The thing with me is that I don't believe in evil.
I don't see racists/fascists/anti-Semites as evil. Just flawed, misguided, humans in need of compassion.
I have, personally, seen that is the way to show them the different path, more than once.

You're working really hard here to erase the line between thought and action, and it's not working.

If you want to punish cops who "could act in a discriminatory manner" instead of just those who "do act in a discriminatory manner"...you're advocating punishment before a crime has been comitted.

I can think of whole bunches of people who *could* commit a crime. Shall we lock them all up, just to make sure it doesn't happen?

MaggieL...I'm not working hard to do anything here except express my point of view on an issue which is highly controversial to begin with. When it all comes down to it, how does any person define racist behaviour anyway? Everyone has different places to draw the line on different issues. In this particular one, I took the risk of sharing my personal viewpoint and even shared the reasons for doing so with you and the other members of this site. If you want to continue on this path then go ahead. I'm not going to proceed any further with you. If you need the last word, go ahead and have it.

Ultimately, no matter what you say to me, I'll have no time for racism because I've seen my children suffer at the hands of racist people. That is my reason and the only reason you'll get from me for my views. I don't care if you think my views are unreasonable. Ultimately what you or anyone else thinks has little or no bearing on my life or how I live it.

Pardon me for taking the risk of sharing something personal with you and the other members here about what I really think without trying to promote my higher intellect.

This is why we have laws that define "discrimination"....so it's not up to the whims of "any person". I'm no more interested in "promoting racism", than I am in "promoting homophobia". But trying to create laws to punish people for their thoughts or beliefs isn't a smart way fight either racism or homophobia. And it opens the door to an incredible range of abuses that won't be good for anybody.

As far as being a member of an organisation which openly espouses racist views.....that I think is incompatible with being a policeman. That said, I do find myself agreeing with some of what Maggie is saying here. There is a danger in legislating against certain ways of thinking.

In the UK we have a law against incitement to racial hatred. Calling someone a 'paki' is not illegal. Standing up in a public meeting and saying Pakis are a cancer on society which should be cut out is.

Dana, just for the sake of argument--it's illegal to stand up in a public meeting and say Paki's are a cancer on society but it IS legal to have a public demonstration in which beheadings are prescribed for the 'cancer' that is 'europe'-? Do I have that right?

Yup. If they'd referred to a specific race it would be different.

But you can say that racists are a cancer on society, right?

yep. People choose to be racist or not. People have no choice as to their ethnicity.

Not the point... the point is that you feel it is ok to single-out and ostracize one type of person publicly and not another. That makes you the same as them.
That kind of law makes the people exactly what they are trying to avoid. They become what they are trying to fight.
It is impossible to legislate morality.

Part of freedom of speech is hearing unpleasant speech.

When did "Pakistani" become a race?

Since "ethnism" isn't as easy to pronouce as "racism."

Republican Party? You wish, Spexx. And wishes like that you don't get. Which prospect makes me feel like :)ing.

OK...for one thing, unless the process of becomming a police officer is much different in the US than it is here, there's a huge number of people involved in employing each new recruit, so it would certainly be far from the 'whims of any person' to exclude or include any one person during the process.

One further comment. I don't know what you really feel about this situation because you've not shared with us why you think the way you do, but even if your view is 'constitutional', I would never agree that it's ok for a police officer to be an active officer and be a member of a hate group at the same time. It takes something very special to be a cop, and someone who can believe that it's ok to feel superior to another whole race doesn't have that special thing that you need to have to be a cop.

To add to that, the state has a responsibility to act in the best interests of all citizens. How can the state be acting in the best interests of all citizens if it allows some of its citizens to be put in a position where they are open to victimization?

So much for "the last word". :-)