Another data point of interest:

http://books.google.com/books?id=N5x...strike&f=false

Field and Stream, May 1976. A quick note on how Albiquerque, NM police went on strike in 1975 for a couple weeks and crime dropped to 0.

(I am going to bet that this data point did not help the police union's bargaining leverage.)

Albiquerque was, of course, not a huge city. Presumably in a well-armed populace of a large enough size, you will find a doofus willing to try his luck. But still - interesting.

Again, I'm not anti-cop, but I think that the status quo of large police departments being necessary for public safety ought to be examined, especially in these days when budgets are being strained and the future looks like much less money might be available to pay for even vital services, let alone the silly stuff cities love to waste money on.