I've never stopped being awed by MACY'S on 34th Street when walking from the NJ Path subway to National Review on E. 35h.
When protests recently became an excuse for looting, Macys relied on public services - namely, the 36,000-strong New York City Police Department. The trouble is, public services are inherently politicized (and unionized).
Like Macys, the iconic Saks Fifth Avenue and its workers and customers also pay taxes to finance public security. Unlike Macy's, Saks hired private security. They tacked razor wire on plywood sheets used to cover windows and provided plenty of security guards and dogs.
Unlike those who shunned invisible tax-financed security in favor of effective private security, many unprotected big and small stores in many cities were smashed, robbed and sometimes set on fire.
When mobsters forced shopkeepers to pay a tax for "protection" or else get smashed and robbed by gangsters, they kept their side of the deal. When city governments force shopkeepers to pay for protection, they still get smashed and robbed.
Politicians love to make rhetorical contrasts between the selflessness virtue of "public service" versus the greed of "private for-profit service." But even potentially useful tax-financed public services are very often vastly inferior to their heavily-handicapped private rivals who have to charge a price (rather than threaten jail if you don't pay) and must therefore compete for customer approval.
Public education is often vastly inferior to private education.
Public transportation is often vastly inferior to private transportation.
And public services to protect the property of taxpayers are often vastly inferior to private security.
If in doubt, compare the fate of Macy's and Saks in New York City.