No, I know nothing about opex vs capex, but neither do most of the tax paying public calling for smaller department budgets, they just look at the overall spending then see the military looking equipment on the road and say "why aren't we spending those tax moneys on helping people instead of hurting them".

I mean, opex and capex both come from OUR taxes right? The police department isn't selling stamps to pay line level salaries like the postal service. How our money is split and the system of budgeting in place is irrelevant to the person paying the bill but SOMEONE is responsible for deciding what money goes where.

I've always felt "defund the police" is, or at least should be aimed at THAT person. No one thinks a dude in blue and a badge is making the budget for the department. We all understand THAT guy is wearing a suit and tie sipping coffee in an office somewhere, but for some reason the lower rank and file seem to think that WE think it's up to them. As a union worker I'd never call for another union worker to lose their job over budget cuts, equipment spending should always come first. (Well really management salaries should come first cause they're always the most bloated but realistically I know no one making the budget is ever going to cut their own salary, looking at you top level politicians)