So how bad is it?

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by jabogitlu

Who do you think pays for law enforcement ... judicial proceedings ... jail and prison land, improvements, services, food, medical care....?

It's question of how your money is being spent, not whether it is spent. I agree with some return to enforcement of laws, but in addition, instead of buying up hotels there needs to be permanent affordable housing. Developers are not going to buy up expensive land, build minimalist studio apartments and rent them for under market. They are in business to make a profit. The county could buy actual apartment buildings and rent them out. There are already housing authorities in most cities and counties that can handle the rentals, including King County and The City of Seattle. Even Sound Transit rents out properties they have bought or obtained by eminent domain for future light rail development.

[southking500]

Originally Posted by jabogitlu

Who do you think pays for law enforcement ... judicial proceedings ... jail and prison land, improvements, services, food, medical care....?

I answered that one before too, locking up criminals is the fiscally responsible thing to do, revolving door justice is very expensive:

Jail is where the junkies who steal to support their habits belong anyway.
30-40K a year would be a great net savings to society when you add up the cost of the alternative now being embraced in most US cities:

The thefts alone for each junkie exceed that amount annually + police and court time (expensive catch and release/wristslap programs) public defenders, mental health counseling in lieu of jail, ER visits for psych/detox symptoms, hidden costs to businesses like cleaning up their restrooms and parking lots of trash and human waste, lost business as customers flee, employees quitting after multiple confrontations with crazy, high homeless people etc, degradation of city parks and greenbelts, decreased quality of life for city residents who no longer feel safe in their own neighborhoods PLUS the astronomical amount of money spent on "homeless services" $500K + per unit of "free" housing. And that is just the construction cost, the housing is managed by nonprofits receiving millions annually from the govt.

In other words BIG business providing paychecks for many people (reliable left wing voters) and govt. contracts to private agencies and contractors with close connections to city govt.

And the compliant liberal big city taxpayer picks up the tab not just with their hard earned $$$, but also by sacrificing much of what used to make NW cities so livable.

[dav51lin]

homeless
bad all over the usa