Or do they? I'm making this post without having done alot of research on this topic (hence why I'm posting to this subreddit.)

From what I know, soldiers in combat zones are held to a fairly high standard when it comes to discharging their weapons. They can't simply shoot at someone because they "feel threatened." They have to follow clearly defined standards that dictate in what context they can fire a weapon. And they are held accountable to those above them in the chain of command if those standards are not followed.

Why are police officers allowed to draw and discharge their weapons in many instances with seemingly little to no provocation? Despite police departments wanting to portray themselves as having strict and rigerous standards, I've simply seen too many instances of firearms being drawn for me not to believe this is a widespread institutional failure in policing.

There seems to be no end to the examples that can be cited of police officers drawing their weapons on citizens, aiming them, and far too many times, firing.

Why? Why are there not stricter standards? If the standards exist, why are they not enforced? Why is an officer allowed to use a firearm without exhausting all other options first?