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“The Kansas City, KS Police Department became aware of the photos depicting officers posing with patrol rifles in front of a stop sign thru social media late yesterday. The photos are disappointing and inappropriate. The Police Department has spent a great deal of time building relationships with the community in order to strengthen the confidence and trust they have our officers. We hope the actions of these two officers will be viewed as poor judgement and will not take away from the good work being done every day by members of the Kansas City, KS Police.” – Statement from the Kansas City (KS) police department in Police under fire after posing with guns for pics near “cops stop murdering” graffiti [at fox4kc.com]

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67 COMMENTS

  2. “You see the kids are out here playing. What if the kids would’ve seen it? What kind of message is that towards the kids?” asked Lona, who decided to snap a few pictures of her own, posting them to her Facebook page.

    Ummm, what kind of message is that towards the kids ALREADY ON THE SIGN? Did you get any photos of the vandals, Miss Head of the Corner Watch?

    • You see, children are all special little snowflakes that can’t handle being “triggered” by things that upset their parents. Sure, the parents could stay calm and refrain from their epic pearl-clutching tantrums, but it’s not the parent’s fault they were also “triggered.” This leads us to the nauseating “Fer Teh Chillllllrn” rally cry of progressives… because the proggie parents are less mature than the blizzard of special snowflakes that they are (quazi) raising, thus perpetuating the cycle of incessant whining about shit that doesn’t matter.

  3. “Meanwhile, murderers in Kansas City generally post selfies with large amounts of cash, drugs, and illegal guns. Sources say their neighbors might light a candle or something, once they are done humming slave hymns at traffic lights.”

  4. Why, this is outrageous.
    I should post a picture of her posting a picture of them taking pictures to my instatwittermyfacespacegrambook page…..

  5. “patrol rifle”
    Who beside me thinks it’s a problem with that term?

    I don’t mind them having rifles. If they’re “patroling” with them, there’s a problem.

    • They could call ’em “assault rifles”–that’s what they call ’em when you or I have one.

      • Should they have to go back to the station if they need them? Doesn’t sound very efficient to me.

        • I’m actually with you on that. It’s just the nomenclature thing that gets me.

      • that’s exactly what I though. Don’t they mean to say evil black rifle child slayers? That’s what they would say if some fine young citizens posed for their prom pictures with “patrol rifles”. I wonder how long the name transference lasts. I it lasts a few days we might be alright if there is a new awb. Just hand my assault weapon to a cop and be law abiding until the magic enforcer dust wears off and it turns back into the evil assault rifle. Patrol rifle haha. Patrol this!

  6. What happened to that thing about everything you do in public being public information?

    While we’re on the subject, if this was “poor judgment” on the part of the officers, what action will be taken to reprimand them? Specifically? In their files?

  7. Cops doing selfies with rifles out in front of a “cops stop murdering” graffiti. Police apologists in 3, 2, 1…

    Cop bashing or not, this looks bad on them. Very bad. Its like they have some kind of us vs them mentality or something…

    • Meh. I chalk it up to gallows humor and boys will be boys.

      Same exact nonsense many of us engage in here daily.

    • I disagree. It is ironic. It is gallows humor.

      In Iraq, I took a photo of a sign that read “Restricted Area. Authorized Personnel Only. No photographs. Violators Will Be Shot.”

      In the words of SFC Hulka, “lighten up , Frances.”

  10. While the posing and photos are generally in poor taste, dang folks I don’t really see a “cause for concern”. Sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying.

    • True enough re laughing.

      For me, it’s not the rifles themselves, but rather the attitude that they shouldn’t be called out for inappropriate behavior, that’s more the issue.

      If the behavior (aka rifles on display) was appropriate, state so and move on. If not, do the same. Making an issue of the photos being taken and posted, however… That speaks to a whole other level of concern.

  11. People expend a lot of effort making their lives more difficult.
    Just driving by = no effort expended and no controversy. Stopping to pose for photos = much more effort expended and plenty of controversy.
    I see this all the time among all walks of life. People go out of their way to make things more difficult and to create drama.

  12. I’d have gone out and pasted “THUGS” over Cops. While cops in the US are sometimes beyond the pale, we all know that there’s a reason why you don’t see police craziness all that often outside of certain “communities”…

  13. people need to relax. I am sure the officers were just obliging Shannon’s request to get their photos in timely for MDA’s distribution after Thanksgiving of multiple holiday cards depicting officers as the guardians of the free and the only ones entitled to have scary black (RACIST!!) rifles . . . . these things take time if they are going to be well done and they are for the Children (TM). . . .

    • “depicting officers as the guardians of the free and the only ones entitled to have scary black (RACIST!!) rifles”

      The *rifle* is racist? But-but-but it’s a *Black* rifle!!!

      Now if the rifle was powder coated ‘virgin-white-privilege’ I could see the point…

  15. Why is this a problem? If they posed behind a city, state or American flag would that be bad also? The crazy logic of progressives who hate cops and keep voting for more guns and gear for cops.

    This conservative supports everyone having rocket launchers, a mortor, flame throwers, and any weapon the police are currently using thanks to big city liberal voters and the big city liberal leaders they elected.

  17. What’s the problem ? Did the cops deface the sign ?

    My report would read. ” I was standing there in solidarity with the message on the sign. “

    • “In others news, a cop in Dallas, Texas forgot to use deodorant on Sunday.”

      Oh, that explains the Texas floods then…

      God gave Texas a Texas-sized shower…

  19. Once again, the delicate sensibilities of the perpetually aggrieved have been offended.

    The only crime – in fact, the only thing of any concern whatsoever – in that picture is the defacing of public property (the STOP sign).

  20. So when it’s in a cops hands it’s a “patrol rifle”, when it’s in my hands it’s an “assault rifle”? Interesting. The media wasn’t the one pushing that wording either. It was the department. Double standards are not standards and double speak is not honest.

  21. “You see the kids are out here playing. What if the kids would’ve seen it?”

    The kids would have thought that the rifles are cool, and would dream of the day when they could have their own Uzi and kill a couple of Crips.

  22. Calm down people, I bet those selfies were hilarious! Now we’ll never see them on Instagram. A sad day for internet humor indeed.

  23. If the residents were equally opposed to the graffiti accusing cops of murdering, then I’d be more sympathetic. LEOs are feeling under siege across the country and this is what people under siege do to keep morale: they stiffen their resolve and band together. You see it in the military and I have personally seen it. While it was certainly a bad PR move, so was the graffiti not being taken down by the neighborhood; it basically tell the LEOs: “we think you are a bunch of murdering fascists but we still want to you serve us so ignore our hatred of you and help us and then we’ll throw you under the bus later”.

  24. Perhaps I missed something or perhaps I’m just dense but I don’t see what the fuss is all about. While I’m not personally a fan, it was just a selfie. There wasn’t a particularly bad message to it; was there?

        • I’m serious. The picture I get is this:

          Stop sign = law
          Cop = law enforcement
          Cop displaying hi powered gun = obey the law or else

          It’s a stupid thing to do considering the PD vs Citizen relations we currently face.
          Kind of like why you shouldn’t stand up in a fox hole if all it accomplishes is drawing fire.

        • Okay. I can see where you are coming from. It doesn’t seem like a big deal to me and I’m generally labeled anti-cop. Thanks for explaining how it looks to you and some others.

        • I’m anti-abuse of power whether it’s LEO (I liked Peace Officer better) or a former Secretary of State. I don’t think the cops involved should be disciplined, I think everyone should do what they can to diminish the adversarial relationship between police and citizen. Choruses of kumbia optional.

        • I don’t use “LEO” as I find it to be insulting to the noble lion. For those that act more reasonably, I prefer peace officer… For the rest; jackboot thugs, brown shirts, and swine. I wish they could all act as peace officers (I blame legislators alot for this problem too). I don’t expect that community-officer relations will ever turn peaceful before bad law is removed and accountability is restored. It ain’t happening before that, IMHO.

  25. But but but … the man is holding the rifle in the low-ready position with his hands on the firearm. Ahhhhhhhh!!!

  26. So let me get this straight
    a citizen owned semi automatic modern sporting rifle is an assault rifle
    a police brandished fully automatic modern sporting rifle is a patrol rifle
    Is that accurate?

  27. No, no, no, you’re doing it wrong! We’re supposed to pose in front of Chipotle!

  28. I’m outraged by the outrage.

    The officers shouldn’t be jacking around while on duty, and it’s not a good idea to antagonize the locals, but substantively there’s nothing here. This is just more misdirection on the part of the black community. Focus on anything but the real problems.

    Let them solve their illiteracy, illegitimacy, and substance abuse problems first. Then I might take a second look at these phony scandals, as I’ve heard such things described.

    • Sure, the real problem is the fact that cops are the literal sword enforcing legislation which criminalize the use and distribution of certain pharmaceutical and plants that blacks and Hispanics disproportionately enjoy, a situation which old white politicians find offensive.

      • Yawn. Then go organize and change the law through the political process.

        In the meantime, just deal with it and quit being a criminal. Sheesh. I”ve long since depleted my empathy reserve for druggies who think their right to get high is paramount. They expect us to believe that but for the Man keeping them down (and the CIA introducing crack into ghettos), they’d all be solid citizens without rap sheets. Please.

        I want to tell them, you’re a pot head, not Rosa Parks. (Here’s where somebody blindly races right past the point, on the way to tell me that Rosa liked to toke.) Your legal troubles are entirely voluntary and it’s time to quit making excuses.

        • Repeating lies taught in government school 8th grade civics on the fantasy of representative politics doesn’t change the fact that the drug war is creating crime and violence out of nowhere, and that the “political process” won’t change anything (especially since the drug war started as an executive directive from the White House). This is something agreed on by economists, criminologists and sociologists. The only people who deny this are die-hard drug warriors whose financial or mental well-being depend on the drug war’s existence.

          “Quit being a criminal” represents the brain-dead mentality of the drug warrior. Use of a government pejorative, lack of context, ignorance of legal history, its all there. Right to get high? How about the right to be left the f*** alone?

        • In the meantime, just deal with it and quit being a criminal.
          …
          Your legal troubles are entirely voluntary and it’s time to quit making excuses.

          Couldn’t the same be said about those who choose to be armed where the RKBA is infringed?

          I”ve long since depleted my empathy reserve for druggies who think their right to get high is paramount.

          Is that really much different than an anti stating:
          I’ve long since depleted my empathy reserve for ammosexuals who think their right to be armed is paramount.

  29. That graffitied sign is a microaggression against police. Who can blame them for acting out in the face of it?

    Imagine patrolling that neighborhood and having to pass that sign day after day. We should be glad all they did is take a selfie.

  30. When is the exact microsecond where as the cop hands me his patrol rifle it becomes an assault rifle?

    Is that a constant of some sort or does it too ebb and flow much like stupid gun euphemisms?

    • Are you familiar with Shroedinger’s cat? It’s both an ‘assault weapon’ and a ‘patrol rifle’ until it is observed. The object is only named once you see it in someone’s hands.

      (Hardcore quantum mechanics junkies, I know. It’s observational humor, just ride it out.)

  31. Wha….?

    OMG a gun, this will cause homelessness! I saw a gun, that means there’s gonna be 6 more weeks of winter!

    The bizarre associations these people make prove they’re the ones with a mental illness, not us…

  32. And the KCPD wonders why they have a problem with people trusting them.

    -KC Native

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