Passage Summary: Many people assume more cops is the only fix for crime, but statistics show that cities with the same amount of police can have totally different crime rates.

Conclusion: Increasing the number of police officers is not the sole method available to address the problem of crime.

Reasoning: Data indicates that different cities with nearly identical police-to-citizen ratios experience vastly different levels of crime.

Analysis: The statistics function as a counterexample designed to invalidate a 'necessity' or 'exclusivity' claim. By showing that the same input (police ratio) leads to different outputs (crime rates), the author demonstrates that other variables must be at play. It's a classic move: if 'A' were the only way to achieve 'B,' then similar levels of 'A' should theoretically yield similar results for 'B.' Since they don't, the 'only way' premise is effectively undermined. Focus on how these numbers serve to weaken the popular opinion mentioned at the start.