In Cook County, Illinois, the most consequential election in 2016 was not the presidential race

Posted: December 15, 2024 by John Ruberry in crime, election 2024, elections, News/opinion, opinion/news, politics
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By John Ruberry

We are told, correctly, that it’s the local elections, not the glamorous races such as presidential contests, that effect voters the most.

That was so true in 2016 in Cook County, Illinois.

While Hillary Clinton comfortably won Illinois and Cook County–where I live– over Donald Trump, it was the state’s attorney race in Cook that had the biggest impact on the 5 million residents in Illinois’ largest county.

George Soros-funded Democratic candidate, Kim Foxx, resoundingly defeated her Republican opponent, Christopher E.K. Pfannkuche. Four years later it was much closer for Foxx, she gathered only 54 percent of the vote in heavily Democratic Cook County, over Republican Pat O’Brien and a Libertarian candidate.

Fortunately, unless you are a criminal, Foxx chose not to run for reelection this year.

Immediately after her swearing-in, Foxx raised the limit for felony theft from the state-mandated $300 to $1,000.00. Shoplifting prosecutions in Cook County dropped dramatically, as did narcotics prosecutions.

Murders soared in the last eight years.

While Foxx is best known for the Jussie Smollett debacle, other actions as state’s attorney will have a lasting, and acidic legacy.

If you want numbers, you’ll find some here, courtesy of the fantastic Illinois Policy Institute. But except for murders, they tell an incomplete story.

For instance, for much of Foxx’s misrule, my daughter, Little Marathon Pundit. worked at a nationally known department store in an affluent suburb. On average, once a day, a shoplifter ran out the door–some calmy walked out–with stolen merchandise. Not only were employees at this store told not to prevent the criminal from leaving, store managers never called the police. Not once. Why call the cops? Even if the perp is caught, Foxx’ office, unless the theft was a massive haul, wouldn’t prosecute it as a felony. Or he may not even bother prosecuting at all.

So those were unrecorded crimes. So crime numbers, outside of course of murders, can’t be trusted at all.

As I wrote on X last month, “the liberal media keeps telling us that crime is down. Six months ago when I last visited this Rosemont IL big box store the cosmetics section wasn’t roped off. Stop gaslighting us, ‘journalists.'”

https://twitter.com/Marathonpundit/status/1863256305886023844

Eileen O’Neill Burke, a Democrat, is the new state’s attorney in Cook County. She is already prosecuting accused thieves at the state-mandated $300 level for felony theft.

EOB is not perfect. She supports Governor JB Prtizker’s no-cash-bail SAFE-T Act.

But O’Neill Burke vows to call for more detainments of accused criminals who are charged with violent crimes.

Elections matter.

Including down-ballot races. Sometimes especially down-ballot races.

Sadly, the results of the last eight years of rampant criminality will wreak havoc for a very long time.

John Ruberry regularly blogs at Marathon Pundit.

5 Fun Sports Thoughts Under the Fedora RedSox Move Big, 2 players away from Judging Mayo, It’s the 80’s Celtics Again, An Icy Reality for the Bruins and Pete Rose Colored Glasses

Posted: December 15, 2024 by datechguy in baseball, dynasty baseball, gaming, nba, nfl, nhl, online gaming, Sports
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The Redsox have since the Chiam Bloom Era have hoarded prospects the way Scrooge hoarded cash. This week they spent four of them including two very high ranking ones for a legit ace Garrett Crochet. The White Sox need everything and the Redsox got exactly what they needed the most.

This automatically makes the rest of the rotation better as they move down a slot and is a strong signal that will all the young talent that broke through last year they are ready to roll. It’s going to be a great three years for Boston fans. The front office was wise to ignore the press and wait till now to strike.

It will be fun

I do not understand all the calls for the head of 1st year coach Jerad Mayo over the Patriots 3-10 start. Does anyone really think a different coach with this team was going to do better?

Their biggest problem is that with so many bad teams (8 teams are 3-10 or worse coming into this week) the best they will manage is a top 10 rather than a top 5 draft pick.

If they can draft a solid lineman or two and pick up a #2 or better wide receiver either via the draft or as they have a ton of cap space through free agency this team will be a playoff team in less than a season.

If he can’t get it done with those additions, THEN we can talk about the coaching

It will be fun

If you’re a Celtics fan if this isn’t the 2nd Bird/McHale/Parish golden age it’s pretty damn close.

While they don’t have the best record in the NBA the C’s are a devastating team with at least 2 to 3 players coming off the bench who would be starting on any other team and starters who despite last year’s championship still have a Tom Brady class chip on their shoulder.

I strongly suggest the Bucks enjoy their NBA cup final as barring massive injuries that’s the closest their team will get to the final this year.

To be sure Cleveland will be no pushover in the east and Dallas, Houston, Memphis and OKC are going to be tough but in a seven game series depth and experience will be hard to match.

It will be fun

Alone among the Boston sports teams the future doesn’t seem bright for the Bruins.

Despite yesterday’s win they are still 1-2 on their latest road trip and seem to have settled down as an average team that if lucky might win a playoff series and frankly there is no reason to believe that the ceiling will get any higher over the next few years.

Their off season signings just don’t seem to have panned out and frankly I see no sign that it will get better.

Finally we are deep into my 1973 league draft and it’s getting interesting. My own team looks pretty good but I see myself with a B+ ace instead of an A+ Ace but I’ve also added Billy Williams to support Pete Rose and Darryl Porter is now of age to make a different.

I mention Pete Rose because I’ve been watching the HBO special on him made just before he died and there is one conclusion I’ve come to.

There is a legit debate on the HOF, Rose’s numbers clearly warrant it & his gambling on Baseball as a manager clearly warrants his banning and there is was also the mercy after 30 years argument.

But it also appears to me at a time when interest in baseball is down Rose’s situation made sure he was news for thirty years and made him the single most discussed great player in the game. More people know just how incredible a player Rose was BECAUSE of his banning and the scandals are the reason why 30+ years after the fact HBO is did a special, not on Bench, not on Joe Morgan, Not on Reggie Jackson or the Beloved Brooks Robinson, or Big Papi or A-Rod or Clemens and Bonds, but on Pete Rose.

While it must have torn his guts out to be left out of the HOF the one thing all of this has established is that while you might not like him, or what he did or trust him at his word, the one thing firmly established in any person’s mind is that if you wanted to build a team to win, Pete Rose is the guy you start with, Period!

That’s a hell of a legacy!

The Single Best Argument Against Introducing Luigi Mangione to a Lamppost Comes from Abe Lincoln…

Posted: December 13, 2024 by datechguy in culture
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…who said this about executing deserters in a letter to Ernastus Corning:

“Must I shoot a simple-minded soldier boy who deserts, while I must not touch a hair of a wiley agitator who induces him to desert? This is none the less injurious when effected by getting a father, or brother, or friend, into a public meeting, and there working upon his feeling, till he is persuaded to write the soldier boy, that he is fighting in a bad cause, for a wicked administration of a contemptable government, too weak to arrest and punish him if he shall desert. I think that in such a case, to silence the agitator, and save the boy, is not only constitutional, but, withal, a great mercy.”

If Luigi Mangione died tomorrow I would not want to be him facing St. Peter, but if the choice was between being him before St. Peter tomorrow and being the professors at his college who radicalized him on the day of judgement I’d take my chances as Luigi.

Update: I should point out that both Mangione and the professors in question are like all others, one sincere confession away from avoiding the fire.

The “Self Interest” Argument to Those Insisting that Murdering CEOs Is Justified

Posted: December 12, 2024 by datechguy in culture
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Jesus answered him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then stepping forward they laid hands on Jesus and arrested him. And behold, one of those who accompanied Jesus put his hand to his sword, drew it, and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his ear. Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its sheath, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.

Matthew 26:50-52

About 35 years ago or so I was approached by a young lady I knew who wanted some advice. She was approached by a fellow I knew and was interested but wanted my opinion on jumping in so to speak.

Now there was a time when the obvious answer: “He’s married!” would have ended the conversation before it began but as this fact had not dissuaded her I decided arguing on moral grounds would fail so instead I made a point concerning self interest noting that if he was willing to abandon a wife and kids to score with you how much faster would he drop you for the next willing woman without those incentives to stay faithful.

And that brings us to the question at hand.

Not too long ago it would have been a given that gunning down a person in cold blood is wrong and that would be the end of the conversation but apparently for the modern college student who is being indoctrinated by leftist Marxist professors who have abandoned the idea that life is sacred such an argument isn’t going to work so let me make one based on simple self interest to those who are cheering over this murder:

1st of all if you are a college student doing this you can kiss goodbye any prospect of getting hired by any significant company for any responsible position but given that many of the folks leading the cheers are already from families with dough that might not be enough of an incentive so let’s get down to the nitty gritty.

If you’re argument is that the “harm” or “potential” harm that a CEO is doing to you or others in a justification for murder then by that same argument a CEO can look at every single person endorsing such murder, every college professor defending such murder and honestly conclude that such people present a clear and present danger to their lives and the lives of their families and thus have a legitimate justification to kill any such person based on self defense.

Furthermore given that a CEO is likely to have a pretty fair sized checkbook it would not take a lot of effort for such a person to obtain a person willing and able to carry out such an assignment who could act discretely without implicating his employer and unlike a CEO who can afford protection it’s very likely that many of these fools cheering this murder on has no such protection and thus could not only be eliminated but could be taken care of in such a way to make that vulnerability clear to all those others cheering over blood.

Now all of this would be so much easier if we returned to the idea that humans are made in the image of God and murdering people who are not an immediate threat to you and yours is an evil thing to do, but since a segment of the population has abandoned this idea let just point out that it’s rather rash to provide an incentive to a person with power and money to kill you or to encourage a group of people with power, money and connection to do so, but hey that’s just me, what do I know compared to college kids being egged on by his professors on this kids of stuff, but hey that’s just me.

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