More Wisdom From Philadelphia Politicians
By Wyatt Earp | September 27, 2008
Finally, Philadelphia City Council is addressing the pressing issues of our fair city.
What would we do without you, Councilman Frank DiCicco?
A Philadelphia city councilman wants to reign in motorcycles with altered mufflers that blast you out of bed.
“Vroooom! That’s a quiet one. Its very loud.”
City Councilman Frank DiCicco does a poor imitation of a loud motorcycle, the type with modified mufflers that drive him up a wall:
“There’s no need in my mind for the baffles to be removed from that muffler system. If you or I did that to our car, we would be given a ticket.”
So DiCicco’s plan is a measure that, if approved, would result in a 15-hundred dollar ticket for any biker with a modified muffler:
“This is a quality of life issue, one of the incivilities of city life, which I think we can do something about.” (H/T – KYW1060)
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. You see, this is the problem with so-called “quality of life” crimes: the politicians and police officials force the officers to focus upon them, and as a result, some of the larger crimes go unnoticed. This week in my division, we have had our hands full with minor narcotics arrests and arrests for “false ID to police” – as if anyone who gets arrested wants to give their real name. I cannot tell you the last time an officer brought in a gun pinch.
But, you know, one packet of weed is much more dangerous than a gun, right?
Philadelphia is a city struggling with bankruptcy. It is a city where crime is out of control. It is a city that has seen four police officers murdered in the last eleven months. And during these trying times, what is the main concern of our local politicians? Noisy motorcycles.
Unbelievable.
Topics: Philly | 10 Comments »
September 27th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
It also points to another concern: a politician wanting to make laws for things that bother him, that he sees as an issue to him. Yes, noisy mufflers are annoying, but so is umm….let’s see….getting shot? Duh.
Note to all politicians: It is not about YOU! It is about what is best for those that put you into office. The concerns of the voters are connected to the hope that you keep in mind what is most important for the overall city/town, state, and for the entire country…not just a few.
Well, that was a waste of breath I’ll never get back, eh? Like the politicians ever listen to us.
September 27th, 2008 at 2:27 pm
Why would this just be about him? It’s probably a complaint from people in his area. Let’s face it- In a large number of sections in Philadelphia, no one gets shot. Not a single person. I know a number of people in Philly who could tell me that no one has ever been shot in their neighborhood. And in those neighborhoods with much of the killing, driving a motorcycle loudly at 2am would get you shot anyway.
I appreciate that the police don’t have time for this, although in pulling someone over for the violation, they may get the opportunity to search for weapons. But the city also can’t afford to ignore things that bother otherwise peaceful neighborhoods. Although why anyone would get arrested for pot these days is beyond me. I’d understand if you had a kilo or two.
September 27th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Have you ever considered making “ride alongs” a requirement for all these talking heads who are slowly ruling your city into oblivion?
September 27th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Grim – That’s not a true statement. There has been at least one shooting AND at least one homicide in every one of the city’s 23 districts this year. Depends how you sift through each “neighborhood,” but there has been a shooting in every district in the city this year. And our homicide number is way down in 2008.
People can tell you no one was ever shot in their neighborhood, but they’re probably wrong. They just didn’t know or hear about it. The 8th District in the Far Northeast has had two homicides by handgun this year and 15 shootings so far – three of them in Deathlok’s old neighborhood.
September 28th, 2008 at 8:48 am
I’m truely shocked at your stats, but our definition differs. When I was a resident, my neighborhood was my block. And by that definition there are many with zero murders. How many people were shot and killed on your street this year? And even the stats may not truely reflect the problem. How many of those were ‘crimes of passion’ where spouses kill each other and the like? There is little police can do to prevent that. Your former commisioner stated that he can’t put a cop in every house, which is the only way you could prevent these crimes.
Lets face it. There are some areas in Philly where stopping at an ATM at 2am is going to get you shot. There are some areas where that is much less likely to happen. There are some areas where the only thing you could do is to quadruple police presence on the street, search door to door for illegal guns, stop and frisk everyone on the street, and you still may only stop of fraction of the problems.
September 28th, 2008 at 10:18 am
search door to door for illegal guns
Uh. You’re kidding, right?\
1. Where do you propose the city get the manpower for their police state?
September 28th, 2008 at 10:46 am
Wyatt:
Add to this dimwit proposal, the city council wants to ban talking on cell phones while driving.
The city council needs to get a clue.
September 28th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
“Where do you propose the city get the manpower for their police state?”
They never could. But you can’t just bitch about people killing one another unless you are going to do something about it. And let’s face it, the only way you will get criminals to give up their guns is to go into their homes and take them. They will never voluntarily follow gun laws, nor will they give them up. Prosecuting people who purchase guns for criminals is a start, and hopefully the piece of shit who got the gun for the latest cop killer will be put away for his guilt in this murder.
If you can think of a better way to get guns from criminals, I’m waiting to see it.
September 28th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
But you can’t just bitch about people killing one another unless you are going to do something about it.
I’m pretty sure that’s what me and 6,000 of my co-workers try to do (or die trying to do) every day.
Gotta be honest, I’m getting pretty sick of your trolling.
September 28th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
“I’m pretty sure that’s what me and 6,000 of my co-workers try to do (or die trying to do) every day.”
Yes you do, and as I thought I made clear, you need more help.
“Gotta be honest, I’m getting pretty sick of your trolling.”
Define trolling. Is it being in disagreement with you? Won’t happen again. You are right. About all.