There are certain things I dream about as I am tossing and turning during a sleepless night. One of these dreams involve our elections. Do we have honest elections? I have that particular dream because some states used vote counting software that was designed to overturn elections in third world crap holes. Do our elections replicate those third world crap holes for which it was designed? In line with that, I also wonder why no law enforcement agency, in particular the FBI, did not investigate any of the numerous complaints about voter fraud in our last election. The FBI did find a mountain of ‘uppers’ when it came to arresting anyone that entered the Capitol building on January 6th of this year, however. I would feel much better if some of that new-found energy would have been used to investigate those claims of voter fraud. I would definitely sleep better, if I thought our elections were honest. Remember this. Our elections are only as honest as the election officials responsible for the voting sites.

In continuation, wouldn’t it be assuring if only American citizens were voting in our elections? Would it be a stretch to require a photo ID? In our state, it is a requirement. We voted with an absentee ballot during one election, and we had to go to a government building, produce an ID, and watched as our names were stricken from the election roles as having voted. We were mailing in our ballots. The state of Georgia went so far as to say that requiring a photo ID is racist. Racist? Will someone educate me as to how providing a photo ID to vote would be racist?

But here is my most disturbing dream. It is the dream that almost sets my asbestos sheets on fire from the friction created by my tossing and turning. Here it is: If we defund the police, what will the replacement be? This dream is not only troubling, but it is timely, because next week the City of Minneapolis is having an election, and one of the items on the ballot is to defund the police. Homicides in Minneapolis and St. Paul have almost doubled this year. Many police close to retirement, opted out of the police force to retire. Many more have just left the police profession. Both cities are at least 1/3 short of the necessary police required. This has put quite a strain on those remaining officers. It has increased the reaction times for these departments because they are understaffed. And now, the geniuses in Minneapolis want to defund the remaining remnants of a once very good police department. Why?

I will tell you why, even though you may not appreciate my logic. Minneapolis and St. Paul are not the only cities facing this same crisis. Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles have all had their policing issues. But the catalyst for defunding the police took place right in Minneapolis with the death of George Floyd on May 5, 2020.

George Floyd, according the trial, was killed by officer Derek Chauvin. But was he?

Let me provide this assessment of the already familiar event. Firstly, would George Floyd be dead if he did not pass counterfeit money? No. The police would not have been called. Secondly, would George Floyd be dead if he got into the back of the police car without resisting arrest, as he did. No. There would not have been any reason to restrain him. Thirdly, would George Floyd have died if he wasn’t full of a high-ball of illicit drugs? That would be a resounding maybe, because that is what the coroners report said killed George Floyd. According to that report, as bad as the ‘knee to the neck’ restraint that Derek Chauvin utilized looked, that was not what killed George Floyd. If you believe the coroner, it was from complications from existing health issues coupled with the ‘drug highball.” So….in a matter of less than 20 minutes, George Floyd passed counterfeit money, resisted arrest, and topped it all by being addled with illicit drugs. Derek Chauvin had nothing to do with the causes of any of these George Floyd events.

Exactly what was Derek Chauvin guilty of? I believe he was guilty of two things. Firstly, he was guilty of being the ranking and most experienced police officer that answered the call. This was beyond his control. Secondly, and most importantly, Derek Chauvin was guilty of familiarity. Unfortunately, Derek Chauvin knew George Floyd, knew of his criminal background using weapons, and knew of his prison time. He also knew George Floyd was working as a bouncer, and knew that George Floyd had a physical presence that would be difficult to contend with. George Floyd is tall, muscular, and has not hesitated to use his size and muscle in the commission of some of his past crimes. With all of that, the ranking police officer, regardless of who it was, needs to take control of the situation. Unfortunately, it was Derek Chauvin. Officer Chauvin realized quickly that George Floyd was on some kind of drug. Ambulances were summoned. (Did you know that some police departments have gotten rid of their 9mm caliber service weapons in favor of larger calibers? That is because some drug addled shooters were so pumped up on drugs that the smaller caliber was not bringing them down! An experienced Derek Chauvin would know this. I digress.)

Now racial justice takes over and the riots occur for four days with few arrests before the Mayor of Minneapolis or the Governor of Minnesota take action. Over 500 businesses are destroyed and looted. To further promote and legalize racial justice, a Black Lives Matter fund of $20 million was provided for posting bonds for any of the arrested looter/arsonists. (No money for the victims who lost their livelihoods, just for the people who destroyed those livelihoods!)

Prematurely, before any investigation of depth, Derek Chauvin is arrested, jailed, and fired from the police department. (Never mind the facts….public opinion demands it!)

The City of Minneapolis, in another premature and stupid move, awarded the Floyd family a $27 million settlement before the Derek Chauvin trial. (This is the same family he had not seen for 6 years.)

The national media could not stop running the tape of Derek Chauvin putting his knee on George Floyd’s neck. Never mind the results of the coroners report, Chauvin killed George Floyd! And….George Floyd went from violent gun toting criminal who served prison time to national black hero and martyr! The woman who filmed the whole event on her cell phone got a Pulitzer prize!

Now, after all of this, Derek Chauvin goes to trial….on national television! The judge, in his desire to look better than Judge Judy, did not sequester the jury. He did, however, instructed the jury to not watch television news. What an idiot! 65% of all Americans get their news off the internet, and the jury was not prohibited from using their devices. They knew what was happening all over the country about rioting that was planned with a not guilty verdict, and they knew of their notoriety on the internet! After one of the most lopsided, kangaroo court procedures known to man took place, Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second degree murder, plus some other tacked-on charges. (As an aside, in Minneapolis, two black men arrested in separate incidents, both accused of homicide, were freed from jail because their high bonds were paid for by left over funds from the BLM $20 million get-out-of-jail bond money. Within 6 months, they killed three more people. Did you hear about that on national TV? Did you even know of it? Racial justice?)

After the trial, two of the jurors said that they were afraid to vote not-guilty, because they knew what would occur (rioting, looting and burning!) as they lived in areas that were originally burned after Floyd’s death! So here is the big question: Did Derek Chauvin receive justice, or was he the victim of racial justice? What if Derek was a black cop? What if Floyd was a white victim? If either was true, would there have even been a trial?

With all of this in mind, I return to my original premise; what will replace the police department? And….more importantly, because of the George Floyd death, and trial of Derek Chauvin and the continual media assertion of police brutality…what public-serving intelligent person would want to be a cop?

My guess? Less people will want to enter the law enforcement profession, police departments will lower their standards, and we will end up with a lower standard of police departments in those cities that keep catering to the crooks rather than supporting the police.

Good luck, Minneapolis. If you defund the police, you will deserve everything that you will get.

P.S. Derek Chauvin should have been disciplined. He did not wake up that morning thinking, “I am going to kill George Floyd today.” It was an unfortunate event that took place while the police were doing their job. In my mind, George Floyd killed George Floyd. America needs to get its priorities straight, do we want a nation protected by dedicated police, or some other half-baked solution that would lead to anarchy, much like what the advocates of racial justice are promoting. It’s an easy choice: either support the police or idolize the thugs.