by Daniel Nardini
For the first half of this year, there has been a significant rise in crime in all categories in our major urban and suburban areas throughout the United States. For some reason, many “economists” cannot fully explain why. Perhaps they are not living like so many of us ordinary mortals who could explain it to them why there is a rise in burglaries, rapes, homicides and vandalism. From the person in the street (like myself), I can see the reasons why these things are happening on a regular and growing basis. Yes, the statistics are frightening—people in so many of our urban centers are experiencing crime at a growing rate with riots breaking out as well.
The reasons for it are not hard to find. From what I am seeing, we are entering a serious economic slowdown ( I will use the dirty “R” word recession). The jobs data is bearing this one out….lack of sufficient job growth. Second, those jobs that are out there are mostly part-time and poorly paying minimum wage jobs. This does not help to inspire our young people who are trying to make ends meet as it is. Third, many young people, especially African Americans and Latinos, are having it twice or three times harder finding work of any kind. Despite so many efforts at trying, the job situation for many—especially in poor and isolated communities in our inner cities—is bleak. This does not create for a good dynamic to put it bluntly.
Finally, the ever growing income inequality gap means that, as I said before, means there are more have-nots than affluent people. Needless to say have-nots will not only target places, homes, private and public places of the affluent, but of other have-nots as well. I am by no stretch of the imagination justifying crime under ANY conditions. I am as equally horrified by anyone willing and capable of committing violent as well as non-violent crimes that take away what other people have fairly and legally earned. I am simply explaining what is happening, and why I find this all scary. I have no confidence in a do-nothing Republican-led Congress nor in a president who only has a matter of months to go before he is out of office. Like so many other people, I can only watch in alarm as crime becomes a growing problem in these uncertain times.
Why the Crime Wave in Urbania?
by Daniel Nardini
For the first half of this year, there has been a significant rise in crime in all categories in our major urban and suburban areas throughout the United States. For some reason, many “economists” cannot fully explain why. Perhaps they are not living like so many of us ordinary mortals who could explain it to them why there is a rise in burglaries, rapes, homicides and vandalism. From the person in the street (like myself), I can see the reasons why these things are happening on a regular and growing basis. Yes, the statistics are frightening—people in so many of our urban centers are experiencing crime at a growing rate with riots breaking out as well.
The reasons for it are not hard to find. From what I am seeing, we are entering a serious economic slowdown ( I will use the dirty “R” word recession). The jobs data is bearing this one out….lack of sufficient job growth. Second, those jobs that are out there are mostly part-time and poorly paying minimum wage jobs. This does not help to inspire our young people who are trying to make ends meet as it is. Third, many young people, especially African Americans and Latinos, are having it twice or three times harder finding work of any kind. Despite so many efforts at trying, the job situation for many—especially in poor and isolated communities in our inner cities—is bleak. This does not create for a good dynamic to put it bluntly.
Finally, the ever growing income inequality gap means that, as I said before, means there are more have-nots than affluent people. Needless to say have-nots will not only target places, homes, private and public places of the affluent, but of other have-nots as well. I am by no stretch of the imagination justifying crime under ANY conditions. I am as equally horrified by anyone willing and capable of committing violent as well as non-violent crimes that take away what other people have fairly and legally earned. I am simply explaining what is happening, and why I find this all scary. I have no confidence in a do-nothing Republican-led Congress nor in a president who only has a matter of months to go before he is out of office. Like so many other people, I can only watch in alarm as crime becomes a growing problem in these uncertain times.