A Counter-Strike streamer gets raided by SWAT thanks to a prank caller. Civil discussion about the American police force ensues.

[u/ChefExcellence]

/r/TheCreatures/comments/2equuo/so_kootra_just_got_swatted/ck2b8a0

[u/The_YoungWolf]

I really hated seeing all the cop-hate unfold in those threads yesterday. IMO the cops in the video acted fairly professionally all things considered. It's as if people feel their comfort has to be upheld at all times even when cops are potentially putting their lives on the line in the same situation. These guys had absolutely no idea what to expect, save that their information consisted of an active shooter in the building. The cops didn't know it was just Kootra, didn't know he's just a swell, normal guy, and didn't know he was completely unarmed. Cops and soldiers too are not going to give ANYONE the benefit of the doubt when the slightest lowering of guard can mean one of their deaths.

It's been abundantly clear to me for a while now that ~90% of people on reddit who bitch about cops and "excessive force" have never actually dealt with cops face-to-face. They're often hard-asses and almost rudely business-like, but a lot of it is scare tactics that's easy to see through. You can get through most confrontations with police simply by remaining calm, shutting your mouth unless you need to say "Yes" or "No," and for the love of god being humble for ONE DAMN MOMENT IN YOUR LIFE. A cop said something you think is mean or wrong or judgmental? Suck it the fuck up and welcome to the real world.

[u/GaboKopiBrown → u/The_YoungWolf]

One of the main problems is that most redditors seem to believe their comfort is more important than police safety.

The yelling commands thing that is such a common complaint? That's an effective tactic to get people to do something without thinking, whether you're innocent of wrongdoing, planning to comply anyways, a drunk who might take a swing or a dealer on his third strike who might decide he'd rather go down shooting than rot in prison if he has time to think about it.

[u/Nillix]

It always amazes me how confident redditors are in their evaluation of police actions and procedures, while having no actual knowledge of what's appropriate and what's not. I'm a cop, and the other day I got drawn into an argument about use of force. I creeped his comment history and discovered he's an insurance salesman. In Canada. /boggle.

To be fair, people can have all the opinions they want. But it would be nice if they bothered backing them up with a shred of experience or knowledge.

[u/Lochen9 → u/Nillix]

"It always amazes me how confident redditors are in their evaluation of _________ while having no actual knowledge"

was enough.

Also, did you get a warrant to look up his comment history. There is a law about that didn't you know. That's entrapment!

[u/[deleted]]

Well, the police didn't really overreact if they had been told there was an active shooter in the building. Dang, that was a lot of cops though. That must have been nuts.

[u/[deleted]]

[u/totes_meta_bot → u/[deleted]]

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[u/zxcv1992]

The cops should of been more polite and not so prickish but that guy is a moron. Firstly a report of an active shooter would have similar responses in most areas, and secondly if there is an ACTIVE shooter you don't go around double checking, you go in.

[u/DblackRabbit → u/zxcv1992]

Its kind of the reason making false reports of bomb threats and active shooters are hella illegal.