Culture of "respect" - not what you think

Andrei wondered what point I was trying to make by posting a Spectator letter about heroin and New York. None in particular. Occasionally I read something which makes me stop and think and figure it might make other people do the same. The 'crack epidemic' did contribute to US crime across many cities. But New York City's approach to crime has been especially successful where others have failed. That can't be denied.

Crime is associated with many factors; relative poverty, race, family breakdown, welfare dependence, unemployment, drugs - their use and status, alcohol abuse, illiteracy, mental health problems, feminism etc. A claim that the resolution of any one factor has led to its reduction is extremely difficult to prove.

Here is another article which I post not to make a point but because it is fascinating, bearing in mind what happened in South Auckland over the weekend;

Not long ago, the United States was declaring "mission accomplished" on crime: Homicide rates were plunging, the crack epidemic was over, the broken windows were fixed. Now, preliminary FBI statistics show that homicides rose nearly 5 percent in 2005, and news from around the country suggests that 2006 is looking worse. Our many Iraqs at home are making it clear that the self-congratulation was premature. In reality, Americans were lulled into complacency about violent crime. And two new factors have emerged: Some of the law enforcement tactics used to fight crime in recent years damaged the social fabric in many communities and contributed to increased crime. More important has been the spread of a virulent thug ethos -- an obsession with "respect" that has made killing a legitimate response to the most minor snubs and slights. In parts of the District's Anacostia neighborhood today, a young man knows that the wrong kind of eye contact with the wrong person -- a "hard look" -- can cost him his life.