Combating Gang Violence By Shoving Your Head Up Your Ass

Chicago once again proves as an example that the most common why municipal politicians try to fight gang violence is by shoving their head up their ass.  Soft gun confiscation programs failed. Outright gun bans failed. So what makes these politicians think that a tax will have any effect? It won't, and honestly, even city board president Preckwinckle probably knows this.  While I wouldn't put it past politicians to be utterly clueless when it comes to being able analyze a cause and effect relationship, in this case gun bans resulting in no appreciable drop in the murder or crime rate points the fact that there is no cause and effect relationship between the two, I find it hard to be believe that in this instance the board members honestly believe this law will have any effect. There is simply too much evidence to the contrary.

Now the fact that the city is willing to pass a law, despite it almost certainly being challenged in court, points to a strict adherence to dogmatic belief despite the fact of empirical evidence to the contrary.  Now, unlike the Seattle park handgun ban, which the state attorney general said would be overturned in court, that cost the city millions in legal fees and ended exactly the way the state attorney said it would, this law might have a chance of standing. I can't say for sure, but I have a feeling the Illinois in general is less gun friendly than Washington state.  Still, the challenge will most certainly cost the city, that is already pretty much bankrupt, a lot of money. Which begs the question why? Given the gains made by gun rights advocates recently, and the general attitude about guns in this country, the battle for Chicago will be uphill. So the only other thing that comes to mind, despite their protests to the contrary, is that they hope it will generate some revenue for their deeply indebted city, however little it may be.

It is shame the Chicago's leaders are so horribly inept, as I really enjoyed visiting the city. But the city is getting exactly what they deserve, leaders with heads up their asses, because that is exactly what Chicago is doing, sticking their collective head up their ass, by continually electing in incompetents.