Street Smart

As I watched and read the news this last couple of weeks, I came to a disturbing conclusion; I don’t care anymore! I’ve been following the situation in the cities of Chicago, Portland, New York and Seattle (to name only four) pretty closely because of all the “civil unrest,” and realized, I just don’t give a damn!

That’s a hard admission for me to make. People that know me well from my law enforcement background (particularly those I trained/supervised) will be shocked that I made such an admission. I was always the guy that put the ‘job’ first, often at the expense of my family. I was always the officer/supervisor that went the extra mile. I used to deride others for not working hard enough. I routinely told other officers that, “if you can drive by something or someone you think is bad without investigating, you picked the wrong profession.” I’m not saying this to brag. I don’t do that sort of thing and I’m comfortable that my reputation speaks for itself. Readers will just have to take my word on that. I’m only saying this because it should bother people that a person so dedicated to public safety just doesn’t care anymore. Unfortunately, I’m hearing this same sentiment from friends/family still in law enforcement. That’s a bad state of affairs for the public.

As I write this (Sunday night for submission Monday morning), the city of Seattle has instituted a policy restricting their police officers from deploying standard law enforcement crowd control tactics. The police chief has actually stated (appropriately in my opinion) that she won’t deploy her officers, and put them in harms way, without the tools to defend themselves. I’ll make a prediction on this one; Seattle will ultimately devolve into chaos and it won’t take long. I would not be surprised to learn there is a huge, violent demonstration going on as I type. My thought on that now is…so what…let ’em (the demonstrators) have it. Because of the CHOP, we’ve already seen what happens when they let the criminals run things…have a ball!

Now let’s consider Portland. Right now I’m thinking, let ’em (the demonstrators) have it. The law enforcement professional in me agrees with President Trump. Go in and take charge! Unfortunately, the cynic in me is saying, “To hell with ’em…let it burn. We’ll just have to take it back later.”

It’s the knowledge of the fact that “we’ll just have to take it back later” that makes me pause a little bit. As cynical as I can get, I know that is ultimately what will have to happen. When all is said and done, the rule of law has to prevail. I’d ask every reader, regardless of your political philosophy, to picture how this will all evolve. Let’s consider Seattle (only because I know a little about that city). What happens when law enforcement, because of the limitations placed upon them, ignore the civil unrest? We’ve already seen the chaos from the CHOP zone. What happens when the entire city is impacted in the same manner. What happens when the anarchists believe they are officially in charge? What about the destruction? What about the business owners in the impacted areas? Who’s going to pay for all of that? What about the associated violent crime? Does anyone reading this see a good outcome? Wake up and pay attention. In the next couple of weeks we’ll see this situation evolve and there won’t be any winners.

All of this started with a “defund the police” mantra that, I think, is the most asinine thing I’ve ever heard. I wrote a couple of weeks ago about personal accountability, so this “defund the police” mantra was never a shock. As a police officer, I’ve been hearing this same sort of thing for a very long time. It’s almost ALWAYS someone else’s fault! What’s more pathetic though, in my opinion, is how the “leadership” in these cities have embraced the same philosophy! These “leaders” (I hate using that term to describe these weak, cowardly and pathetic individuals!) are terrified to stand up to the criminal element attacking their cities. Why? Votes or just plain cowardice? At the end of the day, what’s right is right…these people will have to face up to that in the not too distant future. The ‘leaders’ of all these cities have one thing in common. For the sake of brevity, I’ll have to leave it to the reader to determine what that “one thing” is. More on that another time.

In 1978, a college professor told my class that “the public ultimately gets the law enforcement services they deserve”. I never understood that statement until very recently. I hope he was wrong, but fear he wasn’t.

I take back what I said earlier! I was angry when I started to write, but I settled down. At the end of the day, as angry and frustrated as I might get, I do care. I’m a law and order, public safety, national security proponent. I know from experience that none of the rights we enjoy (and take for granted) as Americans are possible if we are not safe. I’ll always do whatever it takes to protect my family and community.

Blaine Blackstone is a retired Los Angeles Police Sergeant who enjoys the simpler life in Thompson Falls. He can be reached by email at [email protected].