Clueless Greensboro Officials Puzzled Over City's Violence

A fairly remarkable thing happened in the city of Greensboro around Election Day. Downtown businesses boarded up their storefronts anticipating destruction and rioting in the event Biden lost the election. 

That is something that would have been unthinkable in Greensboro just several years ago. But city officials' utter refusal to maintain civic order has left business owners with little choice.

Then there was a fairly remarkable murder and mass shooting outside the Sheriff's office downtown on Monday. It occurred mid-day, in broad daylight. A judge in the nearby courthouse was whisked away to his chambers when the gunfire was heard.

Former Sheriff BJ Barnes had some insightful commentary about the mess, and how the undermining of law enforcement locally has led to these circumstances.

After Monday's downtown shootings, our identity politics police chief, Brian James, was quoted as follows: 

“I’m very worried about it,” James said. “This is insane to have a shooting in broad daylight like this, in the middle of downtown, a heavily populated area, people going to court, people going to work, people just trying to live. This is absolutely insane and I am very worried about it.”.

No, Mr. James. This shooting incident was not insane. It is the logical conclusion of the philosophy you bring to the police department, and the way the city has been led politically.

We had noted here back when James was appointed that he had been involved in the racial insurrection against former Chief David Wray approximately 15 years ago, and had sued the city's taxpayers in the course of an  EEOC complaint. 

After our city council pushed David Wray out of his position, another black officer, Tim Bellamy, was appointed to replace him. Police stopped working, and crime exploded in the city. Former Councilman Mike Barber exploded during a city council meeting, and threatened Bellamy that he must make some changes.

Replacing Bellamy was Ken Miller who represented a brief shining light during the city's recent history. Proactive policing was implemented, and crime decreased significantly. Black lives were saved.

But during the following years, antipolice forces in the city, which are considerable, gained the upper hand. Nearly all of the local media-- the News and Record, Triad City Beat, Yes!Weekly and the various local TV stations-- supported them and promoted their talking points. Nancy Vaughan assumed the mayoralty with the support of two leftist black PAC's.

Vaughan and the city council undermined police dramatically over the last several years. And with Monday's shootings, the city had its 53rd homicide this year-- a record. And there are still six weeks left for this record to increase.

Two illustrious council members-- Sharon Hightower and Goldie Wells-- had comments:

“I’m emotionally shattered by all of the things that are happening,” said Greensboro Councilwoman Dr. Goldie Wells...

“It so tragic. It doesn’t matter the age or the sex of the person. It’s a life,” said Councilwoman Sharon Hightower. 

Councilwomen Hightower and Wells take what’s happening in their districts personally.  

“It really bothers me that district one has the most homicides and that we are here at 52,” Hightower said. 

“We wish we could do something but sometimes it seems like our hands are tied. We don’t know exactly what to do,” Dr. Wells said. 

Councilwoman Wells told FOX8 that police have solved 60% of this year’s murders but the deadly shootings are not slowing down...

All of these women have the same message to those who pull the trigger. 

“Maybe make a quick analysis if this is worth it and then maybe reach out for help. To know that someone is out there who really does care about you as a person, as a human being, as a life worth living,” Hightower said. 

Of course, Councilwoman Yvonne Johnson-- perhaps the most powerful council member-- also had comments:

Councilwoman Yvonne Johnson works with many children through the Cure Violence initiative and says when children are exposed to crime, they learn to retaliate at a young age.  

“One of the things we are adamant about is changing the thought patterns and behaviors of children in reference to crime,” Johnson stated. 

Council members Hightower, Wells and Johnson might accurately be described as dolts or nincompoops or idiots. In fact, those descriptors apply to nearly our entire city council.

But Johnson directs a local nonprofit that was slated to receive $400,000 of taxpayers' money for the aforementioned Cure Violence program-- Chicago-originated, which espouses an ineffective crime prevention approach. This funding is a clear conflict of interest-- not only for Johnson, but the entire council. Our corrupt local machine politics are at work. Johnson has been on the council for nearly three decades, almost uninterrupted.

It is not inaccurate to describe these people as clueless. But at the same time, they do not want to do what is necessary to restore public order and save black lives. In fact, they overtly refuse to do so. Their efforts to undermine police have been intentional, and have achieved their desired results. And their compatriots in the local media bear responsibility also.

Comments

[Fred Gregory]

Bring back David Wray !

[Triad Conservative]

Fred, Wray was a whole lot better than what we now have. As good people continue to flee Greensboro, the city gradually becomes something much worse than it was.