--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cops fall into two categories—grass…" description: "\"“Cops fall into two categories—grass eaters and meat eaters. The grass eaters are the small-timers—they take a cut from the car-towing companies, they ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cf/don-winslow-3586_police_cops-fall-into-two-categories-grass-eate_2662646.jpg" --- # Cops fall into two categories—grass eaters and meat… ![“Cops fall into two categories—grass eaters and meat eaters. The grass eaters are the small-timers—they take a cut from the car-towing companies, they get a free coffee, a sandwich. They take what comes, they’re not aggressive. The meat eaters are the predators, they go after what they want—the…” quote by Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cf/don-winslow-3586_police_cops-fall-into-two-categories-grass-eate_2662646.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cf/don-winslow-3586_police_cops-fall-into-two-categories-grass-eate_2662646.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cf/don-winslow-3586_police_cops-fall-into-two-categories-grass-eate_2662646.jpg) > ““Cops fall into two categories—grass eaters and meat eaters. The grass eaters are the small-timers—they take a cut from the car-towing companies, they get a free coffee, a sandwich. They take what comes, they’re not aggressive. The meat eaters are the predators, they go after what they want—the drug rips, the mob payoffs, the cash.”” [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes two types of police: passive ones who accept small bribes, and aggressive ones who pursue big crimes. **In simple terms:** Two police styles: small‑time acceptors vs. big‑time predators. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge corrupt, low‑level enforcement. Themes corruption power law enforcement morality crime Mood cynical critical Type analytical observational When to use this quote - urban policing - internal investigations - community trust - reform initiatives Key Concepts ethical compromise predatory behavior institutional decay Questions to Reflect On - How does this categorization affect public trust? - What reforms could reduce predatory policing? A Different Perspective Even predators can become compromised by systemic pressures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Eaters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eaters-357789/) [Eaters Meat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eaters-meat-2440873/) [Eaters Predators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eaters-predators-2440874/) [Grass Eaters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grass-eaters-2440872/) [Meat Eaters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meat-eaters-789252/) [Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police/) ## Related quotes > [Meat-eaters make every day a 9/11 for animals in slaughterhouses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brock-chisholm/meat-eaters-make-every-day-a-9-11-for-animals-in-slaughterhouses/) [Brock Chisholm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brock-chisholm/) > [ You know what’s more insane than \[slaughterhouses\]? Meat eaters. Walking around, acting like their lifestyle isn’t causing any harm. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-yourofsky/you-know-what-s-more-insane-than-slaughterhouses-meat-eaters-walking/) [Gary Yourofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-yourofsky/) > [For all you meat-eaters that hate vegetarians, just think, without us vegetarians, there would be less meat for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/summer/for-all-you-meat-eaters-that-hate-vegetarians-just-think-without-us/) [Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/summer/) > [The case for meat-eaters - if eating meat is a sin, then why are some plants carnivorous?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-katragadda/the-case-for-meat-eaters-if-eating-meat-is-a-sin-then-why-are-some/) [Siddharth Katragadda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-katragadda/) > [Until a vegan or vegetarian enters the room, people don't see themselves as meat-eaters. They are merely 'eaters', and it is we vegans who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/until-a-vegan-or-vegetarian-enters-the-room-people-don-t-see/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“In my mind, the world is split neatly into two groups: meat-eaters and plant-eaters. Nothing is wrong with either one. Both are necessary. One…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-taylor/in-my-mind-the-world-is-split-neatly-into-two-groups-meat-eaters-and/) [Brad Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-taylor/) > [“Vegetarians and especially vegans have a significantly lower prevalence of obesity than meat eaters. Differences in macronutrient intakes (protein, fat, carbohydrate, dietary fibre, sugars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ginter/vegetarians-and-especially-vegans-have-a-significantly-lower/) [Emil Ginter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ginter/) > [When are we left-wingers going to learn that we are losing the cultural and political battle with conservatives because we are fractured into narcissistic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/when-are-we-left-wingers-going-to-learn-that-we-are-losing-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Some meat eaters defend meat eating by pointing out that it is natural: in the wild, animals eat one another. The animals that end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gannon/some-meat-eaters-defend-meat-eating-by-pointing-out-that-it-is/) [Sharon Gannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-gannon/) > [I think there will come a time when civilized people will look back in horror on our generation and the ones that have preceded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-weaver/i-think-there-will-come-a-time-when-civilized-people-will-look-back/) [Dennis Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-weaver/) > [“Non-meat eaters, especially vegans, have a lower prevalence of hypertension and lower systolic and diastolic blood pressures than meat eaters, largely because of differences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-appleby/non-meat-eaters-especially-vegans-have-a-lower-prevalence-of/) [Paul Appleby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-appleby/) > [“Speak to meat eaters the way you would speak to a wild animal: softly and without any sudden movements.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/speak-to-meat-eaters-the-way-you-would-speak-to-a-wild-animal-softly/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [The indifference of children towards meat is one proof that the taste for meat is unnatural; their preference is for vegetable foods...Beware of changing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/the-indifference-of-children-towards-meat-is-one-proof-that-the-taste/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Meat eaters don't like me because I call for moderation, and vegetarians don't like me because I say there's nothing wrong with eating meat.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/meat-eaters-don-t-like-me-because-i-call-for-moderation-and/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [Vegitarians are sexier then meat eaters, we arent all greesy and shit. and we dont get all thoes diseases, like mad cow disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-sykes/vegitarians-are-sexier-then-meat-eaters-we-arent-all-greesy-and-shit/) [Oliver Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-sykes/) ## More by Don Winslow > [There are various kinds of savagery: emotional, spiritual, economic, and cultural savagery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/there-are-various-kinds-of-savagery-emotional-spiritual-economic-and/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [“We proclaimed the freedom of the individual, bought and drove millions of cars to prove it, built more roads for the cars to drive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/we-proclaimed-the-freedom-of-the-individual-bought-and-drove-millions/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [We need to do something about gun violence in America. 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Eventually I had a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/so-i-thought-i-should-write-five-pages-a-day-and-that-s-what-i-did/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [I used to joke that my next book would be about puppies that have lost a chew toy, and everywhere they went, people were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/i-used-to-joke-that-my-next-book-would-be-about-puppies-that-have/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [I was a safari guide in the 1980s in Kenya.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/i-was-a-safari-guide-in-the-1980s-in-kenya/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [Bookstores never seem to know where to put me on the shelves. But I do. I love my genre and I love those writers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/bookstores-never-seem-to-know-where-to-put-me-on-the-shelves-but-i-do/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [Shane Salerno and I adapted my book Savages together, and I learned a lot about adaptation. I think it's an extremely difficult thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/shane-salerno-and-i-adapted-my-book-savages-together-and-i-learned-a/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [I've been writing since I was six years old. It's hard to imagine stopping. I would hate to think that I've already written my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/i-ve-been-writing-since-i-was-six-years-old-it-s-hard-to-imagine/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [I lived in mafia neighborhoods off and on when I was a kid. If you were in Little Italy, in East Harlem, in Brooklyn...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/i-lived-in-mafia-neighborhoods-off-and-on-when-i-was-a-kid-if-you/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [“Hell isn't having no choice. It's having to make a choice between horrific things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/hell-isn-t-having-no-choice-it-s-having-to-make-a-choice-between/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [Producing words isn't a problem for me. And I usually write two books at a time. When one horse gets winded, you jump on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/producing-words-isn-t-a-problem-for-me-and-i-usually-write-two-books/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [I think people will be surprised at some of the things about the shootings by policemen of unarmed African-American men. But I also think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/i-think-people-will-be-surprised-at-some-of-the-things-about-the/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [“There are the gods of place and the gods of commerce, and if you have to bet who’s going to win out, put your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/there-are-the-gods-of-place-and-the-gods-of-commerce-and-if-you-have/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) [Explore all 125 Don Winslow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) ## More Police quotes > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [In the battle for police reform, accountability and justice, Americans don't have to re-invent the wheel. 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That's libertarians for you - anarchists who want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-stanley-robinson/the-minimum-that-most-minimalists-want-leaves-in-place-just-the/) [Kim Stanley Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-stanley-robinson/) > [It's very hard to be a kid, especially in a predominantly white school or white town where other people want to police your body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-lelia-bundles/it-s-very-hard-to-be-a-kid-especially-in-a-predominantly-white-school/) [A'Lelia Bundles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-lelia-bundles/) > [“The police ultimately pay the price for poor customer service when citizens become fearful of them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-police-ultimately-pay-the-price-for-poor-customer-service-when/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [In France they spend six months training policemen, then they give them a gun and put them on the streets, and I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mathieu-kassovitz/in-france-they-spend-six-months-training-policemen-then-they-give/) [Mathieu Kassovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mathieu-kassovitz/) > [When I get bored I say fck the police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-get-bored-i-say-fck-the-police/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [UN peacekeeping operations are now increasingly complex and multi-dimensional, going beyond monitoring a ceasefire to actually bringing failed States back to life, often after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/un-peacekeeping-operations-are-now-increasingly-complex-and-multi/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [If legislators come to believe that police power is an ever-present constitutional trump card they can play whenever it suits them, overreaching is inexorable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-willett/if-legislators-come-to-believe-that-police-power-is-an-ever-present/) [Don Willett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-willett/) > [I think the only thing that's really going to make a change in terms of how we feel as citizens in terms of safety…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chance-the-rapper/i-think-the-only-thing-that-s-really-going-to-make-a-change-in-terms/) [Chance The Rapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chance-the-rapper/) > [“police cars, but since he was driving”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-cole/police-cars-but-since-he-was-driving/) [Bobby Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-cole/) > [You build the bonds through the community and police force, build bonds of understanding, and then when people feel comfortable in their communities, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-kaine/you-build-the-bonds-through-the-community-and-police-force-build/) [Tim Kaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-kaine/) > [“Sam’s eyes wandered up to the camera again. “Are we being recorded?” “Yes.” “Who’s watching us right now?” The detective sighed. “A couple of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-hillier/sam-s-eyes-wandered-up-to-the-camera-again-are-we-being-recorded-yes/) [Jennifer Hillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-hillier/) > [Being a woman, we talk about equal pay all the time. 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