My municipality gives the fire chief a $900 stipend each year. That's it. The fire department is 100% voluntary.
In contrast, 60+% of the budget goes towards making sure police officers can make over $200,000 a year with overtime.
In contrast, 60+% of the budget goes towards making sure police officers can make over $200,000 a year with overtime.
When we say "Governor X defunded public schools," no one takes that to mean that they removed every single penny from the schools.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/12/opinion/sunday/floyd-abol...
Here are more examples:
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/07/how-i-beca...
https://thetyee.ca/Culture/2021/02/12/We-Actually-Mean-Aboli...
https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2020/08/the-abolition-mov...
And, indeed, your first article actually uses the term exactly as we're using it.
While the author is arguing for abolition, and the first and only time she uses the word "defund" it is to say
> Defunding the police is one step on a broad stairway toward abolition. Cities can reduce the size and scope of police...
A quick search of "what does 'Defund the Police' mean" will find that the vast majority of proponents, and of articles written about them in almost all newspapers and magazines, interpret it as reducing the budget of the police and redirecting that budget into non-violent community aid.
Above article refers to this long interview: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/12/obama-urges-activist...
And I agree with him, if you have to add ", and by this phrase I mean a b c d e f" or "please search the Internet and click a good URL (not Breitbart, but also not Mariame Kaba) to see what we mean by this phrase", do you think people wouldn't just think you're an extremist after the snappy phrase and stop listening?
The self-sabotage (and then people like you defending the phrase) is so mind-boggingly dumb. Do you want change, or do you want to alienate people?
But eh, on the topic of alienating people, I've seen enough "online activists" snap at supporting voices that I thought "I wouldn't be surprised if that supporter stopped sympathizing with them.". Then you have supporters turn to quiet "Fuck it, I'll just shut my mouth" or worse, be opponents.
The paid fire and ems people hate the volunteer departments, the fire-only departments turn their nose down at EMS, and the police are good at swooping in and taking over stuff like paramedics.
Volunteer departments are often big political power bases too. In some states, that results in volunteer departments getting lavish firehouses and fancy gear. I live next door to a city firehouse, their “new” pumper is an 8 year old, $800k (new) truck that saw 70-80 calls a month. It’s new owner doubled the mileage in 90 days.
Poor cities and rural counties might have underfunded services but they don't generally have the dysfunction you're describing because the money to support the dysfunction simply isn't there.
What does this mean to imply? They bought an old truck, gently used, and then used it a lot more...
Is the new mileage because they need to use it? Is that bad? Is 800k a lot for a fire truck?