One thing I find fascinating about the USA, from the outside, is the preoccupation with the rituals of democracy (and simultaneous disenfranchisement and gerrymandering). A huge number of public posts that in the UK would be handled as run-of-the-mill employment seem to be voted on in the States. Surely
that is the nominated mechanism of mandate and subsequent accountability?
In the UK we have policing by consent which more or less means the police systems works because as a country we want it to, rather than that they have a union and weapons. We've recently experimented with elected police commissionsers which, to many, seemed a very alien concept.
Our police's history is far from squeaky clean (we have our fair share of corruption, institutional racism and so on), but in general, no-one walks around worrying that they will be murdered with impunity. Not perfect but preferable.
I think the question is as much how you get there as much as where you're heading.
In the UK we have policing by consent which more or less means the police systems works because as a country we want it to, rather than that they have a union and weapons. We've recently experimented with elected police commissionsers which, to many, seemed a very alien concept.
Our police's history is far from squeaky clean (we have our fair share of corruption, institutional racism and so on), but in general, no-one walks around worrying that they will be murdered with impunity. Not perfect but preferable.
I think the question is as much how you get there as much as where you're heading.