Loading ...Some Sobering Statistics
I compiled this data on crime, taxes and schools today while thumbing through this weekend’s Indianapolis Star.
Car jackings - up 145%.
Homicides - up 12% (The full list is here. Warning, it is a partisan blog.)
Robberies - up 11%
Aggravated Assaults - up 34%
IPS Seniors Who Graduate and without passing the Graduation Qualifying Exam - 26% (At IPS’ worse performing high schools)
County Income Taxes - up 65%
Property Taxes - up 34% (average)
There is another number being circulated that a poll was taken that has the Mayor’s approval rating at 34%. I’m trying to track the poll down and figure out how accurate it is, but with statistics like these, I would not be surprised if it were true.
As a single, upper middle class, man with discretionary income, I can weather all this. But I really have to ask how does a working-middle class family put up with all this and not pack their bags and go.
July 29th, 2007 at 11:02 am
The 34% number is a blog number.
I’ve got a poll that has him at 56%…
…and another at 72%…
I can make up any number, but here’s the little secret Abdul, polls are expensive and if someone had that number, they would splash it all over, not trickle it into blog comments…
July 29th, 2007 at 11:15 am
What’s the date on those poll numbers? I know he was at 66% 18 months ago.
July 29th, 2007 at 11:50 am
This is the result of not filling police vacancies, not putting people in jail that should be, having a revolving door ‘justice’ system.
Criminal know that they can do what they want with impunity in Indianapolis.
This is the result of the liberal tax and spend Democrats. They’ll raise taxes more than ever in history, and what is it for? (It’s not for public safety.)
Let’s see, the council president and the appointee to the airport authority board (who also orchestrated the purchase of this giant building that Center Twp did not need) own a bar located in one of the three unnecessary Center Twp buildings. The Center Twp Trustee has over 100 political patronage jobs. We have more deputy mayors and mayoral executives with new city cars & higher salaries than ever.
We got a nice luxury hotel, complete with tax abatements (can you say a nod & wink), new unneeded football stadium that most taxpaying families cannot afford to enjoy attending. How many Colts players and owner have been arrested? How many Pacers have been arrested? Are we safe from them, or are we spending tax money so they can get richer? Billionaire businessmen got a new headquarters downtown.
Instead of public safety, the taxpayers are having their hard-earned money spent on political patronage and “back-scratching” millionaires & billionaires.
We taxpayers know that public safety is what we want, and so does The Democrat Machine, which is why they say the tax increase is for ‘public safety’. The Democrat Machine lies.
July 29th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
Hey Abdul, the 10 year annual report on America’s Welfare Reform shows Indiana “Dead Last” in taking people off the welfare rolls.
http://www.in.gov/fssa/pdf/eligibilitymodernization0806.pdf
Check out page 9! It’s Astonishing!
Our current local government structure in Marion County does not do its part; it has allowed a very BAD ELEMENT to monopolize funds that are essential to mentor the welfare recipients off the rolls. We need to make sure that funds that trickle down to local entities for training is received by legitimate companies that actually provide the services expected, or we need to “up our expectations” of those companies. Our training dollars have been SEVERELY abused by political insiders, particularly funds that go into the poorest communities, where they are needed most. While it may have been easy in the past for government to just leave the funds oversight to the minority legislator who represents the community, its impact is evidenced with these Reports.
Indiana’s change was only -6.3%, the highest was wyoming at -93.2.
WE NEED TO GET THE PEOPLE OFF THE WELFARE ROLLS!
July 29th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
Upper middle class family here and soon to be tax refugee. This clearly isn’t going to get fixed. We’re taking a loss on the house and moving to Carmel. We’ll make the money back in 3 years not having to pay private school tuition. We were devoted city dwellers but are now tired of being punished for trying to do the right thing and maintain an old home. Good luck to those who stay behind. I truly wish it didn’t come to this.
July 29th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
No way is Peterson’s approval rating is above 40%. NO WAY. 34% sounds high.
July 29th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
No way is Peterson’s approval rating is above 40%. NO WAY. 34% sounds high.
July 29th, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Can we get more police? Can we tell the Prosecutor to file the cases and send criminals to prison?
Can we expand the jail and make room for ALL CRIMINALS?
I’d gladly pay more TAX if the Democrats would put the money into police, prosecution, and jails & prisons!!!!!!!!!!!
But, Bart Lies.
July 30th, 2007 at 8:51 am
My wife and I were urban pioneers and settled into a very nice home on the near eastside.
Due to the number of homes now on the market we have elected to lease our place out rather than sell it at a loss. We’ll still be money ahead even with our 67% property tax increase.
We’ll retire and move into the cottage at the lake in NY and be done with Indianapolis and Indiana.
July 30th, 2007 at 9:39 am
You better check your partisan blog sources. According to the Indy Star’s crime database, number of homicides in 2006 Jan 1-July 29 was 87. The link you had says number of homicides in Indy this year to date is 67. That’s not a 12%increase, but a DECLINE of 20 or 23%. The homicide decline has been going on since April of this year. If you’re going to cite stats from others, not stats you research yourself, use ACCURATE data sources. Not folks trying to make a case where none exists.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:49 am
the star includes suicides and police action shootings. this is the pure murder rate.
July 30th, 2007 at 12:12 pm
The average guy doesn’t put up with it, he takes his tax money and moves out of the county. This reduces tax revenue, which causes Bart and his ilk to raise taxes again, which makes more taxpayers leave. Viola! The city begins its death spiral into a black hole, from which it will likely never emerge. For details, see Newark and Detroit.
July 30th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
Agreed Buzzy, I think even the mayor himself referenced it in a speech about how wrong it is to raise taxes a few years ago. Whoops.
One other thing to remember about the homicide rate is that the Coroner’s office has been questionable in the past year or two when it came to performing autopsies in a timely manner and establishing a plausible manner of death. Another big variable is whether or not you include Lawrence, Speedway, Beech Grove, etc.
July 30th, 2007 at 4:49 pm
Jason–that’s precisely where I got that colorful metaphor…excuse me, I have to go pack some more boxes, the movers come in just a few days.
July 30th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
Darla, Last time I checked the folks responsible for welfare is the State of Indiana. FSSA. Mitch Roob. Gov. Daniels’ man. If welfare rolls are swollen in Indiana, Roob has been the person in charge for three years. Why hasn’t he done his job?
Abdul, you are wrong on the Star’s homicide stats. The partisan blog you cite shows 67 homicides for the year so far. The Star,which is late in posting homicides shows 65. Last year’s stat, same time last year, was 85. If your blogger is correct that homicide is up 12% over last year. Than we would have had only 58 to 59 homicides this time last year. That’s not true and you and the blog you reference know it. Again, get your facts right..
July 30th, 2007 at 7:02 pm
Crime is up because The Democrat Machine loves crime! It creates fear…fear of lawlessness and being victimized, burglarized, raped! They love to instill fear in others….
…and then: “Tax and Spend” on a croney or adding patronage employees.
August 1st, 2007 at 1:35 am
Buzzy Whitlow: The study was for the years 1996 to 2004, prior to the new administration, but I don’t care about that much.
I care where our training dollars are going and would like to see the money actually used to train people into jobs so they can get off of welfare and small businesses can have a better trained workforce to select from. Too much training dollars have been going to political insiders who did not train the people as required.