What happens next?

By Sebastian Quaid

June 9, 2020

The last few weeks, to say the least, have been a huge eye-opener. Not just for Democrats and Republicans, but for the United States and the world as a whole. In the length of 2 months we have gone from a worldwide pandemic, to sheltering in place, to arresting store owners, to standing up against racist and violent police, to country-wide riots destroying businesses and homes. Gun stores across the nation have sold out of almost all of their inventory, sports stores have also seen a recent spike in sales for guns and related items. People on both sides are questioning the ability to militarize the police as well as states bringing National Guard and other U.S. military forces onto our own soil. However, as a conservative, I do not want to live in chaos just as much as I do not want to live in a police state. Which makes me beg the question. What happens next?

The new movement of the week is police reform and in too many cities, police reform means disbanding their forces. What will this accomplish though? The cities receiving the most support for disbanding the police also happen to be the most violent cities in the nation. Chicago, for instance, has a violent crime rate of 1,099 per 100,000 residents in 2017. That same year St. Louis had a violent crime rate of 2,082 per 100,000 residents. I would like to believe that both city’s police forces are stopping even a small amount of crime, and I really do not want to see the numbers post banishment.

In Seattle, last Monday night into this morning, a group has now barricaded off somewhere between 6 to 11 blocks, including a police precinct, and are now calling themselves “Free Capit[a]l Hill”. This comes the same day SPD said they would not abandon their precincts. I have not heard of any shots being fired, nor any violent attacks or casualties from either side. For the most part, the group resembles a small militarized hippie commune in the middle of downtown Seattle. However, organizers on Twitter have been calling for more people to come and bring guns and ammo to help man the makeshift fort. I really feel like I am watching a live adaptation of "Red Dawn" of which, the left are the intruding force. For now, they seem peaceful, but only time will tell.

So what happens next? Either everyone stops and police will go through some much-needed re-education and training or a much darker result. I fear eventually a war will break out in the United States. With the heightened state of emergency, police and military presence, and gun stores selling out of their inventory, citizens are beginning to stock up on supplies and are awaiting the second "shot heard ‘round the world".