Comments on: The Thinning Blue Line http://www.kipesquire.net/2005/08/the-thinning-blue-line/ A Stitch in Time Saves Nine ... But Haste Makes Waste Mon, 29 Nov 2010 16:02:21 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Matt http://www.kipesquire.net/2005/08/the-thinning-blue-line/comment-page-1/#comment-738 Matt Wed, 31 Aug 2005 08:55:56 +0000 http://www.kipesquire.net/?p=1474#comment-738 Consolodating precincts and downsizing the command staff may in fact be _better_ for Detroit than just throwing more money at the problem. (Certainly there are lots of things on which the city spends money that could be better spent hiring cops...but a department whose command staff has enough deadweight that downsizing it can save the jobs of 35-40 patrolmen is, I think by definition, a department whose ability to handle money well is at least as questionable as that of the city it serves.) <br /> <br /> Sometimes bureaucracies have to be starved into correcting themselves. It would surprise me not at all to find that the Detroit Police Department is in that situation. Consolodating precincts and downsizing the command staff may in fact be _better_ for Detroit than just throwing more money at the problem. (Certainly there are lots of things on which the city spends money that could be better spent hiring cops…but a department whose command staff has enough deadweight that downsizing it can save the jobs of 35-40 patrolmen is, I think by definition, a department whose ability to handle money well is at least as questionable as that of the city it serves.)

Sometimes bureaucracies have to be starved into correcting themselves. It would surprise me not at all to find that the Detroit Police Department is in that situation.

]]> By: Alec http://www.kipesquire.net/2005/08/the-thinning-blue-line/comment-page-1/#comment-737 Alec Wed, 31 Aug 2005 08:05:51 +0000 http://www.kipesquire.net/?p=1474#comment-737 This is interesting. It is also politics at play. Let me give you the context of this change: <br /> <br /> -These layoffs were forced by the city council. The council passed a budget, surely hoping to force the mayor to make the unpopular cuts right before the primary. <br /> -Instead, the mayor waited until nearly a month after the primary but about two months before the general election. <br /> -The mayor is tainted by charges of frivolous spending, using a city charge card to pay for extravagant trips (over 200K charged in last three years, all for travel expenses, including personal dinners for the mayor in excess of a thousand dollars); all this while the city is facing bankruptcy <br /> -The police union has endorsed his opponent <br /> -The Detroit police force is extraordinarily corrupt (well known for it, actually) <br /> -Recent studies suggest Detroit is the poorest of major cities (cities with a population of 250,000 or more) <br /> -The state legislature is dominated by Reps, who argue that Michigan's (black) cities need to be more fiscally responsible, while continuing to run a deficit and refusing to compromise with the governor. <br /> I could go on, but I think you get the picture. I am not terribly surprised by the turn of events, as it sounds like city elections are once again around the corner. This is interesting. It is also politics at play. Let me give you the context of this change:

-These layoffs were forced by the city council. The council passed a budget, surely hoping to force the mayor to make the unpopular cuts right before the primary.

-Instead, the mayor waited until nearly a month after the primary but about two months before the general election.

-The mayor is tainted by charges of frivolous spending, using a city charge card to pay for extravagant trips (over 200K charged in last three years, all for travel expenses, including personal dinners for the mayor in excess of a thousand dollars); all this while the city is facing bankruptcy

-The police union has endorsed his opponent

-The Detroit police force is extraordinarily corrupt (well known for it, actually)

-Recent studies suggest Detroit is the poorest of major cities (cities with a population of 250,000 or more)

-The state legislature is dominated by Reps, who argue that Michigan's (black) cities need to be more fiscally responsible, while continuing to run a deficit and refusing to compromise with the governor.

I could go on, but I think you get the picture. I am not terribly surprised by the turn of events, as it sounds like city elections are once again around the corner.

]]> By: Andrew Cory http://www.kipesquire.net/2005/08/the-thinning-blue-line/comment-page-1/#comment-736 Andrew Cory Tue, 30 Aug 2005 22:06:54 +0000 http://www.kipesquire.net/?p=1474#comment-736 Something to consider: the city may well be trying to get tax increases through. After all, if taxes are specifically going to be spent on emergency services, they become more palatable. Think of it then not as a service cut, but a tax shift... Something to consider: the city may well be trying to get tax increases through. After all, if taxes are specifically going to be spent on emergency services, they become more palatable. Think of it then not as a service cut, but a tax shift…

]]>