re: 5 points south Birmingham shooting

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Bham has had a number of black, Dem mayors now, and we never saw the kind of crime and violence that exists now.

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Fairly accurate when it comes to the crime rate. The actually have the same number of murders today as they had in the early 90’s. They just have far less citizens.

They have had moments in time where crime was less prevalent but they have had similar crime trends as the rest of the south with the exception being 2024 where they show deterioration while others are improving.

Go back to the early 90’s when crime was bad everywhere- Birmingham murder rate was @55 per 100,000 with @150 murders. 266,000 residents.
Now, it’s @77 per 100,000 with the same number of murders. 196,000 residents. Same number of murders but the rate is up over 50%!
Staggering numbers. Up not entirely surprising.

It’s clear to see what is happening. Slowly, the productive citizens are leaving and the non productive citizens are staying. The criminal mindset stays while the law abiding leaves.

I don’t care who the mayors were. Don’t care the skin color. Their programs don’t work.

My middle son recently started working at UAB and lives in an apartment at 5 points and his younder brother is visiting him this weekend. I knew odds were low they were anywhere near but when I read this thread at 4am I had to text them to make sure. Fortunately they were in for the night when this happened

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There has always been an effort to make certain areas of Bham nice. Southside was the first of those. In the 80s-90s, it was the one place downtown that you could go at night and go out to eat or to a bar with a reasonable expectation of safety.

As the suburbs grew and Bham declined, other areas were tried: Lakeview, Avondale, and 1st Ave N. This detracted from Southside and it’s gone downhill recently.

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This is true from what I know.
Southside was also mentioned in the 80s song from Huey Lewis "Jacob's Ladder"

(no message)

Sentras or Tacomas?

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It has become a very dangerous part of town when the sun goes down.

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Is it near an MLK Blvd?

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quote:“Glock switches are the number one public safety issue in our city and state,’' Mayor Randall Woodfin said on social media Sunday morning.

Do glock switches make the guns fire spontaneously into crowds with some idiot pulling the trigger?

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They give any idiot with access to a pistol and 3D printer the ability to empty a magazine into a crowd in 1-2 seconds using any gun they please. I get it, the switches don’t kill people, but I don’t think that statement is an overreach or deflecting blame.

Here is some Facebook video of the stupidity. It’s quick but you can definitely hear the gunfire

LINK

Facebook post from a friend said that Hush is more of a “lounge” than a cigar bar. The owner is a Birmingham cop who has lived the high life since long before he opened a bar. Plenty of responses in the comments saying he’s affiliated with a gang and this was a retaliation shooting. A quick glance at the Hush Instagram shows the clientele and the atmosphere.

What’s sad is that Five Points IS a nicer area of Birmingham. Plenty of upscale restaurants, art shops, and nice architecture. It’s been an area where the homeless congregate but never a site of gangs or violent criminals. Then this piece of shite bar opens and it changes the entire safety profile of the area.

Fights, riff raff behavior, and now shootings. That is a CULTURE problem from one particular demographic and we all just let it happen.