Doofus Of The Day #1,035

Today's award goes, jointly and severally, to the Washington D.C. City Council.

The D.C. City Council voted 11 to 2 to override Mayor Muriel Bowser’s veto of their bill to decriminalize fare evasion on the metro on Tuesday, prompting the District to join the likes of California, Seattle, Portland and New York where such measures have already been enacted.

“With today’s vote, the Council sent a clear message that it is committed to progressive criminal justice reform that dismantles the systemic racial and economic injustice that has only harmed our communities,” said Nassim Moshiree, Policy Director of the ACLU of the District of Columbia. “We once again extend our deepest gratitude to Councilmember Charles Allen for shepherding this bill in the council, to Councilmember Trayon White for introducing it and to all of the Councilmembers who stood firm in their vote.”

Trayon White made headlines earlier this year when he accused Jews of controlling the weather.

. . .

Proponents of the decriminalization bill, including White, cited a disproportionate effect of such laws on people of color.

“I’ve seen with my own eyes and read stories,” said White at a previous meeting of the D.C. City Council. “91 percent of citations given were issued to black people.”

Councilmember Brianne Nadeau also supported the legislation, tweeting,  “The more we commit to using the lens of race equity in all we do in government, the sooner we will be able to rectify the real crime here, which is perpetuating racist government systems in our own government.” She and other supporters of the bill used the hashtag #ItsNotFare to show their support.

There's more at the link.

If there's a poster child for abysmal stupidity, the D.C. City Council appears to be a strong contender for the position.  Let's be blunt:  fare evasion is theft, pure and simple.  If you decriminalize theft, why should anyone refrain from stealing?  If I were an ordinary, honest, law-abiding commuter on the D.C. metro, why should I pay my fare from this day forward?  The council has just told me in no uncertain terms that it's not wrong to do that!

As for alleged racial animus in the situation, that's ridiculous.  Did it ever occur to Councillor White that the reason "91 percent of citations given were issued to black people" is simple?  If 91% (or thereabouts) of the perpetrators were from one racial group, of course they're going to get that proportion of citations!  I used to deal with the same complaint from family members of incarcerated convicts when I worked as a prison chaplain.  I tried to explain to them that "the system" wasn't racist:  that the reason proportionately more of the USA's black population was locked up, compared to other racial groups, is that proportionately, on a per capita basis, the black community committed more of the crimes in this country.  That's not a racist statement;  it's a factual one.  Ask the FBI if you don't believe me.  Law enforcement knows the truth all too well.  It's just that it's politically incorrect to talk about it.

The D.C. City Council have just ensured that the money to operate and maintain the city's metro service will no longer come from those who use it.  Instead, the council will have to gouge taxpayers even more, to cover the costs that their own stupidity and fecklessness have ensured can't be paid any other way.  Genius!  Sheer genius!




Peter