Agreed, except on the domestic issues. Police need to go to those because of the potential for violence. Those tend to escalate fast.
In reference to that article, it sounds like that response team only went to the types of calls where an officer wouldn't arrest anyone anyway.
I don't think most people really understand the restraint that most cops have. I was on a police ride-along once where we pulled over a vehicle at midnight. It was originally for driving with no headlights, but then as we approached it the vehicle started speeding, 20+ mph over the limit. We followed and the car eventually pulled into a gas station lot. The officer approached the driver's window and the subject started screaming at the officer (hoenstly, it seemed like he may have been high). Then he put his hands on the shifter and steering wheel like he was about to drive away, so the officer reached in, grabbed his hands and pulled him out the window, all the while the guy is fighting the officer. So the officer cuffed him and stuck him in the back seat, waited 20 minutes for the guy to calm down, had a good talk with him, and then sent him on his way with a ticket. No arrest.