A problem identification strategy

It is only the middle of February, but we already have the third teenage murder victim in the Toronto ghettos. I am always amazed and puzzled when listening to the ‘nice’ people of the media talking about such subjects. Like Matt Galloway, the host of CBC’s ‘Metro Morning.” He is the embodiment of the honest to goodness good intentions and its associated utter cluelessness when looking at the dismal results of the policies inspired by those good intentions. Considering how much he is trying to understand, it is quite amazing how little he actually does. Talking about ‘youth violence’ and an epidemic of ‘gun violence’ then another, this time ‘the epidemic of fatherlessness’ (which will sure make it into the books of epidemiology) Saying about the broken families that “somebody has to have the responsibility and stepping up” I had to keep asking myself: Can anybody be this clueless? Isn't this simply willful ignorance of the real issues or politically motivated avoidance of discussing the real subjects, the real questions? Is it stupidity, sleaze or cowardliness? YOU TELL ME, because the answer to these questions is at the heart of the problem. What motivates the wide eyed puzzlement when we know the answers? There is an incredible amount of evidence to show us what the roots of the problems are and the volume of this evidence is growing constantly. The evidence is indisputable and so is the logic behind explaining it. Why is it ignored then by the leftist mainstream media? Why are some of the subjects taboo for discussion? Why are we talking about ridiculous “epidemics” and “youth violence strategies” while carefully avoiding any discussion about the real issues and real solutions? These are not poetic questions. I will suggest some answers in the end but let’s start with the problems.

Call a spade a spade

Why don’t we start by not bullshitting about the problem? By calling the spade a spade. Black/ghetto/gang/drug violence instead of “gun” and “youth” violence? Stop calling ghettos “communities”. Stop calling the predictable and inevitable results of government policies “epidemics”. Stop treating the problems we created as if they were mysterious forces of nature.  Stop blaming phantom causes and start examining the workings and the effects of government policies. Stop pointing fingers and looking for scapegoats and have an honest look at the problems and their causes.

Stop glorifying single mothers, stop destroying the institution of family

“Why aren't we talking about the role of the family in this in shutting this down to make sure that this is not happening?” – asks Matt Galloway to get an answer that is not an answer but a description. So why don’t we? Why don’t we start with discussing the government’s role in destroying the institution? Our political left is glorifying single motherhood while our politicians are constantly working on making it an ever more acceptable and even attractive choice for young women on the margins of society. It used to be a stigma to be a single mother, but these days our media is celebrating them as if they were some sort of heroes. Restoring the stigma of illegitimacy will restore families. Taking away the financial incentives will get rid of the “epidemic”. Stop any financial support to single mothers and if they cannot take care of their children, put the kids up for adoption. Single parent families would disappear in a decade.

Get rid of welfare – stop subsidizing bad behaviour

Stop subsidizing idleness which breeds dissatisfaction, boredom and very often criminal behaviour. If “youth” would have to worry about how to pay the rent, put food on the table and help their families, they would not have the time to do all the bad things they do. Break the multi-generational cycle of dependence. Make welfare existence unattractive.

Get rid of minimum wage laws

In his 1984 book, “Losing Ground” Charles Murray made the point that minimum wage laws are the most racist laws in the books. It hurts the people who would need opportunity the most. Minimum wage laws are depriving young, unskilled, inexperienced workers from finding work, from stepping on the road toward a better future.

Get rid of government ghettos

They are ALL disasters, they are all destined to be disasters. There is evidence to show and logic to explain why it is so. The only way governments can run anything is into the ground. There is absolutely no excuse for the existence of organizations such as the TCHC unless we consider giving jobs to the corrupt bureaucracies running them an acceptable excuse. Even giving individual rent subsidies would be a better deal for society as a whole. No amount of revitalization, no amount of money wasted on it will change a ghetto as long as the government runs it.

Get the “youth” out of the government schools

As with all the other suggestions, people on the margins of society are also the most vulnerable group when it comes to education. Children from middle class and intact families get a lot more help from home so that they can fill the gaps left by our abysmal state run schools. Even simple things such as giving responsibility to parents to choose the school for their children may make the difference.

Legalize drugs

This would be probably the simplest way to turn around the “gun violence epidemic”. Most crime in the black ghettos are related to drugs as involvement in its trade is the most attractive job prospect for an unskilled “youth”. The most important benefit of ending drug prohibition would be crime reduction in general and the burden it would take off from the shoulders of the most vulnerable members of our societies. Legalization would make the illegal trade and the associated violence disappear. The lifting of the alcohol prohibition in the US resulted in an immediate sharp reduction in violent crimes and health problems such as alcohol poisoning. Drug legalization would have a similar effect, an effect that would be most marked in the environment where the prohibition today is causing the most harm. Ghettos are the trenches of the war on drugs and young black people are the cannon fodder.

Take crime and punishment seriously

Although I have not yet seen a Canadian jail from the inside, from what I hear, they are not like the ones of my own experience. For most members of the ghetto, getting locked up is a badge, a rite of passage. We have to stop indulging ourselves with delusional dreams about rehabilitation and focus on deterrence. For the crimes that remain after the drug legalization, making the prisons a bit more of a punishment would go a long way towards crime prevention.

Deport criminal immigrants

We do not know yet who the shooter in this last case was but we do know that an overwhelming proportion of the “gun-violence” is perpetrated by immigrants from cultures with higher degree of violence than ours. Maybe we can consider expediting deportation procedures for convicted felons.

Taboo

Each of the above subjects would deserve a book on its own. Some of you may think that they are a little radical but I must tell you that there is nothing new about them. None are original, and they all have a large body of supporting evidence. Most have full books written about, yet none of them can be discussed in polite company. Why? We can disagree about them, but why can’t we even discuss them? Matt Galloway’s interview with Gene Jones, the President of TCHC, was a flashback to the darker years of communism. Déja vue all over again. Cocky, righteous aggression seeking a scapegoat. The phony bravery of telling a comrade that he was not a good comrade. In the communist world, the system itself is always beyond discussions. If something does not work, it must be the fault of someone. The imperialist saboteurs, the enemy inside, maybe the people floundering in their devotion to the cause. Since we cannot question the idea of public housing, we must attack the people who run it. Just about all the talk around this subject is substitution. We can talk about the poor living conditions and the failures of management, but not about the systemic failures of government housing. We cannot question whether it should exist at all. We can talk about poverty, but not about the welfare system that created the dependence for entire generations. We can talk about ‘broken families’ but not about the racist government policies that created them, not about subsidizing bad choices and child abuse. We can talk about lack of education, but cannot question the public school system that is responsible for not educating. We can talk about crime, but not about the war on drugs that is responsible for the brunt of it. We can talk about unemployment, but not the minimum wage laws that make it nearly impossible for the unskilled and inexperienced to get a job. We can talk about the difficulties of immigrant life, but not about its cost or the difficulties of getting rid of the bad apples that slip in. We don’t stand a chance solving the problems if we don’t even have the guts to talk about them honestly.

Faith

Why wouldn't the CBC, the liberal media or politicians ever discuss these options seriously? Because it would go against the most foundational believes of the left. The God of the left is the state, its most basic tenet is the unquestioning belief that it can be the solution to all problems known to mankind. If only the good people with good intentions would get together, elect the right leaders to come up with the good plan then our problems will be solved. The free market is evil because it does not have good intentions and how could we possibly create a good world without a plan and good intentions? The faith in the state is just as impervious to reality as the faith in God and just as difficult to argue against. ‘Proving’ that something doesn't work will only reinforce the desire to try harder DOING THE SAME THING! If fate (God) hits you with some misfortune, it must be because you are not a sufficiently devout believer. If the state causes harm it’s because we didn't put the right people in charge, we did not have the right strategy or - the most typical answer – we did not devote enough resources to it. No evidence, no logic can work against this blind faith.

Self Interest

Let me ask again: why wouldn't the CBC, the liberal media or politicians ever discuss these options seriously? Because it would also be in a way suicidal. Because they are part of the state, part of the very ideas they are promoting. Both guests on this morning show were rent seekers, people looking out for their own interest, looking for opportunities, looking for a well-paid role for themselves in that “youth violence strategy” they advocate. The tremendous power of this interest should not be underestimated. After all, the state, the government, is people. People who want to do good and want to be paid well for doing good. What do you think they care more about? Their cushy jobs or the losers who are the excuse for it? If I could guaranty to them that I can make the people in their charge much better off but only at the cost of their jobs, how many would go for it? How much bullshitting would you be willing to do to keep a $100K job? (To understand this last point better, look for my next post: “Socialist Class Theory”) We could disagree on what the best answer, the best approach may be, but I have no doubt that another youth strategy, another basketball program will simply not cut it.