Quote Originally Posted by poop
Now let's say you're a burglar. Do you worry about a cop walking into the backyard of a place you're trying to break into? I'm guessing not, you worry about a neighbor seeing you and calling the cops. So what good is the cop on the beat?
They're first respondents. You want them spread around the city, not all hanging around at the station playing snooker or whatever they do in USA. And yes, they have snooker tables at police stations in England, I played on one once during an identity parade which I didn't take part in but still got paid for. Best half an hour of work I ever did. I digress. Regular cops when on duty can either be sat around doing fuck all, or patrolling the city. The latter seems better to me. They're primed for response, and act as a visual reminder to people that the police exist.