By Lawrence W. Daly
Forensic Expert Senior Author
If you watch television, surf the Internet, listen to the radio, talk to your family, friends, or co-workers then you should know that tonight is the first presidential debate to occur in Denver, Colorado.
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| English: President Barack Obama walking with Vice President Joe Biden in The White House (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
There are many domestic issues for the President and Romney to debate about. However, if you are a person who expends time listening to the media and the domestic issues, the issue that has not been discussed and needs to be is about what affect will these debates and the election have on law enforcement agencies and their officers?
There has been much discussed about how the middle class will be affected if one of the candidates win or lose. Each of the Democratic and Republican Parties has their individual opinions, arguments, alleged facts and etc. However, the argument seems to focus on the financial aspects of what will happen to the middle class, but not on who will protect and serve them.
Depending on who you vote for, the argument from both parties point to the fact that the rich will benefit and the middle class will be taxed. One of the issues which hasn’t been discussed is if one or the other wins the election what will this mean to the middle class communities and the protection they receive from their local, county, and state public services.
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| DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 01: Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney greets supporters during a campaign rally at the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum on October 1, 2012 in Denver, Colorado. Mitt Romney arrived in Denver ahead of his first debate with U.S. President Barack Obama which will be held on Wednesday October 3. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife) |
Another major discussion has been what will either party do for woman’s rights. Which party will be able to provide or guarantee that woman will be taken care of? In researching this issue studies have detailed that there has been a major increase in woman becoming business owners. The need for law enforcement protection is necessary to minimize thefts, property damage, robbery, burglaries, and the safety of those who work within the business. Man or woman if they own a business the political party who provides the greater tax breaks, lower health costs, and provides law enforcement support and services are consideration these business owners will most likely contemplate before they cast their vote.
Today, the federal government disclosed they purchased the Thomson Correctional Center in western Illinois for $165 million. This is the State where President Obama began his political career and is considered his home state. The purchase comes at a time where Republicans are arguing that this was more of a political tactic more than a purpose than a specific reason. However, if this prison opens in the near future, law enforcement may benefit by the generation of new jobs. The decision of when the prison will open is still unknown and who the prisoners will be is a major concern by many of those who live in the community where the prison is located. It has been rumored, although the current laws do not allow it, that prisoners may come from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where terrorists are currently housed.
The Democratic Party has and will continue having movie stars talk about their beliefs about why people should vote for the President. Again, there has been no mention of the affect voting for the President or Romney will have on your individual community and the strength of your law enforcement agencies and the number of officers will be patrolling the streets in your neighborhood. Since most movie stars live in high class residences, their safety doesn’t seem to be an issue they would talk about. Most of them have never had to call the police for issues dealing with theft or violence. They live in a glass dome which is not accessible by criminals.
The economy is in the worst condition since the Depression. Over the past four years the President has accumulated more than 6 trillion dollars in debt, which included a trillion dollar stimulus bill which was to create jobs. In this bill minimal jobs were created especially in the law enforcement community. In fact, cities in California have filed for bankruptcy and either officers have had their wages reduced or many of the officers lost their jobs. If the President is re-elected the experts, depending on which Party pundit you talk too or listen to has stated that more jobs will be lost.
In order to pay for the Presidents current new jobs which the majority have been federal government jobs, the middle class will be taxed at a higher rate than any of the other classes. This is problematic because the unemployment which has affected all of the classes remains and has remained for the past 41 months at 8.1 percent or higher. As seen by the reaction of the California cities who have filed for bankruptcy when the middle class no longer can handle the burden of paying higher taxes and gas prices, law enforcement agencies and officers will be affected financially and job loss.
If you have not considered what the affect either Party will have on your individual community and law enforcement agencies and officers it may be time to make a telephone call to your local politicians and ascertain what they project will happen if either Party wins the election.
The type of questions you need to ask is who will pay for your law enforcement agencies to maintain the same services you are receiving now, and if so what will be the cost to you i.e. “How much in taxes will I be forced to pay?” The argument that the upper class pays little to no taxes will not help you during the next four years. No matter what either Party states, no laws will be passed in time for anyone to reduce your tax responsibilities. Bottom line if you want the same or greater law enforcement services, then you will eventually have to pay a greater amount of money.
If you were able to ask the President or Romney tonight during their first debate on domestic issues just how either of them will maintain law enforcement services it would be interesting how either person would respond.
It is common sense that one of the Parties will cost you more money than the other. The problem is depending on your individual preferences, choices, beliefs, opinions, and so forth if you vote for the wrong person your law enforcement services and the costs for public services may cost you more than you ever imagined.
Trust is a major issue which many people struggle with because your opportunity to directly ask what is important to you will never be discussed. Imagine living in the lower class and relying on law enforcement to protect you from individuals who injure and murder others, such what is happening in Chicago, where homicides have increased by 40% since last year. If law enforcement services are diminished then the people who rely on them may become one of the victims who are either injured or murdered.
In July of 2009, the President told the citizens of the United States that Obama Health Care would guarantee you that you would be able to keep the same doctor you currently have. Today, the Sears Company and Olive Garden Company will no longer provide health coverage for their employees. It will now be the responsibility of the Federal Government to find you a doctor and deal with your health coverage.
Again, trust is something you must have when you come to the politicians you elect. When it comes to promises and those who guarantee you something which is important to you, you must trust that they will come through and keep those promises. So tonight when you are watching the debate between the President and Romney listen closely to their answers, because if they answer in a way that tells you all is alright when it comes to the 16 trillion dollar debt, the 23 million people who are unemployed, the 48 million people on food stamps, and the 100 million people receiving some type of financial benefit from the Federal Government, the answer is simple, there needs to be changes made whoever wins the election.
As a former law enforcement officer, if I was still employed by the city or county and I was relying on who can I trust to make sure I have a job after November 6th, 2012, I have to reason that the last four years I have seen other law enforcement agencies and officers being affected, I believe it may be time to make a change at the top. If my police chief wasn’t being successful in his job, the city manager, mayor, or community would terminate his or her services and hire someone to come in and make the agency successful.
Tomorrow night, I hope that either Obama or Romney would take the time to explain how the criminal justice system will be affected depending on who wins the election. Listen closely because the answers may be there. If there not, then you will know what to do come November 6, 2012, election day.
Lawrence W. Daly
206-650-0229
onedaly@onedaly.com
Kent, WA
