Vote NO to Proposition 2

Why is everyone giving the Domain such a hard time? Yes, it may be a high class place to shop. Yes, it may not look "Austin-like." But have you ever looked at the bigger picture? The Domain is bringing all sorts of people together with their high class and middle class retail stores. Just because the Domain is characterized as "high class," that doesn't mean that it's gonna suck the money out of your pockets every time you go there. That's only if YOU CHOOSE TO SHOP THERE. There are more things to do there than shop at the Domain. Thanks to the money put into the Domain, people can experience something they can't experience in other parts of Austin. The Domain isn't made to look like Austin. In my opinion, the Domain gives a "New York" feeling. It can be seen as an escape for people. You don't have to pay for an expensive plane ticket to go to a place like New York; you can get a feel of New York right here in Austin. Along with the interesting art and amazing cuisine of numerous restaurants, the Domain can be seen as an all in one place to shop.

Proposition 2 is trying to stop the City of Austin from getting tax money to fund the new parts of the Domain. If we really think about it, the Domain is bringing stores from malls that are run-down and falling apart. Not a lot of people go to Highland Mall anymore and soon enough there won't even be a Highland Mall. The Domain is also taking stores from the Arboretum. They will soon be opening a new Gap, Express, and the department store Nordstrom. The Domain is a convenient place to shop. Looking at the big picture, the Domain is bringing new job opportunities to Austin. This will bring money back to the community. If the City of Austin approves Proposition 2, those job opportunities will be demolished. When the idea of the Domain was brought up five years ago, they agreed to kick-start new jobs. It did exactly what it promised; there are tons of job opportunities at the Domain. So why would we try to demolish new job opportunities for people who need jobs in Austin?

Proposition 2 will not change the city’s future incentive policy in any way. The Domain has also agreed to all of the written agreements that were made five years ago. Also, SIX out of SEVEN current members of the Austin City Council oppose Proposition 2. So with all of these facts, why would we want to proceed with Proposition 2? Doing so will just make more people unhappy than people who are happy.

Surveillance Cameras in Dallas Seen as Insignificant

A blog about Dallas police cameras focusing on petty crimes was published on Grits For Breakfast. The blog was about a disagreement on police surveillance cameras. The writer of the blog believes that surveillance cameras in Dallas are insignificant. The story starts off with four young adults caught on the surveillance cameras robbing a coin operated coin vending machine in downtown Dallas. One of the four young adults also turned out to be a murder suspect.

Tanya Eiserer at the Dallas News Crime Blog quotes that the department believes the surveillance cameras reduce crime by twenty percent in Dallas’ central business district. Although it looks like a big decline in crime, the cameras are only placed in the central business district. There are no surveillance cameras in Dallas neighborhoods so that crime is pushed into them equaling the crime rate in Dallas overall.

Despite the fact that a murder suspect was found due to the petty crime, the blogger still believes that cameras are less helpful for large crimes because only small crimes have been caught on camera. The writer of the blog doesn’t think that credit should be given to the surveillance cameras for catching that alleged murderer because he would have been discovered from being caught for his stupid behavior anyways.

I, on the other hand, believe that the surveillance cameras are extremely useful and should receive credit for catching an alleged murderer or even catching someone who ran a red light. The cameras may catch a petty crime like teenagers acting a fool, but the cameras could one day catch a kidnapping or help solve a murder. The new world of technology is amazing in this century. Those “insignificant” cameras can discover the face of a murderer or solve a mystery one of these days. It would be strange not to have them. I think that those cameras are very helpful and having them there helps the police force. It’s better having two sets of eyes than one and those cameras can be the other set of eyes.

A Higher Standard of Conduct

In the editorial, "Austin Police Shedding Tainted Culture," the author writes about Police Chief Art Acevedo trying to establish higher standards of conduct for officers. In the past there have been problems with police officers finding loopholes around the professional standards of the police force. The question of policies was raised when an arbitrator returned fired Austin policeman Gary Griffin to his job. This police officer was fired for using excessive force on a mentally ill man at a bus stop. Because there used to be a culture of police officers being able to return to their jobs without punishment after violating policies, Gary Griffin sued the city for firing him for his misconduct.

When policies were under the authority of former chief Stan Knee, there were questions about his authority; whether it was justified or whether it was based on favoritism. Police officers faced few consequences for the their unjust behaviors while other people could lose their jobs. This proved uneven discipline. Under commands of new Police Chief Acevedo, higher standards of conduct have been established for officers. There will no longer be loopholes around the standards. To achieve this goal, officers must attend training to make sure that they have read and understood the disciplinary standards. This approach is believed to reduce or prevent previous actions of favoritism and misconduct. Chief Acevedo's plan has already proved that it works; he has already fired 12 officers for misconduct and pressured others to resign. The author believes that there will be a better future for the police force while Acevedo's plan is intact.

I believe that this is a tremendously important editorial. Nobody likes favoritism, except the ones who get away with anything they want. Police officers should not get away with hurting a harmless person for no reason. We do not want the citizens of Austin or anywhere for the matter to fear police officers just because they have authority. We don't want the fear that a police officer can harm us. I highly agree with Chief Acevedo's technique for setting higher standards of conduct so that police officers do not get away with anything they want. I believe it is important for citizens to feel safe around authority figures like policemen and Chief Acevedo's tactics help ensure that.