"Despite the bad economy, [New York City] is on track to have the fewest homicides in a 12-month period since 1962."
That comment is based on the left's belief that economic conditions are the key determinant of criminal activity. Crime rates rose during the economic boom of the 1920's and fell during the Great Depression of the 1930's. The fact that this pattern was influenced by criminal activity associated with Prohibition during the 1920's and its repeal in 1933 suggests that crime is due to many factors and is not well correlated to economic conditions.
The drop in the number of murders in New York in 2009 during a recession further explodes this myth.
The article discusses the continued decline in murder that New York has enjoyed. From a peak of 2,245 murders in 1990, the number of murders this year as of December 27 was 461 - a staggering decline of almost 80%.
One of the tactics the New York City police employ is to question and frisk some people on the streets - which resulted this year in 7,000 weapons being seized, including 800 guns. Speaking of this tactic, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says, "We believe young people who may have a gun think twice before they take it out on the street."
This is a profoundly important policy. The NYPD is raising the cost to would-be thugs from bringing weapons on to the streets by confiscating them, and as with most things in life, if the "cost" of something is raised, people will engage in less of that activity.
Interestingly, this tactic is likely to be "politically incorrect", since its implementation is probably based on common-sense profiling (does he look like a gang member?). Perhaps city residents are enjoying the 80% drop in murders too much to protest.
No comments:
Post a Comment