If the role changes the person, how does it do that? What pressures do police face from the state, society, and capitalism in general that makes them into a worse person?
If the role changes the person, how does it do that? What pressures do police face from the state, society, and capitalism in general that makes them into a worse person?
To answer your post title: yes and yes. Is it circular logic? Also yes.
Imagine: your job is to protect capital and property against common people, you are given money for it and a gun (with license to kill), as well as legal impunity. Not to mention various other perks. What sort of people will survive and thrive in this environment? What sort of people are attracted to that power?
There are many stories of ‘good people’ who become cops and what usually happens is they are socially ostracized until they quit. Or they shut up and enable it. Or they may get forcibly committed to a mental institution. Or they may get killed in a ‘friendly fire’ incident. Or best case, they go full terminator like Chris Dorner and try to take out a few pigs too.
I’m sure there are others who can answer more in depth, but to me it is such an obvious fact that I’m having trouble to explain further at the moment.
To add on the part of good people who become cops, a lot of times POC who become cops face a lot of racism and many of them are also ostracized until they quit