Posted on 08/07/2023 7:07:15 AM PDT by SJackson
For several years, Portland was the pinnacle of artistic community. Its oddball style appealed to many and drew thousands to the city. There was even a comedy series, Portlandia, that celebrated its diversity.
But…those days are gone. And you can blame anyone that supported the “defund the police” campaign.
A new report from Fox News reveals that the city, which was one the “crown jewel of the West Coast,” has now fallen into hard times, mainly due to rising crime within the communities.
In fact, police data shows that crime has dramatically increased over that of other states – including Chicago and New York.
Speaking with Fox News, Washington County District Attorney Kevin Barton explained, “Each area has different challenges, but what we’re seeing in the metro area is absolutely rising crime.”
Spread across Multnomah County, Washington County and Clackamas County, the crime has reached astronomical levels, forcing both citizens and businesses to flee elsewhere.
“The increases that we’re seeing are nothing like the increases that we’re seeing in our neighbors,” Barton explained.
“What’s happening is with our de-carceration and elimination of bail culture, we’ve got all these people running around,” Kristin Olson, a trial attorney and host of the Rational in Portland podcast, added. “And it’s really scary because we also have this anti-police culture.”
So how did it come to this? It’s simple – Portland succumbed to those rioters that believed defunding the police would be the answer.
You may recall this heinous campaign that launched in 2020, following the death of George Floyd. Thousands got the insane idea that taking funding away from the police would be the definitive answer for his death, and would make this nation great.
But what happened from the fallout of that? Thousands of officers have left their jobs, either by retirement, simply being tired of their job or, in some extreme cases, suicide; millions of dollars have gone into other campaigns that have since failed to launch off the ground; and some politicians have become jaded, still believing that police officers are the problem even as their cities erupt into criminal chaos.
The biggest thing, however? The rise in criminal activity. It’s ravaged a lot of cities over the past couple of years, including Denver, Los Angeles and several others. And yet, these politicians still don’t have an answer when the clear one is sitting right in front of their faces – restore the police budget.
Oregon State Police data made it very clear that crime is increasing due to a lower police presence, with an increase over nine percent compared to the previous year.
So…why aren’t city officials doing anything about it? Because they refuse to admit that they’re wrong. They refuse to admit that “defunding the police” was the incorrect answer. Even as their Portland-based businesses fall apart and citizens move away for greener pastures, towards people that actually care about them.
It doesn’t help that President Biden is twiddling his thumbs as well. A while back – sorry, a long while back – he vowed to “fund the police” with a new campaign, after months of supporting “defund the police.” But you might notice that there’s been nothing introduced to Congress or the Senate, despite the best efforts of our Republicans to get something going. (You can thank the middling Democrats who still believe in “defunding the police” for that.)
Something needs to be done. Someone in the Biden administration (or perhaps someone who actually cares about what’s happening) needs to take a closer look at Portland and let it serve as an example of what will happen to these states if they don’t give the police the proper support they deserve. Otherwise, I fear where the next turn in this country will take. Imagine every city ending up the way that Portland is. Scary thought, isn’t it?
My heart goes out to the police working in the streets of Portland, as well as the citizens and businesses that continue to support them. They’re fighting a good fight when the people that can actually get anything done refuse to. And that has to be the most frustrating aspect of all.
Michael Letts is the Founder, President, and CEO of InVest USA, a national grassroots non-profit organization that is helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs. He also has over 30 years of law enforcement experience under his belt, hence his pro-police stance for his brothers and sisters in blue.
What's missing is drugs. Sorry.
“How’s that for a start?”
All good but it’s just too politically incorrect to crack down on them because blah blah blah. Not only do we not crack down — we give them financial support.
We don’t need more prisons, we just need to whack the worst offenders to make room for the new ones. It would make potential offenders think twice before committing crimes.
They could eventually get “recycled” to fertilizer if crime kept increasing and they were moved to the top of the list.
Only semi sarc...
Can they be charged with leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident? LOL.
Where did you get a picture of my ex? I thought we’d completely scrubbed the web.
“...the people who enable this dysfunction are far removed from it”
Yes. Victor D Hanson makes this point repeatedly. He always rails about the bicoastal elites living in their exclusive enclaves that never have to see or experience this societal collapse. That is certainly true of Congress.
But, at the city level, the mayors and city council members must experience and feel the carnage they wrought. Several big city mayors (including Wheeler in Portland) have had protesters show up at their houses. But nothing changes at the city level.
“bring back compulsory prisoner chain gangs to clean up the sides of the highways”
Absolutely right. Of course, a lot of this would end if we reopened the mental hospitals and put crazy loons away involuntarily again. I’m always amazed at the liberal argument that the mental hospitals were inhumane. No matter how inhumane the hospitals were, they were NOTHING compared to the inhumane treatment of drug addicts and crazy people living on the streets. Assume, for a minute, that the “humane treatment” on the streets and in the hospitals was exactly the same. Aren’t the hospitals a much better option because they keep the crazy people off the streets, keep them from stealing and robbing to feed their drug habit, and people get food, a room, health care, and mental treatment.
Nothing will change until the mental hospitals are reopened and we can involuntarily commit crazy people.
Yes, “Homelessness” has become a HUGE business. Lots of people will lose their livelihoods if that business ends.
It’s the same with global warming / climate change — it is a HUGE industry now.
Crime must be seriously underreported in Portland for several reasons. One, the police don't do much policing and don't respond to low-level crimes, so no report is filed and no statistic is generated. Two, people don't report many crimes because they don't want to oppress marginalized people by getting them arrested. So it's a two-way street. Police can't/don't do their job and people don't report crimes. Which means actual crime rates are nowhere near being reflected in crime stats.
Heck, if they can hide behind their guards and gates at the city level...they still might be insulated.
OTOH, if they have their car hijacked with their children in the back, or have bullets come through their front window, that might give them the full experience I suppose!
As soon as some crappy town dumps off their homeless and meth heads, we should bus them to LA, Oakland, and Portland. At least they wont freeze or melt there.
But everybody looks good because the published crime rate is so low!
It was never like portrayed in the “good old days”. In the late 1970’s, crime was over there. Surely not over here. It was referred to as compass points. SW SE NE NW, people could tell you what it was like by your neighborhood, just like everywhere.
MANY waited TOO LONG.
CANNOT find buyers for their properties—STUCK THERE.
IF THEY do try to move-—they have no equity to move forward with.
Welcome to another democrat utopia.
Remember, police are the problem, criminals are the victims, elections matter.
Fifty or sixty years ago maybe, now, not a chance.
““Homelessness” has become a HUGE business.”
Other than skimming tax money, how is it a moneymaking proposition?
What livelihoods profit from addicts and drunks living in boxes on sidewalks.
All the advocates for the homeless and the huge number of organizations catering to the needs of the homeless. Here's one market research report that captures just a fraction of the "industry." See that $20 BILLION number? It goes to a lot more than just the homeless, but I'd bet at least half of it goes to the homeless. And there are many more services for the homeless probably totaling another $20 billion to $40 billion.
Community Housing & Homeless Shelters Industry in the US - Market Research Report
Community housing and homeless shelter revenue has grown at a CAGR of 3.1% to $19.6 billion over the past five years.
This industry provides a variety of community housing services, including short-term emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or child abuse; temporary residential shelter for the homeless, runaway youths and parents and families caught in medical crises; transitional housing and assisted living for low-income individuals and families; and volunteer construction or repair of low-cost housing.
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