If the police want respect they should show some to the public. This attitude of guilty until proved innocent has to stop. They should understand their place in society and not extrapolate, but observe. If they want to put their brains in gear now it's a bit late, they should have done that in school.
If the police want respect, the crimes of chief constables should be made public, and all officers who are also Freemasons sacked. How can antbody respect a force where many officers are part of a secret semi-criminal society.

This confrontation between patrician and plebeian authority brought to mind Alastair Sim's portrayal of a UK government minister in the frothy 'Innocents in Paris'.
On his outward journey to an international conference with representatives of the Soviet Union, Sir Norman( A Sim in character ) gently scolds a customs officer( Colin Gordon ) for not applying standard rules to Sir Norman just because of HM minister's exalted standing.
However, on his return to the UK Sir Norman loaded down with contraband and standing on his authority as a government minister meets the same official.
As the customs officer explains to an irritated Sir Norman the rules apply to everyone - no exceptions.
Besides being a battle of words, this fictional confrontation is a battle of ingenuity - more of the little fellow against big authority.
Perhaps if Harpo Marx , with his horn, had been on the gate we would see the funny side of it.

Farce

As a former police officer - with two "A" Levels, so that might make me semi-educated - I always suspected that all politicians considered the police to be "plebs". Thankfully, I managed to discourage my son from joining.

The portents are not good. Look to the heavens, plebs! That object plummeting to earth last night was not a meteor but Mitche's career going down in flames.

Soothsayer(Sooper)

'Plebs' is an every-day word in the lingo of the better public school. No, you don't have to go back to Ancient Rome where this social group was inclined to hold a general strike every time the upper orders came on a bit strong . Exiting the City and leaving the Patricians to get on with it is a jolly good precedent, don't you think?
Of course this did the Patrician's a lot of harm as slaves and body-servants can only do so much.
Yes, scholarship boys and the odd grammar school type has in the past had to bear the brunt of this uncouth behaviour but to use it outside the environs of the public school - very poor form.

Whipper-snapper

surely the term "pleb" is correct when someone like Mr Mitchell is addressing someone from a lower class?

he shouldn't have used the f-word though, thoroughly bad form.

Andrew Mitchel just another of the "ToryArrogant Posh Boys" who magnificently personify the unacceptable face of Conservatism!

If he did say that he was right. The police constantly mess-up and blame it on others; have they never seen the keystone cops, or are they trying to emulate them.
Take the poorest educated in society, don't bother with a proper IQ test, pay them far too much, and arrange things so they can never be prosecuted.
I do hope the white rabbit brings some nice cakes for tea!

Following the huge discrediting of the "pigs" under Labour as left wingers call them e.g. the bribery of the police that Labour allowed, there reputation has started to improve under the coalition. Mitchell is an idoit for back tracking on the progress made.

After all police and Thatcher. Its hardly a lefty thing (or perhaps there is a Miliband bandwagon to be jumped on here)

Should have said in my previous comment 'Tory Hierarchy' call workers plebs, the disabled and unemployed, who genuinely cannot find work, scroungers. Can think of lots of adjectives to describe them, however, they're unprintable.

Stupid boy!!!!

What? 'old Thrasher Mitchell' a senior member of HM Government accused of swearing at a member of the lower order.
Surely not!
If he says he didn't then he didn't. Any man who says otherwise should be horsewhipped and Thrasher is just the man to do it.
Next thing there will be some trumped up story that he owns a set of fish knives and forks.
Outrageous calumny