# Civilian Police Vs. Military Support - Whats more dangerous?



## Newguy1 (14 Jun 2014)

Over the course of a career, which would you consider a more dangerous job, a civilian police officer or say an army support position with a number of combat tours?


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## blacktriangle (14 Jun 2014)

If minimizing danger was my first priority, I'd probably avoid both as potential career choices. 

I heard Ernst and Young is looking for accountants…you probably make more too!


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## Newguy1 (14 Jun 2014)

Thats not why I asked the question. Let me clarify why.......

My friend is a cop and I told him I want to join the military in a support role and he says its a joke and ill never be anywhere dangerous, but i thought everyone in the miltary can be on the frontlines?


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## Haggis (14 Jun 2014)

Newguy1, you'd be hard pressed to ask a more open ended question than this.

It depends on a vast number of factors.

Your friend is only partly right.  If he's a civvy cop in Toronto, Ontario or Leoville, Saskatchewan, his job risks will be wildly different.  If he's a Guns & Gangs Squad member or a Youth Services officer his job risks will be wildly different.

If you're a support tradesperson who participates in Combat Logistics Patrols frequently your job based risks will be higher than a tradesperson who rarely leaves camp.

In counterinsurgency warfare there is no longer a clearly defined "front line".  The frontline is anywhere and anytime you and the enemy meet.


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## Bruce Monkhouse (14 Jun 2014)

Unanswerable.


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## RCDtpr (14 Jun 2014)

I can answer this as a cop and although I can't offer any perspective on a support tour as I was battle group...I'll do my best.

The job of a cop is more dangerous if/when you run into someone that wants to kill you.  

Conversely, the job of a soldier is more dangerous if/when you run into someone that wants to kill you.

Hope this helps.


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## expwor (14 Jun 2014)

I've worked in corrections 29 years, and the topic of danger comes up here too
Define danger?  Getting shot at?  Assaults?  Even the risk of getting stuck with a needle carries a risk of serious infection. 
Yes police work is dangerous.  So is military.  Corrections too.  Firefighter.  But I believe the most dangerous is Alaska king crab fisherman
Then, and not to make light of the subject, but some jobs no one actually thinks of as dangerous, like working the midnight shift in a convenience store...easy target for a robbery especially depending on the location
I guess my point is don't compare the dangers between different unrelated jobs, but to assess the dangers of each job on it's own, otherwise you get in an apples and oranges discussion
Just my two cents

Tom


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## dimsum (15 Jun 2014)

As most of the others have said already, it is a very open-ended question.

I'll give this as an example:  One of the fallen CF members in Afghanistan was MCpl Darrell Priede, an Image Tech (photographer) with Army News.


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## stealthylizard (16 Jun 2014)

During my deployment as part of Task Force 3-09, KAF had regular mortar attacks, mostly unsuccessful, but still they were under constant threat.  In our FOB, we never had attacks, of any nature, against us.  In my opinion, being in a support role in KAF was more dangerous than being infantry in our AOR.  But we were always dealing with the potential of dangerous things, like IED's as infantry.  So the people operating in KAF may have thought that we had the more dangerous job.


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## Loachman (16 Jun 2014)

The biggest threats to my life during both of my tours in KAF were slipping in the shower and breaking my neck or having an air conditioner fall on my head.

I figured that I was safer there than in Canada as the speed limit was only 20 km/hr and I didn't have to drive on the 400 series highways every day.

I was also armed.

But, then, so was almost everybody else. And some of them were scary.

And I'm not referring to the Taliban.


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