* As a retired law-enforcement officer, I can empathize with Detective Ivan Davison (“Three Cheers!” July 17).
How you feel about police conduct largely depends on which side of the badge you’re standing.
It is unfortunate for alleged perpetrator Stephon Allston that Davison is black. Had Davison been a white officer, he would have been crucified, and All- ston would be the celebrated hero of this tale. Paul Braunstein
Miami
* Davison’s actions were heroic, and, thankfully, the outcome turned out well. However, off-duty cops carrying guns should not drink. Period!
What’s so tough about that?
Anyone caught operating a vehicle with the same blood-alcohol level as Davison could have been busted for DUI. The penalty should be no less tough for cops who carry guns and drink. Michael Norman
Manhattan
* Thanks to The Post for pointing out that police officers are required to be fit for duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
This higher standard is not applied to other city jobs, such as sanitation workers and teachers.
It is too bad that this and other standards seem to be ignored during contract time, as this liberal city believes that all city workers are equal.
A job well done by the “off-duty” detective. Christian Orscher
The Bronx
* Please surround me with drunken, off-duty, armed NYPD cops.
An inebriated off-duty cop saves a citizen from getting beaten to death and then prevails in a gunfight between his little off-duty gun and a monster TEC-9.
Whatever this hero marksman was drinking should become mandatory for all off-duty cops. In fact, at roll call, all NYPD cops should have a swig of it. I know I’d feel a lot safer in New York City. Stan Kabrt
Bayonne, NJ
* Of course, off-duty cops should call 911 if a crime is in progress. But to act immediately, even before the call, in a dire, life-threatening emergency is common sense.
When did the NYPD and the union get so lame regarding crime fighting in the city?
Is Commissioner Ray Kelly for real? Maybe Mayor Bloomberg should be the next police commissioner when he leaves City Hall. Roger Ho
Staten Island
* The point of a newspaper is to cover things happening in the world, not to celebrate what that the paper is doing.
We don’t care that “‘Drunk’ shoot cop a real hero, says Post” (“Pin a Medal on Him, Mike,” July 16).
Save that for your editorials, and keep the front page for news. Steven Goldberg
Manhattan
* Kelly continues to establish rules and penalties that will only cause his officers to look the other way and once again turn New York into a crime-ridden city.
Kelly is nothing more then a political hack, trying to hold on to his job by showing more concern for criminals than the well-being of his policemen. Nicholas Maffei Jr.
Fishkill
* This cop is no hero. He violated policy put in place to respond in a small way to a history of police misconduct.
If I get into a car and drive with .09 BAL, I’m going to jail.
Is the .08 limit too low? Probably, but blame MADD.
If you want a hero, go to a deli. John Bradley
Bloomfield, NJ
* The BAL test is a dishonest measurement of someone’s being impaired to the point that he is a danger to himself or anyone else.
Some bureaucrat arbitrarily pulled a number out of thin air and declared that a .08 BAL proves you are drunk, but it doesn’t.
It is an abuse of the power of the government to create an artificial standard for the purpose of declaring an accused individual guilty based on a bait-and-switch meter reading. Patrick Grant
Brooklyn