Last night New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg made an extraordinarily dangerous and radical pronouncement....Out here, I'd expect the public to respond to a 'police strike' by saying, "Look, if you don't want the job, don't let the door hit you on your way out." I don't see a deputy out here more than once a year or so anyway; I wouldn't even notice if they went away. Maybe even save some money come tax time.Well, I would take it one step further. I don't understand why the police officers across this country don't stand up collectively and say, we're going to go on strike. We're not going to protect you. Unless you, the public, through your legislature, do what's required to keep us safe.
After all, police officers want to go home to their families. And we're doing everything we can to make their job more difficult but, more importantly, more dangerous, by leaving guns in the hands of people who shouldn't have them, and letting people who have those guns buy things like armor-piercing bullets.
The mayor apparently realized that he was advocating an illegal action, and is trying to walk it back today. I wonder, though, if it wouldn't be a real awakening for the public sector union to take a walk? People might just find that they don't need as much help from the government as they think they do. Even in New York City, I'll bet there are many neighborhoods that could pull together and suppress any criminals who thought it was a good time to take advantage. They certainly might find that they'd like to be able to apply at-will employment principles to these jobs, rather than being subject to unionized blackmail.
In Chicago, crime rates might even go down. Whatever the police unions are doing out there obviously isn't working. Maybe it's time for a change of pace.
Everyone I have seen opine on the Mayor's statement pretty much think he's a douche-canoe. And I have in laws in NYC.
ReplyDeleteMy sister was there for a while; I went to visit her a few years ago. She's in Idaho or Wyoming now, which is a place I'd much prefer to visit... need to work on that.
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard that phrase before, but it seems to apply. Even if it weren't actually a crime, can you imagine how much harm it would do to a public sector union like the police -- post Scott Walker -- to go on strike? It wouldn't take long before, even in New York, they'd be talking about stripping public employees of collective bargaining rights.
IMO, the Mayor's statement is but a pale reflection of the septic effluent that is the Mayor.
ReplyDeleteThat's about the nicest thing I can manage to say about Napoleon Bloomberg.
"I'll bet there are many neighborhoods that could pull together and suppress any criminals who thought it was a good time to take advantage."
ReplyDeleteI'd bet money on the idea that there would actually be LESS criminals in some neighborhoods when the cops came back. Of course, the CORONER might have more business.
I read an OpEd by David Frum yesterday claiming that the reason the right-thinking people can't get any traction on gun control is that people don't feel safe enough. In his view, they should feel perfectly safe. As he put it, the police can, and do, and will protect you. So quit buying those dangerous guns, because you're probably just going to kill yourself with them.
ReplyDeleteFor some reason his message isn't resonating! Who in the world believes the police can protect them? I rely on the police to intervene after the fact, at best. There's scarcely any police presence where I live; the deterrent is all in the homeowners, who are just about universally armed.
"I read an OpEd by David Frum yesterday"...
ReplyDeleteFrum and George Costanza among others.
I'd sooner take personal safety/security advice from Doctor Ruth.
"For some reason his message isn't resonating! Who in the world believes the police can protect them? "
The police do not believe nor will they make such implausible reassurances. Most will tell you that their guarantee covers only documenting after action reports and pursuing subsequent investigations, or not, depending on staffing versus open case levels and priority assignments by the brass. Yup, ask the average LEO in a one on one setting. And most PAO's on camera do not count.
That holds true with all of the LEO's I know, most of whom work in a large, target rich, metro county.
I rate the firearms blather from Frum and Costanza:
Five Fresh Cow Pies.
For some reason his message isn't resonating! Who in the world believes the police can protect them?
ReplyDeleteI know some people who believe it, because the fear engendered by questioning that belief is more than they can bear. But I don't know anyone who believes it for good cause; as you say, even the police know and will tell you that it cannot be done. They might protect you, by happy accident; but no wise man, nor wise woman, can expect it.
Hizzoner seems to be calling for an insurrection:
ReplyDeletehttp://plbirnamwood.blogspot.com/2012/07/bloomberg-to-city-drop-dead.html
The best response I have seen was that Bloomberg should initiate the police strike by dismissing his personal security detail.
ReplyDeleteJose