Violence begets more violence

Dear editor;

A recent Korea Times article talks about how law enforcement officials are advocating stronger gun use. I'm reminded of a quote from one of my favorite movies, "Batman Begins." In the movie then Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) talks to Batman about escalation. "Escalation...We start carrying semi automatics, they buy automatics, we start wearing Kevlar, they buy armor piercing rounds..."

Escalation can grow quickly out of control. It not only endangers law enforcement officers, but it increases the chance for civilians and innocent bystanders to get caught in potentially lethal crossfire. It may be that while the intentions are good, the police themselves may in the end, increase the danger to civilians even as they try to keep them safe. It can be said that relaxing regulations to allow for easier gun use by law enforcement is a far cry from buying semi-automatic weapons, but it is a first step down that road of violence begetting more violence. I cannot believe the answer is to advocate more violence.

I then have to wonder why more non-fatal means are not explored more thoroughly. Why not equip and train officers to be more effective with Tasers, tear gas, or other means? With their access they could train officers in expert hand to hand combat perhaps calling in some specialists from Special Forces or the U.S. military. When I studied martial arts, my master worked as a consultant for the U.S. armed forces.

He would do demonstrations where several Special Forces or Navy SEALS personnel would attack him. He was able to defeat all of them. While my master had years of training, and no officer is expected to fend off several men at once, the point is that with the proper training it is possible to win without killing.

Disarming a person with a knife is not a difficult thing to do if they are trained well, and many law enforcement and military officers are trained in proper disarmament techniques. Add to that non-fatal means such as Tasers or even a hefty baton and a knife's capability to harm is minimized. In the case of gang fighting, police are taught to cordon off the area to prevent innocent bystanders being caught in the fight. Containment is crucial. Once containment is achieved, dispersal is the next step.

Calling in riot control police or training one or two units to specialize in gang warfare that can be called in during situations like these should be explored. A large well trained police force equipped with riot shields, tear gas, and bean bag guns or rubber bullets can disperse almost any crowd with little to no injury to themselves.

If you ask police officers they will tell you their first priority is the safety of the citizens, they understand the risks of the job and are willing to take them. They will also tell you that the best weapon an officer has is not his gun or his equipment, but his head. The ability to access risk, think your way out of a situation, and use your training is a police officer’s best weapon. If we start to advocate more gun use, it becomes a crutch and we may end up with more violence and injuries than ever before.

Brian Chung in Korea

sojuninja@gmail.com