I live in Baltimore, Maryland.

At the moment, that is slightly more dangerous than being an American soldier in Afghanistan.

In Afganhistan, just over eighty US soldiers have been killed so far this year. In Baltimore, we're up to 215 murders in 2007.

Mostly though, no one pays it any mind. No mucky-muck politicians from nearby Washington, DC (45 minutes away) don flak jackets for well-publicized tours of our dangerous streets. No presidential candidates bemoan the casualties in emotional speeches. No national experts are dispatched with a hue and cry of horror at the crisis to assess its origins and offer solutions. We don't even get a fancy name for the wars waged on our streets, like "Operation Enduring Freedom."

Why is that?

Oh, yeah! That's because it's mostly just black kids killing each other here.

Even locally the complacency here is astounding. Are city pols marshaling everything they've got behind efforts to end the violence? Are citizens of Baltimore demanding new leadership to tackle this problem from all angles?

Apparently not. This week our sitting democratic mayor and city council president both won the primaries--and in a town that is 80 percent registered Democrats and hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1963 that's tantamount to victory. A mere 28 percent of eligible voters showed up at the polls.

Given the crisis in Baltimore's schools (where only 34 percent of students graduate) and the casualties in our streets--both massively complex problems that Baltimore shares with a slew of aging rust-belt cities across the country, including Detroit whose higher murder rate bumps us down to second in the nation--it was somewhat disheartening to discover today that the first order of business for Baltimore's victorious candidates was to vote in a handsome tax break for a new Legg Mason building.

But hey, that's business-as-usual in B'more, where marginally competent local pols will continue bumbling along in their feeble efforts to stanch the bloodshed in our apparently covert campaign, Operation Enduring Violence.

Comments (46)

1. Welcome aboard, Ms Houppert....

   now let me tell you where you screwed up and just gave two big ol' heaping piles of AMMUNITION to our friends on the Right....

   1. "I live in Baltimore, Maryland. At the moment, that is slightly more dangerous than being an American soldier in Afghanistan."

   Which means they can now say "See, you libs. More dangerous being in one of your urban enclaves than Afghanistan OR Iraq. Quit yer bitchin' about the casualties and car bombs"

   ((Again, NOT my argument...USC will make it if not some other Rightie!))

   and 2. "Are citizens of Baltimore demanding new leadership to tackle this problem from all angles?

   Apparently not. This week our sitting democratic mayor and city council president both won the primaries--and in a town that is 80 percent registered Democrats and hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1963 that's tantamount to victory. A mere 28 percent of eligible voters showed up at the polls."

   To which the obvious response will be "FORTY-FOUR years of solid Democratic rule...and see what you get???"

   ((Help me out guys on the Right if I missed anything???))

   Posted by Mask at 09/13/2007 @ 2:38pm

2. Karen,

   Are you suggesting that Republican rule of Baltimore will yield better results?

   I think the only change with Republicans would be more private prisons, more black kids in prison, more charter schools that most black kids cannot get into, and more gated communities to shelter the whites from all of those unpleasantries of living in a city.

   Making a buck off poverty and it consequences doesn't seem like a better alternative.

   Posted by Metteyya at 09/13/2007 @ 2:56pm

3. Glad I moved back to Spokane, WA!

   Posted by MATTMAN at 09/13/2007 @ 2:59pm

4. ...I missed anything???))

   Posted by MASK 09/13/2007 @ 2:38pm

   First to my fellow Righties: We MUST let MASK post more often.....he's MASKing good at pulling mis-directions by proclaiming "NOT my argument"!

   No, MASK, you didn't miss much but let me expand on it......What goes on in Baltimore today is the Enduring masochism of America's black population reared in father-less homes led by `Thick as a Brick' clowns like J. Jackson, Dingle, McKinney, Sheila J. Lee, Nagin, Sharpton, etc......

   Posted by Happy at 09/13/2007 @ 3:03pm

5. I can dig where you're coming from, Karen.

   I live in Philadelphia, the city of Brotherly Love and Put the Damned Gun Down.

   Every time I pick up my morning paper, I see some of the new wys that people have invented to kill each other here. We're closing in on our 300th murder....and it ain't even October yet. In fact, I had a friend tell me that he was probably safer on his trip to TelAviv than he would have been in Philly.

   I personally don't think that the city fathers here have done enough to try and solve the problem. But, although Mask is dead on about how our right-wing friends are going to react to your commentary, here's the problem that we have here in Philly.

   We have a Republican-controlled legislature in Harrisburg that's owned lock, stock and barrel by the NRA. Because of this, trying to do something radical like pass laws that would make it tougher for folks to buy guns as straw purchasers or otherwise regulate gun purchases is met with a stone wall that most prisons would appreciate.

   It's a bipartisan problem...let's hope that folks realize it and start solving the problem of street violence in a bipartisan way.

   Posted by edwriter at 09/13/2007 @ 3:05pm

6. I can dig where you're coming from, Karen.

   I live in Philadelphia, the city of Brotherly Love and Put the Damned Gun Down.

   Every time I pick up my morning paper, I see some of the new wys that people have invented to kill each other here. We're closing in on our 300th murder....and it ain't even October yet. In fact, I had a friend tell me that he was probably safer on his trip to TelAviv than he would have been in Philly.

   I personally don't think that the city fathers here have done enough to try and solve the problem. But, although Mask is dead on about how our right-wing friends are going to react to your commentary, here's the problem that we have here in Philly.

   We have a Republican-controlled legislature in Harrisburg that's owned lock, stock and barrel by the NRA. Because of this, trying to do something radical like pass laws that would make it tougher for folks to buy guns as straw purchasers or otherwise regulate gun purchases is met with a stone wall that most prisons would appreciate.

   I have my own theory on why that is. The folks in Harrisburg are privately hoping that the folks in my mostly black city just kill each other off. Since the state has already taken over the school district (which isn't doing much better than it was before the takeover), the convention center (ensuring more jobs for the city's Republicans) and the Parking Authority (whose windfall is supposed to mean more money for the schools bu it hasn't worked that way so far), they're hoping that they can get the rest of it...and more of the tax money it generates....when we're finally gone.

   It's a bipartisan problem...let's hope that folks realize it and start solving the problem of street violence in a bipartisan way.

   Posted by edwriter at 09/13/2007 @ 3:13pm

7. oops. Hit that twice. Didn't want to pull a Rese on y'all. Sorry.

   Posted by edwriter at 09/13/2007 @ 3:14pm

8. It's a bipartisan problem...let's hope that folks realize it and start solving the problem of street violence in a bipartisan way.

   Posted by EDWRITER 09/13/2007 @ 3:05pm

   I think you're right, though I'm skeptical of how much progress local leadership can really play in this national, cultural epidemic of violence. The roots to this problem may be econimic, going back generations when white society ghetoized black America with racist policy. Few will argue that progress has been made with racism, but obviously not enough, and though the roots may have been economic, I'm not naive enough to assume that an economic solution alone would suffice. There are so many cultural factors in play it will take years to unravel.

   It's like Iraq: a war that wasn't necessary in the first place and now that we're there, how do we find our way out?

   One thing is certain: there is a definite correlation between race and class, class and violent crime. And though I said that the economic solutin alone won't suffice, I think it is a good starting point. I won't be absolutist and suggest a classless, utopian society, as some hierarchy will inevitably exist. The key is management of that hierarchy with a humanist touch of social justice.

   Posted by MATTMAN at 09/13/2007 @ 3:19pm

9. It is important to remember that it's only safer for a heavily armed and well trained American troop to be in Afghanistan rather than in Baltimore.My guess is that those same troops would be much safer in Baltimore and would rather be in Baltimore.

   Posted by i'm nobody at 09/13/2007 @ 3:30pm

10. Posted by HAPPY 09/13/2007 @ 3:03pm

    Here's the flaws in the argument...

    1. We aren't propping up Baltimore with thousands of troops and HALF A TRILLION dollars.

    2. Plenty of "Republican enclaves" in the South are just as poor.

    Posted by Mask at 09/13/2007 @ 4:06pm

11. The failed and hypocritically unmentioned "War on Drugs" is, I think, THE major factor in these murders. Whether it's mafiosa style "turf" wars or internecine killings because of possessiveness of women and wheels, it's still all about coercive practices focused on "compliance." We need to broaden and deepen the "conversation" to recognize we must make "cooperation" with authorities an ideal. Right now, "the man" or "the system" is rightly seen as corrupt. "Just us." A truely new paradigm that incentivizes peaceful coexistence and recreation and music and joy in the public domain is sorely needed. When helping one homeless person to gain stability is valued more highly than ones home football team victory, we'll be correctly realigning our values/priorities. And please, I'm not suggesting depriving anyone of their athletic distractions. David Zirin's book speaks eloquently to this/these issues, by the way.

    Posted by lewwelge at 09/13/2007 @ 4:15pm

12. 1. We aren't propping up Baltimore with thousands of troops and HALF A TRILLION dollars.

    2. Plenty of "Republican enclaves" in the South are just as poor.

    Posted by MASK 09/13/2007 @ 4:06pm

    So, you are saying that WITH thousands of troops and mucho $$$, the Baltimoreans will be safer....I can agree to that....A Baltimore `Surge' for any troops withdrawn....good plan!

    Show me some GOP enclave in the South that are "just as poor" or murderous! We are talking cities, not states!

    Cities of Atlanta, San Antonio, New Orleans, El Paso, Ft. Worth....are NOT GOP enclaves......I'll be waiting!

    Posted by Happy at 09/13/2007 @ 4:18pm

13. Posted by HAPPY 09/13/2007 @ 4:18pm

    Well for poverty, how about the ENTIRE STATE of Mississippi?

    Posted by Mask at 09/13/2007 @ 4:41pm

14. Posted by HAPPY 09/13/2007 @ 4:18pm

    As for "murderous"....how about DALLAS, Texas, HAPPY?

    It has 1,315.7 iolent crime rate, of which 20.2 per 100K are homicides versus New York City (with a LARGER population) which has a rate of 687.4 and of which 7.0 per 100K are homicides.

    And Mayor Leppart is...of what political party?

    Posted by Mask at 09/13/2007 @ 4:47pm

15. Posted by LEWWELGE 09/13/2007 @ 4:15pm |

    A good point about the war on drugs. Yet another significant factor in our culture of violence.

    Posted by MATTMAN at 09/13/2007 @ 4:48pm

16. The War on Drugs is also a significant cause of fatherless families.

    As Alexander Cockburn has stated elsewhere, the only statistic that has consistently correlated with the crime rate over the years has been the unemployment rate. Unemployment up, crime up. Granted, the official unemployment rate remains relatively low, but the job creation numbers are anemic, the weakest of any "recovery" since World War II, and, according to the latest issue of Doug Henwood's excellent Left Business Observer, no one seems to know why so many people, especially women and young people, have stoppped looking for jobs and/or dropped out of the formal economy. They can't all be going back to school (on the one hand) or dealing drugs (on the other), can they?

    Posted by cka2nd at 09/13/2007 @ 4:57pm

17. And Mayor Leppart is...of what political party?

    Posted by MASK 09/13/2007 @ 4:47pm

    Partial credit....still failing, mind you...And New York hasn't had recent GOP mayor(s), right?

    Posted by Happy at 09/13/2007 @ 4:57pm

18. I'm doubtful that the war on drugs is THE major factor in the high murder rates in cities like Baltimore. I am curious though what research has been done to determine the role of drugs and/or the war on drugs in terms of statistical data.

    Posted by MATTMAN at 09/13/2007 @ 5:00pm

19. well, i'll let the experts talk for me:

    Gil Scott-Heron:Whitey On The Moon

    by Gil Scott-Heron

    A rat done bit my sister Nell With Whitey on the moon Her face and arms began to swell And Whitey's on the moon

    I can't pay no doctor bills But Whitey's on the moon Ten years from now I'll be paying still While whitey's on the moon

    You know, the man just upped my rent last night Cause whitey's on the moon No hot water, no toilets, no lights But whitey's on the moon

    I wonder why he's uppin' me? Cause whitey's on the moon? Well i was already given him fifty a week And now whitey's on the moon

    Taxes takin' my whole damn check The junkies make me a nervous wreck The price of food is goin up And if all that crap wasn't enough A rat done bit my sister nell With whitey on the moon

    Her face and arm began to swell And whitey's on the moon

    With all that money i made last year For whitey on the moon How come I ain't got no money here? Hmm, whitey's on the moon

    You know I just about had my fill Of whitey on the moon I think I'll send these doctor bills airmail special (To whitey on the moon)

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 5:21pm

20. Gil Scott-Heron: Gun

    by Gil Scott-Heron

    Brother man nowadays livin' in the ghetto Where the dangers sure enough real. Well when he's out late at night, and if he's got his head on right, Well, I lay you 9 to 5 he's walking with steel.

    Brother Man says he's 'fraid of gangsters Messing with people just for fun He don't want to be next. He got a family to protect. So just last week he bought himself a gun.

    Everybody got a pistol, everybody got a .45 And the philosophy seem to be, At least as near as I can see, When other folks give up theirs, I'll give up mine.

    This is a violent civilization; If civilization's where I am. Every channel that I stop on Got a different kind of cop on Killing them by the million for Uncle Sam.

    Saturday night just ain't that special. Yeah, I got the constitution on the run. 'Cause even though we've got the right To defend our home, to defend our life, Got to understand to get it in hand about the guns.

    Everybody's got a pistol. Everybody got a .45. The philosophy seems to be, At least as near as I can see, When other folks give up, I, I'll give up...

    Saturday night just ain't that special. Freedom to be afraid is all you want. Yes if you don't want to be next. You've got a family to protect. 9 out of 10, you've got a friend, you've got a gun.

    Everybody got a pistol. Everybody got a .45. And the philosophy seems to be, At least as near as I can see, When other folks give up theirs, I'll give up mine.

    Everybody got a pistol, this mosty be the NRA Yeah 'cause when it's time to line up You know damn well they're gonna shine up Everybody...

    And the philosophy seem to be At least as near as I can see, When other folks give up theirs, I'll give up mine.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 5:25pm

21. Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/13/2007 @ 5:25pm | ignore this person

    worthy.

    you do know what happened to Mr. Heron, don't you?

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/13/2007 @ 5:29pm

22. Gil Scott-Heron: Winter In America

    by Gil Scott-Heron

    Oh from the Indians who welcomed the pilgrims And to the buffaloes who once ruled the plains Like the vultures circling beneath the dark cloud Looking for the rain Looking for the rain

    Just like the cities that stagger on the coastline And a nation that just can't stand much more Like the forest buried beneath the highway Never had a chance to grow Never had a chance to grow

    And now it's winter Winter in America Yes and all of the healers have been killed Sent away, yeah But people know, people know It's winter Winter in America And ain't nobody fighting Cause nobody knows what to say Save your soul, Lord knows From Winter in America

    The Constitution A normal piece of paper With free society Struggled but they died in vain And now Democracy is ragtime on the corner Hoping for some rain It look like it hoping Hoping for some rain

    And I see the robins Perched in barren treetops They're watching last ditch races marching across the floor But just like the peace sign that vanished in our dreams Never had a chance to grow Never, had a chance to grow

    And now it's winter It's winter in America And all of the healers have been killed Or betrayed Yeah, but the people know, people know It's winter, Lord knows It's winter in America And ain't nobody fighting Cause nobody knows what to say Save your soul From winter in America

    And now it's winter Winter in America And all of the healers done been killed or sent away Yeah, and the people know, people know It's winter Winter in America And ain't nobody fighting Cause nobody knows what to say And ain't nobody fighting Cause nobody knows, nobody knows And ain't nobody fighting Cause nobody knows what to say

    NB nation staff: how about single space returns (please)?

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 5:30pm

23. you do know what happened to Mr. Heron, don't you?

    Posted by JOHANNESROLF 09/13/2007 @ 5:29pm

    is this what you mean?

    .....................He was paroled on May 23, 2007

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 5:35pm

24. in the old days in the south (before the civil rights movement triumphed) white authorities gave not a shit how many (you know whats) killed each other, as long as they didnt hurt whites.

    dont mean to self flagellate (i hate that) nor sound liberal-dippy, but "black people" were treated abominably in this country for over 3 centuries, and then treated each other abominably too...human nature sucks.

    but with one in every 6 kids born these days being of mixed race, gotta wonder when the entire paradigm shifts? how that effects things?

    i hate affirmative action but think i just made a powerful arguement for it...until the paradigm shift.

    Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/13/2007 @ 6:03pm

25. IBBLE, MASK

    just a final note here (just missed you guys)

    http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat/allcomments?pid=231554&rpg=3

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 6:20pm

26. is this what you mean?

    .....................He was paroled on May 23, 2007

    Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/13/2007 @ 5:35pm | ignore this person

    I did not know the details of Heron's legal troubles. what I was referring to was that he became a crack addled shell of a man.

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/13/2007 @ 6:27pm

27. Posted by LEWWELGE 09/13/2007 @ 4:15pm | ignore this person

    good point.

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/13/2007 @ 6:29pm

28. I did not know the details of Heron's legal troubles. what I was referring to was that he became a crack addled shell of a man.

    Posted by JOHANNESROLF 09/13/2007 @ 6:27pm

    once again qwiki to the rescue:

    i've seen it happen to many [en.wikipedia.org]

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 6:34pm

29. To obscure the facts It gets too abstract We could pursue this spat Go tit...for tat. And keep believing that absolutist equation. To argue this falacious It gets outrageous And it feels contagious You flip through the pages Your manuscript amazes me with its size (all lies). To you it's black and white This moralistic fight It could go on all night If we decide it might. Ad nauseum and ad miseracordian Ad nauseum and ad miseracordian But off topic this logic's Obviously obfuscated By a preponderance of nonsense Ad nauseum and ad miseracordian Ad nauseum and ad miseracordian Ad nauseum and ad miseracordian Ad nauseum and ad miseracordian

    Posted by MATTMAN at 09/13/2007 @ 7:21pm

30. Posted by HAPPY 09/13/2007 @ 4:57pm

    HAPP....you asked for Republican enclaves in the South that were murderous....I gave you Dallas (check it against many cities).

    You asked for more poverty...I gave you an ENTIRE STATE...Mississippi.

    You give out grades like one of those "liberal professors who flunk conservatives who challenge them". Gee...first a fiscal liberal, now a liberal academic? What next? A "cut and runner from Iraq"?

    Posted by Mask at 09/13/2007 @ 8:35pm

31. Posted by MASK 09/13/2007 @ 8:35pm

    we're getting to him

    ku-rrr-aa-aaaaaa-c-c-c-kkkkkkkkkkkk

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/13/2007 @ 9:26pm

32. Key fact: a "mere 28% of eligible voters" (otherwise known as the electorate) turned out for the recent municipal primary

    in Australia they use the stick; let's use the carrot -- $5 or $10 to vote, analogous to getting paid for doing your jury duty.

    what do you think would happen?

    Posted by robert beal at 09/13/2007 @ 11:40pm

33. what do you think would happen?

    Posted by ROBERT BEAL 09/13/2007 @ 11:40pm

    The democrats already do it in places like ST Louis...kept the polls open past the allowed time so all could get a ride to the polls, get in, vote, get a free meal and get a ride back home...an elector I know actually wanted to make sure his district had rides and a meal before going home...it took a federal judge to close the polls or they would still be voting...

    funny how the same people never need rides to other places or an free meal incentive...

    Posted by john maasch at 09/14/2007 @ 01:20am

34. Just do it the way that dead people vote....absentee.

    Posted by Sliver at 09/14/2007 @ 06:46am

35. That's how some inner-city districts get a 104% registered voter turnout. Sadaam would have been proud.

    Posted by Sliver at 09/14/2007 @ 06:48am

36. That's how some inner-city districts get a 104% registered voter turnout. Sadaam would have been proud.

    Posted by SLIVER 09/14/2007 @ 06:48am | ignore this person

    and you have proof of this, of course.

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/14/2007 @ 08:03am

37. That's how some inner-city districts get a 104% registered voter turnout. Sadaam would have been proud.

    Posted by SLIVER 09/14/2007 @ 06:48am

    well, it sure didn't seem that way in ohio in 2004 when (mostly black) people were allowed to vote. 'cept the machines didn't work, polling places were few, etc.,

    from qwiki:

    "Allegations of racial discrimination and other bias

    Some critics allege that the pattern of voter disenfranchisement is by design, having disproportionately affected racial minorities and/or urban precincts. For example, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights estimated that, in Florida in 2000, 54 percent of the ballots discarded as "spoiled" were cast by African Americans, who represented only 11 percent of the voters. [85] People for the American Way and the NAACP catalogued a number of voting problems with discriminatory impacts through early 2004.[86]

    The 2004 election continued the trend that African Americans were much more likely to vote for Democratic candidates. As a result, a disproportionate reduction in the African-American vote would tend to hurt Democratic candidates. BBC journalist Greg Palast, a self-described progressive, alleged that if the election had been conducted without improprieties, Kerry would have won the presidency. [87][88][89][90][91]

    Jesse Jackson remarked on Election Day: "Suppose 500 black folks came into a white neighborhood to challenge votes. It would be totally unacceptable. We will not surrender in the face of this madness." [92] [93].

    In August 2004, the NAACP and other civil rights leaders charged that the Republican Party was mounting a campaign to keep African Americans and other minority voters away from the polls in November.[94]"

    i can look for WAY more evidence if need be.

    BTW some electoral "advice" from the north:

    no need to register--proof of residence in a district + proof of citizenship (pre-election rolls are collected but if they miss you, you can still vote).

    then--enter booth--pick up pencil, yes pencil--mark paper--put in box--count papers.

    and that's how we do it UNIFORMLY across the country

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/14/2007 @ 08:27am

38. Listen to me, McNulty. You took a lot of risks. You played a lot of wild cards. And, you made a lot of fucking people do a lot of things they didn't want to do. You, McNulty are a gaping asshole. I know it, and I'll be fucked if everybody in CID didn't know it. But, I'll be also fucked if I let you sit here and think you did a single fucking thing to get a fucking police shot. Believe it or not, not everything is about you. Get it into your head McNulty it's not your fault. And the motherfucker telling you this, he fucking hates your guts. So, you know, that if it was your fault, I'd be the first son of a bitch to tell you. Shit went bad, she took two for the company. That's the only lesson here.

    Posted by badtimmay at 09/14/2007 @ 11:09am

39. you asked for Republican enclaves in the South that were murderous....I gave you Dallas (check it against many cities).

    You asked for more poverty...I gave you an ENTIRE STATE...Mississippi.

    Posted by MASK 09/13/2007 @ 8:35pm

    You assumed the Dallas of old.....like Houston, City of Dallas has been trending Dem....an update below, though it covers Dallas County, one can assume that inside city limits, Dem voters are even higher than the 55% for the county. What has happened to cities of Old America up north, is sort of happening down south except that Hispanics are in the mix...Since you brought a whole state into the `debate', shall we actually compare the murder rate of Mississippi vs. that of Baltimore? Another mis-direction, typically MASKian!

    Democratic trend forecast for Dallas

    Analysts say party could dominate county politics 'for years to come'

    12:12 AM CST on Thursday, November 9, 2006

    By GROMER JEFFERS JR. / The Dallas Morning News

    .....Judging from political trends that have been in place for eight years, Democrats could be the county's dominant political players for years to come.

    That's because the overall Democratic vote in Dallas County has been growing at an average of at least 2 percentage points since 1998.

    Political analysts say that when the next countywide elections occur in 2008, the Democratic vote could swell to an average of 55 percent of all the votes cast.

    That would mean Republicans, out of power for the first time in nearly 20 years, could be in store for a long period as the county's minority party.....

    Posted by Happy at 09/14/2007 @ 2:48pm

40. I am a product of Baltimore city schools. I even went to Baltimore City Community College. It was never this bad. Its all about the drugs. When you have shortchanged your police department to the point that your population KNOWS the police cannot protect them from drug dealers then the population stops cooperating with the police. The bad guys win because the police cannot get witnesses to come forward. All they have is the bodies on the streets. How do you fund a police force when your tax base keeps moving out? How do you attract more taxpayers with a horrible school system, dirty streets, unsafe living conditions etc. Its a catch 22 for sure. One answer is Casinos or Riverboat Gambling out of the inner harbor. Use the profits to OVER staff the police. Foot Patrols in EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD . Groups of 4 in a patrol if needed. As far as the schools , STOP passing children to the next grade who cannot perform grade level work. Stop blaming the teachers. In a school district where far too many of the childrens parents are drug addicted, that the children are even in school is a miracle. Hold the students untill they can do the grade level work at the grade they are in. Get them special help using the casino money.Maybe then they will not be so frustrated they quit once they are old enough. Every year you fail to educate 60 percent of your children is another years drain on your entire state and countries resources . Ask any educator how much learning is expected to happen at hone. 10 percent? 20? In a drug addicts home try none. Wonder why the children turn to gangs. drugs. dropout. Blaming Dems, Libs, Republicans does not fix anything. The fix will be costly both in money and time. It cannot be attacked in a single way. You have to reduce crime. Fight drug addiction. Boost shools ability to help the children without parental assistance. Provide decent jobs either through government job programs or taxbreaks to large companies to move into your area and hire people. And rest assured it will take more years than any one politition can serve. It is up to us to demand these things and not allow ourselves to be distracted by each elections promises of I have a new plan. It is our lives that are being destroyed.

    Posted by Classof75 at 09/14/2007 @ 3:52pm

41. Posted by CLASSOF75 09/14/2007 @ 3:52pm | ignore this person

    and the easy availability of guns has nothing to do with it?

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/14/2007 @ 6:36pm

42. conspicuous silence from a Baltimore resident, Chip.

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/14/2007 @ 7:19pm

43. Nope. I have had access to guns for 40 years and have shot no one. A gun is a tool. A thug can kill someone with a hammer. A rock, A knife, A rope, His or her fists. Think big picture. No easy fix. If you want to blame something blame apathy, blame ignorance, blame stupidity. Don't cop out with blame guns, or knives or underpaid teachers . Thats all the crap fed to you for re-election. It is not even a race issue so do not go there either. The violence is the way a frustrated child lashes out. Throwing a toy, hitting another child. With the modern experiment of do not paddle a child. No spankings. You can't punish a child. This is what you get. Children who have not been taught limits who grow into adults who do not recognize limits. Add to that a child raised on the streets because mom or dad or both have drug habits and the massive anger and frustration that person has even when they reach adulthood and you get the recipe thats destroying our citys. Our society always looks for something or someone to blame . Thats the easy fix. Remember, there is no easy fix. Think Long term expensive fix. These problems really didn't just occur when the teflon leprechan ( OMALLEY ) left Baltimore. They have been growing and festering for the last 40 years or more. It may well take 40 more to fix them. God help us all if we do not try because we will lose another generation we cannot afford to lose

    Posted by Classof75 at 09/14/2007 @ 7:20pm

44. Posted by CLASSOF75 09/14/2007 @ 7:20pm | ignore this person

    in no other country are guns as readily available as here. you are blind to reality.

    "With the modern experiment of do not paddle a child. No spankings. You can't punish a child. This is what you get."

    you have got to be kidding with this authoritarian crap. if I am proud of anything, I am proud of the fact that my son, who is 16 now, has never been struck. something which was definitely not the case when I was growing up. spanking is assault.

    the violent kids are mostly from violent homes, and have been subject to violence themselves as children.

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/14/2007 @ 10:39pm

45. Class, hit return twice once in a while to improve readability.

    Posted by johannesrolf at 09/14/2007 @ 10:40pm

46. You are blind. If we have so many guns available and so few of us use them illegaly then we are doing very well indeed. We have lots of rocks too. So when a punk kid throws a rock through your windshield blinding you or killing you do you outlaw rocks or do you punish the actions that someone took with the rock?

    Congrats on a child who has never been spanked. But has he ever NEEDED a spanking or are you one of the parents whose little Johnny can do no wrong so he never gets corrected .If he never NEEDED one then you are truley blessed. Even DR. Spock reversed his opinion on spankings. Spanking your own children is parenting. Spanking someone elses is assault. Using a belt or a ruler or a paddle is abuse.

    I have intervened and told a group of kids to stop doing something they should not be doing. The kids, 8 to 11 years old told me to " F**koff and mind my own business " . I went to the parents of each of them and got the My son wouldn't say that, or do that crap. Twice more this happened when their activities got worse and worse. Now they are adults. They have all four been in jail. One still is. One is dead from a drug overdose even though My little Johnny wouldn't use drugs. All the parents are stunned and do not understand how their little Johnnies turned out so bad. They comment on how lucky I am that mine are on the Deans list and are never in trouble. Maybe until mine were old enough to choose their own way I didn't give then a chance to go wrong. Been there, done that ,own the T Shirt. (My dad was a city policeman in the 50's 60's etc).

    In a Game preserve,I believe in Kenya, They had a major problem with Adolescent Male elephants running wild. Having sex too young. Tearing up the preserve with their general misbehavior. They checked their documents and found the problems started when they shipped out all the old, fully mature bull elephants. The got 2 old bulls back and the problems soon abated. Interesting isn't it.

    Posted by Classof75 at 09/16/2007 @ 7:01pm