Author: pvbella

In response to the latest fire, Cappleman is continuing to ask the city to use “evidence-based, best practices that [have] a compassionate approach to addressing encampments while also focusing on producing results of removing encampments from areas that can prove to be dangerous to both those experiencing homelessness and other residents in the area,” said Maggie Gaecke, Cappleman’s chief of staff. (Block Club Chicago/Emphasis mine)

James Cappleman is waging his years-long war against the homeless camps in his ward. He wants them gone. The recent fires- of undetermined nature– have fueled his hatred of the homeless population. Another fire tore through the underpass at Lawrence Avenue and DuSable Lake Shore Drive encampment last week.

With gentrification in full swing and new developments near the lakefront, Cappleman wants the blight of homelessness removed. It is a good bet those developers and the landlords are not happy about their high rent-paying tenants and condo owners seeing homeless camps.

First, there are no “evidence-based” best practices regarding homelessness. “Evidence-based” is propaganda. It is used to convince citizens there exist peer-reviewed studies that prove “evidence-based practices” work. It gives academic cachet to bull droppings. If there were “evidence-based” solutions, there would not be so many homeless people in our major cities.

Cappleman has no solutions except get rid of the homeless- the Final Solution. Out of sight, out of mind. The park and lakefront belong to the residents and incoming gentry in Uptown. Cappleman thinks he is smarter, cleverer, slyer, and sneakier than anyone else.

Lightfoot’s office is said to be considering actions including forming a task force to look at the issue of incendiary devices like propane tanks in tent cities and considering an ordinance that would fine those giving propane to encampment residents, Cappleman previously said. (Block Club Chicago)

Mayor Lori Lightfoot might be caving into Cappleman’s cruelty by proposing an ordinance to fine people donating propane to the homeless camp. There is no indication propane caused the fires. Once again, the fires were deemed undetermined. How about if she refuses any zoning changes, demolition permits, and building permits in Uptown until extensive multi-disciplinary services and transitional housing are built. Why not offer some of the homeless city or Chicago Park District jobs?

Cappleman has no credibility on homeless issues in the park, lakefront, or the city. From day one, he wanted the homeless gone from the lakefront park. Now, with more gentrified redevelopment, he wants them gone yesterday. He will do or say anything to rid what he considers human blight from HIS lakefront and parks.

There are larger homeless camps in Chicago. There is a mega camp just south and west of the Loop. None of the other alderpersons are so adamant about removing those camps. None are getting their mugs in the news like Cappleman. None are trying to stop compassionate citizens from helping the homeless. Only Cappleman is against them. Only Cappleman is the expert. Only Cappleman is the legend in his own mind.

Some people from all walks of life go to the camps and other areas where the homeless live to provide food, toiletries, and medical/dental /mental health services to the homeless. They are heroes. They are compassionate. Others, some with means, contribute money or goods to their causes. If it were up to Cappleman, he would ban these activities as they supposedly encourage homelessness.

Cappleman has no humanity. One could question if he is even f**king human.

“Eat at a local restaurant tonight. Get the cream sauce. Have a cold pint at 4 o’clock in a mostly empty bar. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Listen to someone you think may have nothing in common with you. Order the steak rare. Eat an oyster. Have a Negroni. Have two. Be open to a world where you may not understand or agree with the person next to you, but have a drink with them anyways. Eat slowly. Tip your server. Check in on your friends. Check in on yourself. Enjoy the ride.” (Anthony Bourdain)

Anthony Bourdain had what can be described as the best job in the world. He traveled the world, ate incredible food, from haute cuisine to humble home-cooked fare and street food. It is reported he traveled almost 300 days a year.  

Bourdain left behind a massive body of work- books, articles, programs, speeches, interviews, and appearances. The above quote is powerful if you read it a few times and give it some thought. He wrote or said variations of the quote several times.

We spend our lives in cycles of happiness and joy, anger and angst, peace, pain, pleasure, and turmoil. COVID exasperated our emotions. We worry too much. It seems everything angers us lately, and there is plenty to be angry about. Reading the news is enough to give one a case of apoplexy.

We spend too much time staring at screens, toiling for pay, taking care of our families, or doing mundane chores in our spare time. Our lives get complicated because we allow it.

Life is not complicated. What Bourdain is telling us is to seek enjoyment. Enjoy life. Smell the f**king roses. No matter what storms you face, do enjoyable things. Be a little adventurous. Meet new people. Try new things.

We live in angry times. Too many believe the world is on fire. The news media drives narratives to anger us purposely. We are easily gulled into thinking the worst about everything. There is plenty to be angry about. There is plenty to be sorrowful about. There is also plenty to be joyful about.

We concern ourselves with too many things we have no control over. Occasionally we need to turn the world off and enjoy life. Go for a long walk, sit in the park, eat a good meal- from a great sandwich to fine dining- whatever it is you enjoy or want to try eating. Turn off the world and read that book, gathering dust on the shelf or wasting space on your Ereader. Take a short road trip. Walk on a beach. Turn everything off and listen to music- sing along or play air guitar or drums. Visit a museum. Do something different.

Happiness, sadness, anger, calm, etc., are conditional. Enjoyment is conditional too, but it is a conditional choice. In our overwork, anger, angst, or whatever, we all think, “Gee, if I had the time…” Make the time. “Hearses do not have luggage racks.” (Zig Ziglar) The trip is one way.

Life is too short not to squeeze some enjoyment out of it. Ignore all the noise and seek some solace. Occasionally you owe it to yourself to take pleasure in what life has to offer.

We get too wrapped up in our careers, chores, news, social media, families, and many other things. The more wrapped up we get, the more our world shrinks. We live in bubbles we create.

Get out and live a little now and then. Enjoy something new. When you return to your routine, being pissed off at the world will be less stressful.

The mayor also hit back at campaign rivals who have called for the termination of police Superintendent David Brown, saying he’s the right man for the job, and violent crime has decreased from quarter-century highs in 2021. Four of her five rivals for mayor have called for Brown’s ouster, to which Lightfoot scoffed, “Spoken like people who don’t know anything about public safety.” (Chicago Tribune/Emphasis mine)

The only people who do not know about public safety in Chicago are Lightfoot and Superintendent of Police David Brown. David Brown is an abject failure as a police superintendent. There is no other way to put it. Every one of his plans, strategies, and deployments failed. Yet, Lori Lightfoot stands by her man. Failure is success in her eyes.

Since Mayor Lightfoot was elected, over 12,000 people have been shot. Over 2000 were killed by firearms. That is data you can believe in. 12,000 people are roughly the size of a neighborhood or ward. Some of her opponents campaigning against her are criticizing her public safety record.

Lightfoot’s response? “Haters are gonna hate. Haters are going to hate.” Is Lightfoot channeling her inner teenager? Tarring legitimate criticism as hatred is despicable. Lightfoot proved her critics right. She is divisive.

Lightfoot’s campaign pin perfectly represents her first term, a comic. Her three years in office have been a comic strip, like her pin. One could wonder where that smoke is really blowing out from. No mayor in my lifetime would tolerate this type of public safety failure. Heads would roll throughout the police department’s command structure and keep rolling until the numbers were driven down.

The Chicago Police Department is in disarray. Morale is low. Manpower is down. Though they are taking record numbers of firearms off the streets, shootings, and homicides by guns are daily occurrences. Armed carjackings and robberies are a daily occurrence. Illegal firearms flowing into Chicago are a large part of the alternative criminal economy.

Some neighborhood groups hired or are considering hiring private security companies to patrol their streets. That is an ominous harbinger for Lightfoot. People do not trust her to keep their neighborhoods safe.

The data and analytics the police department provides and the media eagerly reports are meaningless. The data is not an indicator of anything. Perception is reality. People do not feel safe. City Hall is doing nothing to change that perception.

The streets are not safe. The Els are not safe. Parks are not safe. The beaches pose a threat. People, especially children, are not safe in their homes. Lori Lightfoot’s successes are overshadowed by the dark clouds of her failure in keeping the city safe from violent crime.

One of Lightfoot’s many mistakes was quitting her criticism of Kim Foxx over her failing “progressive” non-prosecution policies. Lightfoot publicly demonstrated cowardice. Mayors are not supposed to be cowards.

Contrary to what Lightfoot claims, change is not hard. It only requires deciding and acting on the decision. Words are meaningless without action. Mayor Lightfoot’s words are empty.

“After a bitter, monthslong campaign, District Attorney Chesa Boudin has been recalled by San Francisco voters. As of 11 p.m. Tuesday night, “yes” on the recall is leading “no” 60% to 40%” (SFGATE)

People in San Francisco, fed up with crime and Chesa Boudin’s “progressive” policies, said enough is enough. San Franciscans were fed up with open criminality and a lack of prosecutions. It is ironic because San Francisco is probably the most progressive big city in the country.

San Francisco put the people in Cook County and Chicago to shame. While we do not have recall provisions here. Kim Foxx was reelected to pursue her failing “progressive” policies. There is no hue and cry from the public for her to change. Failure is accepted here.

As I have written before, unproven theories and ideas that sound good do not always translate into good policy. When policies fail, they should be changed. Unfortunately, in Chicago and Cook County, change is profanity.

We are stuck with Kim Foxx for a while. If her mentor, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, is reelected, Foxx will be empowered to keep failing.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced she is running for reelection. She claims she wants to continue fighting for change.

 “Change doesn’t happen without a fight. It’s hard. It takes time. And, I’ll be the first to admit I’m just not the most patient person. I’m only human, and I guess sometimes it shows. But just because some may not always like my delivery doesn’t mean we’re not delivering.” (Chicago Tribune)

The questions are, who is she fighting for, and what change is she talking about? What has she delivered? For two years, Chicago has experienced an epidemic of violent crime. Her Superintendent of Police, David Brown, is an abject failure. He keeps spinning his plans, strategies, and deployments that are not keeping the citizens of this city safe. The police department is overworked, understaffed, and demoralized. He should have been fired long ago for his woeful record.

“It’s time that the reign of criminals who are destroying our city, it is time for it to come to an end,” and, “It comes to an end when we take the steps to be more aggressive with law enforcement … and less tolerant of all the bulls—t that has destroyed our city.” (SF Mayor London Breed/SFGATE)

Progressive San Francisco mayor, London Breed, realized Boudin’s progressive prosecution policies failed her city and demanded change. She listened to her constituents’ pleas. Lori Lightfoot surrendered to Toni Preckwinkle and Kim Foxx. In pugilistic terms, she threw the fight. She listens to no one.

Lightfoot endorsed Kim Foxx for reelection even though Foxx, through her failing policies, is indirectly one of the drivers of violent crime in Chicago. Some alderpersons say Lightfoot deserves to be reelected. No one deserves election or reelection. Public office is not an award or participation trophy. It is not a right. Reelection must be earned.

Alderman Alderwoman Susan Sadlowski Garza said it best:

“I have never met anybody who has managed to piss off every single person they come in contact with — police, fire, teachers, aldermen, businesses, manufacturing.” (Chicago Tribune)

Lightfoot has not earned reelection. She failed to keep Chicago safe. City finances are still a mess. Lightfoot is not fighting for the people. She is fighting for herself.

“We shouldn’t be locking up nonviolent individuals just because they can’t afford to pay bail. But, given the exacting standards that the state’s attorney has for charging a case, which is proof beyond a reasonable doubt, when those charges are brought, these people are guilty,” Lightfoot said. (Chicago Tribune)

Lori Lightfoot is a candidate to join the Politicians of Walmart(POWs). Geez, a statement like that coming from an attorney and former federal prosecutor is beyond dumb. It is mind-boggling.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot does not think before she speaks, a symptom of Foot in Mouth Disease. She embarrassed herself and gave the people backing the failing criminal justice reform policies more ammunition to push their irresponsible agenda.

Lightfoot lost what little credibility she had over public safety. She is now a walking talking joke. How can she be taken seriously?

Lightfoot is supposed to announce her reelection bid this week. She should reconsider. Everyone I talk to is disgusted with her. Many say f**k Lightfoot when her name is mentioned.

Since May 27, when Lightfoot announced the Summer of Joy, 126 people have been shot. 103 were wounded, and 23 were shot and killed. Year to date, 1291 people have been shot. 240 were shot and killed. (HeyJackass*) Some joy. Chicago has the distinction of being the nation’s largest shooting gallery.

The so-called criminal justice reform policies are failing. Kim Foxx’s over “exacting” charging policies are failing. The court system is failing. Lightfoot is right to call those failures out. It should be done intelligently, not by a blatant ignorant statement. She threw red meat at those promoting these failing policies. She turned wrong into right by shooting from the lip.

The real issue plaguing Chicago is terrible policies based on unproven theories. Many theoretical policy ideas sound good, fair, equitable, warm, fuzzy, and cozy. Theories do not necessarily translate into workable policy. In the case of supposed criminal justice reform, the theories are not working. The public is not safe. People are being victimized and killed in every neighborhood in the city.

Cook County is responsible for the prosecution and trials of criminals. Cook County government is failing the people of Chicago. Elected officials know that the average person/voter does not know how the criminal justice system is supposed to work. They play off that ignorance to keep failing policies in place.

The police are the only part of the criminal justice system that is working. Contrary to what Kim Foxx claims, the police are not her partners. Partnership is a two-way street. Kim Foxx is a one-way dead-end street.

It is past time to end these supposed reforms. They are failing. They were based on unproven theories. If something is not working, intelligent people make corrections. Politicians rarely make corrections.

The Summer of Joy is just beginning. The number of people becoming victims of various violent crimes will rise drastically with the heat. Lori Lightfoot is floundering in the public safety area. Making dumb comments further damages her credibility and does not inspire confidence in her leadership.

*HeyJackass is the most accurate site for violent crime data. Their figures change as they receive new data.

“Another day, another man who thinks he can do this job better than me,” Lightfoot said. (Chicago Tribune)

Southside alderman Rodrick Sawyer threw his hat in the ring to run for mayor of Chicago. Mayor Lori Lightfoot was asked about his candidacy. She made the above comment.

It is apparent that Mayor Lori Lightfoot is a sexist, misandrist, and far from woke. Her toxic femininity was on full display. She suffers from foot in mouth disease, a condition unique to Chicago politicians. There is no cure or vaccine. Social distancing and masking will not prevent it.

Geez, does this mayor think before she flaps her soup coolers? What era is she living in? Do we need a men’s liberation movement to fight off female supremacy and matriarchy? By the way, if she has the biggest d**k in Chicago, what is her actual gender?

Why can she insult males and get away with it? Why didn’t the media scorch her over that comment? Oh, yeah, they are the PR weasels for City Hall. Lightfoot can do no wrong. She is a “historic” mayor. She must be protected, even from herself.

Maybe someone should tell Lightfoot that anyone, man, woman, or whatever gender, can do a better job than her. She is an abject failure. If you look up disaster in the dictionary, Lightfoot would be the first definition.

There is no public safety in Chicago. Every neighborhood has the potential for violence and death. Every one of us is a potential victim. City finances are a mess. City employee pensions are in trouble. The schools are a mess. Over the past two years, parents pulled 25,000 students out of the Chicago Public School System. The only thing that helped Chicago was the COVID bailouts. Nothing is working in Chicago. Not one damn thing.

Lightfoot has no solutions. She has no allies. Her supposed coalition in the City Council is fragile. She does not know how to play well with others. Lightfoot, unlike other mayors, has no power or power base. Lightfoot is all about Lightfoot.

She does not care about the city, the people, the City Council, or anything else. After Lightfoot, everyone else comes first. She is isolated, contemptible, and combative. Making friends and influencing people is not in her wheelhouse.

The business community is not happy. The unions are not happy. The people are not happy. No one is happy in Lightfoot’s Summer of Joy except the criminals. They are getting away with murder and mayhem.

Lightfoot did more damage to Chicago in a few years than Richie Daley did in two decades. Chicago is in a downhill slide on a greased anvil. Lightfoot is like Wiley Coyote being hung by her own Acme petards.

So far, Alderman Ray Lopez, businessman Willie Wilson, Paul Vallas, and Illinois State Representative, Kam Buckner, have announced they are running for mayor. All of them are men. Evidently, Lightfoot hates men. Maybe in our woke times, male hatred in politics is acceptable and appropriate.

If anyone of them lands a whale or two contributors, Lightfoot is toast. Her campaign war chest is small for someone who wants to continue in the job she is failing at. She travels the country begging for money because the Chicago money is not coming her way.

Lori Lightfoot is like Godzilla. She destroyed Chicago.

I supported Lori Lightfoot for mayor. The last thing Chicago needed was Machine Boss Toni Preckwinkle running/ruining Chicago. If things are bad now, they would have been worse under Preckwinkle.

I will not vote for Lori Lightfoot if she officially announces her run for re-election. She is a major disappointment. Lightfoot broke my heart.

Violent crime is an epidemic approaching pandemic status. Instead of firing Superintendent David “Tex” Brown for his incompetence, she props him up. The Chicago Police Department is handcuffed. They get no help from the State’s Attorney or the courts. A double whammy that makes every citizen, tourist, or business traveler a potential victim.

Lightfoot fights with alderpeople, even publicly insulting them. She did not make enough friends and influence enough people to get whatever agenda she had to move forward. Chicago is stalled. It is stuck on stupid.

The Chicago Police Department is bleeding officers who are retiring or transferring to other departments. Chicago Public schools lost 25,000 students over the past two years. People, especially retirees are moving out of Chicago. The marching feet are getting louder every month.

It is only a matter of time before the business community says enough is enough. She will lose their support over a total lack of public safety. She blamed businesses for being crime victims, insulting them. If conditions do not change, major investments will stall. There is only so much chaos investors will tolerate. Chicago is reaching the limit.

Lightfoot turned public safety into an oxymoron in Chicago. There is no safe in Chicago. Lightfoot surrendered and threw her lot in with Machine Boss Toni Preckwinkle and Kim Foxx. They are now frenemies. Preckwinkle and Foxx are helping drive the violence, bloodshed, and murder in Chicago. Their supposed criminal justice reforms failed, yet the mayor stopped criticizing them. It is a good bet she ordered Tex Brown to stop his criticism.

The mayor wears the hat. She is responsible for all the city’s ills under her watch. It may not be fair, but politics, like life, is not fair. She refuses to accept responsibility, accountability, or constructive criticism. She plods along in a stupor, a legend in her own mind. History will not be kind. Lightfoot’s only accomplishment was getting elected. She made history. Big deal. She will make more history when her administration is examined. It will not be pretty.

Chicago is in crisis. Lori Lightfoot does not have the ability to solve the problems the city has now and faces in the near future. Things will only get worse. I talk to a lot of people. I listen in bars, restaurants, coffee shops, and public transportation. When Lightfoot’s name is mentioned, or she is on television, no one has a good thing to say about her. There is ugly name-calling. I live in a fairly progressive neighborhood. My neighbors are fed up. My family members and friends are fed up.

Most mayors in my lifetime were people we loved to hate and hated to love. Lightfoot is hated, period. There is no love. There is not anything to like.

Lightfoot’s campaign fund is small for a big-city mayor. She is not attracting support from major donors because she is doing nothing to improve the conditions in this city. The business community may be silent, but they are voting with their closed checkbooks.

If one of her opponents hooks a whale or two with multi-million-dollar open checkbooks that can pay for bombarding media advertising, Lightfoot will be toast before she begins her campaign.

Lightfoot would not run for a second term in the best of all possible worlds. That will not happen. The next best is if she cannot raise big money and gets a shellacking at the polls. Public safety is going to be the most critical campaign issue. Lightfoot failed from day one.

Lori, you broke my heart.

“Chicago cops received a one-two punch Monday night when CPD Supt. David Brown canceled all of their usual days off between June 14 and June 22. Brown sent another email two minutes later, saying he “anticipates” canceling their days off between June 28 and July 4. The emails were sent at 9:21 and 9:23 p.m. on Memorial Day — a holiday for which Brown’s top deputy, Eric Carter, had cancelled days off since last Tuesday. “(CWB Chicago)

Canceling police officer days off over Father’s Day weekend? Superintendent David “Tex” Brown does not care about the health and welfare of the men and women he commands. He does not care about their families or family life. He does not care, period.

It is past time Chicago news media editorial boards wake from their slumber and recognize Tex Brown is an abject failure as Chicago’s Police Superintendent and Eric Carter is a failure as the second in command. The alderpersons should be screaming for Brown’s head. I will not hold my breath.

It is up to you, the citizens, to demand Brown be fired and replaced by a Chicago Police executive who knows Chicago. Chicago is not Dallas. Carter should be demoted immediately before he does more harm. The deadly duo lost the confidence, respect, and trust of the rank-and-file Chicago Police officers.

Memorial Day weekend proved Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Summer of Joy is turning into another Summer of Death, Mourning, and Bloodshed. Over 50 people were shot, ten were killed, and there was one mass shooting. Oh, the joy.

What cops traditionally call the Summer Offensive, started. It will continue. Chicago suffers from failed public safety policies, incompetent police leadership, a floundering City Hall, a useless news media, and an apathetic citizenry. What will it take to wake people up?

How many more people must be murdered or wounded? How many more must be robbed or carjacked? How many people must be terrorized before this city realizes public safety is non-existent?

Mayor Lightfoot does not care about public safety. David Brown does not care. The Chicago news media does not care. And, from the silence of the lambs, it is apparent the citizens do not care.

 What is it going to take for someone to give a damn?

Having been there and done that, I know how hard our Chicago Police officers work. I know how tough and demanding the job is. I had never witnessed police top leadership as incompetent and uncaring as this in my almost thirty years on the force. It is deplorable.

I never witnessed the almost total silence of the City Council or the editorial boards of the so-called news media. I never witnessed the complacency of citizens, especially those living in areas impacted by violence and murder. I never witnessed the surrender and silence of the downtown and near north business communities.

Chicago’s civic and business leadership abdicated their responsibility- using their voices- to keep this city safe.

 If the Mayor, the Superintendent of Police, the City Council, the Cook County State’s Attorney, or the judges are not responsible for our safety, then who is?

Chicago is a city of scoundrels. Only scoundrels would be so apathetic about murder, mayhem, and terror.

The numbers are in from the opening weekend of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Summer of Joy. 52 people were shot, 10 fatally. There was one mass shooting. The Summer of Joy got off to a roaring start, with more “Joy” to come.

Superintendent of Police David “Tex” Brown will address the public this afternoon. He will make the usual excuses for his ineptness and incompetence. He will toss out data and data analytics to a pornography starved news media to parrot to a gullible public.

Brown will tout how his plans, strategies, deployments, canceling days off, and other failures prevented more carnage. He will pat himself on the back. Brown is a miracle worker. He can change failure into success.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot will stand by her man. Failure is no longer an option in Chicago. Failure is the norm, the policy. Hell, if COVID or Monkey Pox do not kill you, no worries, somewhere, someplace, there is a bullet with your name. It is just a matter of time and chance.

The compliant news media will go back to writing editorials about wool-gathering and naval gazing. The public will go about their business in complacent bliss.

10 families will be planning the wakes and funerals of their loved ones. The beat goes on. Life in Chicago is one joyful piece of pie in the sky with ice cream and a gilded cherry on top.

Meanwhile, real life is one of grief and mourning on the ground. It is a life of fear, anxiety, and dread. People should not live in fear, dread, and anxiety. People should be living in self-righteous anger. They should be directing their anger at Mayor Lightfoot. They should be directing their anger at their alderpersons. They should be directing their anger at State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and her political patron, Machine Boss Tony Preckwinkle.

Anger against politicians is no longer appropriate. It is politically incorrect. It is, as critics of comedians say, punching down.

Chicago politicians are the new marginalized, threatened, and protected class. Soon, they will form their own alphabet community. Maybe the CIO- community. Cowards In Office The minus sign signifies their status as a lesser protected class, not to be criticized or insulted due to a status they have no control over. They were born that way.

Memorial Day weekend is an omen of things to come in the Summer of Joy. The killings, carjackings, robberies, and other major crimes will continue. Innocent people will be victims. I never thought I would say this. It is not the fault of the criminals. It is the fault of the mayor and the alderpersons. It is the fault of State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and Toni Preckwinkle. It is the fault of each and every citizen who remains silent.

When you go through your morning routine, stare in the mirror. You will be looking at your worst mortal enemy. You elected these failures. You will probably re-elect them.