Real Numbers?

Interesting numbers, crunched by someone who can work a computer:

• In 2008 there were 7,253 p.o.s assigned to districts 001 thru 025,exactly one year there are now 6,649. That is a loss of 604 officers in one year. How much more can be done to the officers and the department. Remember this when you are looking for backup on a call. Be safe and go home to your families. They have made us expendable.

District manpower is low and getting lower every day. And an interesting take on those numbers by a commentator:

• How many of those POs work inside? Or how many are assigned to the district but detailed elsewhere? What about the callback dodgers that can't work full duty spots? Or the watch secretaries that are being hidden by the watch commanders?
  
  My point is there might be 6,600 plus POs in the districts, but there are far less actually working the streets. 5 at the desk, 2 to 3 in male and female lockups a piece, front office, caps, secretaries, traffic missions, coffee car, and any other whim the watch commander might have.

And a pointed observation:

• Is there any other organization in this country that does not know how many people work for it?

You can bet if IBM or GM wanted to know how many people work in their offices or on their assembly lines, the number is there at the touch of a button. Why is it like pulling teeth here?