So, while the GOP present a clear and present danger to democracy in America, the Dems don't seem willing or able to address your immediate concerns in your area.
I can see why you're frustrated.
How much of Democracy has really been lost? What's the point of one party winning if they won't fix the problems that are rampant in this country? Neither side is effective right now- all they want to do is throw crap at each other and lie about how much THEY'RE doing 'for the people'. It's all a load of crap.
It's not just MY area- Portland, Seattle, LA, Chicago, NYC, etc have seen huge jumps in crime and it all spreads out from those cities but it's not only large cities that are seeing this increase. I watched a video about Portland, which has a short stretch of highways & roads where a ridiculously high percentage of crime occurs- the videos commentators said it had to do with criminals moving into long-stay motels and operating from there with drug dealing, human trafficking, weapon sales and in at least one place, it's an abandoned motel that has fences around it. If you don't like the source, google it- you'll see the same info in other links (most use the same FBI stats).
There were 1.2 million violent crimes — murders, rapes, robberies, and aggravated assaults — committed in the United States in 2019, according to the most recent available FBI data. The 2019 national crime rate of 367 incidents for every 100,000 Americans is almost exactly in line with where it...
247wallst.com
You commented about Mandela Barnes and Ron Johnson, so I replied to that as it pertains to this area- In Wisconsin politics, very little changes and in many case, someone either has to die, lose interest or do something criminal for people to vote them out. Once in awhile, people do change their preference, but it's not frequent. Many elections see candidates running unopposed.
MKE is the only city I have seen that has such a death grip on its Mayors-many cities have term limits for this office and I don't remember that ever being offered here- the average term for Mayor in MKE since 1948 is 18.25 years. The county board, OTOH, was recalled after a pension 'backdrop payment' scandal that we're still paying for has cost over $350 million over roughly 20 years. That cost has provided zero services, just an additional one time payment for county retirees, in addition to their regular pensions. The alderpeople tend to rotate but they often end up in higher offices, like Barnes, the current Mayor, Gwen Moore and others.
I can understand why people might move into the MKE
area, but I would never move back into the city- I lived in MKE for 16 years and it has declined terribly since I left. Crime has spread wildly to the SE part of the state and it's not uncommon for Milwaukeeans to commit their crimes two counties away. Conversely, it's not uncommon for people from Chicago to come here for the same reasons.
The financial cost from all of the crime is huge but the human cost is incredibly high and the ones who are really stuck live IN the cities- they don't want it but they don't have many options because they can't afford to move out. The city is run down, dirty, the roads suck and children are being killed, but the city wanted a trolley (Tom Barret), fancy new apartments/condos along the river and other places with high visibility from the freeway (Norquist & Barrett) but a block away and in a large area, the place is a dump. Homes are abandoned/burned out/in terrible condition because of slumlords, there's trash on the ground, people are living in hell and they have no choice.
With the city's demographics changing, property values are dropping, tax revenue is doing the same and the city & county are financially strapped. They have received Federal funds, but that can't be seen a reliable source because as the party in power changes, so does the availability and willingness to fund certain places. The state seems to think of MKE as a parasite because it requires more funds than any other art of the state (it's the largest city, so....) and they don't get enough to fund some agencies, although it seems that Gov Evers is going to send more to handle the shortfall in Law Enforcement- not only does the MKE PD need more to hire additional officers, the County Sheriff's Office needs the same, although to a lesser extent.
I like the people I meet in MKE, just not the way the city & county are run.
