I use the term because of the system they represent. Not the one they claim, but the one they represent.

In most neighborhoods I have lived in, and I've been around a lot of the country, the cops act like and in fact are and army of occupation. They serve and protect, sure, but not the people.

I usually state it as "All Cops are Bastards, even the ones I like" because they have essentially sold their soul relatively cheap to have a little power.

If they were actually interested in protecting us, rather than maintaining the status quo, I might feel differently.