Anonymous wrote:
With that said, part of the problem is that SS residents don't try very hard to protect their own neighborhoods. Bethesda residents would never allow hookah bars that open until 3 AM, yet there's no movement to get rid of them in SS even though they contribute to lots of late-night crime.

However, councilmember Will Jawando (D-At-large) voiced concern that the legislation would disproportionately impact minority-owned businesses. He was the sole councilmember to vote against the legislation.

“This bill will put small businesses, mostly if not all, Black and immigrant [owned], out of business. And I don’t think that’s something that governments should do to determine the winners and losers,” Jawando said.

Anonymous wrote:I live in the neighborhood near the Wheaton mall shooting on Sunday at 11 a.m. that was very near the Giant. This is a neighborhood, with an Kensington zip code, often touted on DCUM as fairly affordable and good for families.

It’s disconcerting, but it’s certainly not a war zone here.

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Anonymous wrote:To me, it's a Silver Spring problem. If you look at Rockville which is similar size population-wise, they dont' have double murders.

Or an innocent man walking to his car in the parking garage after dinner with his family murdered:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/murder-in-downtown-silver-spring-parking-garage-remains-unsolved-one-year-later

Or a shootout on the downtown streets during the day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2RO7D1-DiA

Bethesda is similar in population. It also has similar levels of urbanization and this stuff isn’t happening.

What is especially weird to me is that all of the way too online TPSS YIMBY urbanism activists also are very much anti-law enforcement and effectively pro-crime. They are getting the downtown SS they want, which is deeply unpleasant.

Bethesda has murders… lululemon, the painter murder, the guy making tunnels, kids have killed their parents,

That’s 15 years of Bethesda murders versus a few months in Silver Spring.

Since Jan 1 there have been 3 homicides in the 3d police district (downtown silver spring). Including these two.

The PP listed 3 murders in Bethesda since 2011 (and one in Kensington).

The overwhelming majority of homicides in Montgomery County every year occur in only 3 areas: Germantown, Gaithersburg and Silver Spring. In Silver Spring, it is split between two neighborhoods, downtown and White Oak, and the violence and particularly the gun violence in Silver Spring is increasing. In terms of gun crime, it’s now indistinguishable from adjacent communities in PG County.
https://www.thetrace.org/2023/02/gun-violence-map-america-shootings/?place=Silver-Spring-Maryland

It’s not a war zone but also not safe.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live right by this park and have for 15 years. Yes this deeply concerns me - we walk our dog around this park every morning as do many other neighbors. The fact that it happened so early is really scary too - our teens frequent this park and absolutely could have been there. We are also concerned about the seeming uptick in violence in downtown Silver Spring and many businesses moving out because of it. It’s a real shame because pre-pandemic it seemed very safe and thriving.

We moved here because it is more city than suburb - we really really love it and are not considering moving, nor are any of our neighbors that we know. We’re all just really sad and angry that this is happening but do not feel concerned in our daily lives and certainly don’t feel like this is a “war zone.” We’re all going about our lives as usual though yes, we are concerned and really wish something could be done - it is a Silver Spring problem, yes, but also seems like a general city problem as there are similar reports elsewhere. I am not sure where we would pick up and move from our beloved community and friends that doesn’t have these occasional violent and unacceptable issues. I think we all just feel a bit powerless.

This is because the government considers DTSS and the immediate surrounds as an easy target on which to force social agendas, while also considering it unworthy of investment to ensure equitable levels of public services. It's close in, but doesn't have the protection/self-determination of incorporated Takoma Park or Chevy Chase on either side. The concentrated wealth in those communities and in Bethesda tends to support protective political influence that inner SS doesn't get.

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Anonymous wrote:I live there. No it is not a war zone.

As long as you’re comfortable with the level of violence then everything is cool, I guess.

Is there a city with no murders?

Of course not, practically speaking.

But as someone who lived in an area where I could sometime hear gunshots and there was adjacent crime it was relatively easy to brush it off because it was mostly fine that it didn't affect me much. Until I moved to an area where these things are just not a part of daily, weekly, or regular life. It's different, and clearly the later is preferable. It's sad that so many people don't have the ability to live in safer places. It's one thing to say it's a trade off, but don't become so immune to the problem that you deny it: that's a fair way to adapt and be resilient, but it's ultimately unfair to the people who are less better off who live closer to the violence (physically and socially) to just turn your head and deny the problem.

NP. You realize that lots of live in Silver Spring right? You're telling someone who lives there what's fair to...the people who live there. The shooting (which happened very close to where I live) is tragic; hopefully, they'll find the people who did it. The jump from there to "war zone" or "no go" or even "gunshots are part of daily life," though, is totally wrong in my actual experience as a person who lives here.

Thanks for reframing the situation. I spent years of my childhood living a capital city where one end of a block can be dicey and the other is safer, and you have to navigate that coming and going to school and activities. Now that I live in a much safer and tonier suburb, I know what the difference is: greater peace of mind. Millions of people live in dicey areas around the world. You become habituated. Most people have no choice and have never experienced anything different. But when you DO have a choice and can move out, you certainly feel better in your daily life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If You look at the map though, you'll see that most of the residential neighborhoods near DTSS are still very safe, with no shootings recorded since 2014.

West of DTSS is Woodside, which then very quickly gives way to Chevy Chase. The local activists believe these safe neighborhoods are filled with NIMBY racists. East is the Takoma Park Historic District. This is a famously NIMBY neighborhood but the aforementioned activists live here so they don’t normally talk about it. These neighborhoods are mostly white and feature million dollar homes. You can see how the violence follows Thayer to the park where these murders happened (there is a huge low income apartment complex there) and after Sligo it picks up at Flower and Piney Branch.

In other words, it’s very easy to discern why some neighborhoods are safe and why some are not. In White Oak you can even see a cluster gun homicides around a very specific apartment complex.

Anonymous wrote:If You look at the map though, you'll see that most of the residential neighborhoods near DTSS are still very safe, with no shootings recorded since 2014.

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:To me, it's a Silver Spring problem. If you look at Rockville which is similar size population-wise, they dont' have double murders.

Or an innocent man walking to his car in the parking garage after dinner with his family murdered:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/murder-in-downtown-silver-spring-parking-garage-remains-unsolved-one-year-later

Or a shootout on the downtown streets during the day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2RO7D1-DiA

Bethesda is similar in population. It also has similar levels of urbanization and this stuff isn’t happening.

What is especially weird to me is that all of the way too online TPSS YIMBY urbanism activists also are very much anti-law enforcement and effectively pro-crime. They are getting the downtown SS they want, which is deeply unpleasant.

Bethesda has murders… lululemon, the painter murder, the guy making tunnels, kids have killed their parents,

That’s 15 years of Bethesda murders versus a few months in Silver Spring.

Since Jan 1 there have been 3 homicides in the 3d police district (downtown silver spring). Including these two.

The PP listed 3 murders in Bethesda since 2011 (and one in Kensington).

The overwhelming majority of homicides in Montgomery County every year occur in only 3 areas: Germantown, Gaithersburg and Silver Spring. In Silver Spring, it is split between two neighborhoods, downtown and White Oak, and the violence and particularly the gun violence in Silver Spring is increasing. In terms of gun crime, it’s now indistinguishable from adjacent communities in PG County.
https://www.thetrace.org/2023/02/gun-violence-map-america-shootings/?place=Silver-Spring-Maryland

It’s not a war zone but also not safe.

It’s economic. Wealthy criminals have more sophisticated schemes and a legal system that protects them so you just don’t hear about it as much.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To me, it's a Silver Spring problem. If you look at Rockville which is similar size population-wise, they dont' have double murders.

Or an innocent man walking to his car in the parking garage after dinner with his family murdered:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/murder-in-downtown-silver-spring-parking-garage-remains-unsolved-one-year-later

Or a shootout on the downtown streets during the day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2RO7D1-DiA

Bethesda is similar in population. It also has similar levels of urbanization and this stuff isn’t happening.

What is especially weird to me is that all of the way too online TPSS YIMBY urbanism activists also are very much anti-law enforcement and effectively pro-crime. They are getting the downtown SS they want, which is deeply unpleasant.

Bethesda has murders… lululemon, the painter murder, the guy making tunnels, kids have killed their parents,

That’s 15 years of Bethesda murders versus a few months in Silver Spring.

Since Jan 1 there have been 3 homicides in the 3d police district (downtown silver spring). Including these two.

The PP listed 3 murders in Bethesda since 2011 (and one in Kensington).

The overwhelming majority of homicides in Montgomery County every year occur in only 3 areas: Germantown, Gaithersburg and Silver Spring. In Silver Spring, it is split between two neighborhoods, downtown and White Oak, and the violence and particularly the gun violence in Silver Spring is increasing. In terms of gun crime, it’s now indistinguishable from adjacent communities in PG County.
https://www.thetrace.org/2023/02/gun-violence-map-america-shootings/?place=Silver-Spring-Maryland

It’s not a war zone but also not safe.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To me, it's a Silver Spring problem. If you look at Rockville which is similar size population-wise, they dont' have double murders.

Or an innocent man walking to his car in the parking garage after dinner with his family murdered:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/murder-in-downtown-silver-spring-parking-garage-remains-unsolved-one-year-later

Or a shootout on the downtown streets during the day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2RO7D1-DiA

Bethesda is similar in population. It also has similar levels of urbanization and this stuff isn’t happening.

What is especially weird to me is that all of the way too online TPSS YIMBY urbanism activists also are very much anti-law enforcement and effectively pro-crime. They are getting the downtown SS they want, which is deeply unpleasant.

Bethesda has murders… lululemon, the painter murder, the guy making tunnels, kids have killed their parents,

That’s 15 years of Bethesda murders versus a few months in Silver Spring.

Since Jan 1 there have been 3 homicides in the 3d police district (downtown silver spring). Including these two.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To me, it's a Silver Spring problem. If you look at Rockville which is similar size population-wise, they dont' have double murders.

Or an innocent man walking to his car in the parking garage after dinner with his family murdered:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/murder-in-downtown-silver-spring-parking-garage-remains-unsolved-one-year-later

Or a shootout on the downtown streets during the day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2RO7D1-DiA

Bethesda is similar in population. It also has similar levels of urbanization and this stuff isn’t happening.

What is especially weird to me is that all of the way too online TPSS YIMBY urbanism activists also are very much anti-law enforcement and effectively pro-crime. They are getting the downtown SS they want, which is deeply unpleasant.

Bethesda has murders… lululemon, the painter murder, the guy making tunnels, kids have killed their parents,

That’s 15 years of Bethesda murders versus a few months in Silver Spring.