Police Unions

Among the many dangerous notions that can arise within a democracy is the idea that people who work within its various regulatory apparatuses are free to exercise political free agency so as to influence—as a group—political, social and cultural outcomes. This idea is particularly dangerous when those declaring free agency carry weapons that ordinary folks are not permitted to own let alone walk around brandishing in plain sight. The recent political activism within Canada’s police unions is therefore a deeply disturbing development. Toronto Police Union head Craig Brommell, who opines that it is acceptable for police departments to promote political candidates and to undertake behind-the-scenes investigations into unfriendly political candidates, is an example of a growing trend within the public service sector that no elected representative appears to have the courage to do much more than whine meekly about. Such people ought to be of the utmost concern to governments supposedly trying to limit the control, ownership or use of weapons and don’t want to see an entire generation of heretofore peaceful, law-abiding citizens arming themselves and turning the country into a refrigerated lookalike of Waco, Texas.

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