“The local police need your help.” How many times have we heard this? Despite the high-tech cameras, satellites, and listening devices, the authorities still need our help.
But for us regular folks trying to protect our friends and family, there's not much we can do if we don't know what's going on.
The police chiefs of Arnold, New Kensington, Lower Burrell and Upper Burrell recently decided to encrypt their radios, meaning the public no longer can hear police activity on scanner radios.
How are we supposed to know about shootings, home invasions, car wrecks, icy roads, loose pit bulls, lost children, etc.?
Don't the police realize we the people are the first line of defense? We are the first to disseminate the news. We are the first responders who try to do what's right.
But we can't if we don't know what's going on.
That's what the scanner does — helps the community come together for the good of the community.
I guess eliminating scanner traffic has eliminated the problems. That some bad guy got away because he listened to a scanner is the excuse for shutting them down.
Hopefully, transparency will come about with or without the chiefs' obtrusiveness.
Police radio transmissions are for the good of the community, not for the comfort of a few. People need to know when they are in harm's way and should be given the chance to “first respond.”
Chiefs: If you really want to protect and serve, radio-free our communities.
Anestos Rodites
Arnold
