PANDORA’S BOX
Our political leaders seem to think that once the pandemic ends, the economy will bounce back. However, in our largest cities it’s more than COVID that has boarded up and paralyzed downtown commercial centers. The riots and looting have contributed to the closures that have hurt the economy. So in order to get back to where we were in January of 2020 we have to defeat the virus and no longer experience the violence and damage from riots. You could also say we have to end the crime wave that started with the riots. It’s hard to believe the economy will completely recover if fears of arson, vandalism and looting don’t abate.
Unfortunately, the view that looting acts as a form of reparations has gained a following among the more militant racial grievance groups. Furthermore, the rioters and looters have essentially gone unpunished for their misdeeds. Actually, they were rewarded with luxury goods, liquor, TV’s and electronic devices. All of this acts as an incentive for more looting. When a minority person recently committed suicide in downtown Minneapolis, social media mistakenly reported it as a police shooting. Within minutes rioters smashed their way into a Target store and began stealing the inventory. From there rioting spread through downtown.
In other words, this new trend of criminality may be far from over. This is especially true if the police continue to be onlookers and the politicians appear to condone these outbreaks. How bad will it get? It could be enough to keep people out of large parts of major cities and that would hurt merchants and property owners. Riots also act to unnerve and unsettle the population. Thus the economy suffers. Radicals are plotting right now to wreak havoc. Make sure you’re not in their way. These people are a risk to everything you hold dear.
