Why did anyone think "defunding" the police was a good idea?

Well, I know the Guardian is just one of those alt right wing MAGA rags, but still …

“More than 20 major cities have reduced their police budgets in some form, an unprecedented trend, though the scale and circumstances vary dramatically. The activists who have long campaigned to take money from US police are now fighting to ensure that the initial cuts are only the start – and that a growing backlash from law enforcement, elected officials and some community groups does not derail their progress.

A ‘paradigm shift’: $870m cut from police

For years, local advocacy groups have packed city hall meetings, demanding “jobs not jails”, “care not cops” and “books not bars” – urging officials to stop expanding budgets for police and jails.”
THE GUARDIAN, Overpoliced, underprotected, These US cities defunded police: 'We're transferring money to the community', More than 20 major cities have reduced police budgets in some form, and activists are fighting to ensure that is only the start, By Sam Levin, Thu 11 Mar 2021.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/07/us-cities-defund-police-transferring-money-community

 

Every general tax is redistribution. Does this mean you're opposed to all general taxes?

 

Wouldn't it be nice if the pols got together and took an honest look at what happened in Uvalde? How many cops held back because of concerns you expressed? How many held back with their personal safety the primary issue? How can we ever hope to protect students and staff if we don't know why things went wrong?

 

Too often police are diverted from law enforcement by having to impersonate social workers, mental health counsellors, conflict resolution arbiters, etc., etc., etc

Assign funding to services where it is needed, and stop funding police to fulfill rolls for which they are unqualified.

Police officers I know agree wholeheartedly.

 

No one is in favor of defunding police services. This is media hype—from Fox to MSNBC—to get people riled up, divided, and staying tuned in.



The truth is that we had a public debate and people across the board concluded we need to maintain or step up police enforcement.

 

they did not defund the police

 

Republicans have spent the past two years accusing Democrats of trying to defund police departments. But the facts show that the police have not been defunded. In fact, not only have Democrats put more money into policing since fiscal year 2019, but they also spend more on policing than Republican-run cities. Here are the facts that disprove this myth:

1. Democrat-run cities spend more money on policing than Republican-run cities, with the 25 largest Democrat-run cities spending 38 percent more on policing per capita than the 25 largest Republican-run cities.
2. Of the 25 largest cities, 20 saw increases in their police budgets from FY 2019 to FY 2022. Twenty-one of these cities are run by Democrats.
3. The 25 largest cities saw their police budgets grow by a total of 5 percent from FY 2019 to FY 2022.
4. Democrat-run cities have more police per capita than Republican-run cities. The 25 largest Democrat-run cities employ 75 percent more police officers per capita than the 25 largest Republican-run cities.
5. At the federal level, President Joe Biden and Democrats sponsored and secured passage of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which provides federal resources to support police departments. Republicans voted against President Biden’s ARPA, which included $350 million in federal funding to hire more police.
6. Cities across the country, both big and small, are using funds provided by President Biden and Democrats under the American Rescue Plan to support law enforcement.

https://www.americanprogressaction.org/article/defund-police-myth/

 

Indeed. It fails because it doesn't let the marketplace determine the allocation of capital.

There are plenty of liberal types who really believe socialism—collective ownership of the means of production—can be an improvement over capitalism. I spent decades as a teacher hearing about the evils of the capitalist system from colleagues who didn't understand basic economics.

 

In my view it fails because it goes against human nature. People like to get ahead and be rewarded for their efforts at whatever they undertake. Basically they aren't interested in sharing beyond family. I remember when I read Marx that this sentiment jumped out at me. And despite that capitalists donate to charities out of choice.

Yes everybody thinks they can do something more successfully than their predecessors. Sometimes they can but they have to have an actual plan that is better than that of their predecessors. Basically socialism benefits the powerful. And, socialism cannot exist without an authoritarian government so the powerful get it all without any effort. Capitalism has its warts but it is far better than whatever is in second place.

 

A billion dollars reduction in the police budget sounds like defunding to me.

 

there was not a billion dollars defunded from the police

 

Trump lost because he's a jackass.

Of course. Why are you falling for Trump's con?

 

It violates the laws of demand and supply.

The law of supply.

It depends upon what you mean by "sharing."

We have a social safety net that keeps a lot of people from going hungry. We spend more than $100K per child on K-12 education. We take care of indigents who need skilled nursing care.

That's sharing "beyond family."

Still, generous or not, most people want to look after themselves and their families first.

Socialism doesn't really benefit anyone.

Farm cooperatives are voluntary.

Socialism at the national level where all business of significance size are collectivized requires a powerful government to force compliance.

 

LOL! Trump lost because the EC voted for Biden and the Senate chose to validate a rather obviously rigged election.
IOW, Biden is the legally elected POTUS, and IMO, a pretty good one so far.

If crooked elections alone could destroy the USA the country would have been gone long ago.

 

Nearly a billion dollars was cut from the NYPD over a year ago.

“(The New York City Council recently approved a nearly $1 billion cut to the police department’s operating budget.[8])”
AMERICAN ACTION FORUM, Research, Assessing Calls to Defund the Police: Police Budgets and Employment Levels, By Tara O'Neill Hayes, September 29, 2020.
https://www.americanactionforum.org...-police-police-budgets-and-employment-levels/

 

Fairly elected, lousy President.

Trump tried to steal the 2020 election. He took classified documents. He should be fitted for an orange jump suit. Hillary had an illegal server. Jump suit. These two are unfit for public office.

Time to move on.

 

That is all just another silly late election cycle smear that will serve only to expand Trump's base of support.
The DP/RP establishment could do better with new advisors.

 

that is spin, they did not defund the police

 

Even Old Joe can probably beat Trump.



People don't like the guy. Republicans need to find someone with a positive message.

 

LOL.

 

So, The Guardian just an RP/MAGA spin rag?

“More than 20 major cities have reduced their police budgets in some form, an unprecedented trend, though the scale and circumstances vary dramatically. The activists who have long campaigned to take money from US police are now fighting to ensure that the initial cuts are only the start – and that a growing backlash from law enforcement, elected officials and some community groups does not derail their progress.

A ‘paradigm shift’: $870m cut from police

For years, local advocacy groups have packed city hall meetings, demanding “jobs not jails”, “care not cops” and “books not bars” – urging officials to stop expanding budgets for police and jails.”
THE GUARDIAN, Overpoliced, underprotected, These US cities defunded police: 'We're transferring money to the community',More than 20 major cities have reduced police budgets in some form, and activists are fighting to ensure that is only the start, By Sam Levin, Thu 11 Mar 2021.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/07/us-cities-defund-police-transferring-money-community

 

Trump is very popular. Republican politicians, like Democrat politicians are very unpopular. Surely you know that.

"From 1973 to 1993, only Congress fell further in esteem than the press."
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW, Why the News Is Not the Truth, By Peter Vanderwicken, From the Magazine (May–June 1995).
https://hbr.org/1995/05/why-the-news-is-not-the-truth

 

right wing spin, nothing more

 

So, when did the UK Guardian become a right wing MAGA rag?

“They have argued that cities should instead prioritize the programs that have been defunded over the years that would address root causes of crime and poverty, like education, healthcare and homeless services.

Local lawmakers largely ignored activists’ pleas, and police spending has tripled over the last 40 years, helping to make the US a world leader in incarceration and police killings. Even as cities have faced financial shortfalls, local governments consistently spent an increasing share of their general funds on police (despite repeated research showing that increasing police funding does not correlate to reduced crime).

The dynamics suddenly changed last summer during massive Black Lives Matter demonstrations after video emerged of a Minneapolis officer pressing his knee on George Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes.”
THE GUARDIAN, Overpoliced, underprotected, These US cities defunded police: 'We're transferring money to the community',More than 20 major cities have reduced police budgets in some form, and activists are fighting to ensure that is only the start, By Sam Levin, Thu 11 Mar 2021.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/07/us-cities-defund-police-transferring-money-community

 

the right wing spin is that if budget had less spending during Covid, it was defunding the police