As Marin’s unofficial truth broker, I must once again point out that the idea to “defund the police” is without rival the worst idea of the century for the safety and well being of the community. Closely behind, is the companion modern conceit that the bail system needs to be abandoned.
Look, I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea, the advent of Black Lives Matter on the American scene is not a bad thing. At its core its advocates scream “we’re scared of the police.” Serious attention to that fear is very much needed. I”m not afraid of that discussion and I’m willing to listen to ways we can return police officers to a position of respect for all Americans.
But unfortunately one very bad idea percolated to the top of the BLM agenda and that was to “defund” the police. Too many bendable politicians (some in Marin, sadly) jumped on that bandwagon. It’s been an undisputed disaster from Oakland to Portland, Minneapolis to Chicago.
Crime spiked big. Murder rates went through the roof. And who’d it hurt the most? Poor, Black urban dwellers that the BLM was supposed to help. Here’s the latest news out of Oakland as that cop hating city tries to back away from its “defund the police” policies.
“Oakland officials said Monday that they want to grow the city’s police force in an effort to confront a rising tide of violent crime that has gripped the city this year.
“Mayor Libby Schaaf said her office was developing a proposal for the City Council to consider that includes boosting the number of active police officers and maintaining a larger overall police force.
“Schaaf’s office also plans to recommend reversing budget cuts scheduled for next summer slated to freeze 50 police department positions. The hiring plan, which Schaaf said will be completed by Friday, will call for the creation of a new police academy class and will include a budget amendment to fund it.”
As for bail reform, one need only look at the case of Darrell Brooks. After punching the mother of his child and then running her over with his car at a Milwaukee gas station, he was allowed out on bail of only $1,000. He should have been culled from the herd.
Instead, he later intentionally drove that same car into a Holiday parade in Waukesha and killed eight people. His bail now is $5 million.
The truth is, some people need to be put in jail after committing an alleged crime. We don’t need a one-size-fits all, woke standard for that. We need a judge interested in protecting the public to look into the eyes of the alleged criminal and making that determination. It’s not a race thing, it’s a public safety thing.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“There’s more panic than information around this variant. Doubling down on what we’re doing is the most important message. We can avoid shutting down our schools or businesses. None of us want to see that happen. I don’t want to see that happen. And I see no indication at this moment whatsoever that that’s in our immediate future.” — Gov. Gavin Newsom
OMG HEADLINE OF THE WEEK
Here’s the OMG headline of the week courtesy of the San Jose Mercury News: “Snowpack in California’s Sierra Nevada could disappear in just 25 years.” There’s one new study — one — that leads some scientists to think that could happen in a worst case scenario. So the headline is legit as journalism goes these days.
One question: If the timeline is 25 years for zero snow, shouldn’t we already see Tahoe ski resorts go bankrupt?
ONE MORE THING
Here’s your guide to package delivery this holiday season:
— UPS: “Your package is in X city, on a truck driven by Bob and will be at your door at 2:37 p.m.
— FEDEX: “Your package is coming, you’ll get it when we give it to you.”
— USPS: “You ordered something?”
— AMAZON:” We’re in your house.”
Thanks for reading. Please, be kind to those you meet, laugh a little and always question authority.
(Sherman Frederick is an award-winning journalist and publisher of Marin’s community newspapers — the Novato Advance, San Rafael News-Pointer, Mill Valley Herald, Ross Valley Reporter, Twin City Times and the Sausalito Marin Scope. He is co-founder of Battle Born Media, a news organization dedicated to the preservation of community newspapers. You can reach him by email at shermfrederick@gmail.com.)
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