Things are going to get much worse before they get better in our big cities. Chicago police officers caught in roiling mess of fear, shock, anger — and hesitation
Cops “are disgusted with the spectrum of every profound decision made under stress being parsed and analyzed to death,” a police source said. “And, yes, there is talk of standing back instead of risking their family’s future on an honest mistake of a moment.”
I think the big cities, because Chicago is not alone in this, are going to discover what happens when you don't insist on ANY enforcement of the rule of law. Worse than they have now. Or in other words, "How low can you go?"
“They’ve been working 12-hour days with no days off for weeks, maybe a month due to soaring crime; eight fatalities every weekend, 50 shot, a city out of control and in a downward spiral,” the source said.
“The cops are being held accountable, probably to 15 agencies, but nobody seems to be calling the politicians to be held accountable ... or anyone in this s- - -storm,” the source added.
Shooting and murder are increasing at alarming rates, carjacking is out of control. And what is the City Council spending time on? Renaming Lake Shore Drive, because that is the most critical issue facing the city at this time.
It really was a magnificent city, once upon a time.
I lived and worked in Chicago for two years back in the mid 70s. It was a beautiful, vibrant city in those days. Daley was a tyrant but the city worked. I can’t imagine a reason to ever go there again.
ReplyDeleteI went to college in Chicago, and then after a few years in Silicon Valley, I lived and worked there in the mid-to-late 1980s and into the early 1990s.
DeleteLunch? A dozen places within walking distance. After work? If you were going to take a later train, we could cab to anywhere.
I would use my train pass to take a Saturday train into the city at least once a month. Have breakfast at a place that still hand-rolled bagels in the traditional way, spend the morning at the Art Institute (I was a member back then), and still have time to get things done in the afternoon, to be ready to go out with friends in the evening.
The last time I was in the city - before the current wave of crime started rising - the cost to park my car in a city lot, close to the Art Institute as about $20 per hour. I didn't park, I didn't stay, and I haven't been back. Add in the likelihood of being carjacked, robbed, shot or killed, and I agree with you.