Another day, another situation that once again puts our police officers in peril. This week it was in Maryland, where a 24-year old man named David Linthicum allegedly shot two police officers, leaving one on life support as a result. A manhunt soon followed, with the suspect recently being taken into custody. And the thing is, the officers were just doing their job when they were shot. Someone had called them to report a potential suspect, and, when confronted, Linthicum shot them and went on the run. He was apprehended soon thereafter, where he surrendered peacefully.
But, honestly, this is a story I’m still hearing way too often – and it’s absolutely heartbreaking. We hear about police officers that are put into life-or-death scenarios because they didn’t have the proper equipment to keep them alive. And what’s to blame for it? You guessed it, “defund the police.”
I’ve discussed it in the past, but you may not understand what lingering effects have come from “defund the police” since it began in 2020. With the death of George Floyd, Black Lives Matter and ANTIFA have called for officers to be punished, despite the fact that a majority of them serve a greater purpose in keeping people safe.
But these riots managed to convince key politicians out there to slash budgets, in the hopes of bringing balance back and keeping everyone happy. Only…it didn’t.
Fast forward nearly three years after Floyd’s death, and it’s chaos. Thousands of officers have left their post during this time frame. Some left willingly, unable to cope with the mental strain coming from the lack of support by citizens and their local government alike. Others were fired unfairly, like the 2,000 officers and public workers cast out by New York City after they refused to take a COVID vaccine that they knew very little about.
It’s also gotten worse for some. Some lost their lives, including a few in Chicago that felt suicide was the only answer. Think about it. The “defund the police” budgets were slashed so badly that they couldn’t receive mental support for what their job was doing to them. It’s an outright shame, because, with the right amount of funding, those officers might still be alive.
But there’s more. As a result of this budget slashing, we’re putting police on the streets when they aren’t clearly prepared for duty. Just look at what happened in Memphis, when five completely unprofessional officers took the life of young Tyre Nichols. It just doesn’t make sense at all.
What’s more, even with rising crime rates and the disarray from what’s happening with the police, there are still out there who believe that defunding the police was the right move. Seriously? Leaving them ill-equipped to handle life-threatening situations? Not giving them the support they require in order to keep doing their job efficiently? How in the world do you consider this the right move?
Now it’s come down to more officers coming under attack, like the two shot in Maryland, with one still on life support. I’m right there with his family and friends, keeping prayers for him to pull through so he can return to them in one piece.
But enough is enough. Congress has a “fund the police” bill, which President Biden continues to trumpet but does very little on. It’s time to finally pass it. It’s time to give our officers the support they deserve, especially in these dire times. It’s time to fund the kind of training that will prepare new ones for the road ahead. It’s time to provide gear and mental health for those that truly need it, before it’s too late. And it’s time to shut up the critics who believe that “defund the police” was the right move. Again, it wasn’t.
We need to do this. For the officers we’ve lost. For the officers we can’t get back. For the ones still holding on to the idea that their job matters.
Because, damn it, it does.
Michael Letts is the Founder, President, and CEO of InVest USA, a national grassroots non-profit organization that is helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs. He also has over 30 years of law enforcement experience under his belt, hence his pro-police stance for his brothers and sisters in blue. Those interested in learning more about Letts can visit his official website here.
Like here in Britain your police officers will leave their jobs as they get more experienced. They will be replaced by young compliant officers just like the gestapo and SS.
Cops want to stop the killing then go arrest Farrakhan for terrorist threats
The sane politicians and media should focus massively on the crime rates and the crime victims. Instead of focusing on the heroes who protect people from those savages.
The usual Question Authority types of Nit-Wits should themselves be questioned and make sure they give the right answers to
Fair is fair. Regardless. Rules,whether rules of war, of the road,institutional policy, societal,or laws,are made to be obeyed,for good reason. Wholesale disregard of rules can lead to chaos. Those Institutions and personnel that possess the privilege or capability of lethal force are especially bound to respect and follow their rules of force,no less than the Army are expected to respect their rules of engagement.
There may be times when rules are made to be broken,and these times are most always justifiable by the end,not the means.There are examples on the battlefield when an unorthodox,out-of-the-box,strategy, where taking advantage of “Rules are made to be broken” ,confer unexpected victory. Maybe useful in the field,less so on the street.
Generally,those who serve,in Uniform,where it is often “them and us”, depend on one another to watch each others backs,,more so than in other fields.That said,on the street,we have seen recently that having ones back can result in your”Brother or Sister” in Blue facing discipline,including discharge,or criminal charges resulting in serving long time in prisons.,So,watching your partners back takes on a different meaning in the post George Floyd, BLM, iPhone era. Just sayin’.
The idea of Congress passing a law to support or fund the local police is a terrible idea which could lead to federal police force. Very bad idea.
Don,t forget about the notorious Ice-T and his contovercial rap song Cop Killer
So, some zhithole city and it’s minions decide to defund their police and the inevitable chaos ensues. And the solution is to throw more federal money at the zhithole city skimmed from other states citizens who had no part in the insanity of the zhithole city. That such asininity is published here as reasoned discourse is yet more evidence that this country is in its death throes and the march to our ultimate destruction cannot be stopped.
Yes- the police are pretty much despised by everyone now. After the George Floyd case and the summer of BLM and Antifa, many of us that are conservative started the back the blue and tried to show our support for law enforcement.
Then when conservatives tried a peaceful protest to the 2020 steal or complained at school board meetings, the police showed up to blindly carry out their orders from the same Democrats campaigning to defund them.
The FBI was once thought of (at least by me) as the best professional law enforcement on the planet and would apply the law regardless of political party. Now they are a band of rouge goons just as bad as any national police force in history carrying the will of “The Party”. The FBI goons kneeled in front of the BLM crowd, yet to this day are still rounding up patriots to take to the gulag that protested the 2020 steal.
Always notice that all those who want to Defund the Police have their own Trained Bodyguards and Dogs to protect them and their homes have Walls and Gates and fancy alarm systems as well