Marion County Homicides in July

Last summer, in the run-up to the mayoral election in Indianapolis, then-Mayor Bart Peterson was widely assailed by critics for the astonishing murder rate in Marion County. The critics were largely Greg Ballard backers.

Well, here we are one year later, and the murder count in Marion County is once again astonishing. As of yesterday, 22 days, 15 murders, one associated suicide. Link to Indy Star article on the latest atrocity, with list of July homicides.

So, one new mayor really doesn't make a difference.

I'm sure there will be some petty partisan sniping, regarding the failure of the new Mayor to reverse the course. Certainly the Peterson critics set the table for that. But it wouldn't be any different today had Peterson been re-elected, had Libertarian Fred Peterson been elected instead, or had Ghandi been resurrected and made mayor.

There is a mindset within Marion County, and other major American urban centers that says that violence is the answer to problems. That has to change.

I am not calling for the banning of guns. Removing the legality around the ownership of a particular piece of machinery does not change the mindset. Besides, as we saw in Washington DC, guns were still being used in the commission of crimes there. DC's ban failed to make it a safer place.

I am not calling for the banning of hip-hop, which often glorifies gun violence. Removing the music and videos won't eliminate the angst and dissatisfaction in the minds of those who turn to violence Besides, even societies who explicitly have been in command of their people, such as the Soviet Bloc, had underground avenues through which counter-cultural materials were obtained.

This is going to require an unravelling of what made the mindset in the urban center. That is a task of such broad reach, that it's not worth going on in depth in with a blog post. I must confess that I am not part of the solution. I fled the city. (Not just Indy, but Cleveland before.) It's far easier to just vote with your feet and get out, especially when you feel like you have ideas to contribute that are rejected out of hand. 

I don't see it getting better in Indy any time soon. The election of a new Mayor and a new majority in the City-County Council is not akin to the waving of a magic wand. 

It's Illegal For You, But A Civic Good If We Do It

(Mt. Sterling, OH)- Funny, I thought the City of Indianapolis was against billboards, because they are "ugly" and an "eyesore".

So, here's the City, after removing some commercial billboards after a protracted legal struggle, now installing some of it's own. I guess all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others. From the Indy Star report:

A citywide campaign encouraging residents to report crimes launched today as community leaders unveiled a new billboard conveying the message: "It's not snitching -- it's caring."

and

While city leaders have always embraced the movement, this is the first year it has become a "major city initiative", said Marcus Barlow, a spokesman for Mayor Greg Ballard.

So, shame on me. I was once excited by Mayor Ballard, seemingly in tune with the rights of the people. Forgive me, but in retrospect, I think I was more excited just to see Bart Peterson unelected. 

Some day I'll learn not to get excited when a Republican or Democrat is elected to replace a proven loser. How's that Who song go?

Shocking Upsets!

(Crystal Lake, IL)- I decided to check in to see whether or not the voters of Central Indiana would match act with anit-incumbent rhetoric. It looks like they did just that!

Most notably and surprisingly, Indy voters appear to have shown mayor Bart Peterson the door. I am postitively astonished. Greg Ballard received almost no financial or party support and won anyway.

It really restores my faith. Don't get me wrong- I would have been much happier had Libertarian Fred Peterson won. My faith is restored because I came away from my own electoral contest last year convinced that money is the single-most important thing by a longshot. This election disproves my findings. The electorate can be infuriated into ballot box action. Quoth Ballard, from the Indy Star article:

"This is the ultimate example of grass-root politics. The Beatles used to sing, 'money can't buy you love.' But it can't buy you elections, either," he said.

It can also buy you harm. I have little doubt that the outgoing Mayor's negative ads hurt him badly. Bart Peterson seemed aloof, indifferent, and arrogant at various times after raising income taxes in the face of the property tax mess.

Really, it restores my faith that the Democrats lost their majority on the City-County Council in the wake of their tax hikes. From the Star's early report

Before today, Democrats held a 15-14 majority on the council. But Republicans won at least 16 seats today, early returns showed.

That support could be a critical boost for Ballard as he vows to move Indianapolis in a new direction.

Another 10 seats appear solidly Democratic, with three still up for grabs.

I hope the grassroots tax opponents get some credit for all of these upsets. Hoosiers For Fair Taxation comes to mind as being among the top of the list of the praise worthy. Their Tea Party events, their dogged attendance at public meetings, and overall energy was most admirable, and I think, effective. Sweet vindication for them after enduring sneers from Democratic operatives and even the Mayor's office. Ex-Mayor, that is.

I'll enjoy elections more when Libertarians are elected, so I can be certain that the jobof dismantling these greedy governments is taken to the necessary extent. For now, it's pretty darned satisfying watching this batch of taxers turned out of office.

(I won't put 'futility' into my blog tags this time!)

Indy Star Endorsed Who?

Check out this opening to the article, and see if you can guess who the Star endorsed:

Indianapolis has many strengths. Its Downtown is energetic and growing, cultural amenities are maturing, emerging sectors of the economy such as the life sciences are thriving, the cost of living is low, and the overall quality of life remains attractive.

But challenges to the city's vibrancy are mounting. Crime has shot up in many neighborhoods. Thousands of abandoned houses drag down property values and spoil once-attractive residential areas. Rising taxes make it cheaper for some homeowners to live in suburban communities than the urban core. The city, despite higher tax rates, can't afford to fix crumbling streets and sidewalks.

Funny enough, I moved my family OUT of Indianapolis three years ago, for Fishers. This was before the spike in crime, before the rising taxes. My assessment was that the crime and taxes were too high then. I did not feel that downtown Indy was even as interesting as Cleveland, where I spent my first 34 years. Indy had too little to offer, and posed risks I deemed too great to safe and smart living.

But the Star endorsed the Mayor for re-election. Is this a condemnation of Republican challenger Greg Ballard? Or, is it a demonstration of how worthless the Star endorsements have become to readers- transparent in the desire to pick the winner, so as to have the best possibility of full access to the office holder later?

Certainly, the Star condemned the candidacy of Libertarian Fred Peterson. they couldn't even use the good man's name!

Voters will have three choices for mayor when they go to the polls Nov. 6. One is an experienced incumbent who has struggled at times in his second term but who has a proven ability to complete major tasks that have pushed the city forward. The second is an inexperienced and ill-prepared political newcomer. The third is a Libertarian candidate who has not shown he is a contender for the office. (empahsis supplied)

I already voted on Bart Peterson, in May of 2004. With my feet. Bart Peterson has his priorities completely out of whack. I don't know how anyone couldn't have run successfully against him. Here's the platform: Lower crime (stopping the killings, in particular), lower taxes, better infrastructure, and all else is fluff. Who can really say that things are better in Indy these days, and Bart should be rewarded? With a straight face?

The Star and Bart Peterson can have their filthy crime and poverty magnet called Indianapolis. I never second-guess my judgment that screamed "Flee!"

Voting With Your Feet

One fabulous recipe for driving away wealth is to raise income taxes or property taxes. The more money a person earns, the more incentive that person has to leave so as to preserve their rightful earnings. When property taxes outstrip the perceived value of contributing to the upkeep of a neighborhood or a municipality, the higher the tax, the greater the incentive to find a place that will be worth the bill.

I've long said that people vote with their feet. I've done it twice in my life. My great-grandparents crossed an ocean to do it. One place I voted with my feet on is Indianapolis. I did it before the City-County Council, on Mayor Peterson's recommendation, raised the income tax. I did it before the property tax assessment issue came to fore. Thank goodness!

Even NuVo gets it:

When the deleterious effect of high taxes is apparent even to NuVo, then it's as plain as the nose on your face. Wayne Bertsch at NuVo.

I love the "World Class Mayor" bit on the t-shirt. Peterson likes to crow about making a "World Class City" and that high taxes are the price to be paid. What a load. When the murder rate is higher than Detroit's, Indy is not a World Class City in any sense, except perhaps Third World. The priorities are a wreck. Public safety should be fully funded while everything else plays second fiddle. It isn't the way things are done in Indy, so I left. Now that I'm making more money than when I lived in Indy, I'm damn glad I did, because it would be a crime to pay more for getting less.

The people who remain in Indy have to decide something: Do you want to have Indy as a cauldron of poverty and crime? Or, do you want to have increasing wealth and decreasing crime? It's a simple matter of policy, and while I'm no fan of the Republicans (because they create disincentives for wealth, only are slower on the implementation), the Democrats are quickly destroying Indianapolis. So, while too many partisan Democrats would rather fiddle like Nero and keep their people in office, will the independents be swayed to vote Libertarian? Or at least stop voting Democrat? (I can't even bring myself to say 'vote Republican'. They haven't earned it.)

I'll keep looking from a safe distance.

Hat tip to Hoosiers For Fair Taxation on the strip!