Wouldn’t it be ironic if by staging a “work slowdown” the NYPD actually put things back to the way they were before we over-militarized our police departments? Could this possibly be a good thing? So far, the worst effect of the slowdown seems to be the loss of millions of dollars in traffic ticket fines, a major source of money for New York City. So far, the 55% drop in arrests has not led to any dramatic increase in crime.
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For an alternate view:
http://www.separatinghyperplanes.com/2014/12/why-im-worried-about-new-york-city.html
Between this passive-aggressive insubordination by the NYC police department (thanks alot, de Blasio, with your mixed marriage and racial sensitivity!) and the creeping relaxation of marijuana laws nationwide, it won’t be long before the for-profit prison industry sends an army of lobbyists to the new and improved Congress to demand a reversal of this brazen attack on the decriminalization of the average American and the risk of being toppled from our vaunted position as the world’s premier jailer.
What’s this country coming to when you can’t choke out a scofflaw for selling loosies or stop and frisk some hoodie who just might be hiding a joint in his sock? For shame!
What I find amusing or befuddling about the NYC situation and other similar situations is that at the end of the day, the mayor runs the police department. The police commissioners or chiefs of police work for the mayor. So I’m not quite sure why the NYC mayor is calling out his own staff, when he could just call the commissioner into his office, tell him what he wants changed and carry on. Police like Soldiers follow the orders of those appointed over them. In case the mayor didn’t realize it he is the “civilian boss” of the police just like the President is the “civilian” Commander in Chief of the military.
So if he’s not happy with his force, it’s his fault anyway.
From what I have read, the mayor is well aware that he is the boss. Not sure if that means he can change things. Unlike the military, there are unions, and contracts, and power struggles.
I may be mistaken, but I don’t think that the de Blasio called out his own staff. As I understand it, the NYPD is pissed at de Blasio for three things: 1) he had a talk with his biracial son about how he needs to be careful when talking with police because some will treat him differently because of his race, 2) he respected protesters’ Constitutional rights in the wake of the grand jury messes, allowing them to continue to speak out, and 3) he didn’t immediately blame protesters for the shooting deaths of two officers.
To add to that, I had seen an article (too tired to look for it right now) that suggested a lot of the criticism coming from various NYPD union representatives is actually political posturing to secure a better negotiating position regarding their contracts. That is, a lot of what’s coming from groups like the Sergeants Benevolent Association is intentionally inflammatory hyperbole to extract concessions from the mayor’s office for their union contracts.
I think one of the major reasons that unions from nearly all sectors of the economy have contracted and damaged their public image over the years, police included, is the corruption, greed and political tone deafness of their leadership, who have often reached too far and become too intransigent and militant, to the detriment of their constituency, making them easier targets for union busters, abusive management and right wing politicians who, ironically, have succeeded in painting them as the intolerant ones and enemies of freedom and democracy.
I grew up near Bethlehem, PA, and saw this first hand with the unions there in the ’60s and ’70s. They gradually negotiated themselves out of their jobs and contributed to the decline of the steel industry in this country.
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