Tag: crime

The Week in the rearview mirror

Published by pvbella on May 6, 2022

This week Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced what everyone knew. Bally got the nod for Chicago’s first casino. It will be located on the Tribune publishing site. Some alderpersons are going all NIMBY over the selection. Alderpersons and community groups were screaming Not In My Back Yard over the casino proposals during the selection process. They wanted the casino, just not in their communities. There were only a few areas where the casino should be built. They were near downtown and the convention center at McCormick Place.

CWBChicago, the only crime and justice- or lack thereof- reporting worth reading in this city, obtained a video of a vicious robbery in the Lincoln Park/DePaul neighborhood. The video shows the robbery victim being shot while lying on the ground. It is about time people see how vicious some of our pampered criminals are.

The whiny bike people are once again complaining about the inadequate bike lanes in some parts of the city after a cyclist was killed in an accident. It appears some streets are not suited to the whims of the cyclists. The intelligent thing to do would be to ban cyclists on those streets during certain hours. Also, it is past time for the city to crack down on lawless cyclists who do not obey traffic laws. The city could make a boatload of money ticketing cyclists. Like reckless drivers and motorcyclists, there is one set of laws the most reckless cyclists keep violating to their fatal peril: the laws of physics.

The City of Chicago has a new publishitty (Misspelling intentional) stunt. Free branded canned water. Yep, instead of going to the nearest water tap, you can get Chicagwa. It may be an old Native American word for idiot or stench of leaders. Indicted Aldercreature, Ed Burke promoted bottling the city’s water years ago. People thought he was, ahem, off. It looks like our current leadership is way off.

The oldest operating neon sign in Chicago hit the auction block. The sign outside the Orange Garden restaurant, also the longest operating Chinese restaurant in the city, was bought by Chloe Mendel, wife of Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan. Her winning bid was $17,000. Corgan is currently touring in Mexico with the band.

There are two things you can count on in Chicago. The politics and the weather suck. “It’s not your imagination: It truly has been more gloomy, rainy and wet than usual in Chicago this spring.” I don’t remember a cold, dreary, and wet spring like this one. Politics and weather, misery loves company.

Nine people were shot this week in the downtown area. It appears “Tex” Brown ran out of plans, strategies, and deployments to keep the public safe. Once the weather gets warm, the spring and summer offensive will be in full force in our neighborhoods. One would hope the City Council would finally do something or say something. Hope dies in City Hall.

The Grades are in Fs Across the Board

Published by pvbella on December 6, 2021

Mayor Lori Lightfoot- F
Chicago City Council- F
Cook County Commissioner Toni Preckwinkle- F
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx- F
Chief Judge Tim Evans- F
David Brown, Superintendent of Chicago Police- F
Chicago News Media/Editorial Boards- F

If you get an F in public safety, you have no business holding elective or appointed office or publishing or airing news.

One of the nice things about being an elected official in Chicago is never having to take responsibility for your failures. Elected officials are not responsible for anything. It is always someone else’s fault. They keep coming up with systemic lame excuses instead of effective solutions. Yet, you gullible voters believe their logomachy and keep reelecting them.

There were over 1000 homicides in Cook County this year, with one month left. 803 homicides were committed in Chicago. In Chicago, 4304 people were shot, and 3549 were wounded this year. Over 80% of the victims were African American. Over 14% were Hispanic. 3.9% were white or of other races. Add to those numbers the 1444 carjackings this year, most of them armed. (Cook County Medical Examiner and HeyJackass)

There is a daily spate of armed robberies in various entertainment neighborhoods. High-end stores are being burglarized and robbed by groups who steal thousands or tens of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise while traumatizing the employees. Flash mobs are causing havoc, injury, and shootings downtown and along Michigan Avenue near Grant Park.

Chicago witnessed out-of-control violent crime in every neighborhood for over one year. No area of this city is safe. Any citizen is at risk of becoming an innocent victim of violence or a shooting. Even children, toddlers, and infants are innocent victims.

Our elected officials are silent over the unrelenting violence in Chicago. The Mayor, Cook County Board President, State’s Attorney, and many Alderpersons and Cook County Commissioners are mute. When and if they do speak, it is word soup and jabberwocky.

Everyone keeps seeking the causes for this rampant criminality. Experts with no expertise are brought in and paid to give their reasoning and solutions through their narrow-minded mercenary lenses. The Chicago Police Department continues with its merry-go-round of plans, strategies, contingencies, and realignments. The politicians come up with solutions based on their communication spoke’s weasels. They toss around systemic this or that. They are not seeking effective solutions.

We are beyond looking for causes. We are witnessing the effects- death, wounding, and traumatization. We need effective solutions to curb this criminality. Effective being the operative word. The politicians threw effectiveness out of the window in their quest for the “why.” The most compelling question is “what.” “What” is a direct question that yields specific effective solutions. “Why” gives us more logomachy, nonsensical word soup.

There is a total lack of empathy and sympathy for the victims and their families. Our politicians are cold-hearted, devoid of pity, mercy, and basic humanity. The only time they display emotion is when they are harshly criticized. Then, after their faux over emotional Academy Award appearance before the news cameras, critics are slapped down and silenced.

The Chicago news media goes right along with this. It appears they are working hand in hand with the politicians’ spoke’s weasels. The news media in Chicago is no longer courageous. The editorial boards are silent on the rampant violent criminality. They, like the gullible voters, believe whatever the politicians tell them. Like well-trained parrots, they repeat it.

We no longer have the luxury of time to figure out the causes- the “why”- of this criminality. We need to find effective solutions to curb it. We can figure out the why later. How many more people must die, suffer, or be traumatized before our elected officials start caring?

We do have one stubborn verified systemic problem in Chicago. It is the systemic stupidity of the voters. They keep reelecting the same people who are responsible for the criminality. Public safety is one of the most important, if not the most important, government responsibility. The voters keep voting for failures.

Public safety is not even a consideration to the politicians. They are all talk and no action. The county and city elected officials are gearing up for their next re-election cycle. They will tout their various supposed successes. There is only one solution. Shed the mantle of systemic voter stupidity. Embrace Critical Election Theory. Do not reelect anyone who did not and will not keep us safe. Throw all the bums out. Bring in new people who believe in public safety.

Maybe some long ago pundit was right. One of the most profane, obscene, and vulgar terms in our language is “career politician.”

The Rittenhouse trial is a nothing burger

Published by pvbella on November 18, 2021

The numbers in Chicago year to date:
• 719 people shot and killed
• 3385 people shot and wounded
• 4104 total people shot
• 764 total homicides (As of this morning/HeyJackass!)

Those are the numbers. Dry, hard, cold numbers. Those are people, human beings. People who suffered wounds, death, grief, and mourning. Families whose lives were shattered. The numbers go on day after day, violence, death, and bloodshed.

Every neighborhood in Chicago is experiencing violent crimes. Nowhere and no one is safe in this city. There is the looting of high-end stores on the Gold Coast, stealing tens of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from each. Stores are looted in some of the neighborhoods. There are daily armed carjackings, terrorizing people.

As the daily violence goes on, the city is supposedly preparing for the outcome of the insignificant Kyle Rittenhouse trial in Wisconsin. This headline from the Chicago Tribune proclaims, “Kyle Rittenhouse case goes to jury in Kenosha as polarized nation awaits verdict.”

How does the Chicago Tribune know the nation awaits this verdict? Did they send reporters across the country to interview people? Did they make phone calls to thousands or millions of people? Did they even stop for a minute to check if their mothers really loved them just because they told them so?

I do not get it. I do not give a rat’s rear end about the Rittenhouse trial. The incident happened someplace else. Where are our local media’s hormonal panting headlines and extensive compelling coverage of the murder and mayhem occurring daily in Chicago?

Where are editorials and columns about the violence and the innocent victims? Where is the media outrage over children- toddlers and infants- being shot? What makes the Rittenhouse trial worthy of tabloid-style reporting ala the National Enquirer?

There are murder trials every day in Chicago, and they get little gripping coverage, with headlines- “A city awaits the verdict…” All we get from our local news media is crickets.

Why should Chicago await a verdict in a trial that has nothing to do with Chicago? It Is a trial in Wisconsin. There is nothing special about it. It is being sensationalized for one reason, money, kachingos. The news companies want those clicks and viewers to drive ad revenue. They use propaganda- they call it a narrative- to get people to watch or click on their articles.

Where is the tabloid-like headlines and reporting of the violence and bloodshed here? Why are our local news media, editorial boards, and columnists dead silent on the daily violence?

If Chicagoans care about an insignificant trial in Wisconsin more than they do about the murder and mayhem at home, then we have a real problem in this city. Why? Because these are the same people who vote for the incompetent elected officials who are doing little to curb the violence. They vote for the mayor, alderpersons, State’s Attorney, Cook County Board President, Sheriff, and judges. These are the people who control the criminal justice system and are responsible for public safety.

We see the results of those votes in the numbers of dead and wounded people. We see the results of their votes in the lives shattered by violence. We see the results of those votes in the lives of people living in fear.

If you care more about a trial in Wisconsin than violent crime in your hometown or neighborhood, then you are part of the problem. We deserve better from our local news media and elected officials. It is past time to hold their feet to the fire and demand better.

Chicago celebrates Capone Days

Published by pvbella on October 5, 2021

Image: Chicago Dead Man’s Hand/ PV Bella

During the Capone era, rolling shootouts were common in Chicago. Over the past weeks, they returned. The Violent Olympic Games are closing with Capone Days, a series of events involving cars and guns, re-enacting those days of yore. This Olympic event involves excellent skills, including speed, race car driving skills, and spray and pray skills with firearms to hit human targets without being shot.

Killing a target wins a Gold Medal. Wounding is a Silver Medal. A Bronze Medal is awarded for bullet holes in vehicles.

The most recent event occurred Monday night around 10:50 PM on Irving Park Road, between Rockwell and Ashland. Two cars chased each other while firing guns. One car, a Jeep, crashed outside Lakeview High School. The driver ran off. The passenger was found dead, shot multiple times. Aside from the body and several shell casings, there were bullet holes in the school’s windows. The second car was described as a Dodge sedan. (CWB Chicago)

This was the second rolling shootout event on a similar stretch of Irving Park Road in a week. On Sunday, there was a rolling shootout that ended in the Division/Rush Street area. There was a multi-block rolling shootout in the West Town neighborhood last week. These events are occurring all over the city, including the expressways.

This phenomenon once again proves no one and no place is safe in Chicago. The violence in Chicago is more than brazen criminality. This continuing wave of violence is people who know they can get away with anything, anytime, and anyplace. There will be no repercussions, no accountability, no justice, and no punishment. It is mutual combat, even when innocent victims are murdered. For example, the retired teacher on the Dan Ryan Expressway was a case of mutual combat.

According to Cook County State’s Attorney, Kim Foxx, mutual combat is not grounds for charging people with murder or other felonies.

That is great! After Capone Days, we should bring back dueling at dawn in our parks and Old West mano-e-mano gunfights at high noon on our streets.

How about the Mutual Combat Games in Soldier Field with cheering fans. There could be cheerleaders, the Luvaguns. Marching bands could take the field before and in between events. There ought to be announcers for the play-by-play. Oh, and an organ player, every sports venue needs an organ player. Maybe a local songwriter can come up with snappy dirges.

They could sell memorabilia, clothing, and hats with bloody bullet holes printed on them. One of our local breweries could whip up a themed beer, Dead Eye Ale. Maybe bullet-shaped pretzels with blood-red-dyed salt to go with the beer. There could be a sportsbook for betting. We could televise the events—real live-action with real guns and other weapons of choice.

Early on Sunday mornings, we can close a mile or two long stretch of DuSable Drive and the lakefront for Rolling Shoot Out events. Due to the dangerous nature, they would have to be filmed, preferably by drones or helicopter.

Chicago is a sports town, and we need new sporting events. Those ancient Romans knew how to entertain their populace with exciting gory circuses. We could be the template for a whole new sports franchise, a league of our own.

Since there is no justice, no public outrage, no screaming editorials from the inept Chicago news media, and no empathy or mercy from our cold-hearted public officials or the citizens, why not create something new to justify the murder and mayhem?

Legalize mutual combat and make it a professional sport. It will provide a stream of needed income, jobs for facility and city workers, income for funeral directors, and hopefully rid us of at least half or more of the violent criminals in this city. It will also provide entertainment for the merciless cold-hearted people who elect ruthless cold-hearted politicians.

Cook County taxpayers could benefit. Since the State’s Attorney’s Office is useless, it can be eliminated from the county budget, saving us the money wasted on willful malfeasance.

Our politicians dealt us a Dead Man’s hand. We may as well take advantage of it.

Chicago is a long dark dangerous alley

Published by pvbella on September 3, 2021

Rush Steet alley at night Image: PV Bella

Would you walk or drive down a dark Chicago alley? Chicago is turning into a proverbial dark alley. The well-lit streets are as dangerous and fearsome as nighttime alleys.

“We deeply understand how important it is for our residents to feel safe within our neighborhoods across the city,” said Brown said in a statement. “We are retooling our crime-fighting strategies to stop the spike in crimes that we are seeing so we can bring a greater sense of safety to our communities.” (Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown/WGN)

Retooling? is that the new word for another plan? When all else fails, change the vocabulary. He had plans. Now, he is retooling. His retooling will fail too. Brown does not get it. The violence in Chicago is wanton and has nothing to do with the supposed root causes of crime or gangs, guns, and drugs. The violence is caused by people just because they can do it. There is a sub-culture of violence all across the city. Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites are fueling violent crimes, depending on the neighborhood.

This cultural violence cannot be curbed. The people committing violent crimes believe this is what they should be doing. They are like the Taliban. Instead of violence on behalf of Allah, these terrorists are committing violence on behalf of themselves. They know there will be few if any, repercussions.

We are heading into a three-day, four-night holiday weekend. If the 4th of July was an indication, this will be another bloody, violent, and deadly weekend in Chicago. Some are projecting that by year’s end, over 1000 people will be killed by gunfire.

I talk to many people. They all say they used to feel safe in the city. They no longer feel safe. They lost confidence in the police department to keep them safe. Many blame Mayor Lightfoot, Brown, Kim Foxx, Toni Preckwinkle, and the court system. Their blame is well-founded.

The street cops are confused, overworked, understaffed, and distraught. They no longer know what is allowed, and they will not risk their jobs or lives because of the confusion. They do not trust that the Chicago Office of Police Accountability performs fair, balanced, accurate, and legal investigations. They do not trust that Brown has their best interests in mind. He is an outsider mercenary.

Some of the alderpersons are fed up. They see what is happening in their wards, yet, the mayor controls the police. They have no power. Since the City Council is fractured into various caucuses, there is no large block of alderpersons to demand the mayor hold Brown accountable or send him back to Texas.

The question is, when will enough be enough for the citizens? When will we demand better from the mayor and Superintendent of Police? She is accountable, and there is no accountability. There is no transparency. There is only talk, and talk is cheap.

The criminal element has no fear. They are taking every opportunity to prove who has the power in Chicago. They do. They are wielding their power and exploiting the leadership vacuum. Vacuums create chaos. Chicago is a city in chaos. Havoc rules.

We deserve better. We need to demand better. The reformers, activists, and news media lied to us. They claimed criminal justice reforms would not impact public safety, even though they knew better. Instead of public safety, we have criminal safety. The criminals are safe from arrest, prosecution, and punishment. The citizens are not safe from murder, mayhem, or violent death.

This violence is a pandemic, now worse than COVID-19. Masks, social distancing, and lockdowns will not curb it. There is no vaccination. If anything is taking away our freedoms, it is the criminal element in this city. They rule with impunity. We live in fear, and if you do not, there is something wrong with you. Anyone, no matter where they live, can be a violent crime victim in Chicago.

Chicago is nothing more than one long dark dangerous alley, too dangerous to walk or drive down.

Don’t go out at night

Published by pvbella on August 29, 2021

This was updated. I found a video to download and it runs faster. See below.

Downtown Chicago used to be safe at night. From the Loop to River North, Gold Coast, and beyond, you could walk down State Street or Michigan Avenue in relative safety. You could even walk on the lakefront until closing hour.

The street lights, store windows, neon, and other attractions lent a romatintic atmosphere. The crowds were gone. People were out enjoying themselves. You could go to the movies, walk to dinner, then just wak. Maybe you would stop into a watering hole for a drink, or two or three. There were clubs with all kinds of entertainment.

During the Christmas season, there was a festive air. Christmas lights, street decorations, store window decorations, and Sal Army Santas ringing their bells. There was a festive athmosphere. People were in a happier mood.

No more.

Criminals own the night. Bands of violent criminals attack, and brutalize people for no reason, or violently rob them. No one steps in to stop them. No one steps in to help.

The video below shows two men attacked, brutally beaten, and robbed on the 400 block of Noth State Street.

https://vimeo.com/594283524

For over four minutes,, two men were robbed and brutalized while bystanders shot phone videos, celebrated, danced, and twerked. Motorists kept driving by, trying to avoid hitting anyone.

Nowhere is safe in this Mad Max era of Chicago. Michigan Avenue, River North, and the Gold Coast, are no longer safe at night. The romance and festivity turned into a nightmare. Even the parking lots are not safe.

People used to be able to go out to dinner, walk, stop in one or two places for a late-night drink or two or three. There are clubs for entertainment. Now, people are the entertainment for criminals and their bystander fans.

Downtown, North and South Michigan Avenue and River North turned into violent crime-ridden areas. There are roving bands of robbers, thieves, groups wilding, and other violent actors. Even during the day, bands of thieves invade designer stores, stealing thousands or tens of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise. They will pummel anyone who tries to stop them.

Nighttime is the worst. The night is when there is no value for human life. The night is when you are most vulnerable. The night is when you could be beaten, shot, wounded, or killed. Areas once known for safety are now dangerous.

The revitalized gem, Grant Park turned into a staging ground for wildings, groups of young people running amok, terrorizing the area because they can. The Magnificent Mile is no longer magnificent. River North and River West are dangerous. The night turns these neighborhoods into the Wild West.

It is a pity our city came to this. The places we should be proud of are turning into violent,, crime-ridden battlegrounds at night. This criminality is not new and has been building up over the past few years. It started to get worse last year and is worsening this year.

The alderpersons representing the wards are complaining. Their complaints land on deaf ears. One alderperson was the victim of a battery while waiting for friends outside of a restaurant. Mayor Lightfoot is trying to please everyone and is pleasing no one. The citizens, news media, and City Council cannot figure out what she is doing.

Thanks to City Hall, an incompetent Superintendent of Police, a State’s Attorney who cares more about coddling criminals than prosecutions, and a court system that enables a revolving door of catch and release, the Loop, Mag Mile, and River North went from being attractive, safe places to visit or walk around to places to fear.

Nowhere is safe at night in those areas. The criminals know there are cameras all over the place. They do not care. They do not fear arrest or imprisonment if, by fat chance, they are prosecuted. This is not just criminality. It is a culture of violence. Violence is acceptable and expected behavior.

Criminals are waging war. There is no rhyme or reason for their actions. They do it because they can. They do it because they want to. They do it for fun. They do it because no one will stop them. They do it because they know there will be no consequences.

Don’t go out at night.