The world's most dangerous cities?

[kraig]

Where did you get 1200 homicides from?!

Hypotheticals.

[kraig]

No one said it was acceptable, but you guys are still missing the point. Using tha' logic, a suburban township shouldn't appalud that they [[hypothetically) have 3 homicides out of ever 100,000 people just because it's not zero, although the other suburban townships still have a higher homicide rate than them.

Whichever way you spin it, 500 homicides will always be better than 800 homicides.

Now you're starting to get it. No one should applaud homicides, no matter the number, period.

[detroitjim]

Clearly, no one from CNN has been to Mogadishu.

How is Rio not on that list?

Ummmm why isnt Kingston Jamaica on that list?

Even if you add those places, we are still listed in the proper category.

This is about as close as you can get to a third world city, only it's in the USA!

[PeterhuntPrincess]

313WX, I don't live on Peter Hunt anymore. I was born and raised on that street though, and its probably one of the quietest in the city for obvious reasons. Before the new construction you could see for blocks back through the neighborhood. And yes, when I visit my cousins who have taken over the family [[farm) house, I park in the middle of the street to avoid the trash. But just because it looks like a bomb went off there doesn't mean one really did. I'm hoping that the city does tear that schit down so my family can split the $500 per lot that they will pay us.

By the time I was born it already looked like that, so tell me more. It's not the "runners" fault at all, my grandparents bought 10 houses and a store in that area back in the 60s. They were the first "Black" folks on the their block, and it stayed that way for a while. It appears that as those original folks died off or eventually left the homes and they just stayed vacant.

So my question to all of you is... How do we keep the rest of the city in one piece so that it doesn't turn into a place that you guys don't feel safe? How do we get the message out that things have got to change? Nothing we have tried has worked so far. I guess that's why I joined this forum. I'm strill trying to figure some thing out.

[English]

Even if you add those places, we are still listed in the proper category.

This is about as close as you can get to a third world city, only it's in the USA!

Out of curiosity, have you lived and/or traveled in any of the third world cities listed?

We could stand to be far less violent, and compared to many US places Detroit has more crime, but if people truly think that Detroit is one of the world's most dangerous cities, then they can't also adhere to American exceptionalism and be logically consistent. But usually people who believe the former also believe the latter.

[stasu1213]

I didn't hear Mayor Bing" comments on the topic. That is what make matters worse. Charles Pugh had spoken out against the list. Iraq and Afghanistan has terrorists that fighting the occupying forces in their countries. Detroit has "Urban Terrorits" that are terrorizing their' fellow residents. Detroit is under seige. School closings, home invasions, kidnappings, retaliation killings, random shootings, attacks on bus drivers, slum markets, no streetlights in many areas, a "Do nothing" governor, an inapt Mayor, a Lizzie Borden type school financial manager, an incompetent common council, black radio talk show hosts who manipulates their listening audience on how to voite, yes this city is more violent than Iraq, Colombia and others

[EMG]

So my question to all of you is... How do we keep the rest of the city in one piece so that it doesn't turn into a place that you guys don't feel safe? How do we get the message out that things have got to change? Nothing we have tried has worked so far. I guess that's why I joined this forum. I'm strill trying to figure some thing out.

The number one need is increased and empowered law enforcement.

Give back to the power of the law everything that Coleman Young took away.

Bring in the equivalent of Joe Arpaio - while making sure that Detroit's Sheriff Joe and everyone who works for him matches the racial balance of the population so as to avoid the inevitable charges of racism that would otherwise result, because it is NOT a matter of race, it is a matter of crime. Crime happens in the suburbs too - but it's much more quickly snuffed out because there is a higher ratio of police to criminals.

Empower this posse to actually arrest and jail criminals, feed them balogna sandwiches, force them to wear pink underwear, and put them to work on chain gangs cleaning up those dirty roads - both sidestreets AND freeways - that suburbanites accustomed to cleaner living conditions don't find acceptable. Compare the average street of Detroit with even the worst of Phoenix and the difference will be evident.

It took many decades for Detroit to get into its mess, so it's not going to get out overnight. But if and when would be criminals began to realize that those who commit crimes WILL be brought to justice and WILL pay, crime would decrease. The perception of safety on Detroit's streets would increase. THEN the hoped-for sunnier days for Detroit would follow.

[Michigan]

This negative image of Detroit is exactly what we need to battle. Statistics only tell a portion of the tale. You know- lies, damn lies, and statistics. I wouldn't be surprised if those stats are doctored to make Detroit look worse! Suburban police dropping bodies of in city limits?

Anyway, again the idea of promoting Detroit through a popular TV show that young people embrace seems to be exactly what the doctor ordered in this case. Get people to associate Detroit with happy good things and good things will occur. It is that simple.

Detroiters need to keep their guard up at all times. Not against each other, but against the much larger and wealthier locales that want to see Detroit fail so that they can absorb the city's crown jewels, e.g. Cobo hall. Don't kid yourself, the counties would have loved to have moved Cobo out of the city, and under regionalization it just may happen. What does the city get out of that move Another parking lot? Just great, the burbs take Cobo and Detroit gets more vacant lots. Ridiculous.

[DC48080]

This negative image of Detroit is exactly what we need to battle. Statistics only tell a portion of the tale. You know- lies, damn lies, and statistics. I wouldn't be surprised if those stats are doctored to make Detroit look worse! Suburban police dropping bodies of in city limits?

Anyway, again the idea of promoting Detroit through a popular TV show that young people embrace seems to be exactly what the doctor ordered in this case. Get people to associate Detroit with happy good things and good things will occur. It is that simple.

Detroiters need to keep their guard up at all times. Not against each other, but against the much larger and wealthier locales that want to see Detroit fail so that they can absorb the city's crown jewels, e.g. Cobo hall. Don't kid yourself, the counties would have loved to have moved Cobo out of the city, and under regionalization it just may happen. What does the city get out of that move Another parking lot? Just great, the burbs take Cobo and Detroit gets more vacant lots. Ridiculous.

Suburban police dropping bodies off in Detroit??? Get a grip! What are you smoking?

Cobo a crown jewell??? The place is too small and is crumbling. It is hardly a jewell.

Move Cobo to the suburbs??? How are you going to move a building that big?


Did you stand too close to the microwave with your tinfoil hat on again?

Please dispense with the conspiracy theories. The people in the suburbs are not sitting back gleefully wishing for Detroit's demise. Nor are they actively engaged in working to make Detroit meet its end. Detroit is going a very good job of it on its own.

[iheartthed]

Out of curiosity, have you lived and/or traveled in any of the third world cities listed?

Yeah, I'm really curious of what criteria the people in this thread are basing their comparisons of Detroit with third world cities. Detroit and Baghdad? Really??? When has there ever been a bombing in Detroit that killed nearly 100 people at once? This entire discussion is completely ridiculous.

[Michigan]

This is ridiculous! Detroit's crime has been falling. Notice- cities like Chicago and New York are increasing the size of their police forces, while Detroit has been able to reduce the size DPD. Do you think that just happens on its own. If you do I have an Island in the Pacific to sell you.

[Patrick]

The people in my group travel around the world in order to visit embassies, properties and perform other functions abroad. A number of these people have mentioned that Sana'a [[Yemen) is the "scariest" place they have visited. It isn't a warzone...that is what is so scary about the place. a LOT of shit goes on there that doesn't hit the media. Most of these poeple have visited over 90 nations and most hasve lived in at least five or so. Even a few veterans in the group as well.

[firstandten]

This is just lazy and sloppy reporting. No one is saying that Detroit isn't dangerous, especially for those involved in the street life. But to put it as one of the WORLD's most dangerous cities is a little much. Detroit is the media's stopgap when they need to link crime and dangerous to any American city. Now that Ray Nagin gone I bet you won't see N.O. on any kind of list like that in the future.

Go to the Mexican border towns, hell go to Chicago or LA. Those are some dangerous places and a lot of bad things can happen to you, IF you are in the wrong neigborhood. Those are media and tourist centers and the media won't dare stick the most dangerous city tag on those places.

The Mexican border towns , the police and politicans are being assassinated by the bad guys. Those places are X-times more dangerous than Detroit.

These made up media lists are just a bunch of filler, designed to put at the bottom of your bird cage, or better yet house-training your dog.

[Michigan]

Exactly- how else can you explain the fact that DPD has been shrinking while the city has stayed safe!!!!! Because the city is no where near as dangerous as NYC or Chicago!!!! If you went to the zoo and there were no bars on the cages then you would get eaten. That is all that Chicago NYC and LA have- lots of blue uniformed bars on the cages!!!! Detroit is free because it is so safe. It is a joke to say otherwise.

[GOAT]

Detroit is so safe? It isn't the top ten worst city but to say it is safe means you are lacking in medication for your delusions.
Fuck me, no wonder Detroit is in the shape it is if people like Michigan believe what they type.

[Johnnie Sue Bridges]

Of course, I know that there are hoodlums all over the place, in all big cities, and Detroit is most definitely battling the thugs. But no matter what is being said about Detroit, I got news for ya—us Detroiters know how to rock! After Rare Earth played Alvin’s last night, on our way home we were driving around the inner city streets of Cass Corridor at 2: am. The city was astoundingly beautiful. The streets were clean and there was no sign of violence whatsoever! I love Detroit; the city rocks! Come see Detroit. We got a lot of great stuff going on here. And it has only begun. Summer is around the corner and that’s when Detroit lights up and the people come out!

[detroitjim]

When has there ever been a bombing in Detroit that killed nearly 100 people at once?

Some kind of bomb destroyed vast areas of this city.

Whether the people that lived here were killed or not ,I dont know.
I do know that the 400,000 or 500,000 that were here are GONE now.

have you lived and/or traveled in any of the third world cities listed?

Yup, at least five of them.

Detroit's crime has been falling

The crime is just not being reported. The number of calls to 911[[-EMS) are as high as they were 20 years ago and the population is at least 33% lower. Most of the calls are not even responded to or they arrive hours later. No report taken then there will be no crime statistic recorded.
Sounds like a novel method for making the crime appear to be declining.

[EMG]

The number of calls to 911[[-EMS) are as high as they were 20 years ago and the population is at least 33% lower. Most of the calls are not even responded to or they arrive hours later. No report taken then there will be no crime statistic recorded.
Sounds like a novel method for making the crime appear to be declining.

In all fairness, though, that might not necessarily mean much in terms of the actual facts regarding "crime." The "number of calls to 911" needs to be further broken down into just what the calls are about - not all involve crime; they could be anything from true crime to somebody just wanting a medical taxicab to somebody who thinks a barking dog constitutes grounds for calling 911. This is especially true in today's economic conditions, where more people who can't pay for doctors or transportation are using the emergency room and EMS as an alternatives.

[Whitehouse]

About as dangerous as my city can be...

[LL Cool D]

The only thing the outside world cares about is predatory danger. How many homicide victims fall into this category? Probably zero. If you're some dramatic fool escalating every personal conflict past the red line, it's you who's the danger, not Detroit. You're a danger to yourself.

[English]

I found a great blog that is attempting to track this very information:
http://violentdeathproject.com/

The scale that they've provided on the page I've linked seems useful. It's based on violent deaths per 100,000 [[not the broader category "violent crime"), and gives examples of societies that achieved that level of peace or conflict:

UTOPIA [[0 - 1.9)
PEACEFUL [[2 - 3.9)
LOW LIKELIHOOD [[4 - 7.9)
SOME CONCERN [[8 - 11.9)
SOMEWHAT STABLE [[12 - 17.9)
HARSH LIVING [[18 - 29.9)
WATCH YOUR BACK [[30-49)
EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF [[50-99)
EXTREME UPHEAVAL [[100-199)
DECIMATION [[200-399)
OBLITERATION [[400-over)

Last year, a quick search reveals the murder rate in New Orleans was 50 per 100,000 [["Every man for himself!"), and in Detroit, it was 41 per 100,000 [["Watch your back!"). The blog owner writes, "Put bluntly, if your country isn’t at war, yet you’re in this category, then you live in a pretty barbaric place."

I suppose our response would be that there are many areas of the city, usually those favored by myself and others here, that do not have a "Watch Your Back!" murder rate. So that brings me to this comment...

When enough naive and Pollyanish Detroiters stop wasting all their breath and energy perpetually continuing to to blame the people who wisely left unsafe living conditions years ago [[which incidentally was totally within their moral rights to do) and instead get to work investing their resources in wiping out the crime that's responsible for the flight, then and ONLY then will that sunny day ever have even a snowball's chance in Hades of arriving.

Of those Detroiters who remained, those Detroiters who were and are committed citizens, volunteers, and personal examples did indeed "invest their resources in wiping out the crime that's responsible for the flight." It is a numbers game. Demography and economics are the key factor here, not the ethics or the "wisdom" of the good people who stayed behind.

[iheartthed]

I found a great blog that is attempting to track this very information:
http://violentdeathproject.com/

The scale that they've provided on the page I've linked seems useful. It's based on violent deaths per 100,000 [[not the broader category "violent crime"), and gives examples of societies that achieved that level of peace or conflict:

UTOPIA [[0 - 1.9)
PEACEFUL [[2 - 3.9)
LOW LIKELIHOOD [[4 - 7.9)
SOME CONCERN [[8 - 11.9)
SOMEWHAT STABLE [[12 - 17.9)
HARSH LIVING [[18 - 29.9)
WATCH YOUR BACK [[30-49)
EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF [[50-99)
EXTREME UPHEAVAL [[100-199)
DECIMATION [[200-399)
OBLITERATION [[400-over)

Last year, a quick search reveals the murder rate in New Orleans was 50 per 100,000 [["Every man for himself!"), and in Detroit, it was 41 per 100,000 [["Watch your back!"). The blog owner writes, "Put bluntly, if your country isn’t at war, yet you’re in this category, then you live in a pretty barbaric place."

I suppose our response would be that there are many areas of the city, usually those favored by myself and others here, that do not have a "Watch Your Back!" murder rate. So that brings me to this comment...



Of those Detroiters who remained, those Detroiters who were and are committed citizens, volunteers, and personal examples did indeed "invest their resources in wiping out the crime that's responsible for the flight." It is a numbers game. Demography and economics are the key factor here, not the ethics or the "wisdom" of the good people who stayed behind.

Interesting that the violent death rate is the lowest in the U.S. right now that it has ever been in history.

[AlexStana]

How come Chechnya isn't on this list.

Perhaps because this is a list of the most dangerous cities in the world, and Chechnya is not a city, but a country? Just a thought...

[Michigan]

Perhaps because this is a list of the most dangerous cities in the world, and Chechnya is not a city, but a country? Just a thought...

So? Michigan is a state, so what?

[firstandten]

Its all about what you are into and your lifestyle. Random crime does happen, but don't fool yourself, crime is not as random as you might think.

For example, you can always read about someone just walking down the street and got shot. Seemingly a random crime.

More than likely however the guy owed the shooter something, drugs, money,etc the shooter catches up with him on the street, and the victim going by the code of the street better not tell the police who shot him. So he says I was just walking down the street and I felt this pain in my leg and saw this blood.

So people reading this would think the streets are so dangerous you can't even walk down the street.