| Author | Message | ||
     bobk Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 3343 Registered: 5-2001 |
Yesterday's Star Ledger has an article on the 2002 crime rates in Essex County. Maplewood had 28.66 crimes per 1,000 people, down from the five year average of 36.87 per 1,000. The only area that was above the five year average was aggravated assaults where in 2002 we had 47 with a five year average of 33. Is this because of the increase in gang (or proto-gang) activity? For the record the crimes per 1,000 rate in Millburn was much higher than Maplewood at 40.98, although I suspect a lot of this was shoplifing and other activities at the Mall at Short Hills. | ||
| 1-2many Citizen Username: Wbg69 Post Number: 274 Registered: 6-2002 |
reminds me of Bowling for Columbine, where Michael Moore noted that while the murder rate has gone down 20%, the news coverage has gone UP 600% - reinforcing what I have been saying over and over about the news media being the new vultures, though he is much more articulate. think there's a book referenced - The Culture of Fear or something - about the hear-hysterical fear being bred in American society, which in turn may be what makes us the most violent people in the world. also reminds me of another poster's comment that, though we get a lot of hysteria about What's Wrong With Our SOMA Schools, no one points our that apparently MMS test scores have gone up every year for five years or something like that. | ||
| jfburch Citizen Username: Jfburch Post Number: 713 Registered: 6-2001 |
The Culture of Fear by Barry Glassner is an excellent book. There's more to it than the media, though he argues that it's a big part of it. | ||
| OK, it's Tom Reingold Citizen Username: Noglider Post Number: 423 Registered: 1-2003  |
I wish people were more numerate than they are. (Numeracy is to numbers what literacy is to words.) If people looked knowingly at statistics, they might understand risks better. I believe the greatest danger to our children is motor vehicles, not crime or germs. It makes me very, very sad that parents don't want their kids going outside, for fear of abduction or assault. I do advocate proper education and caution, but fear is also a price, and missing out on playing outside is a great price we pay. I'm glad to see lots of kids outside in Maplewood. Not so in other places. People say that the world has changed and we have to be more careful now. Crime statistics would have me think otherwise. The test scores, however, don't show everything. I suppose it's nice that average scores are going up, but didn't I read that the gap between low and high scores is widening? And didn't I read that the gap usually runs along racial lines? I think we should pay attention to that. Maybe it's not a crisis, but we should see what we can do, if anything. Interestingly, CHS scores lower than the two Edison (where I just came from) high schools. Edison is less economically diverse, which is to say that there aren't as many upper middle class parents who want their kids to go to college. CHS sends far more kids to four year colleges than the Edison high schools do. And that was one metric that really pleased me. Tom Reingold | ||
| 1-2many Citizen Username: Wbg69 Post Number: 276 Registered: 6-2002 |
speaking of fear and children, Bowling for Columbine also debunks the poisoned-Halloween-candy myth. There was apparently NEVER a razor blade in an apple, and in the past 40 years only 2 children were poisoned by candy - and BOTH of them were poisoned by relatives, intentionally if I recall correctly. it would be foolish to turn a blind eye to the real crime around us and live as if it's not a risk. but it's costly to live as if it's an inflated risk, which seems to be the case. re: the high school issue - I have long heard that CHS is a great school for those at either end of the spectrum, but the ones in the middle tend to get overlooked. my kid - at this point - is at the honors end of the spectrum, so I have high hopes, and frankly I am really impressed with having an honors program commencing in 9th grade, as well as the incredibly varied extracurriculars they offer. seems to me my kid is at least being offered a MUCH better public-HS experience than I was, at one of the top HS's in GA. | ||
| ashear Citizen Username: Ashear Post Number: 681 Registered: 5-2001 |
I did know a guy in college who went to the supermarket on Halloween and bought a bag of apples and a box of razorblades just freak out the people at the store (I think). | ||
| jfburch Citizen Username: Jfburch Post Number: 714 Registered: 6-2001 |
See this article from the Star Ledger on the achievement gap--we'll be hearing a lot more about it--and we'll need to find ways to address it: http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-10/106213594144380.xml Even elite districts lag in student test scores Long recognized but rarely documented, New Jersey's deep achievement gap between students of different races and backgrounds is soon to put hundreds of schools -- rich and poor -- in a not-so-flattering spotlight. <....> But the No Child Left Behind Act under President Bush is demanding the new testing and breakdown of scores as an impetus to help close the gaps. And the law has teeth that could come down on even some districts considered New Jersey's elite, including an unflattering tag as "needing improvement" and requirements that students be allowed to transfer out and even schools eventually overhauled if progress isn't made. | ||
| hello Citizen Username: Hello Post Number: 106 Registered: 7-2003 |
curious- the lead-in suggests a statement about race controlling for factors like income, but the sensational stats themselves- "three times"- suggest only the district attended is the "control" for income. this is pretty sorry if true- the "star ledger" is usually better than this. | ||
| nan Citizen Username: Nan Post Number: 912 Registered: 2-2001 |
They demand new testing and breakdown of scores as an "impetus" to help close the gap. Unfortunately, NCLB does not offer much more than an impetus. Some, like Gerald Bracy, say that it is a deliberate attempt to destroy public education: -------------------------------------------------- Districts and schools that fail to make AYP are subject to increasingly severe--and unworkable--sanctions. Their staffs can be fired, their kids sent to another district, the district abolished. Using the original formulation, the White House's own calculations revealed that had NCLB been in place for a few years, about 90% of the schools in North Carolina and Texas would have been labeled "failing schools." North Carolina and Texas? These are states that have been singled out in recent years for their progress on a variety of tests. If they can't meet the standards, what hope is there for the rest? None--that's the purpose of the law. The National Conference of State Legislatures estimated that 90% of all schools would fail while simulations by the Council of Chief State School Officers put the failure rate at only 88%[13]. As a consequence, some wags are beginning to refer to the law as LNSS: Let No School Succeed. http://www.america-tomorrow.com/bracey/EDDRA/EDDRA32.htm Slightly shorter version: http://www.america-tomorrow.com/bracey/EDDRA/EDDRA28.htm ----------------------------------------------------- I don't think this is a good thing. | ||
| luv2cruise Citizen Username: Luv2cruise Post Number: 92 Registered: 12-2002 |
Tom, Did your post have ANYTHING to do with crime in Maplewood?????  There's nothing like being on the ocean! | ||
| squeeks Citizen Username: Squeeks Post Number: 20 Registered: 8-2001 |
If crime is down substantially in Maplewood, why to the police still have to race all over town in their squad cars like maniacs on the Indiannapolis Speedway? I feel at time we almost need protection FROM the police as the speed up Tuscan, Oakview, or Elmwood in response to WHAT? serious crime ? I don't see it being reported in the paper or online? So what prompts this dangerous behavior by our fine officers? Boredom, Grandstanding, or Stupidity! Some day, some hard of hearing senior, or some toddling child is going to get killed by one of these egotistical, reckless souls. They don't always use their sirens, flashers, horns or other means to warn other drivers of their presence, they just push the pedal down and roar up our local streets with indifferenec to our safety. I feel it is way OVERDONE as as nececssary reaction to our rapidly declining crime rate. OR AM I JUSt THE ONE OVERREACTING? Anyone else out there feel that this is a serious enough concern to take to the Police Chief and the Township Commitee. I sure do! | ||
| Dave Ross Supporter Username: Dave Post Number: 5074 Registered: 5-2001  |
How fast would you like them to come when you call 9-1-1? | ||
| scollins Citizen Username: Scollins Post Number: 41 Registered: 8-2001 |
What I find disconcerting are the incidents that I hear on the police frequencies that do not get reported in the paper. I realize that not all incidents are crimes, not all crimes are newsworthy and with one reporter for two towns coverage is thin. But when I hear things going on and there is no mention in the paper I just wonder where the editing takes place and if editing also results in skewed statistics. As for the police driving, these people are trained professionals who have to weigh the risks of everything they do on the job from crossing guard duty to chasing bad guys. Public saftey is their number one concern. | ||
| thelight Citizen Username: Thelight Post Number: 71 Registered: 8-2001 |
Thank You Scollins, You seem to have a grasp of the reality concept when it comes to what "Real Life" is all about! To squeeks...Shame on you for not being up on the major crimes that are occuring in the Town that you live in. Thank You, The Light. | ||
| thelight Citizen Username: Thelight Post Number: 72 Registered: 8-2001 |
Also in passing, to squeeks, You are a Police Officer and a call comes in that a woman is alone in her home, and she just heard someone opening her back door, and come into her house. Would you respond at 20 mph, or maybey a little faster? The Police get calls like this constantly. Or how about an 8 month-old child swallowed a toy, and is turning blue as the Mother is hysterical, how should a Police Officer respond to THAT call? Squeeks, use your head...just because you don't read about EVERY little incident, doesn't mean that these incidents don't take place. Thanks again, The Light. | ||
| njphilf Citizen Username: Njphilf Post Number: 54 Registered: 4-2002 |
SCollins, If people only knew the truth. The numbers have been skewed for many years. What people don't know.... Once again, too many people in this town live with "rose-colored glasses". They rather be spoon-feed loads of BS instead of hearing the truths. | ||
| Dr. Winston O'Boogie Citizen Username: Casey Post Number: 14 Registered: 8-2003  |
I always love accusations of official malfeasance that are backed up by ABSOLUTELY NO EVIDENCE. Please njphilf, if you know something, share it with the rest of the class. innuenedo about shadowy wrongdoings however, is completely worthless. | ||
| Dr. Strangelove Citizen Username: Dr_strangelove Post Number: 20 Registered: 3-2003  |
Pherhaps, but can you do this? | ||
| tdurkin307 Citizen Username: Tdurkin307 Post Number: 11 Registered: 4-2002 |
Well,Mr Citizen, it seems you've figured me out to fit neatly into the category where you've placed me. I'm stereotyped, standardized, characterized, classified, grouped, and always typical. Unfortunately, the reverse is true, I can never figure you out. From birth you teach your children that I'm the boogyman, then you're shocked when they identify with my traditional enemy...the criminal! You accuse me of coddling criminals.....until I catch your kids doing wrong. You may take an hour for lunch or several coffee breaks each day, but point me out as a loafer for having one cup. You pride yourself on your manners, but think nothing of disrupting my meals with your troubles. You raise hell with the guy who cuts you off in traffic, but let me catch you doing the same thing and I'm picking on you. You know all the traffic laws...but you've never gotten a single ticket you deserve. You shout "foul" if you observe me driving fast to a call but raise the the roof if I take more than ten seconds to respond to your complaint. You call it part of my job if someone strikes me, but its police brutality if I strike back. You wouldn't think of telling your dentist how to pull a tooth or your doctor how to take out an appendix, yet you are always willing to give me pointers on the law. You talk to me in a manner that would get you a bloody nose from anyone else, but expect me to take it without batting an eye. You yell something's got to be done to fight crime but can't be bothered to get involved. You have no use for me at all, but of course it's OK to change a flat for your wife, deliver your child in the back seat of a patrol car or perhaps save your son's life with mouth to mouth breathing, or work my hours overtime loking for your lost daughter. So, Mr Citizen, you can stand there on your soapbox and rant and rave about the way I do my work, calling me every name in the book, but never stop to think that your property, family, or maybe your life depends on me or one of my buddies. Yes, Mr Citizen, it's me...the lousy cop! The autor of this article was Trooper Mitchell Brown of the Virginia State Police. He was killed in the line of duty two months after writing the article. | ||
| Dr. Winston O'Boogie Citizen Username: Casey Post Number: 15 Registered: 8-2003 |
Some posts just smell like urban legends, don't they? |
