Why we should worry about political violence

Why we should worry about political violence
LA Times ^ | 4-13-10 | Gregory Rodriguez

Posted on Thursday, April 15, 2010 9:30:21 AM by Til I am the last man standing

Does this suggest that Barack Obama’s election will cause a shift in rates of violence?

Absolutely.

According to Roth, FBI data released in December bear that out. In the first six months of 2009, urban areas that Obama carried saw the steepest drop in the homicide rate since the mid-1990s.

During that period, the states with the largest percentage of counties that voted more heavily Republican in 2008 than they did in 2004 saw an 11% rise in homicide in cities of over 100,000 residents.

I asked Roth to speculate on what could happen if the right continued its violent rhetoric and didn’t gain seats in November or 2012. He suggested looking back at the 1960s and 1970s, when left-wing activists were preaching their own disdain for government. As trust of government evaporated, the murder rate doubled.

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com …