Another casualty of an obtuse and ineffective government, our area will continue to become more of a ghetto with these city policies that concentrate poverty in one place. More chronically homeless, more social services, more subsidized housing all mean more dysfunctional citizenry and more crime.
Of course there will be a vicious cycle as the functional people, the people that care and fight for our community, leave.
They will leave for fear, they will leave for frustration, and they will leave because they have no choice.
The few of us that speak out - that voice concerns over these nonsensical policies - are belittled and derided by the ideologues and political opportunists who jump out of their seats to say that if you don't support the policies you must be against the homeless or poor.
Against the homeless? Isn't that like being against a cure for MS, against a cure for cancer?
Time will soon tell. It will be the "chronically homeless" that will be the victims and the rest of the hard working poor that can't leave the area.
Do any of you really believe that if we just had the right services, 10 more cops, programs for at-risk youth and gang units that this would all go away? No, no, no.
The only solutions are: 1. End poverty (not going to happen, by the way, this is capitalism after all); 2. Disperse poverty; distribute it equally throughout the city. Anything else just produces a ghetto.
As for me, what do I do with two kids, a third on the way and 50 schizophrenic substance abusers two blocks to one side and shootings at the park two blocks in the other direction?
What do I do?
Bassim Dowidar
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