Hi William. Thanks for reading and responding. I’d like to get some links to back up your data re: police practices around the world.

RE: the boy with mental illness, Edgar may have carried that kitchen knife in a threatening manner, but the two or more grown officers on the scene should have subdued him without killing him. The mother called for help, but got death instead. My point is police often make the situation worse, not better. One way to change that would be to disarm them. I’d also like to see the citizenry disarmed.

It’s not worth the carnage or the money spent to put people in jail for doing drugs, or passing bad checks, or the myriad of other minor offenses that police spend most of their time on. I get your point that they are charged with enforcing the law, not writing it. But they can do that without guns.

My son also has a mental illness and has been jailed for being homeless and doing drugs in the past. One day I went to a hearing for him. A long line of prisoners came before the judge. When the bailiff read out their charges it sounded like “possession, possession, possession, possession, auto theft, possession, possession, possession, possession, breaking and entering...” I marveled at the huge, ornate building with marble columns being used for the courthouse; the bailiff, court reporter, judge, four to six lawyers, police escorts, handcuffs and chains and equipment, etc. — all assembled and paid for with taxpayer money just to put a bunch of hopeless drug users in jail. I don’t consider that a good use of my tax dollars. Incidentally, my son was the only white person coming before the judge that day…

It’s wrong. It’s not justice. And it’s a waste.