“Defund the police” is a movement that has reared its ugly head and as a concept needs to be debunked and dismissed. I can totally understand, at first blush, why “Defund the police” garners some varying level of sympathy among many Americans. Long volumes could be written of true and appalling examples of police misdeeds that are titled “Misuse of power”, “Corruption”, “Racial discrimination”, “Sexual harassment” and more.
Having said that…
The policing function enforces the laws enacted by local, state and federal government (by proxy for the people). As such, the policing function is a necessary role that needs to filled. Without enforcement there is no rule of law, the system collapses and anarchy results. Without the rule of law, laws are meaningless and so are the roles of lawmakers.
BUT POLICE DO BAD THINGS
The short answer is, yes, that is true. You can always point to examples of bad behavior of individuals in any group. It has become a goto move of radicals for change to highlight horrific examples as need for immediate change. Horrific examples are used to elicit an emotional response and derail logical discussion. But we need to differentiate between the policing function and the police as a group of individuals. As a group of individuals, they represent the full spectrum of humanity just like the population as a whole including: the great, the good, the bad and the ugly.
I think it is important to recognize at this point that police are just like all service related occupations including military, firefighters, paramedics, nurses/doctors, teachers and more. They interact with the populace at large, which by itself can be a dangerous and unpredictable endeavor. They are groups that are largely ignored until needed, usually under appreciated/respected and under payed. For many it is a calling and for that I would personally like to say thank you.
However, the policing function gives an added level of power over others that can be easily and quickly misused/abused.
Reform of police policies and oversight.
- While “Defund the police” needs to go away, “Reform the police” should be a continuous improvement type thought process in all levels of government.
- Should police be held to a higher standard? As a deterrent to police abuse of power, should some laws have tougher penalties for police than citizens?
- Should Internal Police (IA) actually be External Police (EA)? Should there be both IA and EA roles? Are those roles given the proper enforcement power and the ability to operate effectively?
- Is there enough meaningful oversight? Is there a need for an IG role in police oversight?
Other attacks on the rule of law
- People entrusted in enforcing the rule of law have started to increasingly ignore enforcement of laws they disagree with. It is a reprehensible maneuver to ignore the will of lawmakers (if not the will of the people). Presidents (and their administrations) are increasingly doing it. It is also a failure of Congressional oversight to let Presidents ignore laws and enact their own through executive orders. George Soros, a key agent of chaos in American politics today, is actively enlisting and lavishly funding politically appointed district attorneys willing to ignore laws they disagree with. There are examples of district attorneys not prosecuting murder charges. They won’t say they do this. They just don’t show up for the trial hearing and the judge dismisses the case.
- Decriminalizing what has historically been criminal behavior. It is not stealing if the person needs it to eat. It is not home invasion if someone needs a place to sleep. It is not shoplifting if its less than $950 dollars. It is not stealing and you can’t get evicted if you live in a home you don’t own and refuse to pay rent. Where does it end?
- Free bail policies. District attorneys, along with not prosecuting many crimes, are not requiring bail for most other crimes they are willing to prosecute. It is becoming glaringly apparent that bail is not only needed against potential flight risk, it is needed to halt further crimes by some.
- Maybe not related to this discussion but it is becoming increasingly apparent that we live in a tiered system of justice. One for the political/elite class and one for everyone else. For those that hope and believe that justice is blind in America, that is a hard pill to swallow.
Random Thoughts 