> but one should ask themselves why does the US police force need to be more powerful than nearly every countries military? Who is it that they are fighting and who are they fighting for?

Well, either you pay for healthcare (especially mental health care) and social security programs such as affordable housing... or you'll pay police to deal with the fallout.

Unfortunately, unlike in Europe, "government handouts" for the poor aren't something to score political points with, but authoritarian police is...