and that may mean losing some of the tools on those belts, the tasers that have killed vulnerable people, the guns that are a quick solution to someone in emotional crisis (no crisis if you shoot the person, right?), and batons used to break the heads of protestors against police violence. Maybe they can stop spending tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars to hear speakers tell them "killing is part of the job" and "Muslims are bad," (real seminars that police departments around the nation have willingly hosted) and learn how to talk people down, use moral authority (of course you have to be moral to do that) and de-escalate situations using intelligence and words. Maybe they should consult with teachers, who deal with the raw public every day and somehow have avoided shooting any of them. Cops should have college degrees, psychological testing to determine fitness, and ongoing training to reverse all the bad attitudes they picked up from tv and unfortunately maybe their upbringing. Finally, there should be no overtime to put hundreds of cops out on the street when there is a BLM protest. Cops here managed without the show of force when it was Trumpsters flooding the city, so they can use the same restraint when it comes to BLM. So there you have my suggestions to balance the PPB budget in Portland.