Defund government agencies -> agencies now have to prioritize which things get done because they don’t have the staff -> agencies prioritize the highest yield efforts to ensure the lights stay on. Repeat cycle.

This is a problem beyond just the police. It’s how politicians (mainly Republicans) undermine laws and regulations they don’t like, without having to succeed in repealing them. The free market aspect is just a layer on top of this.

[–] nat_turner_overdrive@hexbear.net 4 points 5 months ago (1 children)

I think with police it's not defunding - no police departments were defunded in the USA, like two had their funding reduced for less than a year before getting it increased over the previous level. My perception is that the police are actively refusing to do most of their jobs now because they're still upset about BLM and the realization that most people don't really like or respect them.

[–] quarrk@hexbear.net 3 points 5 months ago

True. I agree the specific case of police probably is not caused by shrinking budgets. Just adding in some context that, often, a focus on maximizing revenue is not solely due to market ideology. In fact, total net revenue may decrease even if the agency increases in % ‘profit’ (annual net revenue ÷ annual budget). The political motive for reducing the budget may not be in making the agency more efficient, but in fact undermining the agency as a whole, to force eventual abolishment or privatization.