Posted on 04/19/2023 9:57:52 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
It was another weekend of violence and disorder in Chicago. "At least 32 shot, 8 fatally, in weekend violence across city," read one headline on the WLS-TV news website. Another headline said, "15 arrested in connection with Loop chaos after 2 teens shot." That story went on to report that a "large disturbance" -- more accurately, a small riot -- took place in the city's downtown area. Videos of the incident showed crowds of young people jumping on cars and buses. Later, at least one person pulled out a gun.
It was, in other words, just another weekend in Chicago. Except now, the city has a new mayor-elect who will be sworn in on May 15 after an election that turned on the issue of crime. "Chicago mayor's race dominated by concerns about city crime," read an Associated Press headline in late February. It was a fight between Democrats -- Republicans don't have a chance in deepest-blue Chicago -- and the question was who best can pull the city out of its crime crisis. Candidate Paul Vallas, with the endorsement of the police union, based his campaign on one principle: "We've got to restore public safety. Everything proceeds from that."
Opponent Brandon Johnson, a Cook County commissioner and former teacher's union organizer, was on the "defund the police" left. Johnson later claimed he never supported the idea of defunding the police, but on a Chicago radio appearance, he talked about "our effort and our move to redirect and defund the amount of money that is spent in policing." And as a county commissioner, Johnson wrote a resolution to "redirect funds from policing and incarceration to public services not administered by law enforcement that promote community health and safety equitably."
The election was April 4. The voters had a clear choice: Elect a new mayor who would be tougher on crime, or elect a new mayor who would be more lenient on crime. They chose the more lenient candidate. In a fairly narrow contest, Johnson prevailed with 52.1% of the vote to Vallas' 47.9%.
It seemed baffling. There were analyses in the press trying to explain why Chicagoans had made such a choice. The New York Times talked to a Johnson voter who called Vallas "a Republican in disguise." Several other voters expressed concern that Vallas was a "closet Republican," that he wasn't a real Democrat. Speaking to voters at polling sites, several said they "were largely swayed by a sense that Mr. Johnson was the true progressive in the race."
So there was a reason. In a heavily Democratic city, a progressive Democrat city, it didn't really matter which candidate might more effectively reduce crime. It was which candidate was on our team. And on that, Johnson won.
So now there is the recent weekend. It should be noted that Johnson is not the mayor yet, but he reacted in a way that suggested that when he does become mayor, he will not crack down on the rampant crime seen across the city in the last few days. Here is his statement:
In no way do I condone the destructive activity we saw in the Loop and lakefront this weekend. It is unacceptable and has no place in our city. However, it is not constructive to demonize youth who have otherwise been starved of opportunities in their own communities. Our city must work together to create spaces for youth to gather safely and responsibly, under adult guidance and supervision, to ensure that every part of our city remains welcome for both residents and visitors. This is one aspect of my comprehensive approach to improve public safety and make Chicago livable for everyone.
Johnson's statement was carefully worded. He does not condone the violence and disorder. It is unacceptable and has no place in Chicago. But then came the big however. The violence and disorder is no reason to "demonize" youth -- the perpetrators of the violence and disorder -- when the real work should involve creating "spaces" for them to gather safely and responsibly.
Meanwhile, Chicago's already terrible crime rate is becoming more terrible. According to the Chicago Police Department, every crime except murder is up from last year, which was up from the year before, which was up from the year before. Stolen cars are up 135% this year from the same period in 2022. Theft is up 22%. Robbery is up 15%. Burglary is up 6%. Aggravated battery is up 4%. Criminal sexual assault is up 2%.. The only crime that is down is murder, which is down 17% from the same period in 2022. That's some improvement, but it should be noted that those statistics do not include the most recent week and weekend, which will surely make the numbers worse.
Johnson's reaction to the recent violence -- don't "demonize" criminals, create safe spaces for them -- will surely frustrate those who see stronger law enforcement as the way to address Chicago's crime crisis. But it is precisely what Johnson campaigned on, and precisely what Chicago voters chose. If more bad things happen in the future, the city's voters will know who to blame: themselves.
Keep voting Democrat you idiots.
When the criminally inclined are allowed to vote ...
Chicago, being completely controlled by Democrats, chooses their leaders by committee, damn the voters.
A huge number of democrats vote the way they do, because they know no better and have fear of the unknown, therefore, they vote what they know, and know not what they didn’t vote for.
A lot of them grow up being democrats, and would not vote differently even if they could be convinced that the way they continue voting is not helping them and never will. That’s what the democratic party counts on.
An example of why the Founders were suspicious of democracy and why the electoral college should remain.
Corrupt cities are like that. The reason is an assumption that a member of Our Team will bring home the goodies and that a member of Their Team won't. There is no honest way to accomplish that.
Chicago was basically a rerun of the Los Angeles election. Voters had a clear choice and a majority said they wanted more of the same.
Everyone needs to understand that Chicago’s “crime” is mostly confined to black residential neighborhoods in the South and West
It only makes news when the yutes show up on in the Loop and Michigan Ave.
Nothing needs to change. Why would it?
Blacks in Chicago will keep voting for the political machine like sheep. Just keep the handouts and feel-good aggrievement coming.
Keep voting Democrat you idiots.
~~~
It may be idiotic, but it’s fully intentional.
I no longer subscribe to the belief that they are accidentally killing their own cities. It’s with full forethought that they vote this way and comit all the self-destructive acts that they do.
It used to be you could travel to Chicago. I’ve been there once as a tourist. Downtown shopping, north side by the river, millennial park, the loop and magnificent mile. As long as you didn’t break down on the south side or west side, you were good. Now they specifically riot there. It’s not good enough to destroy the neighborhoods. They are targeting the touristy, commercial, and money making areas.
If they can get the whole city to fail and degrade into anarchy and you have police no-go zones, wait and see if it flushes out who ends up controlling the streets.
RE: Everyone needs to understand that Chicago’s “crime” is mostly confined to black residential neighborhoods in the South and West
How significant in terms of influencing the outcome of the Mayoral election are the votes from the South and West of the City?
Note who has the t-shirts that have NO RULES on them then you know the voter.
Just another chocolate city going the way of all chocolate cities.
Chicago voters stated interests were less crime, safer streets, and better schools. In that order. They lost on all three, so I don't buy it.
Fool me once shame on you....
Fool me 10 times...shame on me....
Reality is white voters dont care if the Niggahs kill themselves off.
WARNING TO ALL FREEPERS WH
WHO’RE FOOLLISHLY PLANNING TO DRIVE TO OR THOUGH SHITCAGO AND ARE LEGALLY CARRYING:
DON’T GO THROUGH OR NEAR SHITCAGO!!!
If some perpetual criminal tries to carjack you and you shoot, the vermin, the new mayor and the criminal loving and assisting Cook County State’s Attorney, Kim Foxx, will persecute (yes, persecute, not prosecute) you to the fullest extent of Illinois “law.” I’m a retired lawyer, licensed in Illinois in 1967, who lived and practiced in Chicago from 1967 through the middle of 1971, and now, and happily live and have lived in Knoxville, TN since the middle of 1987. I know whereof I speak.
RE: Reality is white voters dont care if the Niggahs kill themselves off.
So you’re saying that’s the reason why they vote for Mayors whose policy it is to decrease the black population by attrition?
But then why do the blacks do it en masse? Are they committing collective suicide?
OK, let’s try to think like a Chicago voter for whom “black” and “Democrat” are the two sine qua non for deciding on which candidate receives a vote.
There are 2.7 million people in Chicago. Last year there were 695 murders in Chicago. This means that about 2,699,305 people in Chicago did not get murdered; you had about a 1 in 3900 chance of being killed.
To use an analogous statistic, there are about 350,000,000 people in the US. The number of murders for 2021 was 22,941. This means that about 349,977,059 people in the US were not murdered; you had a 1 in 15,000 chance of being murdered, roughly about one-fourth the chance of being murdered specifically in Chicago.
So, the price in blood of having a Black Democrat running your city is that of every 4000 or so people, one will be murdered and the rest will live to vote for another Black Democrat. Unless that one in 4000 happens to be you or someone you care about, in which case it sucks to be you, then you’re living just the way you want to.
Let’s face it, Chicago had a choice between a somewhat less radical white man and a radical black man. It came down to a racial choice, the blacks turned out to vote for the black radical, and the virtue-signaling white people still in Chicago voted for the black radical as well.
I haven’t seen very many admitting it was a racial election.
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