The ridiculous violence in N.O. (4 Viewers)

[CHI-TOWNSAINT]

Since I've been reading your posts, I've always assumed you lived in Chicago.

I get your point though. I live in B.R. now and the crime is out of control here too. Murder in broad daylight, murder everyday and getting closer and closer to our neighborhood. The for sale signs are everywhere around us.

I regularly second guess my decision about moving back here. I kinda wish I would have bought a place in the boonies.

When I signed up I lived in Chicago. Moved back 9 years ago.

Ditto about the Boonies. Luckily I live in a decent neighborhood, but if wifey didn't work so close to home now and love the convenience of it, I'd move out to the North Covington/Folsom area.

 

[bornnraisedwhodat]

Therein lies the rub. If people just give up and leave, it exacerbates an already bad situation. When you add up all the people doing what you did, it's no wonder things are getting worse. People want to leave cuz the crime is so bad, but would stay if it were better, but leaving only makes things worse.

There's no good solution without people committing to the city and stay to make a difference.

It's a tough Catch-22 situation. I understand you and others leaving, but I see the downside of giving up on the city too. What to do? I think the lack of leadership and integrity in the government and police of the city makes it that much harder. The citizens of the city needs to hold their leaders accountable.

Oh man, so true. And you cant blame people for wanting to raise their family in a better place. Not everybody has the time to be a reformer.

 

[bornnraisedwhodat]

Baton Rouge has crime, but the way it's set up it's different.

You know where to go and where not to go in Baton Rouge. You can go your whole life in BR without having to go on the North side, or southside even.

In new orleans, it's such a checker board. Central City, where all the blood is being spilled is only blocks away from St. Charles, where you have million dollar mansions. Iberville Projects are steps away from the cities Central business and tourism district. Holygrove is right there by golf courses and beautiful houses. You cant get away from it in N.O.

 

[gboudx]

This right here. The value of life is almost non existent. I cant figure out the route cause.

.....

And, as you said, good old family and moral values are gone. I see kids talk back to their parents, dog cuss teachers, curse in front of adults in public. They just dont care.

There probably isn't a singular root cause to this. It could be the constant imagery of death and crime on TV, video games, etc that creates a numbing effect. I'm sure the lack of a support system at home and in the family is part of it. It could also be a general lack of community, where people would rather keep to themselves than get to know each other. How many of us text and send emails more than we call and speak to people? My hand is raised. I'm as guilty as anyone.

As for the brats of today, it's rampant. I feel like my generation is failing when it comes to raising kids to be respectful and decent. I see it all the time with my boys friends. The friends think nothing of not only talking back to their own parents, but to me and my wife too. We have to tell the 9 yr old next door that they way he speaks to us will not be tolerated in our home. And if he doesn't like it, he is free to leave and not come over. And the general, "gotta have it now" and sense of entitlement. Geez, some parents make it tough for the rest of us to be parents.

 

[krushing]

The problem here is that the same residents would rise up in massive protest if a policeman accidently shot a teenage shoplifter for mistaking a motion that he was going for a gun, or a neighborhood watch guy that shot someone, probabably/possibly out of self defence, but remain silent when folks in their own neighbors are gunning down 5 year old girls and shooting 10 year old boys in the face. If large groups of law abiding citizens would come togather and patrol neighborhoods with the help of police, this mess would move on out of their neighborhoods. This can be stopped, but folks in these neighborhoods have to get off their couches and help police take back their neighborhoods. If not, the police will just try to contain it within those neighborhoods and more and more children will die.

 

[RazorOye]

I do think a lack of education has more to do with the loss of our kids to crime than poverty, and some of that lack of education can be linked to bad schools in poor areas.

I don't get this - maybe you can elaborate?

You think it has less to do with poverty, but then the example you cite are poor schools in poor areas.

in a larger sense, i guess I'm having trouble seeing where poverty ends and crime begins - to the extent anyone can say, with certainty, it's one or the other.

I think it's social critical mass of all sorts of influences. Certainly including poverty and crime.

I also agree that education is the key.

Which is a major reason why the attitudes toward education - whether by the drug dealers or our equivocating politicians - bother me so much. WIth a good education, these kids have a better chance.

All of the lamenting about parenting - or lack thereof - is also valid. But there's nothing we can do about that. We can't really control parenting. But we can control education.

That's why I think it's more important to focus on education and supporting related socioeducational policies as opposed to trying to legislate parenting.

 

[Sun Wukong]

There probably isn't a singular root cause to this. It could be the constant imagery of death and crime on TV, video games, etc that creates a numbing effect. I'm sure the lack of a support system at home and in the family is part of it. It could also be a general lack of community, where people would rather keep to themselves than get to know each other. How many of us text and send emails more than we call and speak to people? My hand is raised. I'm as guilty as anyone.

As for the brats of today, it's rampant. I feel like my generation is failing when it comes to raising kids to be respectful and decent. I see it all the time with my boys friends. The friends think nothing of not only talking back to their own parents, but to me and my wife too. We have to tell the 9 yr old next door that they way he speaks to us will not be tolerated in our home. And if he doesn't like it, he is free to leave and not come over. And the general, "gotta have it now" and sense of entitlement. Geez, some parents make it tough for the rest of us to be parents.

Re: children, it's a cumulative thing that started with the boomer generation. They were raised softer and more entitled than any previous generation in this nation's history. Then they did it to their kids (Generation X) who were even worse than they were in that regard. Gen X did the same to the Millenials, except worse. The Millenials are arguably the most rotten generation of kids this nation has ever seen. If the trend holds, their kids will be even more awful.

As to violence, I think certain segments of society (mostly the uneducated and impoverished) are regressing socially in a profound way. I hesitate to use the word barbarian because of the many connotations of the word, but when you see these people casually killing each other and not thinking twice about it, it absolutely evokes the casual brutality of the viking age.

 

[You]

All of you wanting to sit around and mull the root problem can mull til the cows come home. The murders are not going to slow down while you contemplate it.

Short term action is needed now if they want to keep the residents that are productive.

 

[Firecross]

This is probably going to be a VERY unpopular post but its just how I feel.

I don't go into the city, the only time you will find me in the city of New Orleans is:

1. Brothers friend can't make a home saints game and I end up with his ticket for the game, bro and I go together to catch the game. I caught the Bears game last season.

2. Special occasion, fathers birthday we went to the D.Day museum which was amazing and ate at superior grill after.

I am never going into the City of New Orleans just for the sake of going, it is too dangerous, crime is out of control at all hours of the day. I want the city to do well, don't get me wrong, I don't wish any ill-will but I rather stay out of the place unless a special occasion comes along.

Most of my friends range from early to late 30's and guess what? most of them have moved out to the Folsom area to get away from the madness that is New Orleans and the surrounding areas. I don't need to go get blasted drunk in the french quarter when I can go walk 5 minutes up the road to a bar in my neighborhood and get smashed knowing there is a 95% chance I won't have any negative run ins with people.

I used to walk at night in old metairie during my 199lb weight loss and I would get stopped by cops despite walking in well-lit areas and carrying a jug of water. One time I got finger printed because it just happened to be a night where I left my I.D at home when the cops stopped me. I see why people are moving away at an alarming rate now, it is getting to the point where it's just not worth putting up with anymore.

 

[DaveXA]

I don't wish any ill-will but I rather stay out of the place unless a special occasion comes along.

I've already addressed this, but IMO is worth repeating. As long as this is the prevailing attitude about New Orleans, nothing will change.

 

[DaveXA]

I don't get this - maybe you can elaborate?

You think it has less to do with poverty, but then the example you cite are poor schools in poor areas.

in a larger sense, i guess I'm having trouble seeing where poverty ends and crime begins - to the extent anyone can say, with certainty, it's one or the other.

I think it's social critical mass of all sorts of influences. Certainly including poverty and crime.

I also agree that education is the key.

Which is a major reason why the attitudes toward education - whether by the drug dealers or our equivocating politicians - bother me so much. WIth a good education, these kids have a better chance.

All of the lamenting about parenting - or lack thereof - is also valid. But there's nothing we can do about that. We can't really control parenting. But we can control education.

That's why I think it's more important to focus on education and supporting related socioeducational policies as opposed to trying to legislate parenting.

Oh, I agree education is important. But education and parenting go hand in hand. While parenting can't be legislated, it can be influenced by aspects of public policy and with PSAs IMO.

I think education is a larger and more critical issue than poverty. While it's true that education is often worse in poorer areas, it's not necessarily one leading to another. Some poor areas have good performing schools because the teachers care more.

Put it this way, education has a bigger impact on how people turn out than poverty, and parenting has a bigger impact than education. Employment is also a large factor and I think is somewhere between education and parenting. Keeping people busy is probably the most effective thing because they'd often otherwise would be thinking of ways to make money regardless of how they get it.

 

[St. Geezy]

- poor eduction system
- teenage pregnancy
- knuckleheads raising knuckleheads
- social deviant genetics
- lack of religion/moral values taught at an early age
- growing up in an environment where thousands didn't have to work hard for the things they have so they look for easy ways out with government handouts (which in turn, creates a sense of entitlement)
- that darn rap music, which glorifies a life of crime and the rewards of it (I'm guilty of listening to rap myself ,pretty much everyday actually, but not everyone can seperate real life from the music world)

 

[bornnraisedwhodat]

I don't get this - maybe you can elaborate?

You think it has less to do with poverty, but then the example you cite are poor schools in poor areas.

in a larger sense, i guess I'm having trouble seeing where poverty ends and crime begins - to the extent anyone can say, with certainty, it's one or the other.

I think it's social critical mass of all sorts of influences. Certainly including poverty and crime.

I also agree that education is the key.

Which is a major reason why the attitudes toward education - whether by the drug dealers or our equivocating politicians - bother me so much. WIth a good education, these kids have a better chance.

All of the lamenting about parenting - or lack thereof - is also valid. But there's nothing we can do about that. We can't really control parenting. But we can control education.

That's why I think it's more important to focus on education and supporting related socioeducational policies as opposed to trying to legislate parenting.

But still in all, even with education, parenting has to be there.

Parents have to enforce the schools discipline, have to make sure the kids are doing their homeworks, and have to be there to keep them on the str8 and narrow. Now adays, Parent teacher conferences resimble more Parent vs Teacher throw downs. Parents are quick to blame the teacher for their child's failures.

I was lucky to have parents who made sure my homework was done, and who valued an education. They made me feel ashamed if I didnt do good in school.

So many parents today dont even go and pick up their childrens report cards.

Its true, we can control parenting, but without it, all is lost. It's a key component to this whole thing. You could have the best teachers in the world, but if education isnt valued in your household then it wont be a primary focus.

 

[iron error]

Parents, schools, community service,...etc., etc.

It all comes down to teaching morals to young people. What baseline for what is considered proper behavior are we working with?

Do we live in a moral society? How is that lived out and modeled by adults and passed on to the next generation, if at all?

 

[Bayouboy]

I've already addressed this, but IMO is worth repeating. As long as this is the prevailing attitude about New Orleans, nothing will change.

A positive attitude about a problem will not correct it. "Wishing" things were better will not actually make them better!!! Actions people, actions. It all starts with parenting IMO.