More Insight Into Baltimore's Crime Problems

[Pilgrim]

There are many who don't find that wonderful Republican leadership making paradise of Kansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, and even Texas...

As long as you see everything through liberal blinders you see only a narrow view but believe it's the whole picture.

The liberal talking points don't seem to rely too heavily on facts when it comes to quality of life in these various states. They fail to realize for instance, that TX is listed #2 on Money-Rates.com's best/worst states to make a living in 2014 - and that's up from #4 last year. BTW, KS is #19 and WI is #24. Only LA at #27 isn't in the top 25. Even MD (#14) recently elected a Republican governor.

http://www.money-rates.com/research-center/best-states-to-make-a-living/2014-complete-list.htm

More interesting facts ignored by the liberal template: in the Money-Rates Best States evaluation, the Top 15 states have FIVE Democrat governors; the bottom 15 states have FIVE Republican governors.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_current_United_States_governors

Since the election of Barack Hussein Obama with his drive to "fundamentally transform" our country to the European socialist model the voters' trend has definitely been drifting to the right in the vast majority of the states. Arkansas' Republicans just won control of their legislature for the first time since the Civil War. WI and MI - both blue states and long dominated by unions - have recently passed right to work laws.

For Democrat paradise we only have to look at Detroit, Chicago and Baltimore as prime examples.

 

[muttly]

More like a gangster paradise.

 

[Turtle]

In Minneapolis, Blacks and Indians Nearly 9 times more likely to be arrested for petty crimes.

 

[cheri1122]

The liberal talking points don't seem to rely too heavily on facts when it comes to quality of life in these various states. They fail to realize for instance, that TX is listed #2 on Money-Rates.com's best/worst states to make a living in 2014 - and that's up from #4 last year. BTW, KS is #19 and WI is #24. Only LA at #27 isn't in the top 25. Even MD (#14) recently elected a Republican governor.

Money-Rates.Com is undoubtedly relying on the availability of oilfield jobs, that pay well, but offer a less than enviable quality of life. Or highly technical jobs, which the average person isn't qualified for.
[ I just read a dozen 'Letters to the Editor" in the Houston Chronicle, and none of those people [not a single one!] were pleased with the quality of life or the political leadership in Texas, lol.]
Both KS and Wi are facing humongous budget shortfalls, specifically because their Republican governors followed the Republican plan and cut taxes. How great is a citizen's quality of life [and their offspring's education] when the state has to cut services to make up for those tax cuts?

http://www.money-rates.com/research-center/best-states-to-make-a-living/2014-complete-list.htm

More interesting facts ignored by the liberal template: in the Money-Rates Best States evaluation, the Top 15 states have FIVE Democrat governors; the bottom 15 states have FIVE Republican governors.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_current_United_States_governors

Since the election of Barack Hussein Obama with his drive to "fundamentally transform" our country to the European socialist model the voters' trend has definitely been drifting to the right in the vast majority of the states. Arkansas' Republicans just won control of their legislature for the first time since the Civil War. WI and MI - both blue states and long dominated by unions - have recently passed right to work laws.

That's really odd, since the voters have generally become more liberal. On second thought, it's not odd, it's called gerrymandering and other kinds of election fraud and forms of chicanery and sketchy manuevers that disregard the voters' wishes.
As was Walker's win on "Right to Work" [for as little as possible] - it was heavily financed by the Koch Bros, as it's a concept that's dear to their hearts, and they liked Walker's 'tude. Let's see how many people like it if he runs for POTUS, eh?

For Democrat paradise we only have to look at Detroit, Chicago and Baltimore as prime examples.

The cited cities have real problems, that go far beyond Democrat/Republican platforms, but I agree that when Dems are in charge, somebody needs to be watching for corruption.
For quality of life, "best place to make a living" is not one size fits all, as Money-Rates apparently thinks. An interesting fact ignored by conservative templates: there is more to life than "making a killing" - I mean: a living.

 

[LDB]

The cited cities have real problems that are in large part due to decades of exclusively democrat platforms. Some of the problem is due to republican platforms although that is a much smaller segment since it has been decades since their presence to any degree. There are many "best place" reports that include far more than "making a killing" or any other liberal jab. Some even exclude making a living altogether, presuming and being directed only to retirees.

 

[golfournut]

There are many who don't find that wonderful Republican leadership making paradise of Kansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, and even Texas. Both parties are capable of astonishing stupidity.
As long as you see everything through partisan blinders, you see only a narrow view, but believe it's the whole picture.

Texas has been republican longer than I been alive. Occasionally a Democrat gets in there but that gets rectified real quick.

I'm not sure what problems your referring to in Texas, but it is and has been for some time the #1 fiscally sound state in the union and the #1 in jobs.

The problem is the liberal butt heads moving in from California wanting to screw it up like they screwed up California.

Then you have the yankees moving there since the late 70s. They don't typically last tho. To hot for them. Can't stand the heat! That's why we don't have you alls union bs.

No partisan blinders here. Liberal dems ain't welcome in Texas. Stay out. Go screw up your own state.

 

[cheri1122]

Texas has been republican longer than I been alive. Occasionally a Democrat gets in there but that gets rectified real quick.

I'm not sure what problems your referring to in Texas, but it is and has been for some time the #1 fiscally sound state in the union and the #1 in jobs.

The problem is the liberal butt heads moving in from California wanting to screw it up like they screwed up California.

Then you have the yankees moving there since the late 70s. They don't typically last tho. To hot for them. Can't stand the heat! That's why we don't have you alls union bs.

No partisan blinders here. Liberal dems ain't welcome in Texas. Stay out. Go screw up your own state.

Liberal dems aint welcome, but they seem to be just fine with:

Teaching abstinence only [or abstinence stressed] sex education. Which has proven to lead to:
Very high rates of teen pregnancies. Which generally leads to:
The highest rate [along with California] of children in poverty. More than Mississippi, and the poorest Appalachian areas. CHILDREN, mind you.

A high school dropout rate that was appalling, until the courts ordered remediation, after which the rate dropped amazingly fast. Except the rate of grads going on to college didn't rise, as one would expect, nor did the rate of grads getting employment. One suspects some 'creative bookkeeping' involved in the sudden improvement of the rates, but not the prospects of the 'graduates'. [If you need to improve the official statistics, just change the criteria: problem solved.] That's the way you do it - when you're sketchy.
Many of the jobs in Texas are of the dangerous kind [in the petrochemical industry], but new Governor Abbott won't let residents know where dangerous chemicals are kept [lack of knowledge was part of the high death toll at the West fertilizer plant explosion]. He suggests if residents want to know where they are, they should "go to the places and ask" - seriously, you can't even make this stuff up! Read: http://blog.chron.com/texaspolitics...ease-of-chemical-data-with-aiding-terrorists/
Governor Abbott also doesn't care if women have access to health care and family planning, or whether poor people have health care, he cares about enticing businesses to come to Texas. They don't have to worry about all those pesky health & safety regs, or the annoying unions, or paying decent wages, or much in taxes either, because: screw the people, it's about the press conferences announcing "Jobs!"

 

[cheri1122]

The cited cities have real problems that are in large part due to decades of exclusively democrat platforms. Some of the problem is due to republican platforms although that is a much smaller segment since it has been decades since their presence to any degree. There are many "best place" reports that include far more than "making a killing" or any other liberal jab. Some even exclude making a living altogether, presuming and being directed only to retirees.

The "best place to live" is like the "best" carrier: it depends upon what criteria you use, ie: what matters most. What you call a "liberal jab" was a perfectly natural and reasonable response to what the site Money-Rates.com puts front & center.
Some people care about things like education, transportation, culture, medical care, public greenspace, recreation, etc.

 

[Turtle]

I gotta tell ya, Pilgrim, when I first read it, my thought was, "Citing a capitalist pig Web site to a liberal in order to refute liberal taking points, isn't gonna work at all."

A liberal's eyes will just glaze over to the point where "best place to make a living" actually looks like "best place to live." They will ignore the criteria the Web site put front and center (working conditions and compensation, because you know, those things imply that you would be, you know, like, working) and instead make it about what they want to talk about, like all the stuff you can get without having to work. The very notion that you need to work in order to earn a living is preposterous.

 

[aristotle]

The high school dropout rate in Texas might be connected to the hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants flooding into Texas schools. Poor, illiterate children from Mexico and other Central American countries would face real hurdles in completing a high school education in the US.

In 2011, my wife took a 90 day assignment in Eagle Pass, TX to help establish new protocols for nurses at Fort Duncan Hospital where approximately 80% of the patients spoke Spanish only. Many of these patients were Mexican nationals who crossed over the border and walked into the emergency room for treatment. In these cases, the hospital almost always got stiffed on the bill. The hospital made one interpreter available. They were in dire need of bilingual nurses and staff. The failure of immigrants to learn rudimentary English caused enormous difficulties. The failure, even refusal, to learn English and make attempts to assimilate will continue to harm progress for adults and children alike. How can a 15 year-old Mexican child show up in Texas expecting to complete high school when English language skills are resisted or nonexistent? It's not the fault of Texas.

 

[cheri1122]

I gotta tell ya, Pilgrim, when I first read it, my thought was, "Citing a capitalist pig Web site to a liberal in order to refute liberal taking points, isn't gonna work at all."

A liberal's eyes will just glaze over to the point where "best place to make a living" actually looks like "best place to live." They will ignore the criteria the Web site put front and center (working conditions and compensation, because you know, those things imply that you would be, you know, like, working) and instead make it about what they want to talk about, like all the stuff you can get without having to work. The very notion that you need to work in order to earn a living is preposterous.

What's the point of making a living, if the life you enable isn't bearable? Seriously, how many people care solely about working conditions, without giving a damn about living conditions? And how representative are they of normal people, who, like, want to enjoy the life they're working to provide, when they're off work?

 

[cheri1122]

The high school dropout rate in Texas might be connected to the hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants flooding into Texas schools. Poor, illiterate children from Mexico and other Central American countries would face real hurdles in completing a high school education in the US.

In 2011, my wife took a 90 day assignment in Eagle Pass, TX to help establish new protocols for nurses at Fort Duncan Hospital where approximately 80% of the patients spoke Spanish only. Many of these patients were Mexican nationals who crossed over the border and walked into the emergency room for treatment. In these cases, the hospital almost always got stiffed on the bill. The hospital made one interpreter available. They were in dire need of bilingual nurses and staff. The failure of immigrants to learn rudimentary English caused enormous difficulties. The failure, even refusal, to learn English and make attempts to assimilate will continue to harm progress for adults and children alike. How can a 15 year-old Mexican child show up in Texas expecting to complete high school when English language skills are resisted or nonexistent? It's not the fault of Texas.

Could be - there's definitely a problem with illegal immigrants. As I've said before: if we can't control the borders, why have them? We may be a destination, but uninvited 'guests' need to be discouraged. I don't know what the answer is for those already here, [shipping them back is an exercise in futility], but we need to regain control of the entries. And I think the practice of automatic citizenship needs to end too, it only encourages more 'anchor babies'.
I understand the problem of non English speaking patients, from my own experience - it's seriously frustrating.

 

[Turtle]

What's the point of making a living, if the life you enable isn't bearable? Seriously, how many people care solely about working conditions, without giving a **** about living conditions?

I'm thinking there's no point in making a living if life is unbearable. But then again, if you're making a living, then by definition it can't be unbearable, as making a living literally means making enough money to support yourself. And since making a living includes living conditions in the concept of day very few people care solely about working conditions without giving a **** about living conditions.

And how representative are they of normal people, who, like, want to enjoy the life they're working to provide, when they're off work?

I'd say VERY. (Unless, by normal, you mean those who don't work at all, which, I a agree, it's becoming the new normal). The 'best place to earn a living" takes into account not only working conditions (based on the "Work Environment" component of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index), but also on the employment rate (are others in the community also employed?), the average salary (do the jobs pay well?), and the cost of living (will you make enough to enjoy life outside of work?).

 

[JohnWC]

Lol I've moved to new Mexico lol I like their way of doing things better but if I still could work in a plant I would move to Texas the problem is us Americans no longer wanting to work unless it pays 30 dollars a hour so wet backs will be sneaking in here until we decide that working for a living means you got to work

 

[golfournut]

Liberal dems aint welcome, but they seem to be just fine with:

Teaching abstinence only [or abstinence stressed] sex education. Which has proven to lead to:
Very high rates of teen pregnancies. Which generally leads to:
The highest rate [along with California] of children in poverty. More than Mississippi, and the poorest Appalachian areas. CHILDREN, mind you.

A high school dropout rate that was appalling, until the courts ordered remediation, after which the rate dropped amazingly fast. Except the rate of grads going on to college didn't rise, as one would expect, nor did the rate of grads getting employment. One suspects some 'creative bookkeeping' involved in the sudden improvement of the rates, but not the prospects of the 'graduates'. [If you need to improve the official statistics, just change the criteria: problem solved.] That's the way you do it - when you're sketchy.
Many of the jobs in Texas are of the dangerous kind [in the petrochemical industry], but new Governor Abbott won't let residents know where dangerous chemicals are kept [lack of knowledge was part of the high death toll at the West fertilizer plant explosion]. He suggests if residents want to know where they are, they should "go to the places and ask" - seriously, you can't even make this stuff up! Read: http://blog.chron.com/texaspolitics...ease-of-chemical-data-with-aiding-terrorists/
Governor Abbott also doesn't care if women have access to health care and family planning, or whether poor people have health care, he cares about enticing businesses to come to Texas. They don't have to worry about all those pesky health & safety regs, or the annoying unions, or paying decent wages, or much in taxes either, because: screw the people, it's about the press conferences announcing "Jobs!"

Like all states, we have some issues. We don't need the liberal dems telling us how to fix them especially since they screw everything up they touch.
Now if some smart sane thinking people want to help, we'll listen. But if you're Robin Hood, prepare to be ousted.

Jobs is where its at. That's the problem liberal dems haven't figured out yet. They just want to pay for folks to sit home. You want a hand out in Texas, good luck free loader.

 

[golfournut]

By the way, petrochemical jobs have been around since oil was discovered. The Texas Railroad Commission does just fine on regulating.
Ya see, in Texas, unlike places like California, New York and Illinois to name a few, is a business friendly environment. We don't make regulations for the sake of regulating. We work and TALK with businesses to solve problems. A lesson the rest of the country can learn from.

 

[LDB]

You want high school graduates? Legitimate graduates? Step 1. Go back to phonics and the "old" math and the rest of the teaching methods and programs 50 years ago. You know, the ones that actually worked and worked well. 2. Eliminate any of the "alphabet" test that do nothing except show how well or poorly a year was wasted teaching for that test. 3. Test regularly and continuously as they did 50 years ago with legitimate tests that covered the last week or so of material plus finals. 4. Require legitimate passing grades for promotion. No social promotion. Use red ink. No NEA foolishness about "hurt feelings". 5. No diploma, no drivers license. Graduations through the roof.

 

[Pilgrim]

I gotta tell ya, Pilgrim, when I first read it, my thought was, "Citing a capitalist pig Web site to a liberal in order to refute liberal taking points, isn't gonna work at all."

A liberal's eyes will just glaze over to the point where "best place to make a living" actually looks like "best place to live." They will ignore the criteria the Web site put front and center (working conditions and compensation, because you know, those things imply that you would be, you know, like, working) and instead make it about what they want to talk about, like all the stuff you can get without having to work. The very notion that you need to work in order to earn a living is preposterous.

Considering the liberal criteria and the entitlement mentality it creates, Hawaii is the "best place to live". No need to worry about "making a killing" at your job in order to enjoy life, because you don't have to work at all. Think about it: living in a Pacific paradise where the govt pays you the equivalent of $60K per year to do nothing but be happy.

...since welfare isn’t taxed, a person would have to earn $60,590 in Hawaii to take home the same $49,175 a person on welfare would.

http://www.hawaiireporter.com/it-pa...idents-receive-highest-welfare-benefits-in-us

 

[Ragman]

You want high school graduates? Legitimate graduates? Step 1. Go back to phonics and the "old" math and the rest of the teaching methods and programs 50 years ago. You know, the ones that actually worked and worked well. 2. Eliminate any of the "alphabet" test that do nothing except show how well or poorly a year was wasted teaching for that test. 3. Test regularly and continuously as they did 50 years ago with legitimate tests that covered the last week or so of material plus finals. 4. Require legitimate passing grades for promotion. No social promotion. Use red ink. No NEA foolishness about "hurt feelings". 5. No diploma, no drivers license. Graduations through the roof.

Yeah, I agree.

 

[cheri1122]

Like all states, we have some issues. We don't need the liberal dems telling us how to fix them especially since they screw everything up they touch.
Now if some smart sane thinking people want to help, we'll listen. But if you're Robin Hood, prepare to be ousted.

Jobs is where its at. That's the problem liberal dems haven't figured out yet. They just want to pay for folks to sit home. You want a hand out in Texas, good luck free loader.

Compared to most of you, I'm liberal, and so is virtually everyone I know well. And guess what? We all work for a living, and expect that everyone else should, too. We do not "want to pay for folks to sit home" - that's just nucking futs.
OTOH, we don't like the way the value of labor is degraded, while those whose 'contribution' consists of raking in stupid amounts of money for things like whatever they do on Wall Street are considered superior, because: obviously.
"Labor" has become a commodity, treated as such, and the ways in which it has been [artificially] devalued and consciously degraded over the past decades include:

Limiting wage growth
Outsourcing work/jobs
Union busting
Moving jobs to 'right to work' states, and/or overseas
Increasing part time jobs
Not compensating productivity gains [to labor - management is compensated]
Shifting costs [health care, pensions] to workers
Classifying workers as Independent Contractors [even sex trade/porn workers!]
Increasing unpaid internships
Temporary/agency workers
Reductions in force due to mergers & acquisitions

Abraham Lincoln said:
"Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed, if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration."

Somehow, that's gotten completely turned upside down, and where it will end is worrisome. What is happening in Baltimore, Ferguson, and other places should be a wake up call: the poor [which increasingly includes working class people and even veterans & active service people, for Gawdsakes!] can be manipulated and mistreated for just so long, and then there will be a backlash. And it will be ugly.