I disagree that having a few APCs that almost always are in storage or used in training has anything to do with how a street patrolman views his job. It makes zero sense to me. The officers are out on bikes, motorcycles, cruisers, horses, or on foot, they are not riding around in some APC. It's irrelevant to them and only used by very specialized elements in extreme situations.
And the average patrolman is not remotely equipped like my son was when in combat. There is almost no comparison.
You could take out every APC and it would have zero effect on the rank and file.