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Discussion Groups / English Usage / May 2009The use of "police"
Ladies and Gentlemen: In an editorial of a Taiwan local English newspaper, [ http://www.chinapost.com.tw/editorial/taiwan-issues/2009/05/15/208178/Assembly-a nd.htm ] a sentence goes "[He] complained that part of the act giving police the right to break up demonstrations impeding traffic smacks of authoritarianism, arguing 'it's like a law from the martial law era.'" I have a question about "police." Should it be "the police"? If not, on what occasions can I use "police" to mean the collective police officers in a country without "the"? Best Wishes, Tacia > In an editorial of a Taiwan local English newspaper, > [ http://www.chinapost.com.tw/editorial/taiwan-issues/2009/05/15/208178/Assembly-a nd.htm [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > If not, on what occasions can I use "police" to mean the collective > police officers in a country without "the"? The China Post editorial is everyday English. "Police" with no article is the usual way of identifying the collectivity, but not the only permissible way, i.e. "the police" is no less correct.  SignatureDon Phillipson Carlsbad Springs (Ottawa, Canada) > Ladies and Gentlemen: > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > Best Wishes, > Tacia It's because "police" refers to a specific group of police, anywhere. In article <3ff4e70a-987b-4c2b-a23f-d41f47f4e3b0@ 21g2000vbk.googlegroups.com>, BMCT2010@AOL.com says... > > Ladies and Gentlemen: > > [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > > It's because "police" refers to a specific group of police, anywhere. That would be a general, rather than specific group, then. SignatureLinz Wet Yorks via Cambridge, York, London and Watford My accent may vary > Ladies and Gentlemen: > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > If not, on what occasions can I use "police" to mean the collective > police officers in a country without "the"? "police" means police in general; "the police" means a specific group of police. Adrian |
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