4 ms·

I'm not sure why the percentage matters? Whether it's 2% or 20%, it's still millions of dollars that could have been used here. More broadly, why are we cutting

I'm not sure why the percentage matters? Whether it's 2% or 20%, it's still millions of dollars that could have been used here. More broadly, why are we cutting fire department budgets when wildfires are becoming more frequent, more intense and a year round phenomenon due to global warming? If you want to trim fat in the government there are much bigger targets to go after than an essential service like firefighting.

Redoubts 2y ago
Are you for real?
vinay427 2y ago
It doesn't seem to me that the GP comment is arguing for the cut in funding, but rather that 'gutted' may reasonably imply to many readers that a relatively significant portion of the budget was cut, which would be misleading in this case even if unintentional. The percentage helps put the number into context as at least I would not have an intuitive sense of expected or historical LAFD budget numbers.
- segasaturn 2y ago
  Thank you for providing context, I edited the comment and changed "gutted" to "cut".
  - Redoubts 2y ago
    [flagged]
    - dgfitz 2y ago
      You know them enough to claim they generally are telling lies on a regular basis?
nradov 2y ago
Which other fat targets should local governments cut? Please be specific and quantitative.
- segasaturn 2y ago
  Great question, lets take a look at the 2024-2025 budget sheet for LA City: https://cao.lacity.gov/budget/summary/2024-25%20Budget%20Summary%20-%20FINAL.pdf https://cao.lacity.gov/budget/summary/2024-25%20Budget%20Sum... (This PDF is great, props to whoever made it for making it so easy and accessible for normal people to read.) If you look at the pie chart on Page 11, you will see that by far the largest slice of the pie is the police budget. It's 45% of LA County's entire budget, totalling almost $2 billion. The LAPD's budget for one fiscal year is larger than most country's GDPs, yet crime is still rampant in Los Angeles. So that's the first place I would start. You could probably find $23 million sitting between the couch cushions at LAPD's headquarters.
  - JKCalhoun 2y ago
    Crime is rampant, cut the police budget. I hear ya'.
    - threatofrain 2y ago
      For $2B you could save a lot of lives even through the overpriced medical system. With a number this big, whatever you do with $2B has to be way better than saving those lives.
    - defrost 2y ago
      The question is whether quality of life can be improved in the city with a better allocation of the $2 billion dollars. Some should go to policing, yes, community policing should increase, working the stats should decrease, dedicated mental health professionals should be funded and replace a good number of police interactions, etc. This is a large and complex topic that deserves better than ankle deep engagement.
      - 2y ago

Redoubts 2y ago

Are you for real?

vinay427 2y ago

It doesn't seem to me that the GP comment is arguing for the cut in funding, but rather that 'gutted' may reasonably imply to many readers that a relatively significant portion of the budget was cut, which would be misleading in this case even if unintentional. The percentage helps put the number into context as at least I would not have an intuitive sense of expected or historical LAFD budget numbers.

segasaturn 2y ago
Thank you for providing context, I edited the comment and changed "gutted" to "cut".
- Redoubts 2y ago
  [flagged]
  - dgfitz 2y ago
    You know them enough to claim they generally are telling lies on a regular basis?

nradov 2y ago

Which other fat targets should local governments cut? Please be specific and quantitative.

segasaturn 2y ago
Great question, lets take a look at the 2024-2025 budget sheet for LA City: https://cao.lacity.gov/budget/summary/2024-25%20Budget%20Summary%20-%20FINAL.pdf https://cao.lacity.gov/budget/summary/2024-25%20Budget%20Sum... (This PDF is great, props to whoever made it for making it so easy and accessible for normal people to read.) If you look at the pie chart on Page 11, you will see that by far the largest slice of the pie is the police budget. It's 45% of LA County's entire budget, totalling almost $2 billion. The LAPD's budget for one fiscal year is larger than most country's GDPs, yet crime is still rampant in Los Angeles. So that's the first place I would start. You could probably find $23 million sitting between the couch cushions at LAPD's headquarters.
- JKCalhoun 2y ago
  Crime is rampant, cut the police budget. I hear ya'.
  - threatofrain 2y ago
    For $2B you could save a lot of lives even through the overpriced medical system. With a number this big, whatever you do with $2B has to be way better than saving those lives.
  - defrost 2y ago
    The question is whether quality of life can be improved in the city with a better allocation of the $2 billion dollars. Some should go to policing, yes, community policing should increase, working the stats should decrease, dedicated mental health professionals should be funded and replace a good number of police interactions, etc. This is a large and complex topic that deserves better than ankle deep engagement.
    - 2y ago