In our commentary yesterday on The Police News Online, we suggested that the Galveston Municipal Police Association is not doing justice to it's members by sitting idly by while plaintiff lawyers and newspapers chastise and denegrate them on mostly unsubstantiated and unproven charges.

  An editorial in today's Galveston County Daily News calling for an end to collective bargaining for police officers, may test the leadership of the police union.  We will soon see if the union leadership responds or lays silently while the local news giant tries to excite the population into the destruction of an already dwindling police force.

Cops in Galveston are greedy and overpaid, says The Daily News.  What say you, police union?

Cops and their collective bargaining contract are evil and "the major reason why Galveston's city government today faces such a deep and alarming financial crisis.?  What say you, police union?

Before we jump to the defense of the police union, we will wait to see if it even tries to defend itself, although it's tough to fight a man who buys ink by the barrel, as does Dolph Tillotson.  Even if the union were to reply with a Letter to the Editor, or even if The Daily News allows the union a Guest Column in response, the paper would likely keeping pounding the subject in future issues, lending a short life to the memory of the union response.  The only daily newspaper in town can hammer the union, hammer city official's, and keep hammering and hammering until they finally get their way or embarrass everyone who don't concede their position.

As you read this Daily News editorial keep these few things in mind.  The Galveston Police Department is already seriously undermanned.  It has been for years because Galveston does not offer enough money to police candidates to compete with other departments across the state which are begging for officers.  The department is a revolving door for new cops who are hired out of desperation, just to get warm bodies on the street.  Then they leave for greener pastures when their resume proclaims their training and experience.  Galveston taxpayers have spent millions of dollars training officers who now work in virtually every other police department in Galveston country and in the Sheriffs Office and in Constable precincts all over the county.  Even the Houston Police Department employs former Galveston cops.  You don't see any Galveston officers coming from Texas City, Dickinson, La Marque, Santa Fe or Houston.  Why?

Finally, we suggest before everyone gets stirred up over this, yet another assault on Galveston police, think about who you would rather call when a gang banger is kicking your door in.  A policeman or a newspaper publisher?

Now, let's see if the police union will speak up in it's own defense and for it's own survival.

That's the way we see it.  How about you?

Breck Porter
editor@thepolicenews.net