Every community is grappling with an increase in violence. Unfortunately, despite the response of both police union leaders and elected officials across the nation (pushing to add more law enforcement officers to every department, create stiffer penalties, and explore shortsighted alternatives for what “experts” think will prevent or reduce violent incidents), such approaches continually fail to produce effective long-term results.

On the contrary, if communities large and small ever realistically expect to disrupt the rising wave of chaos, it would behoove leaders at every level to stop wasting time and resources and instead consider addressing the problem with a serious game plan, instead of reacting to it with Band-Aid responses.