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Chicago: The Liberal Utopia

I read in the news yesterday that Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is warning that he may double property taxes in Chicago to fund a $1.07 billion balloon payment on its $19.4 billion pension debt for city employees. The shortfall to the pensions comes to $7,100 per Chicago resident. The municipal workers, police, labour and firefighters’ pension funds are currently sitting at 33 percent funded, far below the 80 percent that is considered healthy, according to Financial Times. The Chicago teachers’ pension fund is also in trouble, currently sitting at 54 percent funded. Chicago’s city council is taking steps to deal with the financial crisis, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Wall Street Journal – Last month, Chicago’s city council approved the issuance of $500 million in commercial paper and $900 million in general-obligation bonds purportedly to refinance existing debt and improve public works. There’s little to stop politicians from pouring the proceeds into pensions – or later reneging on […] → Keep reading

Detroit Police Chief: People Should Carry Guns

Detroit is considered to be one of the most dangerous cities in the United States, if not the most dangerous. Decades of neglect and Democrat rule have turned the once great city into the largest municipal Chapter 9 bankruptcy in American history and a decaying wasteland with thousands of abandoned homes and buildings. Crime and violence have replaced prosperity to the point where a citizen of Detroit is statistically more likely to be killed than is an American soldier serving in Afghanistan. Although the homicide rate dropped in 2013, Detroit had the same number of murders as New York City, which has 11 times the population of Detroit. The crime problem was definitely not lost on Police Chief James Craig, who took the job just last summer. He has made several changes to the department, including putting more emphasis on crime statistics to identify trouble spots and getting rid of a ‘virtual precinct’ concept that his predecessor started, which closed […] → Keep reading

Chicago Gun Control Targets Restaurants

The Chicago City Council has decided to strengthen their gun control laws by targeting and financially damaging local businesses that don’t ban guns. The Chicago Tribune has the story.

The council adopted a plan to revoke liquor licenses from restaurants that do not ban firearms.

It’s the City Council’s latest attempt to toughen Chicago’s gun laws despite a federally mandated state law passed by the General Assembly allowing concealed handguns to be carried.

Gun rights advocates have promised a lawsuit. Ald. Edward Burke, 14th, said the law firm Jenner & Block has pledged to defend the city in court for free if such a suit is filed.

After the vote, Mayor Rahm Emanuel told reporters that outlawing guns from businesses that serve alcohol is common sense. Society and the nation say “you’re not supposed to drink and drive. You’re clearly not supposed to drink and shoot,” he said.

This is what they do in Chicago instead of doing something about […] → Keep reading