Happy Independence Day.
Chicago marked the occasion with celebratory fireworks, and unlike most civilized communities in America, an abundance gunfire aimed at other people.
The LA Times is now reporting that 82 people were shot over the weekend and 14 killed in the senseless inner-city violence that is Chicago.
We suffered fewer casualties on a given weekend in military combat when we were fighting wars in the sandboxes.
Chicago’s Police Superintendent, Garry McCarthy is trying to shake off a hangover from the holiday weekend, especially after hearing news that a card-carrying good guy used his gun to stop a shooting spree in its tracks with two well-aimed shots.
McCarthy, who was famous for his “CompStat” computer model that predicts when and where crime will happen when he was hired in Philly, was conspicuously silent today on the number of arrests made in those 84 shootings – with the exception of the five bad guys shot by police.
Buried underneath those headlines was the utter chaos and violence at Independence Day celebrations, particularly on Friday, July 4th in the supposedly “safe” areas of the City of Chicago.
CBS Chicago spilled some of the beans, in a general sort of way:
CHICAGO (CBS) – With more than 100,000 people at Navy Pier alone and thousands more packing the lakefront to watch the Fourth of July fireworks, it was a busy night for Chicago Police.
Officers responded to calls for everything from fights to people setting off fireworks right along Michigan Avenue.
At 7:45 p.m., a call went out to police about teens setting off firecrackers. A dispatcher reported people firing M-80’s at Chicago and State and at Pearson and Michigan.
About ten minutes after a dispatch call about 15-20 people with M-80s, a fight breaks out on the sidewalk in front Nordstrom on Michigan Avenue.
Minutes later, a call of fifty to 100 teens beating a person in the street and then crossing Lake Shore Drive at Oak Street.
From Oak and Lake Shore, the group made their way to Chestnut.
Around 8:45, an urgent call went out for officers to arrive at Michigan and Chicago with a large group fighting at Water Tower.
Does downtown Chicago sound like a safe and wholesome place where a reasonable and prudent person would take their family?
Chicago isn’t safe, folks.
Take your family, your money and your spare time elsewhere.
I agree NO VACATIONS OR VISITS to Chicago until Rahm and his drunken bum lap dog get voted out. Hope Wisconsin enjoys my cash.
Rahm can’t seem to pull the plug on McCarthy. At some point, the machine is gonna pull the plug on Rahm. It’s a pity the citizens of Chivago won’t pull the plug on the machine.
We’ve not been in Chicago in 4 years and are never going back.