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Public safety is the biggest budget item for most gov since its a 24hr operation.

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This is going to be a pivital year for government lay offs. Most have already raised taxes and cut pretty deep. The only thing left is jobs. Public safety is the biggest budget item for most gov since its a 24hr operation.



Its a shame that publc safety is always the first to go. Why not close the library and senior centers first? Why, because those people vote regularly. The govs that are still loosing money are going to lay off. Many govs gave huge tax cuts to the auto industry and other businesses. That was great for jobs and residual tax bases but a 5 million tax cut, still means 5 million less for the gov to use.



Be preparied for it. Invest in a security system, lighting around and in your home, better locks, big/loud dogs (my personal favorite.Never heard of a house getting broken into that had a german sheppard), gun safes, and other basic safety issues. Make it so the bad guys go else where. That means taking down the "My home is protected by Glock" sticker in your window. Just tells the bad guys thats theres guns in the home. They only have to wait for you to leave to come take them.

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This is going to be a pivital year for government lay offs. Most have already raised taxes and cut pretty deep. The only thing left is jobs. Public safety is the biggest budget item for most gov since its a 24hr operation.

Its a shame that publc safety is always the first to go. Why not close the library and senior centers first? Why, because those people vote regularly. The govs that are still loosing money are going to lay off. Many govs gave huge tax cuts to the auto industry and other businesses. That was great for jobs and residual tax bases but a 5 million tax cut, still means 5 million less for the gov to use.Be preparied for it. Invest in a security system, lighting around and in your home, better locks, big/loud dogs (my personal favorite.Never heard of a house getting broken into that had a german sheppard), gun safes, and other basic safety issues. Make it so the bad guys go else where. That means taking down the "My home is protected by Glock" sticker in your window. Just tells the bad guys thats theres guns in the home. They only have to wait for you to leave to come take them.

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I'm with kurtz. As uch as I hate to hear of fewer jobs in any sector, fewer cops means they'll be harassing me less, because let's be honest the chances of them being a pain in my ass are a lot higher than me actually needing them. By extension, that also means that hopefully they'll be forced to do more real police work, and less revenue collection. *cough*livonia*cough*

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There will always be people who feel as you do. I for one like knowing that when I call the PD to report someone broke into my car last night, someone will respond. If the department isnt cut to the bone then maybe the case will actually go to an investigator who knows all the local dirt bags, can get an informant to snitch, and find/prosecute the SOB who did it. Or to do a proper accident reconstruction when some drunk takes out a family a four so he/she doenst get off because they didnt have the manpower to do it right. 99% of crimes will no way involve you having to protect yourself. Its about protecting society as a whole and protecting those who cant protect themselves. If you truly feel that way then just live in Detroit/Pontiac/Flint. You wont have to worry about the cops coming around.

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The hours of operation are only a small part of the reason.  The real reason it is such a big budget item is due to total salaries (straight pay, overtime pay, benefits, retirement compensation, etc...).  I believe the department in my city is supporting 2 or 3 times as many retirees as they are active officers.  They even have some officers collecting a retirement while continuing to work at a department in another city or even another state - can you say "double dipping"?   Not to mention that you have "bad apples" like the ticket cop in Warren that do what they can to increase their salary just before they retire so their average retirement benefit is higher, thus draining more dollars of the budget from active employees - unfortunately, that practice is actually condoned by far too many in the public sector.

These are probably not the best times to be a public sector employee - active or retired...

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When you report that your car got broken into, do the police do anything besides take a meaningless report to pacify you? Do they dust your car for fingerprints? Any police officer will tell you there is nothing they can do. Really, there is nothing they can do.

There will be no investigation.

An informant? For your car being broken into? I'm sorry, but that's laughable.

99% of "crimes" are victimless crimes. These involve choices you make in your own life, that the government has decided it will choose for you. This includes guns, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, food, etc... They criminalize these things in order to facilitate the "need" for their existence.


Actually, you will find a large police presence in places like Pontiac and Detroit. Whether or not these officers are actually doing anything besides enjoying their priviledged status remains to be seen. I've seen Detroit police drive right through a full on brawl on Woodward in Highland Park; pipes, 2x4s and all. They didn't feel the need to stop and intervene... Probably too close to the end of their shift.

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My car was broken into last year. Yes the Macomb Co Sheriff did send an officer to dust for prints. Yes the case was assigned to an investigator who knew where to look. Caught the SOB and recovered some of my stuff. So, I do know first hand what its like to have a PD that does what I pay them to do and I will continue to pay them to do. Id rather that than pay for someone to have a pool to swim in. Im sorry you live in a city/county where you dont get what you pay for. Some of us do.

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Thats a shame. I understand why you feel like you do if thats the response you get. Downriver? Are there nice communities down there??

Not South Rockwood I hope. Aint that where several years ago the police chief got busted for picking up male hookers or something? I have family in those parts.

I live in a Macomb Co. Township that pays for a certin number of deputies to be on each shift and to patrol our township. We get what we pay for. However, I am waiting to hear that they want a  tax increase to pay for it. So far they havent.

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I live between Dundee and Ida.  We've had three or four breakins in the last year within one mile or so of my house, seems to be quick snatch and grabs - TVs and stuff. Last week some dude was caught prowling around somebody's barn in our area, claiming to be looking for gas because his car ran out of gas.  Apparently there was no car.

I predict you'll see more of this in Monroe County, as losers come up from Toledo and down from Metro Detroit to find pawnable, Craigslist friendly stuff to steal.

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I have followed your exact security plan   I haven't had any problems so far in spite of my house having been broken into in the past before I owned it.   My neighbors tell me that it got broken into a few times when there was corn planted around it and they couldn't see the house.   This was before I bought it.   I'm tight with my neighbors, have 2 GSDs in the yard, bought a Liberty safe and put up another yard light.   Last summer we had a rash of break ins that were done by a couple guys who were out on parole wearing the ankle cuff.   They were busted by a guy who had a game cam pointed at his house and the cops recognized him in the pics.
 

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I for one don't mind fewer officers on the streets.

Maybe that's why I've been seeing less frivolous law enforcement lately. Too many cops out there that exist solely to write seat belt tickets.

It means less highway robbery/tax collecting, and fewer government agents that make a living off oppressing our civil liberties.

I don't need them to protect me (or protect me from myself).

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I never thought the cops were just out there for seatbelt tickets. In fact my experiences with the local LEOs has been good. I'm no angel.

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Maybe I'm just unlucky, but I've never had a good experience.  

Lots of being pulled over for "looked like you weren't wearing your seatbelt", speeding when I wasn't, and even times when officers could barely articulate a reason. Parking tickets on residential streets with no "no parking" signage. Had to fight quite a few tickets in court over the years.

Threats and intimidation when I used to take guns in for registration. "Were going to make you get a license". "Is this legal"? Were going to have to hold onto it until we can get a detective to look at it". Even on my last yellow card registration, got a phone call from the department asking me questions about the gun, they wanted to know what it was and the magazine capacity (Brugger & Thomet TP-9).

A couple of months ago I was at school (WSU) standing with a group of people waiting to cross the street at a crosswalk. Cop car blows through the red light, goes up the curb onto the sidewalk, and misses running over a bunch of students and my foot by about 2 inches, and hauls ass down the street. I just stood there dumbfounded.

I could probably go on if I think about it... As you can see, I don't have a very good impression...

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So a guy puts in his 25, 30 or 35 years to get his pension and then he's not allowed to go out and work afterwards.  Even though his pension may only be 75% of what he was making when he retired?  So he starts at 20 years old, works for 30 years, retires at fifty then is expected to sit home for the next 30 or more years.  How about the guy that retired say 30 years ago and went out at 75% of his pay, which at the time was a grand total of $750 a month, how far do you think that pension check is going to last him now that gas is 3.25 a gal instead of .75 cents.

And another thing, all these city's are crying poor over having to " pay for pensions".  My city has not contributed a single cent to the pension fund in almost 15 years.  Yet the employees have been contributing 4% of their pay for that same amount of time.  Also, the plan is fully funded and self supporting.  When the last guy in the pension retires, since no new employees since 98 have been entered into it, they get to keep the 100+ million dollars.  You don't hear them telling you that in the papers, do you.

Also, we(union members) have been paying into health care, paying into the VEBA account to pay for retiree health care fund and disabled personnel fund for the last few years because the city decided 10 or 12 years ago they didn't need to anymore, then realized 2 years ago it was 75 million short. So now we pay into it $50(and that goes up every year) a pay and they still put in nothing.  Won't hear that in the paper.
All new employees(since 98)are in a 401K that the city puts 10% into, and employees put in 4%.  Both are capped.  We offered to go up to 10 % and drop the city's to 6% saving them hundreds of thousands a year and give them all our 401K money to shore up the pension program if they put us all back into it.  Again saving them 100's of thousands.  NOPE, they're not doing it. They want the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.  Once again, that won't be in the papers.

But all the golf courses are open; all the libraries; all the flower are still watered; all the swimming pools open; all the city council, mayors staff, department heads got there cars to take home every night with gas, maintenance and insurance paid for; they all get their health care and retirement paid for after doing one term. Won't hear that in the papers.

That ass hat in the paper today that said public act 312 is to blame for all the problems in the world is dead wrong.  Does everyone remember who pushed 312 into existence.  City governments, Colman Young.  Also, can you imagine what safety standards would be like if unions didn't exist.  Come on you factory workers.

Take a look at all the Zero% wage increases that have been handed down, all the things that have been given up or taken away by arbitrators just to keep people from getting laid off.  Most of the arbitrators were put in place by the Engler administration, and live on the west side of the state.  Where do you think their loyalties lie?  Unions are lucky at best for the last ten years to stay status que.  
Police and Fire Unions are not the enemies.  

Rant Over

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