VOICES HOT BUTTONS
12 |
Overdrive
| October 2014
With mainstream
media disseminating
images of police em-
ploying military-style
armor and weaponry
during rioting in Ferguson, Mo.,
last summer, a debate over the
militarization of local police was
revived.
One anonymous Overdrive
commenter argued for the need
for such equipment, given what
some police face and referencing
the California shooting of San
Bernardino police officer Gabriel
Garcia by assailant Alex Alvarado,
who used an AK-47. (At press time,
Garcia's condition was improving
after being in a coma.) Wrote the
reader, "it seems maybe these cops
do need some more defense, as they
are encountering more and more
radical criminals." Alvarado was
fatally wounded by a trainee who
was with Garcia at the time.
Reader Robert Smith dis-
agreed: "We are not supposed to be
treated as an enemy of the coun-
try, and that is now becoming the
mindset of law enforcement. We
have a well-trained military already
in place and don't need another
to fight its own citizens. Everyone
needs to put aside their prejudices
and see the implications of this
before it is too late."
Another commenter, posting
as sthomas1957 at Overdrive-
Online.com, noted military-type
equipment "isn't free" and that
"taxpayers have to pay for it. Most
situations aren't extreme enough to
warrant this kind of equipment."
The National Guard exists for a
reason, in part to intervene in situ-
ations "the police can't handle. …
It's just encouraging more depen-
dency [on] those who profit from
the manufacture of such items. …
Small towns in Hickville, U.S.A.,
stocking armored vehicles is just
absurd."
POLICE POLICE
Readers split over militarized local forces
SHOULD LOCAL
LAW ENFORCEMENT
JURISDICTIONS EMPLOY
MILITARY-STYLE ASSAULT
WEAPONS AND ARMOR?
No
51%
Yes, but only
in true high-
intensity riot
situations
25%
Yes, if
they think
such weapons
are necessary under
any circumstance 23%
I don't know 1%
On Overdrive's Facebook page in August, the image here – a logo from
Wabco's worldwide campaign to highlight drivers' favorite highway stops
– splashed to the page with a note about the campaign, and among other
items: "crowd-sourced truck-stop photos 'round the globe."
Reader Kenny Lewis posed a twist on that idea: How about a "crowd-
sourced truck stop"? So we thought we'd nudge the idea along.
What exactly would your idea of the perfect truck stop have in terms of
space and amenities? How would it be laid out? Fuel islands?
Search "the perfect truck stop" on OverdriveOnline.com and leave your
ideas in the comments. Or post on our Facebook page: facebook.com/
OverdriveTrucking.
To check out – or share your own – entries in
Wabco's #MyTruckStop campaign to highlight
truck stops and the drivers who frequent
them around the world, search the hashtag on
Facebook or Twitter.
localnet:
"A
real,
and
affordable,
restaurant,
perhaps?
About
the
only
decent
food
out
here
is
Subway,
and
that
ain't
saying
much."
The perfect
truck stop
truckerdaddy:
"How
about
real
food.
Not
having
to
wait
until
we
get
to
our
homes
to
eat
something
healthy
or
even
fresh."
