In Chicago, as in New York City, police officers have been instructed to fill out a new an extremely burdensome form every time they stop somebody. This would be great if eliminating police stops were a worthy goal. In Chicago, as reported in the Sun-Times: Interim Chicago Police Supt. John Escalante said Tuesday he hopes…
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I read pretty quickly. I’m always looking for new non-fiction. Particularly history. I’ve found Darkblue714 on twitter has never failed me with good book recommendations. He reminded me to read The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration. Being a best seller in 1994, I don’t know how that bestseller managed…
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I always like Al Baker’s stories. He seems to get it. And I don’t think he’s Greek. But I do think his father was a cop. Maybe that matters. Or maybe he’s just smart and works hard. Anyway, I’m happy to see him writing about police issues again. I trust that when I read his…
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It’s too bad this man wasn’t president. Oh, the economic and foreign policy horrors that could have been avoided. But I don’t say that just because he’s Greek. (Though that helps.) And I don’t say that just because he was kind enough to write the introduction to my Greek Americans book. (Though that was very…
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There’s something ironic here, this Harlem bar owner discussing the fatal shooting in his bar and the need the need to buy a metal detector and hire a third security guard in order to pat-down customers so nobody gets shot: He called the extra security measures, “horrible” and “insane” but unfortunately necessary to keep everyone…
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The other week I wrote about the so-called “Ferguson Effect.” Alex Elkins has some more thoughts on this issue, over on his blog: The main “take-away,” the one the authors hope the media will pick up and run with, namely, that the Ferguson Effect, as construed by conservatives and certain media outlets, is “spurious.” This…
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That’s all. And not a bad refresher at that, by Amy Gallo in Harvard Business Review: “You have to go out and see what’s happening in the real world. What’s the physical mechanism that’s causing the relationship? … A lot of people skip this step and I think it’s because they’re lazy. The goal is…
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Have you heard the news? There’s nothing new under the sun. “Today a policeman doesn’t know where he stands. He has lost the ball. He has become defensive and he doesn’t do a good job when he is on the defensive.” … “A cop will give his life to catch a burglar, holdup man, or…
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Do I think Peter Liang wanted to kill Akai Gurley? No. Do I think Liang messed up so bad that he should be found criminally guilty of manslaughter and official misconduct for failing to help Mr. Gurley as he lay dying in a public housing stairwell? Yeah. But, as a side note, Liang is right…
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Eight cops have been shot and killed this month. And February, 2016, ain’t even half over. Already, on my social media stream, I see my cop friends blaming Obama. Well, you must remember December, 2003 when seven cops were shot and killed? Republican George W Bush was president. August of that year? Nine cops were…
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