Orden y la Patria

As I sit here typing, the sounds of a far-off demonstration - cheering, honking of horns, etc... - filters into our apartment. Such sounds are a common thing here and with the constant social dialogue through demonstration, the relationship between the common Chilean and his/her government is often on display in a way that is less frequently seen in the U.S. (although the occupy movement seems to be changing that, at least temporarily).

This train of thought brings me to tonight's observation: The motto of U.S. police is "Serve and Protect". The motto of the Chilean police is "Orden y la Patria", which translates to "Order and Country". UCD pepper spray incident aside, I think this is an appropriate foil for the different obligations of law enforcement in the two countries and the different relationship each country's police forces have with their citizenry.