> They had toys and a rare chance to play with them

That's one of many things the author of "The Rise of the Warrior Cop" argues.

He also argues a fundamental flaw in recruiting for SWAT and similar police units: these squads should be all about de-escalation and defusing violent and complex situations, but instead are full of guys who just want to blow shit up. The kind of police officers who would like to join SWAT, he argues, is precisely the kind who should be rejected.

Good luck fixing that, though.