Posted on 02/20/2023 5:29:40 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Let’s be brutally honest, shall we? And I mean to cast no aspersions on Walmart, but when even Walmart finally packs up and skedaddles out of your city, it’s a strong indication that your city is in pretty bad shape. And when Lori Lightfoot is your mayor, you live in Chicago, and you know exactly what I’m talking about.
Closing stores isn’t rare for Walmart, particularly given its more than 5,000 stores nationwide. As ABC affiliate WLS-TV in Chicago reported the giant retailer closed 160 stores over the past couple of years, but with 5,000 stores the company has to be flexible and the bottom line is, literally, it has to go where the business is, and just as importantly, leave where it isn’t.
The company declined to provide specific reasons to local media for the closure of the three stores, but Walmart’s decision is just one more reminder of Greater Chicagoland’s decadelong decline.
Chicago’s population and tax base have shrunk for nine straight years, while crime continues to soar. Yet, the city is about to adopt no-cash bail, which makes it nearly impossible for police to enforce the law against thieves. Businesses don’t like that, of course, but guess who does? Her picture “might” be below.
As the Washinton Examiner reported, census estimates show that Illinois has lost roughly 300,000 net residents over the aforementioned nine years. 300,000 people don’t just decide to pack up their crap and leave their homes — even for better weather. Three hundred, or maybe even three thousand, but not three hundred thousand.
That’s a significant trend, and in the Windy City’s case, it’s not only troubling as a single issue; it shows no signs of easing and likely won’t — as long as Lightfoot remains mayor. Three stories covered by RedState in just the last 30 days point to the once-proud city’s ongoing demise:
Homeless Encampments Overtake Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, Workers Say ‘None of Us Feel Safe’
WATCH: Crack Crime-Stopper Lori Lightfoot Offers ‘Concrete Solution’ to End Crime in Chicago
Leading Chicago Mayoral Candidate’s ‘Public Safety Is a Human Right’ Slogan Has Triggered Leftists
And Chicago, of course, isn’t the Lone Ranger among major U.S. cities where violent crime, homeless encampments, rampant public drug abuse, overdose deaths, and violent rioting (AKA: “peaceful protests”) are out of control, but 100 percent of these cities share one thing in common: Democrat-run city governments. Sorry, my Democrat friends: with zero exceptions.
Even crazier, left-wingers — Democrat politicians, in this case — have never learned to avoid Einstein’s most basic definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. And even worse, for example, Democrats push for universal cashless bail, “defunding the police,” and repeatedly releasing repeat offenders to the point that Democrat-run cities might as well install revolving doors on jail cells.
And what about the long-term impact of the Democrats’ draconian COVID lockdowns?
Great question — and an even greater explanation, via Washington Examiner:
Chicago, San Francisco, New York, and similarly mismanaged cities “coasted,” as the Atlantic put it, “for decades on the knowledge that firms and workers were being pulled inexorably toward their downtowns.”
But then, left-wing Democrats’ hypocritical rule-by-COVID-panic convinced many businesses that it wasn’t worth paying for large downtown offices as workers shifted to remote or hybrid-remote work.
Various reports reveal that companies are cutting their downtown office space and letting leases expire. Commercial real estate prices in Manhattan have fallen more than 7% in a year, yet half the available space stands empty.
Thing is, none of this madness requires the brainpower of Albert Einstein to figure out.
The Bottom Line
The dirtiest of the Democrat Party’s dirty little non-secret secrets is this: Democrats know full well that their crime policies amount to little more than ineffectual slaps on the wrist — and they don’t give a damn about it. One might even argue that Democrats are glad that their insane policies don’t work.
Why? Because the only thing Democrats care about is the ballot box and ginning up more “woke” votes.
Libs are happy
They fought to keep walmarts out
A stronger indicator is when Walgreens pulls out.
Chicago is a Walmart desert.
“the city is about to adopt no-cash bail”
If an arrested person is likely to be a continued danger to the community, then bail should not be given.
RE: A stronger indicator is when Walgreens pulls out.
We will see if Target is brave enough to stay.
It took Wal-Mart a long time to set up in Chicago because of opposition in the City Council, from unions, etc. They opened their first location in 2006. It still doesn’t have a huge presence in the city proper.
It’s ironic because Chicago never wanted the wal-marts to begin with.
Jail and prison are expensive and efforts should be made to reduce the burden on taxpayers while maintaining deterrence.
For non-violent offenses, violators might be allowed to stay say 100 hours inside a courthouse room within 60 days of arrest provided they stay at least 20 within 184 hours of the arrest.
This would allow offenders to maintain employment, not require taxpayers to fund their food/medical care/defense counsel, and provide punishment and deterrence.
“IT’S A FOOD DESERT! GIVE US MORE MONEY!”....
So Walmart is leaving Chicago. I think I know why.
If you rearrange the letters in “Walmart store”, you get “White might”.
That’s not even close to being true, of course. But I’m going to email it to Mayor Lightfoot anyway. She’ll probably believe it, and call a news conference tomorrow.
It should be fun.
I don’t shop at the big box Walmarts but I do my grocery shopping at the Walmart Markets. When they began self-service checking, I changed to their delivery service. There’s nothing better than ordering online and having my groceries brought to my home the next day.
Cash bail often has required upright grandmothers to cough up about a month’s Social Security to bail out a wayward grandson.
I’m getting a sneaking suspicion that this intentional to drive housing prices down for a country or company to swoop in and buy on the cheap. A twofer is less human beings with rampant shootings.
If Lightfool is gone another filthy demicrat will take it’s place. There is no hope.
Probably not.
Walgreens’ in urban areas are built and remodeled mostly as wimdowless fortresses with more and more stuff behind locked cases, and much higher prices. They have a different operating mentality than walmart/target.
No-cash bail is for the entire state of Illinois, not just the city of chicago. It’s been delayed because of lawsuits, but that is probably a delay, not a repeal.
All of the candidates for Mayor promise lower crine, usually by increasing police coverage. But as long as the bad guys get out of jail right away, more cops and more arrests with no jail time means increasing the cost without lowering crime and violence.
Eventually the entire environment will collspse, but so far it just keeps going strong.
Ain’t that the truth.
No cash is catch and release not holding people with out bail
As a Walmart shareholder for over 30 years I applaud their move by closing stores where theft is prevalent. Why should the shareholders suffer the crime spree that goes on in democratic cities.
Walmart has a duty to their employees to have a safe store, they have a duty to the customers to have a safe store and to the shareholders to return a fair profit.
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