The Upward Push

I had to walk into my bank today to have a document notarized. Good thing I made an appointment. The other customer who was there, like me, at one minute before opening time was not so lucky. She was sent away. She would have been the second customer in the branch. I’m not sure if the bank would have gotten in trouble for letting her in, but I did hear the banker tell her she was not allowed into the branch without an appointment. She had the mask. It matched her outfit. Bless her heart. I asked if I would need an appointment to access my safe deposit box. The banker said no, just walk right in. I don’t have a safe deposit box there but I’m glad exceptions to the rules of stupid can be made. 

We are still being told by the guessers in charge that we should maintain social distancing, not shake hands and not go inside some places or outside anywhere. Unless you want to protest your local police, in which case, get out there! I wonder why many states and the federal government, who have constantly told us to stay inside and isolate, are okay with these protests in particular?

At the risk of sounding like a conspiracy nut, could it be that the federal government has a vested interest in people revolting against their local authorities? 

 I’ll explain my thinking:

I live in the city of Hollywood, Florida. Let’s say we the people of Hollywood decide we hate the police so much we want the entire department abolished. Let’s say it happens. No more Hollywood P.D. This would create a power vacuum that Broward County would swoop in and fill. The county just got that much more powerful. There will still be a city government that will tax me and tell me what color to paint my house and where to park my car, but the policing will be a little more distant. Of course, to cover the area formerly patrolled by the Hollywood P.D., the current force will change uniforms and have their squad cars painted. Same thing, different logo. We serve a different house, but we still serve.

What I see here is the government being distanced from the citizens to whom it is accountable. Government at all levels has forgotten who is in charge. We have let them get away with too much for too long. So, when we protest against the local police, the counties and the states and the feds don’t interfere any more than they have to, in fact many at the higher levels of government have given their blessing to the protesters. Remember, these are the same governments that didn’t want people to shake hands or mow lawns.

 I wouldn’t be surprised to see this upward consolidation continue. More and more cities will give their police and fire departments to the counties, who will answer directly to the states, who are, in many ways, dependent upon the feds. While I do believe less layers of bureaucracy would be a good thing, this development loses its charm when you realize the layer is replaced with a distant, faceless authoritarian regime. Some layers will vanish, but the remaining layers will thicken and harden until they are as impenetrable as the walls of the safe in that bank I visited this morning.



Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.







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