The police treat gangs as if they're terrorists. The police treat gangs with terrorism.
The police treat gangs as a source of drugs. The police treat gangs as a source of money. The police treat gangs as a source of intelligence. The police treat gangs as a source of sex work The police become a souce of drugs, money, protection, intelligence, and prestige for gangs.
The police protects the public from gangs. The police protects the gangs from the public.
The police treat gangs as a local force keeping the peace. The police treat gangs as a local force enforcing order and rule. The police treat gangs as a local force in need of rehabilitation. The police treat gangs as a local force beyond rehabilitation.
The police treat gangs like they're the usual suspects. The police treat gangs like suspects. The police treat gangs like they're guilty. The police treat gangs like they're target practice. The police treat gangs like targets.
The police are targets for gangs. The police treat gangs as if cops were in control; a fantasy that gangs allow the cops to have. The police wouldn't know a gang from a bunch of amway distributors. The police created gangs. The police are gangs. The police are gangs in monochromatic garb. The police could learn a thing or two from gangs. The gangs could learn a thing or two from the police. And eventually...the gangs will become the police.
Yoshie, you've a great facility for theory and practice, but at times theory in your hands is a blunt instrument. Casual use of functional theorizing, left-leaning or otherwise, heightens the risk of hubris. whether from Foucault or Chambliss.
Dennis