Growing up, my best friend's dad was a county sheriff, and so was his uncle. They hung out with a number of fellow police officers, and i'd meet them at parties and whatnot. Listening to these people get louder and louder (in "cop voices") telling "fishing" stories about the biggest bust or the stupidest "perp" kind of turned me off to ever trusting these guys as a whole again. I don't hate them as a group, but i wouldn't trust they were looking out for my own personal best interests.
Good cop story: Once i had a catastrophic blowout in the left lane of a 2 lane road, and couldn't get over in rush hour traffic to get on the shoulder. Ended up stopping on the paved median, which meant i had about 1 foot between the flat and the white line. Was having severe reservations about changing the tire with the heavy traffic, and the car had shredded the tire down to the rim. A cruiser pulls up behind me, flips the lights on, and blocks my car from oncoming traffic. Comes over, asks if i have a spare and a jack, and says he'll keep me from being hit. Start changing the tire, and all of a sudden there is light coming over my shoulder. He's holding a flashlight
So i apologized for not having a belt on, and we chit chatted while i was changing the tire as fast as possible. Thanked him for the help, and he said he'd rather be doing this sort of thing than writing tickets.
Bad cop story: Out of state, i had a major blowout doing 75 in a 75 due to road debris. Managed to get over well onto the shoulder, and broke out the jack and spare. Police officer shows up, asks me why i'm on the side of the road, then asks me for license and proof of insurance. I found it odd, but heh, thats what police ask you. Walked over to the passenger door, grabbed the paperwork from the glovebox and my wallet, and gave it to him. Then he goes into the "do you have any weapons or drugs in the vehicle" line. "Just the tire iron." Asked if i minded if he searched the vehicle. I declined, then asked him where the nearest place i could get a new tire from. I had to pull my luggage out of the back of my s-blazer to get to the jack, and he goes and sticks his head into the back of the truck, and mentioned something about some crime or other with a vehicle and driver matching my descriptions. I just kept changing the tire, and he tried to bait me the full time to let him search the car. Told me the K9 unit was on the way, but once i got the tire on, the jack secured, and the flat on the outside tire mount, i asked him if i could go now. He made me flip on my lights and checked that everything was working, then asked if i had my seatbelt on when the tire blew out. It took me less than 15 minutes to change the tire, and the officer showed up halfway through. Then i was detained for almost 40 minutes "waiting for the k9 to show up." Nothing to hide, but i felt like i was both a victim and a suspected criminal.
"Whatever" police story: Probably 1 in 10 times i drive through wisconsin with my FIB plates, i get a "warning" for speeding. Sometimes, i'm going less than the speed limit. Other times i'm keeping up with traffic and am not the fastest person on the road. The warning doesn't cost me a penny, and they are quick handing over the clipboard for me to sign. And they never ask any questions other than for license and proof of insurance. I'm sure they'd give me a ticket for something or other ("You were driving fast. Real fast." Thought the speed limit was 45, so i told him maybe 2 over (relatively speaking). That was admission of guilt, although the speed limit turned out to be 55.)
And there have been a number of times in both iowa and georgia were i have pulled over at a rest stop to deposit some water into the toilet, only to be greeted by a couple of cruisers and a dog or two. Those are the ones that really scare me, because all i did was pull over to pee and stretch my legs. Those are the "do you mind if we search your car" and "where are you hiding the drugs" stops. I always figured they were looking for something specific (and in iowa, they tend to camp before a safety/drug check on the interstate), and that person isn't me.
Now, the number one group of things i ever did to avoid getting crap from officers (concerning suspicion of drug transportation) was to cut my hair, drive more adult cars (goodbye camaro), stop wearing jeans workboots and tshirts, and start putting my musical instruments in the trunk. I had a lot of interactions with officers between 16 and 22, and they all stopped during the 6 months that the above conditions changed. I have zero moving violations in 20 years of driving, and never once have talked my way out of one. I had a few equipment violations (although those dried up around 22), but i used to get pulled over a lot. I've heard all the cop-outs as to why i've been pulled over (and my favorite is "there was a robbery and the suspect matched your description and was driving a vehicle similar to yours." I read the police blotter in the paper and never see a reported robbery in that time frame or location.)
If i didn't do anything, i do not wish to be treated like a suspect, with the dehumanizing "perp" label. I had to jump through hoops (well, fill out an application and send in a few dollars) to get my FOID, and now i have to jump through hoops to get some sudafed while becoming a suspected meth cook based on the forms i have to fill out. Stuff like that almost makes you want to become a libertarian. I do not consent to searchs, and i do not factor in the potential that i might get off easy for conceding willingly to a search. Even if i was buck naked driving an air mobile (made out of air) around a national park, i wouldn't submit to a search. Then again, if that were happening, they'd probably thing i was on something and have PC to do it with or without my permission. Happiness is never having an officer enter your life. And that includes calling 911 to report vandalism, a robbery, a fight, or a domestic dispute.