Initially my presence was greeted with skepticism, especially from supervisors who believed, probably accurately, that nothing good could come from my writing. One lieutenant told me: “Moskos, I like you. But I don’t want anything to do with your book. I don’t want to be in it. I don’t want my name in it. I…
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It’s horrible anytime a police officer dies. It’s particularly horrible when it’s at the hands of another police officer. If the Baltimore Sun is correct, the officer who died had 44 years on. I didn’t know any officer had 44 years on. My condolences to the officer’s family.
This is from the Economist: Thursday I’M STANDING on a street lined with boarded-up shops—a popular haven for drug-dealers. A police officer is frisking a suspect whose trousers are nearly around his knees. The policeman didn’t pull them down; that’s how the suspect wears them. A bit impractical, perhaps, if his line of work requires…
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I often wonder why anybody would prefer to crunch numbers than do fun qualitative research. I’m in Amsterdam right now. I made contact with and successfully gained access to my desired police station tonight (to make a long story short). I want to compare the attitude toward drugs of Baltimore and Amsterdam police officers. These…
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Professor Corey J. Colyer of West Virginia University sent me the following email: Peter, This note is motivated by a remark you make about your methods in the first chapter of Cop in the Hood. It is rare (and therefore refreshing) to see an ethnographer admit that they failed to capture details in their notes.…
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The latest from my conservative friend: Prof Moskos; Lets get real. Legalize drugs? Just look at alcohol. 21 years olds buy it give it to younger friends, who give it to even younger friends and now we have many 12 year old alcoholics in this country. Multiply that with narcotic addiction and see what the…
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I’m giving the sergeant a pseudonym, Sgt. Mark DeRosa. That’s not his real name. He is willing to use his real name and print his email. But I’d prefer to give him a pseudonym and not print his email. I wrote: Sgt. DeRosa, I also want you to know that I am and will continue…
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That’s the word from New York Magazine’s”Approval Matrix.” I’ll take it!
Feel free to steal this idea: For centuries, the Netherlands has tried to “normalize” their society. While it may have worked in the past, today “normalization” is killing Amsterdam. What makes Amsterdam great and unique, is that it isn’t a “normal” city. In Holland, they have a different idea of democracy. The mayor of Amsterdam…
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This conversation starts a few posts down. Here’s the latest: I have read excerpts from your “book” and frankly sir, “YOU HAVE NOT PAID ENOUGH DUES TO BE CONVERSANT IN POLICE WORK”. I think that your PHD impresses only you. It certainly does not impress me. As a Sgt, I had College grads working for…
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