jakelazaroff on Monday October 12, 2020 @01:50PM (#24757200)
We are talking about police.
Re:Police killings more likely in agencies that get military... by asdasdasdas5453 on Monday October 12, 2020 @10:34AM (#24754713)
I remember reading once that what you think of as military gear obtained at a steep discount is not the first thing that comes to mind : essentially air conditioning.