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Chicago Gets Googled
Well, this wasn't the news we wanted to see going into Christmas. For the first time in five years, Chicago has eclipsed 500 murders, according to Chicago Police spokeswoman Monique Bond. No other details are known other than that the homicide occurred last night. While these numbers are still a far cry from the bloody 90's (when homicides topped 900 a year from 1991 through 1994), it's still an uptick from last year's 443 murders and doesn't do beleaguered Chicago Police honcho Jody Weis any good.
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NYT article detailing how the city will spend all of the money from the parking meter lease by 2010.
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While I am not a defender of Weiss, it seems as though the economy has a direct correlation on homicides in urban areas in the country. Blame it on the recession.
Or the movement of people who used to live in now demolished public housing and the resulting gang tensions;
Or outdated beat assignments;
Or too few cops on city streets;
Blaming it merely on a recession doesn't provide the whole picture, I think.
Commentators on Second City Cop (who mostly claim to be police officers) say it's department morale. They say they are reluctant to aggressively pursue supects, leads, etc. for fear that the department and the mayor's office won't have their back with regards to brutality complaints, lawsuits, etc. Many have flatly stated that they are doing just enough to finish their shifts and go home. And the addition of Weis, who a lot of cops reportedly feels is an outside who just doesn't get it, did help they say.
But, yeah, the too few cops angle is probably true too.
at least the cops that still left will look good in new SUVs
Recession is the best explanation for the uptick in violent crime. Check out the last years murders were so high. Coincidence?
Recession is the best explanation for the uptick in violent crime
Maybe it's a main reason, but I doubt it is the only reason. Most things in life have multiple causes, and this is especially true when it comes to crime.
The only reason I nag about this point is because it is important to examine all the causes for rising crime in hopes of creating the best counter-attack, and to, perhaps, learn from mistakes. Merely blaming the bad economy gets us nowhere--"hey, screw it, it's the economy and we can't do anything about that"--and enables some to avoid thinking about other, perhaps deeper problems that can increase crime and murder rates in Chicago.
I don't think anyone is saying that it's the only reason. You're right though, there are lots of reasons.
The one I don't buy, however, is the link between abortions among poor and minorities and crime today as proposed in freakonomics. I think that book openly makes a case for eugenics and i am surprised it was embraced by the left as much as it was.
Yeah, there is a recession, but the situation was already bad early this year when the recession really hadn't taken hold.
As for the cops, I think it is a poor excuse to blame it on the city not having their back. Kicking the shit out of people in bars isn't really normal police work.
Though what could the cops do anyway. Remember the string of school kids getting shot? You can't stop random crazy violence.