In Chicago "The definition of insanity is to repeat the same actions over and over expecting a different result"

Reported on chicago.cbslocal.com

Good news on the crime front in Illinois’ second largest city.

There were zero murders in Aurora in 2012. That hasn’t happened since 1946.

The last murder in Aurora was in December of 2011. In the 1990s, Aurora averaged one murder per month.

Police Chief Greg Thomas acknowledged he’s surprised there were no murders in Aurora last year. He said it’s the culmination of a long team effort, and the results have been dramatic.

In 1996, Aurora had 357 shootings and 26 murders; last year, there were only 61 shootings, and no murders.

Thomas credited a crackdown on gangs, assisted by federal authorities.

“If you look at about 2005 to 2007, we took about 150 high-ranking gang members, shooters off the streets in Aurora, with help from federal partnerships with the ATF and FBI. I think that was a big contributor,” Thomas said.

Thomas said there are no quick fixes for reducing the number of murders in any community.

He said, in addition to help from the community, and getting kids into after-school programs and the Junior ROTC, there was a lot of work over a long period of time from Aurora police and law enforcement from the state and federal governments.

Thomas said Aurora started focusing in 2005 on the worst of the repeat criminals and getting them locked up in federal prisons. The police department also tried to keep young people from joining gangs through it’s “Knock and Talk” program.

If the police caught wind that a certain young person was trying to become involved in a gang, police would talk to the young person’s parent and inform them of the signs to watch for from their son or daughter.

Rev. Pat McManus, pastor at Kingdom Impact Center, is one of several aurora ministers who held prayer vigils at every murder scene in past years, encouraging neighbors to fight back.

“We’re all working together, doing the same thing, having the same focus to truly see the city turn,” he said.

East Aurora was once the center of much of the city’s gang and drug violence, but in the neighborhoods, and the lively businesses, residents feel the change.

“I believe my kids are in less danger,” one woman said.

“I feel a lot safer,” one man said.

“I think it should get out, you know? Come live in aurora, It’s a safe place,” another man said.

Thomas also credited use of the CompStat system, which uses crime statistics to focus police resources on hot spots of activity. That same system is a key part of Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy’s fight against gangs in Chicago.

Thomas said, in addition to a host of crime-fighting and crime-prevention strategies, luck also played a part in hitting that milestone.

You'd think with the success Aurora is having, the largest city in Illinois might take notice, not at all. Instead the "Godfather" Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel sees only the opportunity to further his own agenda of gun control. By examining the Chicago Police's own report on gun violence it's clear to see Chicago does NOT have a gun problem, but has a HUGE gang problem.

Aurora used the same type of data that Chicago uses to address the cause of the it's gun violence and has gotten results that can't be denied. Let's take a look at Chicago's data: Chicago police portal.

Murder victims by race/ethnicity 2011				Murder offenders by race/ethnicity 2011
white	20			white	6
black	326			black	122
hispanic	82			hispanic	42
other	5			other	1
Murder victims by age group 2011
under 10yrs.	10-13yrs.	14-16yrs.	17-25yrs.	26-35yrs.	36-45yrs.	46-55yrs.	over 55yrs.
10	2	21	196	114	42	32	14
Murder offenders by age group 2011
under 10yrs.	10-13yrs.	14-16yrs.	17-25yrs.	26-35yrs.	36-45yrs.	46-55yrs.	over 55yrs.
0	0	7	91	45	14	10	4
Murder offers by sex			Murders caused by common motives 2011
female	18		street gang altercation			118
male	153		gangland narcotics			26
			armed robbery			32
			domestic altercation			17
Murder victims with prior arrest history
No	100
Yes	333
Murder offenders with prior arrest history
No	22
Yes	151

Looking at these numbers it's easy to see real patterns. Most gun violence is black on black, is most likely gang related, and both the victim and offender most likely have an arrest history, of course this is not the case every time. If Chicago could address the most common causes of murders in its city it could possibly see the same kind of results Aurora has achieved. Aurora's results are not speculation but are real and measurable. My message to Mayor Emanuel would be simply, "The definition of insanity is to repeat the same actions over and over expecting a different result"    

Using Lent is a Great Way to Appreciate the Easter Season

Today is Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras which is French for Fat Tuesday. Today we feast before the fasting of lent, which starts tomorrow on Ash Wednesday. Although these are traditionally considered Catholic holidays many people will be celebrating this holiday in popular places like New Orleans.

With lent coming Wednesday let's look at how we celebrate the season of lent...

Reported on wikihow.com

Make a Lenten calendar. Such a calendar will help you to focus on the progression of the Lenten season. Lent is 40 days long and doesn't include Sundays. It ends the Friday before Easter; count backwards from there.

Decide on your Lenten sacrifice. Your sacrifice is a reminder of the sacrifice of self Jesus made to save us from our sins. Think about all the trivial things in your life that shift your focus away from God. Do you find that you dedicate more time to sending text messages and posting status updates than to prayer and time with God? Do you have a habit of eating junk food excessively?

Take something on. While many people choose to give harmful things up for Lent, you could use the season to help you build good habits. You could promise to be more patient and kind toward your neighbor, or you could vow to help the needy. Whether you choose to sacrifice or to adopt new, strengthening habits, you should allow your Lenten promises to help you grow in faith and virtue.

Attend Mass as often as possible. In addition to weekly Sunday service, it's good to go to church frequently, especially during the Lent. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday when we remember that we come from dust and to dust we shall return. Many traditions often have an additional worship service in mid-week, and attendance at these services is a good way to participate in Lent.

3. 

Go to Reconciliation. Reconciliation, or Confession, is a wonderful way to turn away from sin and reunite yourself with Christ. If you don't already, try getting into the habit of going to Confession on a regular basis. The Catholic Church has made it obligatory that all the faithful receive the sacrament of Penance at least once a year and once during the season of Lent, though it's recommended that you attend Confession at least once a month if possible.

4.      

Spend time on devotions. Though not required, devotions are a great way to put yourself in the right mindset for Lent. The Church highly encourages Adoration of God or the veneration of the Blessed Virgin and the saints. Your local parish probably has regular Eucharistic Adoration, where you can go to sit and engage in deep prayer, in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. To practice veneration, you could say a decade of the Rosary daily, or pray to your patron saint.

5.      7

Fast and abstain. All Catholics aged fourteen and older are asked to abstain from meat on Lenten Fridays, though fish is allowed to be eaten. Additionally, Catholics aged 18-59 are obliged to fast on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all Lenten Fridays, meaning that only one full meal may be eaten in the day.

Whether or not you are Catholic, if you are a Christian, using Lent is a great way to appreciate the Easter season. 

What the modern Catholic church needs is a younger more vibrant leader at its helm.

Today we got the surprise announcement  from the Vatican that on Feb. 28th Pope Benedict XVI will resign, the first Pope to do so in nearly 600 years.

     In his statement, Pope Benedict -- who turns 86 in April -- said he had come to the certainty "that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry."

Benedict was known for his die hard position on the old Catholic beliefs that were against the ordination of women and marriage for priests. He opposed homosexuality and communism and was never afraid of upsetting political sensibilities. His beliefs often made him look out of touch with many Catholics and the steady decline in church membership reflected that.

What's next for the Catholic Church? Do they take this opportunity to elect possibly a younger more "In touch" Pope, maybe one that people can relate to and feel more compelled to attend Mass once again? Or stay just follow their most recent selection with another just like him? One thing is for sure the process may be hundreds of years old but what the modern Catholic church needs is a younger more vibrant leader at its helm.  

When is a fetus a child?

reported on newsmax.com

The Arkansas Senate voted Thursday to prohibit most abortions if a heartbeat is detected, ignoring warnings from opponents that banning the procedure as early as six weeks into a pregnancy would invite lawsuits. If enacted, the ban would be the most stringent in the nation. The Ohio House passed a similar ban in 2011, but it was sidelined in the Senate last year over concerns that it might be found unconstitutional. Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe told reporters Thursday that's the same concern that he's researching.

"I'm waiting on lawyers. I think that's the big concern right now — does it run afoul of the Supreme Court or constitutional restrictions?" Beebe said. "That's the first thing we're looking at."....

.... The Senate approved the proposed "Arkansas Human Heartbeat Protection Act" by a 26-8 vote. The measure, which now heads to a House committee, requires a test to detect a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed. If one is detected, a woman could not have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest and if a mother's life is in danger.

I, like the President, have personally "evolved" on a few issues were I previously did not have much of an opinion but now have very strong feelings. Never would we have even considered abortion during my married years so I pretty much stayed focused on the issues I felt more directly pertained to my life, which I think many people tend to do as well.

The growth of the internet during my adult life has opened my mind to more information, more details, stories of how things like abortion effect EVERYONE.  A simple "Google" search can open hundreds if not thousands of horrible pictures of the whole abortion process and the dead "infants" laying in pieces in a crash can like common garbage. Black pastors across the nation decry abortion as killing off a generation of blacks making them now a minority to both the White and Latino populations of  this country. 

The  abortion process has eliminated of 54 million potential working class Americans in a time when America is in economic crisis, denying all Americans of the potential revenue of the taxes they would have generated had they been alive and working.  

Ask virtually anyone the simple question, "Would you support the right to kill a living healthy baby if a mother didn't want to raise the child", and I'm sure you'd hear an over whelming, "NO of course not"!  I mean we do have laws against the killing of anyone, it's called murder.  So I'm thinking  laws like they are proposing in Arkansas are starting a now bigger conversation, asking now a different question, "When is a fetus a child"?  

The desire of this white house and the democratic party is to further dis-arm law abiding citizens plain and simple.

Reported on Breitbart.com

When the rubber hits the road, when the stark and very real choice is either empty political posturing with useless gun control laws or doing something practical to protect your children, the only people laughing at the NRA are a media determined to protect anything and everything involving Barack Obama. Today the Newtown Board of Education made the only choice any parent can:  It voted to put armed guards in its schools:

The vote, for now, only represents a request — it still needs to clear budget and logistical boundaries since the guards would come from the town's police resources as opposed to the school board itself. But the plan 'would put two eyes and ears -- one armed, one unarmed -- at each Newtown school,' reports Bronxville Patch's Davis Dunavin. The guards, officially called school resource officers (SROs), were already a fixture at all Newtown schools in the wake of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary, but until this vote they were budgeted only to be a presence at middle and high Schools, according to NBC Connecticut. 

The current push for gun controls by The State and its media is nothing more than another front in the relentless culture wars against Red State Americans and Bitter Clingers. None of the proposed laws would have stopped the Sandy Hook murderer, which should tell you everything you need to know.

Meanwhile, in Democrat-run Chicago, there's a Newtown every month. But the only solution to that problem would be admitting harsh gun control laws and liberalism run amok have failed. So the media would rather Chicago's monthly Sandy Hook goes on than ever admit to such an inconvenient truth.

The NRA proposed putting armed guns in schools, and now the school board closest to this tragedy agrees.

Keep laughing and ignoring Chicago, media. You’re only fooling your corrupt selves.

 It really is telling when you consider that because of the spin of the lame-stream media virtually no one I have talked to realizes that, in fact, NO ASSAULT RIFLES WERE USED AT SANDY HOOK. If our politicians were so concerned about preventing another such attack wouldn't it make more since to at least address the actual facts of Sandy Hook? Even a simpleton with half a brain would think to look at what caused it in the first place if you were truly looking to prevent it from happening again. CLEARLY Sandy hook is just another of the exploited tragic events that the left has chosen as Rahm Emanuel has so famously been quoted as saying, "Never let a good tragedy go to waste". The desire of this white house and the democratic party is to further dis-arm law abiding citizens plain and simple.