Tom: Mayor Bloomberg has confirmed, by his proposal, that the role of the police is not to protect the citizenry, but to enforce — against the public — the partisan political policies of those in power. Perhaps the mayor is recalling the year 1945, when then-mayor LaGuardia went on the radio to read the Sunday comics to children during a strike by newspaper deliverymen.
In response to gun-control advocates — who want to limit the killing of innocents to murders committed by American soldiers n foreign countries — gun sales have (according to one news report) gone up by 40%.
A nationwide strike by police officers would likely produce a sharp decline in violent crime. When the devastating earthquake hit San Francisco (back in the 1980s) the police reported that crime dropped significantly. And why not? When people become aware that the only real protection they have against violence — whether the police are available or not — is their own effort to defend themselves, criminal activity diminishes. If anyone doubts this, try stopping at an isolated farmhouse some night and see how cautiously you are greeted.
