Spike in Killings and Shootings

I don't know about anyone else, but rising killings and shootings in NYC is very disconcerting. It makes me think that this city is not as safe as it once was.

That's troubling - although I want to stay on the more optimistic side for now. Perhaps this is just a series of unlucky coincidences..

I was talking to someone about how safe/unsafe my neighborhood is and we got to talking about how crime rates rise when the weather gets warmer. Apparently even criminals like to stay indoors during the brutal winter.

@BroadwayBK It does seem like that is the case... either that or we just haven't been paying attention to all the shootings and stabbings in the news until recently?

At least there's one good thing to say about NYC's miserable, brutal winters!

@hhusted this certainly is worrying especially in the light of the brutal murders which took place on Sunday night on a Brooklyn bound no.2. The crime sounds so senseless - http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/03/30/2010-03-30_sis_killer_possessed_kin_still_in_disbelief_as_cops_seek_suspect_in_subway_stab_.html And the NYPD dont have a clue about the killer because most of the CCTVs installed in subway stations are not functioning currently. You would think the MTA would fix those first before embarking on other projects.

That really is terrifying! I'm so used to thinking of NYC as safe....it's really surprising

Wait, I thought everyone was so bummed about how safe and suburban New York was getting? That's all I ever hear: that it lost its grit and edge, there are no more crack addicts, blah blah. I guess, ask and you shall receive, huh?

Maybe the recession has something to do with it - people are getting more stressed, lonely, desperate, and isolated? Either that or just plain bad luck and timing

@Ajadedidealist: The economy will stress people out a lot. In some cases, to commit crimes just to get money. Bad situation.

Does this mean we need some Giuliani-type policing back in the city?

@ajadedidealist and hhusted, I too think that is the case.. take the case of the recent subway murders , the guy seem to be kind of a frenzy as he stabbed his victims over an argument over a trash bag! Wonder what induces that kind of rage??

@Uptowngirl: It is stress.Let's face it. This city is a pressure cooker. What happens when you put food in a pressure cooker and set it too high. For you girls who have one or had one, you would know the scenario. It isn't pretty. This is what's happening to people in this city. And with unemployment at an all-time high in this city, this adds more stress.

Everyone is under stress. It kind of blows my mind what is festering in people for this to come out to the surface. People need to meditate or something. Can you imagine anything being worth sitting in prison for the rest or your life . . .let alone a trash bag?

He was probably, I'm guessing, either mentally ill or seriously, seriously strung out. After a couple drinks I can get pretty nutso - surely someone on heroin/LSD/etc could get into a murderous rage!

It's reasonable to expect that the city's crime rate will rise now. Not only the pressure of no jobs and no money, but also the fiscal crisis the city is having. All leads to less policing, fewer public programs, etc. Remember the crack epidemic in NYC in the 80's? Pretty much direct result of the city's fiscal meltdown round about 1979/1980.

Count on Uraniumfish to always consider the bright side.

@Everyone did you hear about the mayhem that took place around Times Square and Herald Square on Sunday Night ? Random shootings .. 4 people injured and 54 arrested in the heart of the tourist district in NYC ...bizarre!!!! http://www.wpix.com/news/wpix-midtown-shootings,0,2566383.story

Apparently the incident that I have referred to in my previous post is an annual occurrence which is known as a ''wilding' which occurs every year at the end of the NYC auto show at the Jacob Javits Center . This event is used as an initiation by gangs to recruit new members. I have lived in NYC for over five years but this is the first time that I have ever heard about 'wilding'. Have you? 'http://longisland.newsday.com/gallery/galleries/amny/pdf/20100406.pdf

@BroadwayBW Aaaawwww! Not trying to be a black cloud here, just trying to see the bigger picture. I think safety and a good working society are the direct result of government actively addressing these issues, and maintaining good programs in place. I worry about all these municipal cutbacks in the interest of saving money are going to leave a lot of people fragile and close to the breaking point. I'm just saying, we might want to learn from history lest we repeat it...

@uptowngirl Wow, never heard of wilding before either...crazy.

@Uptowngirl: I never heard of wilding. This is the first time I heard of it.

@uptowngirl No, never heard of it. And yes, it is pretty crazy.

@Uraniumfish J/K, J/K!

At the rate things are going right now, this city may end up collapsing, if something is not done to stop the bleeding.

That's crazy, @uptowngirl - I'd never heard of such a thing before. I guess I don't know much about gang initiation, although there was an informative article about gang culture in New Haven in the NYT the other day: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/15/nyregion/15towns.html Really makes you think.

@hhusted I don't think it's as bad as all of that.

The fact that 50 people were arrested in midtown is very scary. I really hate when random people start talking about how "hard" their neighborhood is, and that "if you think Manhattan is scary, you don't know crap," blah blah blah. It's not like criminals can't take the train to get to any place in the city. And if I was a criminal I would probably leave my crappy neighborhood to go and rob some people who have lots of money.

@BroadwayBK: Oh, yeah. Well I have connections with people on the inside, and this city is headed for a financial disaster if something is not done to get needed revenue to this city quickly.

You can hear all about the possible financial disaster if you just turn on NY1. But collapse, bleeding? What melodrama.

Um, latest employment statistics? Headed upward, guys. Even the people at the Fed are generally pleased by an unexpected upturn lately. "Collapse" is a big word and hardly appropriate here.

@BroadwayBK @DBlack Seriously. Times are tough, but they ain't that tough.

At least the airlines aren't shutting down over in NY! So it could be worse!

@ajadedidealist so true.. travelers all over Europe seem to be in such a bind and it doesnt help that some hotels and other services are using the disaster as a time to rake in the moolah .. read somewhere that NYC hotels actually offered 15% discount to stranded travelers- http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/Ash-Weekend-NYC-Hotel-Discounts-Offered-to-Stranded-Passengers-91223794.html .. goes to prove that NYC has a heart after all...

@BroadwayBK: This city is bleeding. Not bleeding literally, just figuratively. @DBack: I read today that employment is rising, but so is unemployment. The number of people entering the unemployment line is going up to. I used the word collapse loosely. I stated earlier that if this city didn't turn around, it would collapse, I never said it was going to.

Yeah, @uptowngirl. The Eurostar and P&O ferries are seriously price-gouging (or at least using their top established fares, taking advantage of stranded travelers. Not pleased or impressed, I must say)

@hhusted HA! I didn't think you meant it LITERALLY. Jeez. And I still disagree.

@BroadwayBK: You are entitled. Frankly, I hope things do get better for NYC. It means economic recovery not just for NYC but the whole nation.

As goes NYC, so goes the country? Perhaps....although we are in our own little "bubble" here culturally, if not economically.

@ajadedidealist Perhaps, but this bubble is the place to be!

Oh, I agree, Broadway. I'm considering moving back for half the year - we were planning to rent out our apartment when my mom moved to Tbilisi but she changed her mind; my grandma is looking after it but we're keeping it semi-empty. Means I might consider heading over there to take an internship, etc, I otherwise couldn't afford...

I can't imagine living anywhere else, and I've really tried to imagine it...

Me too. It's not happening.

@Everyone yesterday I was having lunch with a bunch of people who were yammering on about how filthy NYC is and how wonderful San Francisco is .. I do understand people are entitled to their opinions and NYC is dirty and chaotic but give me always buzzing NYC over any sterile, pristine, orderly city any day.