Should we “defund the police”?
Imagine you’re a cop. You’re a good cop. You’re an asset to the community you serve. You know people and they know you. You walk your beat every day and sometimes on special occasions at night.
One day you’re walking your beat when you get a call from headquarters to come back to the station. When you arrive, you’re told that there’s been a serious incident in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Some cop kneeled on a suspect’s neck long enough to kill him. His fellow cops stood around and watched.
Your captain plays the YouTube video. It’s a horror scene as the black man under the knee says he can’t breathe. You’re outraged. What the hell was that cop thinking? Or was he thinking? Is he some kind of sadist? Truly disgusting and disturbing.
The news hits the street. When you’re back on your beat, people you chatted with just hours ago, suddenly look at you for answers. You have none, other than the behavior of that cop does not represent or reflect on the majority of police everywhere. You’re all sickened and saddened by what you heard and saw.
Meanwhile, the media is suddenly energized. Here’s an incident they can milk for all it’s worth. Soon, talking heads pontificate on police brutality as if it’s a universal thing. Protests are organized in major cities across the U.S.A.
At first, protests are peaceful. But something happens as darkness falls — windows get smashed. Bystanders who don’t cheer for the destruction are whacked across the face and beaten. Peaceful protesters cry out to stop. But there’s a hardened and organized cadre of “activists” who want to destroy and burn. And burn, they do!
Local shops and stores are looted and trashed. Soon they’re consumed by flames. Police across America are overwhelmed by the sudden mayhem. Molotov cocktails — sometimes simply beer bottles or cans filled with gasoline — are thrown into the open windows of cop cars.
So far, your hometown has not been trashed. You’re back on the beat. There have been protests, but they’ve remained peaceful so far. Nevertheless, everyone is on high alert. You notice a difference as you walk the neighborhood. People with whom you had friendly conversations just days ago, now turn away when they see you. Some stare at you with hate in their eyes. The Media has done its job in labeling all police as potential sadists.
This is played out in every city and town in America. Police are suddenly the enemy because of one unbelievably bad cop, and fellow officers looking on. You, as a cop, are just as horrified by what you saw. Yet, you’re not the bad cop. You are one of a vast majority of good cops who keep cities safe and protect rights, not violate them.
“Liberal” mayors in some cities order their police force to “stand down” in the face of the looting. No reason is given, other than to not antagonize the community. So, the community burns. Stores that serve the poor are trashed. Then, stores of the well to do are broken into and looted. It’s a happy time for looters who carry TVs, Nike Sneakers, and every conceivable object that was once for sale. No more! Many of these stores will never open again.
City counselors in “liberal” cities call for “defunding the police.” The media takes up the call. Leftist pundits and professors chime in with grand plans to spend the defunded police money on pet projects to “serve their community.”
Think for a moment what this means…
Government’s three main functions are police, to protect us from criminals; the courts, to settle disputes and serve justice; and the military, to protect us from invasion. If the police are “defunded” then one of government’s three main functions to protect individual rights, is compromised, weakened, and eventually emasculated. Then the courts will be targeted. And, of course, the military (which is already a target).
Now, let’s go back to you, the good cop. How long will you stay in this line of work if your every move is suspect in the eyes the citizens you serve. If you’re hated for being a cop, what are the chances you’ll remain in your job? Or remain a good cop?
What will we allow to happen from this moment on? Who knows…?
