I think that unlike in many cities on the mainland, the police force here basically reflects the population -- minority white, the rest Asian/Hawaiian/Polynesian. It looks like the problem in many of these shooting cases is that guys are tanked on meth, and try to hit cops with their car, or shoot at them. In those cases shooting is likely the only alternative the police have. I do wonder, in the case of people with mental problems who lunge at police with knives, if there might be an alternative. More training in how to deal with mental illness, de-escalation training, etc. But I confess that if someone came at me with a big knife, and I was armed with a gun, I'd probably use it.