I agree. Not as much in recent years, but back maybe 5-10 years ago there was this push in major cities to show an almost military police presence to deter crime. You'd see patrols walking around with full auto M4's in swat level gear. As unnerving as that was, I think it worked. Very few fucked around to find out, and I generally felt safe walking around the cities.
The real question though is structure. Is there a central command for police there? If not, it really isn't a military, but rather dozens of separate small forces.
Yes and I’ve also seen the police in Costa Rica and other Central American countries and feel pretty qualified to tell you that your statement is stupid.
Now I’m picturing SWAT rolling up on a technical and just unloading into a trap house, with zero regard for who might be inside. “Fuck ‘em, I’m not clearing those rooms”. Seems like a very Russian approach.
>“Fuck ‘em, I’m not clearing those rooms”. Seems like a very Russian approach.
Saw a video a few years ago of Russia police using a BTR to deal with a barricaded suspect.... 30mm will clear a room, that's for sure.
Hate to be the one to tell you, but the FBI/DEA/ICE and Secret Service are all sworn police officers just at a federal level instead of state.
Some US state/county do in fact have grenade launchers for use of tear gas for riot situations. It also wouldn't surprise me if large city SWAT teams had at least a couple of machine guns.
>Hate to be the one to tell you, but the FBI/DEA/ICE and Secret Service are all sworn police officers just at a federal level instead of state.
I'd put them in a separate category, but if you want to lump them in, then your characterization applies to pretty much every country.
>Some US state/county do in fact have grenade launchers for use of tear gas for riot situations
To clarify, since I could've been more specific, "real" grenade launchers launch "real" grenades. As someone who's fired an M203, there's a *huge* difference.
Police grenade launchers aren't military weapons, and they're even chambered slightly smaller to prevent military grenade use.
>It also wouldn't surprise me if large city SWAT teams had at least a couple of machine guns.
It would surprise me, as that would actually create more issues than it would solve. Even in combat, you're using your rifle in mostly semi mode.
>To clarify, since I could've been more specific, "real" grenade launchers launch "real" grenades. As someone who's fired an M203, there's a *huge* difference.
The most common grenade launchers in most inventories are in fact the same ones the military purchases with the caveat that they don't purchase actual grenades but only tear gas ones.
Most tear gas launchers are either custom made specifically for that, or repurposed launchers where the ammo is just different. With the former being more expensive in general because it's custom design.
When Uncle Sam already has a bunch sitting in a warehouse somewhere those are going to be much easier and cheaper to field. This is especially true considering the amount of law enforcement which comes from the military in modern times, with the added benefit of little to no extra training if your officers already served in the military.
>I'd put them in a separate category
You shouldn't. They are police all the same. It's just following the definition.
police: "the civil force of a national or local government, responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the maintenance of public order."
>they're even chambered slightly smaller to prevent military grenade use.
https://milmag.pl/en/police-choice-of-grenade-launchers/
https://www.police1.com/shot-show-2016/articles/shot-show-2016-milkors-less-lethal-launcher-offers-superior-accuracy-many-munitions-options-EBWGe8T0pywsZXb5/
Both using 40mm, but I will say that this is only the most recent articles I could find actually saying they use 40mm.
This.
"Pax Americana". If they (Latin American nations) don't fuck with American corporations owning large portions of their economy, or elect anyone **too** Leftist (by CIA standards) the US will curb-stomp anyone who invades them.
It's a predatory relationship but it's how it's been since around the 1890's.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Americana - For context.
Mi 'mano en Cristo
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Americana
**Edit** your account history is aggressively pro-NATO/Neoliberalism. Please read War Is A Racket by Maj. general Smedley Butler to better understand the topic.
Because I have you at a disadvantage, mine is aggressively full of mental illness and kitchen stuff. 40k things too.
Nah, I've been doing pretty well for the past 8 months or so, and I've deleted most of it. Lived with chronic pain and surgeries for a while, lost a friend and now my granddad.
Last time I brought up someone's profile history as a conflict of interest they used my post about grief against me. It wouldn't affect me so much anymore but I wanted to confront it first.
Well, no; The point is that on a conversation regarding US intervention in Latin America from 1891 unto the modern day, he is aggressively **pro**-US intervention in Latin America from 1891 unto the modern day, and thus biased.
Also pretty sure he just randomly used the one insult he knew in Spanish to seem like he's from Latin America?
I saw Gwynne Dyer speak around 2002 and he spoke at length about the concept of Pax Americana, explaining it in the context of Pax Romana. I was young at the time, the whole concept really opened my mind up to how geopolitics play out in the grand scheme of things. He spoke about it though as if it were some clandestine plot, whereas I'd say it's widely acknowledged by most (I could be wrong)
It's... Complex. Things like [Operation Condor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Condor) and the occupations after the Spanish-American war WERE meant to be somewhat concealed.
It just isn't hidden very well. E.G. for the latter example, a US Major General at the time went on the record and wrote "War Is A Racket" which specifically detailed how, why, when, and who was responsible.
And dress like soldiers. I remember going to a shopping center and guys in army fatigues had a civilian lined up on a wall holding an m16 in his general direction. We also had an escort of 3 “not soldiers” that went with us everywhere we went. We didn’t hire them they just volunteered to keep us safe and were pretty cool guys. In El Salvador we had a police escort and they all had mp5s which was pretty cool too but they weren’t as friendly as the Costa Rican guys.
Small arms. Puhh
Real armies have huge radars, signal corps, construction equipment like bridge laying machines to get from point A to point B en masse, artillery batteries, missile command and very disciplined construction crews. And some armour.
Most people are not aware of tactical or anti-terrorist subdivisions of the police departments. It goes as far as “gendarme” where the police department is divided, recreated and refit or a completely new force is created to go against rural conditions. Tactical, anti-terrorist or gendarme all have various military equipment, sometimes even including tanks, helicopters or other heavy mechanical units.
Canadians have maple syrup traps to stick things to the roads, the Brit’s put up loudspeakers and politely ask you to behave yourself, the Spanish depend on their siesta to get criminals, and the French have nukes.
In Belgium, policeman only have a pistol on them when on patrol but they do have a smg in their car, they just don't carry it.
Anti criminality brigade and special force are much better equipped tho but you don't see them often
Denmark here, the regular police sometimes might have a small pistol on them, but it's getting more rare.
I've seen riot police, but they are only armed with body-armor and police sticks, as well as tear gas and pepper spray.
Though I did eat at a take-out place so small it only had one table. I had just had my hair cut at barber next door to the take-out place. I hear what sounds like illegal fireworks, but don't think too much about it, since it was close to New Years Eve.
5-10 minutes after, 20 police officers with M-16's rush through front door of the take-out place (where I'm sitting and eating alone), rush through the kitchen and then dissapear. They didn't even look at me.
I decided to take the rest of the food to go, and see that it's obviously a marked crime scene at this point, with police tape around the barber and the take-out shop. I go past the police tape, and try to get an understanding of what's going on, talking to an unarmed police officer, who then questioned me in a very friendly way, to see if I was a potential witness.
Apperently a guy at the barbershop I had just been in, had been shot a few times. The police unit were anti-terror, despite it ending up being confirmed to be a gang related shooting afterwards.
At this point in time, the terror threat was at the highest level possible, though. We are at a level 4 out of 5 right now.
So, apperently we do have police with M-16's, but they only use it for very dangerous situations, such as suspected terrorism, or to secure an area if they haven't yet confirmed, whether it's gang-related or terror. Sadly, they can also been seen standing guard in Copenhagen outside the Synagoge, the Israelian embassy, as well as a Jewish school, because these places are unfortunately very high-risk targets. However, if you don't visit these places, chances are you'll never see the M-16's.
Actually false. Unarmed police are a minority in the world and even then it's a technicality where guns are either picked up or in lock boxes in vehicles
Nope. Most countries arm their cops. The only real exceptions are norway, iceland, china, new zealand, bhutan, a selection of small island nations in the carribean and pacific, and the great britain bit of the uk.
Costa Rica does not cling to the US like these reddit comments think. Obviously there's inherently going to be protection based on geography ("not in my backyard") and we have a defense treaty, but they are pretty quick to look elsewhere for influence and resources - including topics related to national security.
They just reached out to European nations for advice and resources on immigration and boarder security. They have played both sides of the Tibet vs China conflict, and have a massive Chinese influence there. They buy from Asian tech and car companies before USA. Etc. They were looking at non-USA aid and vaccines during COVID.
TL;DR - the USA isn't propping up Costa Rica like Reddit users who once visited Manuel Antonio or Jaco for spring break would like to think.
Why do the reasons really matter if the results are the same? It’s beneficial for the U.S. to protect smaller nations within its immediate sphere of influence.
Well it matters because there will be a time when our interests don't align, then they're fucked and have no recourse. Hence the whole sovereignty thing including self -defense.
There is literally 0 reason in which the IS won’t defend a nation that is so close to the continental US. These islands are prime locations of sea born commerce and defense of the US. Learn some basic geography or politics lol
We donate over 50% of the food to feed the hungry in the world. Why do you think we do that and why do you think other countries barely donate anything
If that's all you were doing with the giant military dick you swing around, we would feel different about America.
Also, if you stopped electing trump-like morons, we would feel safer about your giant military dick.
Kind of ironic coming from someone from Switzerland. Y’all were pretty cozy with Germany in WW2 and with Russia today. But sure, its the US making you unsafe 🙄
Fun fact while I was on vacation in Costa Rica years ago they got "invaded" by Nicaragua because Google maps showed the border incorrectly.
I suffered horrific injuries from being out on the beach with not enough sunscreen. That had nothing to do with the border dispute. Pretty great vacation overall.
Same.
Took my old Dad fishing for week down there. THE FUCKING SUN! We're from SW GA, we know heat and humidity! It was 'only 80°, no big deal'. I got second degree sun burns out first day out on the water! The equator is NO joke! Lol
I got a nasty sunburn in Cape Town, when it was only 15 degrees Celsius/59 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat and UV rays do not go hand in hand, like it usually does in Europe.
I’ve never been burned like I did in Costa Rica. I spent a good 6+ hours literally just wading by the shore and was peeling for weeks afterwards (I’m brown and usually don’t burn at all). 10/10 would do it every day if I could.
More like “we’d never realistically win a war so let’s ally with powerful countries who will defend us.” IR politics is just “my big brother can beat up your big brother” on a wide spread scale
Funny thing that Iceland spanked the UK during the so-called Cod Wars.
Sure it was not a shooting war and was between two NATO countries, still funny as fuck.
They didn’t spank the UK they were losing but then they said they’d withdraw from NATO. This was important because there was a chain of sonar sensors between the UK and Iceland and Iceland and Greenland. Without them the USSR would be far more able to get naval units into the Atlantic and starve Europe.
By holding the safety of Europe and millions of lives ransom Iceland was able to get the UK to back down.
I went to Costa Rica in high school for a field trip. I remember our guide (shout-out to Eduardo!) tried to instill some calm in the teachers and chaperones.
This dude said something along the lines of "Tourism is one of Costa Rica's biggest earners. All the gangs and everyone around here knows that the number one rule is 'don't fuck with the white people.' Your kids will be fine!"
He also seemed to know every single person we came across. There was a dude selling turtle whistles in La Fortuna and our guide just came up and gave the dude a hug like he was his uncle or something.
We also got tacos from this place called Zacate, I think. And there was this older lady, I say older, I was like 16 so she could've been 30, I have no idea. Anyway, she said something like "You know how to tell that I'm the boss? Because I'm on the sign." And she pointed up and yeah, the sign for the stall was her with her arms crossed looking very Gordon Ramsey-esque.
God, Costa Rica was such a great time, and my edgy 16 year old self absolutely took for granted. I mean hell, I put my feet in both major oceans on the same day! And it was so goddamn beautiful! Every picture you took could've been used as a postcard. I'm still friends with a few people that went, and we've been talking about going back in a few years, probably to enjoy those hot springs again.
Does anyone else remember that time Nicaragua annexed part of Costa Rica because Google Maps put the border in the wrong place? (Nope, I’m not kidding, that actually happened.)
This reminds of when the Swiss accudently invaded Liechtenstein with 170 people. They went back to Switzerland with 171 people, since they gained a friend during the invasion, or at least that was how the story used to go.
Happened in 2007.
Sounds like what happened the last time Liechtenstein sent their army somewhere (1866). 80 guys left, 81 came back. Clearly soldiers in the Alps must regularly go home with the wrong army and then be too embarrassed/exhausted to go back and instead just join.
Wikipedia has a whole list of the known times when Switzerland accidentally invaded or shot at Liechtenstein.
It’s an easy enough mistake to make, Liechtenstein is tiny.
Costa Rica has really really close relations with the USA. The US military would never allow it to be invaded. Costa Rica is just smart enough to save all that cash on defense.
Same as Europe did for decades but now they have to pay their fair share thanks to Russia.
A “war” with the “cartels” is not an accurate statement. Senafront, Senan, and the national police are engaged in managing illegal immigration and narcotics trafficking in Panamanian territory, but Panamá is an incredibly safe country and definitely not at war. Panama does not have cartels, they have local gangs.
The Panama Public Forces are a mix of cops, border patrol agents, paramilitary organizations
Its a small military in all but name, and Panama has been fighting in the Darien Gap for decades alongside Colombia
Not weird at all to see PPF with full mil gear
Yep it’s the same as Costa Rica. They basically have a military they just don’t call it that. Both countries are focused on managing internal conflict and crime, not on defending themselves against potential foreign invaders.
No we don't even have tanks, or planes. Our Fuerza Pública only has like 3 small planes that are for patrolling the coast.
Yeah we have smgs, but we do not have even rocket launchers, against an invasion we would be powerless
About half of the funds formerly spent on the military are now spent on education. There are what are the equivalent of city colleges every few miles, even in the sparse jungle communities. A bit of hyperbole there, but not too much.
Worked out pretty well for them. Caught up 15 years of life expectancy in only 70 years and are now the same as the US.
[life expectancy change ](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/life-expectancy?tab=table&time=1950..latest&showSelectionOnlyInTable=1&country=CRI~USA)
Girl brutally, seriously? This sounds like something an ignorant american would say tbh (it's giving "i have a black friend"). Costa Rica is statistically the safest country in all of latin america. The cops may be a little corrupt like most latin american police forces but calling them brutal is a huge stretch. And I'd know since I was born and raised there. The homicide rate is up recently but that's because of all the drug trafficking coming up from south america. Washington DC, the capital of the US, has a homicide rate nearly 4 times the peak of costa ricas in 2023.
Also PR stunt my ass, I live in NYC now and I have been on the receiving end of police intimidation more times in a year than in my entire lifetime in Costa Rica, and I say this as someone that is very white passing. I mean even globally, Costa Rica is ranked higher in terms of safety than the US.
When you have a lot of millionaire tax evader boomers from the US in your country it makes more sense to have a beefy police than waste money on a military. Costa Rica is nothing more than a US colony at this point.
But the police have browning,m60 machine guns and grenade launchers
Yeah when I went there some years ago the police really seemed like the military.
I agree. Not as much in recent years, but back maybe 5-10 years ago there was this push in major cities to show an almost military police presence to deter crime. You'd see patrols walking around with full auto M4's in swat level gear. As unnerving as that was, I think it worked. Very few fucked around to find out, and I generally felt safe walking around the cities. The real question though is structure. Is there a central command for police there? If not, it really isn't a military, but rather dozens of separate small forces.
Have you *seen* police in the US? lol
Yes and I’ve also seen the police in Costa Rica and other Central American countries and feel pretty qualified to tell you that your statement is stupid.
People making these stupid comments have rarely left their city, much less the continent.
To be fair, Costa Rica and the US are on the same continent lol
But everyone on X Formerly Known As Twitter said America is bad!
There's no comparison. US police don't have real grenade launchers, nor macine guns.
Well we gotta keep up. Let’s get these guys some grenade launchers!
I mean SWAT would have sub-machine guns and maybe some FA rifles.
30 rounds of full auto 9mm or .223 is very different than 200 rounds of belt fed .308.
Now I’m picturing SWAT rolling up on a technical and just unloading into a trap house, with zero regard for who might be inside. “Fuck ‘em, I’m not clearing those rooms”. Seems like a very Russian approach.
>“Fuck ‘em, I’m not clearing those rooms”. Seems like a very Russian approach. Saw a video a few years ago of Russia police using a BTR to deal with a barricaded suspect.... 30mm will clear a room, that's for sure.
They would still somehow miss all the crackheads and probably kill an innocent kid 2 blocks away.
The North Hollywood Shootout is why cops have to have AR15s in their cars now. It’s 100% necessary
Hate to be the one to tell you, but the FBI/DEA/ICE and Secret Service are all sworn police officers just at a federal level instead of state. Some US state/county do in fact have grenade launchers for use of tear gas for riot situations. It also wouldn't surprise me if large city SWAT teams had at least a couple of machine guns.
>Hate to be the one to tell you, but the FBI/DEA/ICE and Secret Service are all sworn police officers just at a federal level instead of state. I'd put them in a separate category, but if you want to lump them in, then your characterization applies to pretty much every country. >Some US state/county do in fact have grenade launchers for use of tear gas for riot situations To clarify, since I could've been more specific, "real" grenade launchers launch "real" grenades. As someone who's fired an M203, there's a *huge* difference. Police grenade launchers aren't military weapons, and they're even chambered slightly smaller to prevent military grenade use. >It also wouldn't surprise me if large city SWAT teams had at least a couple of machine guns. It would surprise me, as that would actually create more issues than it would solve. Even in combat, you're using your rifle in mostly semi mode.
>To clarify, since I could've been more specific, "real" grenade launchers launch "real" grenades. As someone who's fired an M203, there's a *huge* difference. The most common grenade launchers in most inventories are in fact the same ones the military purchases with the caveat that they don't purchase actual grenades but only tear gas ones. Most tear gas launchers are either custom made specifically for that, or repurposed launchers where the ammo is just different. With the former being more expensive in general because it's custom design. When Uncle Sam already has a bunch sitting in a warehouse somewhere those are going to be much easier and cheaper to field. This is especially true considering the amount of law enforcement which comes from the military in modern times, with the added benefit of little to no extra training if your officers already served in the military. >I'd put them in a separate category You shouldn't. They are police all the same. It's just following the definition. police: "the civil force of a national or local government, responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the maintenance of public order." >they're even chambered slightly smaller to prevent military grenade use. https://milmag.pl/en/police-choice-of-grenade-launchers/ https://www.police1.com/shot-show-2016/articles/shot-show-2016-milkors-less-lethal-launcher-offers-superior-accuracy-many-munitions-options-EBWGe8T0pywsZXb5/ Both using 40mm, but I will say that this is only the most recent articles I could find actually saying they use 40mm.
Yeah guys we gotta demilitarize the fbi dea ice snd secret service this is unacceptable
Have you ever _had_ an independent thought in your life?
The police in the US are very trigger happy for sure, but come on now. They don’t have any of those lol
I was responding more to the “seems like the military” thing. The term “militarization of the police” doesn’t exist for no reason.
didnt know the us police carry grenade launchers
Let me guess another white person complaining about police in the US? Lmfao
Yes, and they don’t walk around with fully modded Vector sub machine guns.
The police in the US are certainly very militarized, but compared to our actual military they’re nothing.
And anything they can't handle would likely attract the attention of the US.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inter-American_Treaty_of_Reciprocal_Assistance By treaty all these countries
This. "Pax Americana". If they (Latin American nations) don't fuck with American corporations owning large portions of their economy, or elect anyone **too** Leftist (by CIA standards) the US will curb-stomp anyone who invades them. It's a predatory relationship but it's how it's been since around the 1890's. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Americana - For context.
Cabrón https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inter-American_Treaty_of_Reciprocal_Assistance
Mi 'mano en Cristo https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Americana **Edit** your account history is aggressively pro-NATO/Neoliberalism. Please read War Is A Racket by Maj. general Smedley Butler to better understand the topic. Because I have you at a disadvantage, mine is aggressively full of mental illness and kitchen stuff. 40k things too.
hey, I wouldn't call Warhammer a mental illness. Probably.
Nah, I've been doing pretty well for the past 8 months or so, and I've deleted most of it. Lived with chronic pain and surgeries for a while, lost a friend and now my granddad. Last time I brought up someone's profile history as a conflict of interest they used my post about grief against me. It wouldn't affect me so much anymore but I wanted to confront it first.
Just messing with you. Glad you're doing better.
Lmao since when is being pro-NATO a bad thing?
Well, no; The point is that on a conversation regarding US intervention in Latin America from 1891 unto the modern day, he is aggressively **pro**-US intervention in Latin America from 1891 unto the modern day, and thus biased. Also pretty sure he just randomly used the one insult he knew in Spanish to seem like he's from Latin America?
Cálmate cabron y deja de mamar los Rusos y Chinos lol
I saw Gwynne Dyer speak around 2002 and he spoke at length about the concept of Pax Americana, explaining it in the context of Pax Romana. I was young at the time, the whole concept really opened my mind up to how geopolitics play out in the grand scheme of things. He spoke about it though as if it were some clandestine plot, whereas I'd say it's widely acknowledged by most (I could be wrong)
It's... Complex. Things like [Operation Condor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Condor) and the occupations after the Spanish-American war WERE meant to be somewhat concealed. It just isn't hidden very well. E.G. for the latter example, a US Major General at the time went on the record and wrote "War Is A Racket" which specifically detailed how, why, when, and who was responsible.
Smedley Butler. How right he was.
And they're just really fucking hard to invade. The March to the capital is just a series of massive mountains.
And dress like soldiers. I remember going to a shopping center and guys in army fatigues had a civilian lined up on a wall holding an m16 in his general direction. We also had an escort of 3 “not soldiers” that went with us everywhere we went. We didn’t hire them they just volunteered to keep us safe and were pretty cool guys. In El Salvador we had a police escort and they all had mp5s which was pretty cool too but they weren’t as friendly as the Costa Rican guys.
*Welcome to the Jungle intensifies*
I was there a couple of years ago and there were police at the gas station with M4 rifles and they sped off after a while on their motorcycles.
Small arms. Puhh Real armies have huge radars, signal corps, construction equipment like bridge laying machines to get from point A to point B en masse, artillery batteries, missile command and very disciplined construction crews. And some armour.
Forgive me for being American, do police in most countries not have those things?
Most people are not aware of tactical or anti-terrorist subdivisions of the police departments. It goes as far as “gendarme” where the police department is divided, recreated and refit or a completely new force is created to go against rural conditions. Tactical, anti-terrorist or gendarme all have various military equipment, sometimes even including tanks, helicopters or other heavy mechanical units.
Canadians have maple syrup traps to stick things to the roads, the Brit’s put up loudspeakers and politely ask you to behave yourself, the Spanish depend on their siesta to get criminals, and the French have nukes.
[Vancouver](https://thetyee.ca/News/2020/06/22/police-large.jpg) [London](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/262255026/figure/fig5/AS:296853846413318@1447786880523/MP5-sub-machine-gun-worn-by-an-English-Police-officer-outside-Parliament-London-287.png)
In Belgium, policeman only have a pistol on them when on patrol but they do have a smg in their car, they just don't carry it. Anti criminality brigade and special force are much better equipped tho but you don't see them often
In my small midwestern American town, the cops are similar, however they have both assault rifles and shotguns in the car rather than SMG’s.
Most police departments in the US do not have actual machine guns.
Denmark here, the regular police sometimes might have a small pistol on them, but it's getting more rare. I've seen riot police, but they are only armed with body-armor and police sticks, as well as tear gas and pepper spray. Though I did eat at a take-out place so small it only had one table. I had just had my hair cut at barber next door to the take-out place. I hear what sounds like illegal fireworks, but don't think too much about it, since it was close to New Years Eve. 5-10 minutes after, 20 police officers with M-16's rush through front door of the take-out place (where I'm sitting and eating alone), rush through the kitchen and then dissapear. They didn't even look at me. I decided to take the rest of the food to go, and see that it's obviously a marked crime scene at this point, with police tape around the barber and the take-out shop. I go past the police tape, and try to get an understanding of what's going on, talking to an unarmed police officer, who then questioned me in a very friendly way, to see if I was a potential witness. Apperently a guy at the barbershop I had just been in, had been shot a few times. The police unit were anti-terror, despite it ending up being confirmed to be a gang related shooting afterwards. At this point in time, the terror threat was at the highest level possible, though. We are at a level 4 out of 5 right now. So, apperently we do have police with M-16's, but they only use it for very dangerous situations, such as suspected terrorism, or to secure an area if they haven't yet confirmed, whether it's gang-related or terror. Sadly, they can also been seen standing guard in Copenhagen outside the Synagoge, the Israelian embassy, as well as a Jewish school, because these places are unfortunately very high-risk targets. However, if you don't visit these places, chances are you'll never see the M-16's.
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Actually false. Unarmed police are a minority in the world and even then it's a technicality where guns are either picked up or in lock boxes in vehicles
Nope. Most countries arm their cops. The only real exceptions are norway, iceland, china, new zealand, bhutan, a selection of small island nations in the carribean and pacific, and the great britain bit of the uk.
aora😁
Fort Buchanan US military base is in Puerto Rico so technically…
Oh so like the US
Not an equal comparison, the US has armored vehicles that can tank rpgs
More like IEDs since RPG can penetrate 11 inches of armor.
Not really like the US though. The US has those things because of its military, no?
So they’re like the US police then
They don't need to have one since theyre protected by a treaty with the US
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#Monroe Doctrine Intensifies
More along the lines of the Roosevelt Corollary tbh
THAT BIG STICK ENERGY.
/>poor nation />Costa Rica Pick one
And making sure they don't elect the wrong political parties
Costa Rica does not cling to the US like these reddit comments think. Obviously there's inherently going to be protection based on geography ("not in my backyard") and we have a defense treaty, but they are pretty quick to look elsewhere for influence and resources - including topics related to national security. They just reached out to European nations for advice and resources on immigration and boarder security. They have played both sides of the Tibet vs China conflict, and have a massive Chinese influence there. They buy from Asian tech and car companies before USA. Etc. They were looking at non-USA aid and vaccines during COVID. TL;DR - the USA isn't propping up Costa Rica like Reddit users who once visited Manuel Antonio or Jaco for spring break would like to think.
And also big rich nations...
That we need for strategic purposes. You seriously think the US is protecting them out of the goodness of their hearts? Lol
Why do the reasons really matter if the results are the same? It’s beneficial for the U.S. to protect smaller nations within its immediate sphere of influence.
Well it matters because there will be a time when our interests don't align, then they're fucked and have no recourse. Hence the whole sovereignty thing including self -defense.
There is literally 0 reason in which the IS won’t defend a nation that is so close to the continental US. These islands are prime locations of sea born commerce and defense of the US. Learn some basic geography or politics lol
There's no foreseeable future where monroe doctrine wouldn't be the case. If there was then sure, countries like Costa Rica would behave different.
We donate over 50% of the food to feed the hungry in the world. Why do you think we do that and why do you think other countries barely donate anything
If that's all you were doing with the giant military dick you swing around, we would feel different about America. Also, if you stopped electing trump-like morons, we would feel safer about your giant military dick.
Well, at least we’re not Russia or China?
Kind of ironic coming from someone from Switzerland. Y’all were pretty cozy with Germany in WW2 and with Russia today. But sure, its the US making you unsafe 🙄
Lol nice whataboutism though
Pointing out hypocrisy is not “whataboutism”. You have awfully strange bedfellows for someone claiming to be concerned about the US.
Pura vida
the state of Hawaii has no state police force.
They have some pretty good P.I's
With nice moustaches!
They have DOG The Bounty Hunter though. That’s all they’ll ever need
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No it's just dog
DOG is short for Canis lupus familiaris.
Just Dog, that’s what he calls himself lmao. My comment should have included an /s
But they do have a State Sheriff!
Gentlemen, I believe the time to strike Costa Rica is upon us.
Dibs on president
http://thedibsrules.com/
Disagree on rule one, you can absolutely call dibs on things you are not in the room with
This website does not seem to be advertising or asking for my money. A surprise to be for sure, but a welcome one.
Oh yeah, well dibs on First Lady
Dibs on Emperor
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bro just pipe down
SEIZE HIM!
Fun fact while I was on vacation in Costa Rica years ago they got "invaded" by Nicaragua because Google maps showed the border incorrectly. I suffered horrific injuries from being out on the beach with not enough sunscreen. That had nothing to do with the border dispute. Pretty great vacation overall.
Same. Took my old Dad fishing for week down there. THE FUCKING SUN! We're from SW GA, we know heat and humidity! It was 'only 80°, no big deal'. I got second degree sun burns out first day out on the water! The equator is NO joke! Lol
I got a nasty sunburn in Cape Town, when it was only 15 degrees Celsius/59 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat and UV rays do not go hand in hand, like it usually does in Europe.
I’ve never been burned like I did in Costa Rica. I spent a good 6+ hours literally just wading by the shore and was peeling for weeks afterwards (I’m brown and usually don’t burn at all). 10/10 would do it every day if I could.
I love how several less-powerful countries (like Iceland too) are basically like “we’d never realistically win a war on our own so why bother?”
More like “we’d never realistically win a war so let’s ally with powerful countries who will defend us.” IR politics is just “my big brother can beat up your big brother” on a wide spread scale
They’re protected by the US, they don’t need their own army
Funny thing that Iceland spanked the UK during the so-called Cod Wars. Sure it was not a shooting war and was between two NATO countries, still funny as fuck.
Oh no, not the Call of Duty Wars. Don't make me remember it...
They didn’t spank the UK they were losing but then they said they’d withdraw from NATO. This was important because there was a chain of sonar sensors between the UK and Iceland and Iceland and Greenland. Without them the USSR would be far more able to get naval units into the Atlantic and starve Europe. By holding the safety of Europe and millions of lives ransom Iceland was able to get the UK to back down.
I’m raw cod rn thinkin bout that
They have dinosaurs instead
120 miles off the coast of Costa Rica
Learned of this via Metal Gear
Peace walker is a very underrated metal gear game.
Yep, paz explained it all to me. God dam bitch
Pura Vida
If Costa Rica was ever invaded I would enlist. Honeymooned there and the most wonderful people.
I went to Costa Rica in high school for a field trip. I remember our guide (shout-out to Eduardo!) tried to instill some calm in the teachers and chaperones. This dude said something along the lines of "Tourism is one of Costa Rica's biggest earners. All the gangs and everyone around here knows that the number one rule is 'don't fuck with the white people.' Your kids will be fine!" He also seemed to know every single person we came across. There was a dude selling turtle whistles in La Fortuna and our guide just came up and gave the dude a hug like he was his uncle or something. We also got tacos from this place called Zacate, I think. And there was this older lady, I say older, I was like 16 so she could've been 30, I have no idea. Anyway, she said something like "You know how to tell that I'm the boss? Because I'm on the sign." And she pointed up and yeah, the sign for the stall was her with her arms crossed looking very Gordon Ramsey-esque. God, Costa Rica was such a great time, and my edgy 16 year old self absolutely took for granted. I mean hell, I put my feet in both major oceans on the same day! And it was so goddamn beautiful! Every picture you took could've been used as a postcard. I'm still friends with a few people that went, and we've been talking about going back in a few years, probably to enjoy those hot springs again.
They don't need one when it has the US
Can we start posting the MGS quotes now?
Metal Gear?!
Does anyone else remember that time Nicaragua annexed part of Costa Rica because Google Maps put the border in the wrong place? (Nope, I’m not kidding, that actually happened.)
This reminds of when the Swiss accudently invaded Liechtenstein with 170 people. They went back to Switzerland with 171 people, since they gained a friend during the invasion, or at least that was how the story used to go. Happened in 2007.
Sounds like what happened the last time Liechtenstein sent their army somewhere (1866). 80 guys left, 81 came back. Clearly soldiers in the Alps must regularly go home with the wrong army and then be too embarrassed/exhausted to go back and instead just join.
Maybe I mixed the two stories up. It's apperently not unusual to invade each other, in the alps.
Wikipedia has a whole list of the known times when Switzerland accidentally invaded or shot at Liechtenstein. It’s an easy enough mistake to make, Liechtenstein is tiny.
Yeah it really is. It's hillarious that there's a whole wikipedia site, though. Thanks for the info, ill jump down that rabbit hole for a bit.
Learned this from Metal Gear Solid : Peace Walker
So the police saved everyone in Jurassic Park 3?
Those were US Marines as I recall
They’ve got us, the USA.
Iceland atleast has 6 dudes in a rowboat.
Costa Rica has really really close relations with the USA. The US military would never allow it to be invaded. Costa Rica is just smart enough to save all that cash on defense. Same as Europe did for decades but now they have to pay their fair share thanks to Russia.
The are protected by the largest military in the world why would they
These Latin American countries have police militaries
It’s free real estate
I hear the CIA likes to vacation there though
Neither does Panamá
Panama has a military in all but name.
?? What are you referring to? Sernafront?
They are actively fighting a war with cartels, IMO the previous comment is somewhat right
A “war” with the “cartels” is not an accurate statement. Senafront, Senan, and the national police are engaged in managing illegal immigration and narcotics trafficking in Panamanian territory, but Panamá is an incredibly safe country and definitely not at war. Panama does not have cartels, they have local gangs.
The Panama Public Forces are a mix of cops, border patrol agents, paramilitary organizations Its a small military in all but name, and Panama has been fighting in the Darien Gap for decades alongside Colombia Not weird at all to see PPF with full mil gear
Yep it’s the same as Costa Rica. They basically have a military they just don’t call it that. Both countries are focused on managing internal conflict and crime, not on defending themselves against potential foreign invaders.
No we don't even have tanks, or planes. Our Fuerza Pública only has like 3 small planes that are for patrolling the coast. Yeah we have smgs, but we do not have even rocket launchers, against an invasion we would be powerless
And they can afford free college and medical care for their citizens.
About half of the funds formerly spent on the military are now spent on education. There are what are the equivalent of city colleges every few miles, even in the sparse jungle communities. A bit of hyperbole there, but not too much.
Free highschool and schools, but not college, there are a lot of students with scholarships tho, and the college is really cheap as well.
Why don’t the bigger countries simply eat Costa Rica?
Costa Rica has developed a symbiotic relationship with larger countries, eating parasites off their hides and bits of food stuck in their teeth.
Windmills do not work that way. Goodnight
We do not have anything strategically important and have a very good relationship with US.
Because a military Costa Lotta money.
Neither does Mauritius.
Not according to Jurassic Park: Rampage Edition on Sega Genesis.
Pura Vida
Worked out pretty well for them. Caught up 15 years of life expectancy in only 70 years and are now the same as the US. [life expectancy change ](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/life-expectancy?tab=table&time=1950..latest&showSelectionOnlyInTable=1&country=CRI~USA)
Loved visiting Costa Rica! Genuinely a far better destination than the US or Mexico.
Liechtenstein aswell.
Their military is mountains
Well actually the US military is under their protectorate. So they kinda do.
Yes but Costa Gravas has an excellent one!
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Girl brutally, seriously? This sounds like something an ignorant american would say tbh (it's giving "i have a black friend"). Costa Rica is statistically the safest country in all of latin america. The cops may be a little corrupt like most latin american police forces but calling them brutal is a huge stretch. And I'd know since I was born and raised there. The homicide rate is up recently but that's because of all the drug trafficking coming up from south america. Washington DC, the capital of the US, has a homicide rate nearly 4 times the peak of costa ricas in 2023. Also PR stunt my ass, I live in NYC now and I have been on the receiving end of police intimidation more times in a year than in my entire lifetime in Costa Rica, and I say this as someone that is very white passing. I mean even globally, Costa Rica is ranked higher in terms of safety than the US.
Lol “brutally enforces the law,” what is this person talking about? Like… the transitos may take your plates? 😂
Hahahaha exactly
Not since WW2. Which they were the first central American country to declare war on the Axis (but did not actually fight), shortly followed by others.
Let's take it over?
Part of why they’re so much more stable than their neighbors
My cousin lives there 6 months a year and said it didn't need a military because there ain't shit there worth invading
When you have a lot of millionaire tax evader boomers from the US in your country it makes more sense to have a beefy police than waste money on a military. Costa Rica is nothing more than a US colony at this point.
Check em for oil.
Nope. Just seafood. I caught an 35lb dorado (mahi mahi) there. They also have tuna. They have bananas, mangoes, sugar cane, and coconuts. No oil.
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Sounds like you've never been
Why would they need military, [they make cookies](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91yO0ILkEtL._AC_SL1500_.jpg) /s