NSR: CHICAGO Political Thread ***HIGHLY TOXIC - ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK***

I have no desire to enter into a verbal battle on this topic with you or anybody else.Far too frequently these “ discussions” turn into opportunities for someone to espouse their political beliefs and to showcase perceived oratory skills. Spend about 100 hours researching the topic.
Everybody is entitled to their opinion. Mine would definitely include breakdown of family structure and societal distaste for “inhuman” ( and costly) mental health facilities as major causes of increased incarcerations and plummeting mental health populations, respectively.

 

Lead being taken out of water (and, even more, out of gasoline) is cited as one of the reasons why violent crime is down and SHOULD have resulted in a decreased prison population.

 

As I stated when we had the thread interloper a couple of months ago, we can definitely have a positive, civil discussion by keeping it positive and civil.

You stated I was missing 80% of the reason. The least you could do would be to provide clarification of what you meant and defend that position.

I have spent a lot of time on this topic, far more that 100 hours. I have spoken quite a bit on these boards about my professional background. Although not the primary focus of my work, I worked with the VA (running two clinics for veterans, primarily those with mental health issues) and NAMI for years. I was steeped in these issues professionally for 13 years, and I still am to an extent.

Not sure about "breakdown of family structure" as a cause of decreased mental health hospitalization, although the criminal aspect of this has been supported by evidence. This concept is a major theme of my Family Law Course and, to an extent, my Criminal Law Course, and something I have worked on and studied for a very long time.

While there are statistics that children that grow up in a two parent household (which is how I interpret your "family structure" comment. Please correct me if that is not what you meant) do frequently have better outcomes as adults, there are a myriad of factors as to why. Those factors include economic stability, housing stability, educational stability (not changing schools after a divorce, for instance), reduced stress (due to parents fighting) on the children, and related factors.

However, I question whether the impact of just "the family structure" as a significant cause in and of itself. The counter argument is the increased stress that occurred from 1) the constant conflict within the family structure that "is forced" to stay together and 2) the sublimated conflict in a patriarchal family structure may outweigh the "stability" of the two parent household when it comes to crime and mental health.

Even more so, I would question how the "breakdown of family structure" factors into the chart that is primary topic of this discussion. As the "breakdown of family structure" occurred, it meant fewer people were being hospitalized/institutionalized for mental health issues? I am not sure that is supportable. Would that not be a positive thing, then? One would presume that if the "breakdown of family structure" was so detrimental, the inverse would occur.

Now, if you are only looking at increased incarceration side of the charge, there are, as described, many economic factors that play into that concept. "Breakdown of family structure" is one of them. I mentioned several others.

I definitely agree about the "inhuman" (and costly) mental health facilities, which is why I differentiated between "hospitalization" and "Institutionalization."

However, that should not have increased incarceration. It did, as I stated, but it should not have. The issue of the thankful reduction of those inhuman facilities was that the resources were not put into provide other, more effective treatments.

Again, I question the underlying premise to .6% of the US population was "held in mental hospitals" in the 1950-60's, but the correlation between decreasing the hospitalization rate and increased incarceration I understand.

 

Note- I indicated “respectively”.
Family values would be a better description. Lead paint could be one of the many causes.

 

Family values is an amazingly amorphous term. It would need an actual definition.

It is actually the very first discussion in my class and the diversity of opinion of what a "family" is and what "family values" mean is always astounding.

 

Jez, lead paint is still an issue. One of my students last year was in my class because of eating paint chips, and her brother is spending his school days with me this year.
I remember the PSA's about not eating lead paint chips when I was a kid, but it's STILL happening.
It sucks mightily.

 

That is incredible, but, horrifyingly, not surprising.

As we all know, pretty much every house built prior to 1977 has lead based paint (unless there was a gut rehab or the walls were otherwise replaced).

We are in a fight up here about lead water pipes. The current mayor has slowed the replacement that the prior mayor had prioritized.

The big change was getting lead out of gasoline.

 

******** this stupid ********ing society and everything it has to ********ing stand for.

 

I would throw a ********ing parade if this dude successfully assassinated this moron

 

Go with “Act like well-to-do white people with a hypocritical tinge of Christianity” and you’ll be close enough.

 

Since I was chastised about putting the News of Dick Cheney's death in the News section. I thought I would post this here.

Now is a good time to remember that Dick Cheney's post 9/11 wars killed (conservatively) 4.5 million people and displaced over 38 million more, according to a study by Brown University. pic.twitter.com/dUhjlTMC3o

— Alan MacLeod (@AlanRMacLeod) November 4, 2025

Now is a good time to remember that Dick Cheney's post 9/11 wars killed (conservatively) 4.5 million people and displaced over 38 million more, according to a study by Brown University. pic.twitter.com/dUhjlTMC3o

— Alan MacLeod (@AlanRMacLeod) November 4, 2025

Link to the report:

https://costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/costs/human

 

Call me crazy but I'm tired of killing brain cells just to survive

 

Not to mention, Cheney was pivotal in pushing the Patriot Act through (not that it was an extremely tough sell in congress at the time - unfortunately) so his post-9/11 influence also endangered and harmed plenty of Americans as well. A lot of the surveillance and human rights overreaches being used against US protestors and political agitators today was codified in the Patriot Act, parts of which (at least in spirit) is still intact today, despite it being set to expire when implemented.

Yes, it’s important to note that more people than just Dick Cheney are responsible for those extensions, renewals, and powers written into the act that federal law enforcement still retains today, but it’s also important to recognize that ol’ Dick was a treacherous traitor that harmed basically any and everybody he could, often without his hunting rifle. They say not to speak ill of the dead so I’ll just say I hope he makes friends with whomever his bunk mate is in hell.

 

******** that guy with Ronald Reagan’s rotting corpse.

 

And Nixon's. Oh wait, he's got Kissinger alongside him already.

 

Does anyone by chance know the case name and number under which Judge Ellis is making her rulings?

Asking for my enemies.

 

Can you get that info from here?

https://www.loevy.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Broadview-Complaint-10.06.25.pdf

 

Brilliant, thank you.

Yep, I saw the complaint, and with the case caption I can pull filings through the Pacer system.

I've got a neighborhood porch concert / PSA gathering tomorrow, and wanted to pull Judge Ellis's relevant orders to help advise the attendees.

3:30pm, West Cullom Avenue between Damen and Hoyne, if any of you happen to live nearby.

 

We live in the dumbest time line with the dumbest president ever.




Cash healthcare? Yeah, that won't work at all for sick people.

 

Ah, yes, go back to the very same stupid system that the current stupid system (not sorry - ObamaCare was a cop out and if dems had a spine we would’ve had single payer) was implemented to correct. And what happens when the shut down ends and that money stops being sent to the people? Guess what, ‘get rich or die of something preventable, losers’ is pretty much republican’s attitude toward health care. And like, yeah, insurance companies suck, but is he really harming them by taking the money they were getting from the government, giving it to the people (lol- he won’t do that) and them having them give it to the insurance companies. Not like insurance companies will give individuals the same rates they gave the government- it’s a handout in the end.

Dumbest President, dumbest timeline, dumbest country, we’re just drowning in a sea of dumb.

 

Oh, I agree about single payer at a minimum.

The ACA was the second worst choice, but was 100x better than doing nothing.

 

God will save us.

 

Here's the Preliminary Injunction Order entered by Judge Ellis on November 6. Per the order, more to follow.

 

Here's also something for these quims to chew on, who imagine that sovereign immunity covers unconstitutional conduct (it daena').

720 ILCS 5/12-3.05