One of the smartest things Gov. Andrew Cuomo has done in recent weeks is to quickly and definitively come out against movements to defund police agencies.

“You have New York City, that is still reeling from the COVID virus, and now you have this night of looting, that I’m telling you shook people in the city to the core,” Cuomo told reporters in Albany on Sunday. “You don’t need police? You don’t need police?”

On this the governor is right.

Take Jamestown as an example, and remember that Jamestown is far from the most unsafe city in the state of New York. Jamestown’s police department has struggled for years to have the time to respond to nuisance complaints or quality of life calls quickly because officers are busy responding to emergency calls. That is in no way a knock on the Jamestown Police Department. It is simply a reflection of life in a small city with high poverty and a budget that can’t handle the increased cost for the number of officers necessary to quickly respond to non-emergency police calls.

As much as it would help taxpayers struggling under the burden of some of the highest taxes in New York state, should the City Council consider defunding the Jamestown Police Department.

Absolutely not.

Nor should other cities.

While we realize there are aspects of policing that may be able to be done better, we also realize that many of us rely on police officers to deal with situations that we can’t handle — whether that’s someone breaking into a house, dealing drugs or threatening someone’s physical well being.

Those who want to stop paying their police officers should consider pinning a badge on their chest and performing a neighborhood patrol. Working one shift in a cop’s shoes may change their mind.