Neighborhood Demolition

ALAN writes:
Government in St. Louis takes pains to make the streets safe for lawbreakers, thugs, and parasites. Not so, you say? My reply: As good as.
Recently, a friend of mine, slightly past retirement age, became a victim. A thug broke into her home, attacked her, and demanded money. There are so few neighbors left that it was unlikely any of them would come to her aid because they, like her, are extremely reluctant to go out after dark.
“…..the older people worry about crime and fear the streets almost as much as they took sustenance from them in the old days. …in the 1950s they considered the streets to be their home, an extension of their property, whereas today the streets are an alien place…”. — Alan Ehrenhalt, The Lost City, Basic Books, 1995, p. 254
What he wrote is true. He was writing about Chicago, but his words apply perfectly to similar neighborhoods in St. Louis. (more…)





