Just the facts

I have been referencing the soon to be released Most Dangerous Cities report recently in my writing. When I reviewed all of the latest Orlando area crime news this morning, I noticed that an area crime reporter whose work I respect was commenting on it as well, so I decided to make it a topic for today. It seems that in our politically correct society where facts have become the main casualty, we are now being accused of being insensitive to the needs of cities with dangerous rankings. Here is a quote of interest:

The costs of ranking cities by their rates of reported crime outweigh the benefits, criminologist Richard Rosenfeld of the University of Missouri at St. Louis asserted yesterday. Rosenfeld spoke at the American Society of Criminology, which is holding its annual meeting in St. Louis. CQ Press, publisher of an annual volume that ranks cities and metropolitan areas, is scheduled to issue this year's edition on Nov. 24. The company says it will no longer refer to cities at the top and bottom of the list as the "most dangerous" or "safest" cities. Rosenfeld argued that the rankings misinform the public about the true risks of crime in a particular area.

I am sorry that Mr. Rosenfeld is upset with the findings, but it is understandable. You see the city that Mr Rosenfeld hails from is ranked #2 on the 2007 most dangerous cities ranking list referenced in the above quote, which is released by CQ press yearly:

www.cqpress.com/docs/City%204%20-%20Most%20Dangerous_14E.pdf

It should be noted that in 2007, CQ Press acquired Morgan Quitno Press who was the originator of this yearly report. Many people who rank high on the list are quick to contest the ranking according to the CQ Press analysis which details their overview of annual FBI crime statistics gleaned from the Uniform Crime Report. The CQ Press report statistically reviews 378 cities with a minimum population 75,000 people, and makes their assessment based on per-capita rates for aggravated assault, auto theft, burglary, homicide, rape, and robbery. I guess one could argue that this is an imperfect system of assessing danger, but the crime statistics are still factual none the less. Cities holding top positions would not have that honor unless they ranked poorly in all of the six crime categories used in the evaluation process. Instead of people attempting to sweep the statistical crime data under the carpet, why not instead just ratchet up enforcement and appoint judges that are tough on crime. If St Louis does this, then they might gain a more favorable position on the 2009 Most Dangerous Cities report. A fine example of this is the once crime ridden Miami, which is now #35 on the CQ Press list.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gtuZnGyhvk&mode=related&search=#

As I reported earlier, Miami had no murders last month.

Miami Goes "Murder Free" For A Month
cbs4.com/local/miami.homicide.murder.2.854445.html