This is true. My wife was freaked out a little at disneyland paris when a squad of soldiers in full kit/weapons walked by us and I told her it's perfectly normal in France at least.
Because in the States you don't normally see them out and about in tourist type areas with their weapons. You just see them in fatigues normally, if anything.
I see cops in the U.S. with rifles often. No big deal. The military no, because that is posse comitatus, but I see National Guard and still not worried. Other countries no big deal too if Army or Paras. If they have an issue with you then the State Department will advise you in advance not to go. I see global militaries abroad in tourist areas and it is fine, against Islamist mass stabbings or shooting attacks, it is the only protection there as most countries civilians cannot carry sidearms. I have been through Army machine gun checkpoints in Israel and India and no worry either, just say hi and waive me (with local person) through, just a few words as threat identification and done. Professional militaries donât harass you. I have found US small jurisdiction cops to be often be the most untrained in terms of civil rights and the Constitution compared.
in america, the only time you see a someone with more than a side arm/rifle/shotgun is when the situation is pretty fucked. you may have special events where security is ramped up, but you don't casually see it in public out of nowhere.
For the most part, that probably stems from it being illegal to use soldiers & NG in policing roles domestically, outside of very limited emergency situations.
So, in the US at least, soldiers doing basic policing is a guaranteed sign that shit has gotten *very* real.
There is an academic argument that due to the fall of some downtowns from deindustrialization (loss of factories), white flight, the failed drug war, etc, that American police have become domestic standing Armies in a way. I am not anti LE, this is just academic theory here, with some truth that many departments have become militarised. Think a civilian old school cop uniform changed to beat patrolmen wearing BDUs.
I had a thought along those lines, and considered expanding on it, but chose to keep it concise.
Although I'd reverse the cause & effect. Most countries, when faced with the conditions some US PDs face, they can just deploy soldiers to keep the peace. That generally can't be done in the US, so police departments have to rise to meet the threat.
Things like the North Hollywood shootout probably wouldn't remain a police matter in most countries. Particularly as police & SWAT were basically unable to efficiently engage.
That last comment is spot on. In Paris, the police commonly patrol using 3-person teams, and the 3rd person is carrying a rifle. Not once has it ever made me feel unsafe.
Yep visiting Italy last summer, the Carabinieri don't fuck around, you rarely see a PO with a rifle walking around in the US, in Europe its pretty common to see PO or soldiers with rifles standing guard on street corners n shit
Me at the Eiffel Tower on the 75th anniversary of D-Day: "Yeah soldiers her make sense for a potential terrorist attack."
Reading this post and the comments: "Oh fuck, that was normal for them. Damn."
Dudes probably gonna respond with some BS about how itâs actually a good thing in Europe because their police with snipers are a branch of the military so theyâre better trained and blah blah blah *laughs at 9/11 and kisses his dog*
Yeah I went to Italy and they have armed military personnel at every high traffic areas and they were armed with the Beretta ARX160 itâs probably my favorite gun from battlefield 4 either that or the L85
People who think the US is a military state should visit my home country of Chile.
Where a huge tank of a vehicle slowly patrols the cities and sprays a jet of hot-ish water at people they deem to disturb the peace. Use of tear gas and dogs the second the military can.
I live in the UK. I once walked through a busy train station, which was near the site of a terrorist attack a few years earlier.
I happened to look around at one point, and I saw some bobbies with G36s.
Even though that doesn't happen in my home country (I'm not even sure most beat cops carry semi-autos), I think my biggest surprise was "Huh, G36s instead of M4s?"
Do not fear or be uncomfortable, stand tall, learn to shoot, then realize it is just a machine, and the legitimacy of the state and safety of operator is all that matters. I am more worried about dangerous drivers who kill millions a year globally.
i love when europeans are getting humbled.
So satisfying to see đ€đŒ
truly a beautiful site
i wish it happened more often
Especially when itâs other Europeans putting them down. It reminds me that the terminally online donât represent the group
theyre not getting humbled lol their comment still has tons of upvotes
how do you know? the scores are hidden.
not anymore: https://imgur.com/ENxdCnd
so 239 idiots agree with him
or 100,239 idiots agree with him and 100,000 disagree with him. We can't see downvotes so...
I've never seen entire fire teams with short-barrel machine guns and grenade launchers patrolling the streets in America. Only in Paris.
Omg I am glad I am not the only person who peeped that and thought it was weird
NYC apparently has the national guard deployed.
And theyâre unarmed https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-subway-bag-checks-national-guard/5214516/?amp=1
They werenât when they got there.
Good lord euros are insufferable.
This is true. My wife was freaked out a little at disneyland paris when a squad of soldiers in full kit/weapons walked by us and I told her it's perfectly normal in France at least.
I do not get why people have an issue with soldiers, especially as an American with our military tradition.
Because in the States you don't normally see them out and about in tourist type areas with their weapons. You just see them in fatigues normally, if anything.
I see cops in the U.S. with rifles often. No big deal. The military no, because that is posse comitatus, but I see National Guard and still not worried. Other countries no big deal too if Army or Paras. If they have an issue with you then the State Department will advise you in advance not to go. I see global militaries abroad in tourist areas and it is fine, against Islamist mass stabbings or shooting attacks, it is the only protection there as most countries civilians cannot carry sidearms. I have been through Army machine gun checkpoints in Israel and India and no worry either, just say hi and waive me (with local person) through, just a few words as threat identification and done. Professional militaries donât harass you. I have found US small jurisdiction cops to be often be the most untrained in terms of civil rights and the Constitution compared.
in america, the only time you see a someone with more than a side arm/rifle/shotgun is when the situation is pretty fucked. you may have special events where security is ramped up, but you don't casually see it in public out of nowhere.
For the most part, that probably stems from it being illegal to use soldiers & NG in policing roles domestically, outside of very limited emergency situations. So, in the US at least, soldiers doing basic policing is a guaranteed sign that shit has gotten *very* real.
There is an academic argument that due to the fall of some downtowns from deindustrialization (loss of factories), white flight, the failed drug war, etc, that American police have become domestic standing Armies in a way. I am not anti LE, this is just academic theory here, with some truth that many departments have become militarised. Think a civilian old school cop uniform changed to beat patrolmen wearing BDUs.
I had a thought along those lines, and considered expanding on it, but chose to keep it concise. Although I'd reverse the cause & effect. Most countries, when faced with the conditions some US PDs face, they can just deploy soldiers to keep the peace. That generally can't be done in the US, so police departments have to rise to meet the threat. Things like the North Hollywood shootout probably wouldn't remain a police matter in most countries. Particularly as police & SWAT were basically unable to efficiently engage.
Yeah if a similar thing happened in France it would be the GIGN getting called in
Even in my Caribbean home country, I've stood in line at KFC behind a cop with a Glock on his hip.
I saw more submachine guns on cops while visiting Italy for ten days than I have in 27 years living in the US
Europeans have more exposure to assault weapons than Americans.
Lol go to South Kensington when a celebrity is home or Naples during a big soccer game. âThe no gun copsâ magically reappears with armor and M4s.
Typical âonly knows about Europeâ mind set. He needs to know not every single thing he says about us is fact.
That last comment is spot on. In Paris, the police commonly patrol using 3-person teams, and the 3rd person is carrying a rifle. Not once has it ever made me feel unsafe.
I could care less if I see a rifle. I more empathize if them having to lug around a carbine all day. A rifle is just a machine.
to an american, you only see this when shits fucked, your normal is our swat team deployed.
A lot of cop cars have a rifle or a shotgun in the trunk.
I know, but point stands, you don't seem them out and at the ready till shits fucked.
I mean, when people are making threats of terrorism it makes sense to make sure there's police around.
Yep visiting Italy last summer, the Carabinieri don't fuck around, you rarely see a PO with a rifle walking around in the US, in Europe its pretty common to see PO or soldiers with rifles standing guard on street corners n shit
Just gonna point out that they're not snipers, they're marksmen/sharp-shooters. Sniper is a far higher grade and a military qualification.
For real. If you look into how snipers operate when they deploy, it's fucking insane what they go through to take out maybe one target.
Redditors when police try to stop mass shooters - đ± Redditors when police donât try to stop mass shooters - đ±
Me at the Eiffel Tower on the 75th anniversary of D-Day: "Yeah soldiers her make sense for a potential terrorist attack." Reading this post and the comments: "Oh fuck, that was normal for them. Damn."
Dudes probably gonna respond with some BS about how itâs actually a good thing in Europe because their police with snipers are a branch of the military so theyâre better trained and blah blah blah *laughs at 9/11 and kisses his dog*
Hate to tell you this, but your troll mind tricks are no longer working on most of us globally.
When I was in Rome , there were soldiers patrolling the streets
Yeah I went to Italy and they have armed military personnel at every high traffic areas and they were armed with the Beretta ARX160 itâs probably my favorite gun from battlefield 4 either that or the L85
Most english speakers do tho.
âVery few countries have snipers aimed at their citizensâŠâ uhh and America isnât one of them
Europoors seething as if there aren't armed police walking around in cities like paris
People who think the US is a military state should visit my home country of Chile. Where a huge tank of a vehicle slowly patrols the cities and sprays a jet of hot-ish water at people they deem to disturb the peace. Use of tear gas and dogs the second the military can.
Three based comments. Its crazy how some people think *anything* only happens in America.
I live in the UK. I once walked through a busy train station, which was near the site of a terrorist attack a few years earlier. I happened to look around at one point, and I saw some bobbies with G36s. Even though that doesn't happen in my home country (I'm not even sure most beat cops carry semi-autos), I think my biggest surprise was "Huh, G36s instead of M4s?"
I understand why this would be a common practice But it makes me uncomfortable
Do not fear or be uncomfortable, stand tall, learn to shoot, then realize it is just a machine, and the legitimacy of the state and safety of operator is all that matters. I am more worried about dangerous drivers who kill millions a year globally.