I find this whole thread distressing on many levels. The tragedy is bad enough without our supposedly close knit group turning these officers' deaths into a forum to debate gun control, angrily in at least a few cases ("idiot"). I find it further frustrating that people who would probably define themselves as patriots are perfectly comfortable advocating, in effect, extra-judicial slayings of suspects, and the removal of legally established due process and the entire appeals system, a core part of our legal system, as well. There have been numerous numerous cases of people convicted of horrific, serious crimes, capital offenses, only to have later evidence prove them innocent. Further, eliminating any appeals process would massively encourage already rampant prosecutorial misconduct, since there would be no forum in which to find it. I like to count myself as a patriot too, and I am willing to bet that these officers were patriots as well, and I like to hope, perhaps naively, that some of them, as officers of the law, would want us to support the actual laws and constitution rather than the third world autocratic death squad state some of you seem to be arguing for.
/rant