What the fuck is wrong with you, Austin?

[YGIFS 19452]

13 minutes ago, Herbie Hancock said:

Big Tex Gym is your answer. No stabby folks there.

 

 

Big Gym Blade?  Oh, Slade.  Tight End for the Kansas City Chiefs has satisfied pop-stars all over the world and the capital of Nebraska is Lincoln! 

 

Edited February 16 by YGIFS

[tbone_ 14132]

In cheerier news, murders have slowed. As of today, here is where we stand versus recent years:
2020: 5
2021: 11
2022: 13
2023: 12
2024: 8
Note that 2021 ended up being the recent record coming out of Covid.
In not cheery news, going to be mid-80s next week and the extended forecast is for warmer/drier than average. Winter is over.

Um, 8 two months into the year when there were 12 all of last year isn’t exactly slowing.

[YGIFS 19452]

44 minutes ago, tbone_ said:

Um, 8 two months into the year when there were 12 all of last year isn’t exactly slowing.

go whine about it to Nicole, dude.  We got other shit to do here...

[utee94 15835]

1 hour ago, crash_davis said:

Tried to go work out. Gym was closed. Two dudes were arguing over a machine. One dude stabbed the other guy. It's closed until the cleaning crew can arrive to clean up the blood.

 

https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/la-fitness-police-austin-texas-west-anderson-lane/269-66a8727b-d9ba-4a3a-9e9d-2c415682787c

One person was arrested following a stabbing inside an LA Fitness in North Austin, according to police.

The stabbing happened at around 11:30 a.m. Friday at the gym on West Anderson Lane, near Burnet Road.

Police aren't sure what led up to the stabbing but said a man was taken into custody behind the building after running from the scene. He's expected to be charged with aggravated assault. 

The victim was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Well there's your problem right there.  Get out of the 'hood, go to a gym in a better part of town.  The mean streets of Allandale and Crestview are no place for gentle folk.

[B00M 6423]

15 hours ago, tbone_ said:

Um, 8 two months into the year when there were 12 all of last year isn’t exactly slowing.

 

you think those might be the counts on similar dates in prior years?

[Nicole44 22068]

15 hours ago, YGIFS said:

go whine about it to Nicole, dude.  We got other shit to do here...

 

[ztejas 43501]

16 hours ago, tbone_ said:

Um, 8 two months into the year when there were 12 all of last year isn’t exactly slowing.

[YGIFS 19452]

1 hour ago, Nicole44 said:

 

What if put this image in motion sacking groceries?

Dill-Doe Baggins?  

[Guest]

18 hours ago, tbone_ said:

Um, 8 two months into the year when there were 12 all of last year isn’t exactly slowing.

12 murders a year? What do you think we are? A modern society like Japan or somewhere in Europe?

[ABSR 5319]

On 2/15/2024 at 8:34 PM, HornOnTheBayou said:

You sure? I have always been told that you are supposed to take it right into the zone of danger. Ride into the zone of danger.

That’s only true for highway driving.

[Guest]

Just for confirmation -- the homeless issue in Austin is never going to be better, right? All I notice is that the homelessness just gets worse. More camps, more trash, with no improvement or end in site. Those motels? Boarded up and now blight. Trails and greenbelts are also being taken over, and I see it continue to creep more and more. You can go on Google Maps and see camps in green space everywhere.

If you're compassionate and try to provide resources and help, it turns the city into a magnet. But we can't even handle who we've got now. 

Meanwhile, you've got to think that more and more residents are going to get fed up and just leave. Hell, I have a kid. I don't want to raise a kid where we have to be careful about which trail we go down in the Greenbelt. 

 

 

[Dbeasy 15073]

The homeless problem is yet another example of Normalization of Deviance. People don’t solve problems they know are problems. They just begin to accept the problems as the new normal. Terrible. 

[Modessit 5603]

I'm not sure if it predated the latest version of the site, but I couldn't find a thread here relating to the Austin Bomber of 2018.

But the Investigation Discovery show See No Evil did an episode tonight about it, including surveillance footage I hadn't seen before. If anyone cares to watch it.

I was doing package delivery back then, too, and got pulled over at least 3 times checking to see who I was and why I was taking boxes to people's doors. And had a couple people follow me around or confront me about what I was doing.

[Biff Tannen 45692]

10 hours ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Just for confirmation -- the homeless issue in Austin is never going to be better, right? All I notice is that the homelessness just gets worse. More camps, more trash, with no improvement or end in site. Those motels? Boarded up and now blight. Trails and greenbelts are also being taken over, and I see it continue to creep more and more. You can go on Google Maps and see camps in green space everywhere.

If you're compassionate and try to provide resources and help, it turns the city into a magnet. But we can't even handle who we've got now. 

Meanwhile, you've got to think that more and more residents are going to get fed up and just leave. Hell, I have a kid. I don't want to raise a kid where we have to be careful about which trail we go down in the Greenbelt. 

 

 

How long did it take you to compile those images?  I’m as big a google maps nerd as anyone and it never occurred to me to use it as a homeless camp identifier. 

[Guest]

8 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

How long did it take you to compile those images?  I’m as big a google maps nerd as anyone and it never occurred to me to use it as a homeless camp identifier. 

Five minutes if you know where to look, which is any green space that's not an official park that's next to a major thoroughfare. For instance, instead of keeping a green space along Braker Lane between 183 and MoPac, UT just had to install a chainlink fence with barbed wire around their property with big no trespassing signs. So instead of greenery, we get barbed wire and fences.

 

 

 

 

[Herbie Hancock 7368]

A couple years ago Denver recognized the negative effect the homeless in downtown were having on business and tourism. In about six months they pushed most of them out and down I-25 to Colorado Springs. Austin should bring in some Denver folks to help relocate their urban campers to San Antonio.

[hayden_horn 11362]

why is it that cops never ever ever direct traffic in this city? stoplight out? thunderdome. stalled car? thunderdome. closed lane for construction? thunderdome. 

also the way the stoplights are programmed in this city is fucking stupid. sunday morning stoplights shouldn't run the same exact way as Tuesday 4pm stoplights. stoplights at road closures for construction should be turned off or blinking. hell, we need more blinking red and yellows at night and on Sunday mornings. 

wtf.

[HenryJames 66133]

Hate the Austin Marathon so fucking much.

[South Austin 52521]

28 minutes ago, hayden_horn said:

also the way the stoplights are programmed in this city is fucking stupid. sunday morning stoplights shouldn't run the same exact way as Tuesday 4pm stoplights. stoplights at road closures for construction should be turned off or blinking. hell, we need more blinking red and yellows at night and on Sunday mornings. 

Here’s my local traffic bitch along those lines:

The timing of the lights at Burnet and North Loop are maddeningly moronic. Green for the Burnet traffic for a long time, and then the traffic backed up on North Loop gets a fraction of the time to get through the intersection, which really sucks in late afternoon when nearby Lamar and McCallum schools get out. 

And the city made it worse by closing a dedicated right turn lane on eastbound North Loop at this intersection for it’s “mobility” bullshit. If you live in my hood, you know what I’m talking about.

For decades this city has been putting fucking idiots in charge of the city’s infrastructure.

[HenryJames 66133]

10 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

I’m as big a google maps nerd as anyone and it never occurred to me to use it as a homeless camp identifier. 

Because you’re normal?

[Nicole44 22068]

1 hour ago, Herbie Hancock said:

A couple years ago Denver recognized the negative effect the homeless in downtown were having on business and tourism. In about six months they pushed most of them out and down I-25 to Colorado Springs. Austin should bring in some Denver folks to help relocate their urban campers to San Antonio.

 

[Biff Tannen 45692]

13 minutes ago, HenryJames said:

Because you’re normal?

Well let's not go nuts here.

[hookemATL 11793]

1 hour ago, hayden_horn said:

why is it that cops never ever ever direct traffic in this city? stoplight out? thunderdome. stalled car? thunderdome. closed lane for construction? thunderdome. 

You mean tasks/duties that help with public safety?  Sir, these are police.

also you never know what’s going to happen when you direct traffic. Traffic = outdoors = trees = ACORNSSSSSSS

[jimmyjazz 45991]

1 hour ago, South Austin said:

The timing of the lights at Burnet and North Loop are maddeningly moronic. Green for the Burnet traffic for a long time, and then the traffic backed up on North Loop gets a fraction of the time to get through the intersection, which really sucks in late afternoon when nearby Lamar and McCallum schools get out. 

And the city made it worse by closing a dedicated right turn lane on eastbound North Loop at this intersection for it’s “mobility” bullshit. If you live in my hood, you know what I’m talking about.

We went to Home Slice last night.  The lights were fucked up then, too.

[Biff Tannen 45692]

6 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

We went to Home Slice last night.  The lights were fucked up then, too.

They need to buy out that lot across the street or something.  Parking is insane there.

[Cap33 384]

1 hour ago, hayden_horn said:

also the way the stoplights are programmed in this city is fucking stupid. sunday morning stoplights shouldn't run the same exact way as Tuesday 4pm stoplights. stoplights at road closures for construction should be turned off or blinking. hell, we need more blinking red and yellows at night and on Sunday mornings. 

I don't think they really give a shit about smart traffic flow. How else are they going to convince people that mass transit is the solution to their traffic woes? Meanwhile, we have City Council members talking a big game about initiatives (read: spending money) to help combat climate change. How about all the cars sitting through multiple light cycles trying to make a fucking left turn to get to work because some dipshit timed the light to let exactly four cars through during rush hour? 

 

1 hour ago, South Austin said:

And the city made it worse by closing a dedicated right turn lane on eastbound North Loop at this intersection for it’s “mobility” bullshit.

We'll be reminded that improved sidewalks and bike lanes are what passed in the mobility bond. I'm not sure it would have gotten the same support if people understood the trade off of constricting traffic flow to get those improvements. 

[Armybrat 40851]

2 hours ago, hayden_horn said:

why is it that cops never ever ever direct traffic in this city? stoplight out? thunderdome. stalled car? thunderdome. closed lane for construction? thunderdome. 

also the way the stoplights are programmed in this city is fucking stupid. sunday morning stoplights shouldn't run the same exact way as Tuesday 4pm stoplights. stoplights at road closures for construction should be turned off or blinking. hell, we need more blinking red and yellows at night and on Sunday mornings. 

wtf.

As cheap as electronics & video are these days, if Austin was serious about reducing air pollution via greenhouse gases, the city would equip all the major intersections with computers that could ease the ridiculously stupid & unnecessary traffic buildup that burns an unimaginable tonnage of gasoline & diesel every day

On 10/2/2023 at 2:50 PM, TexArcher said:

 

Edited February 18 by Armybrat

[Surly Bevo 25076]

1 hour ago, Nicole44 said:

 

The problem being most of those vacancies are either rentals (so you gotta pay money the homeless don't have to rent it) or they are homes/condos/etc that somebody still is in title and owns.  

[Armybrat 40851]

2 hours ago, South Austin said:

Here’s my local traffic bitch along those lines:

The timing of the lights at Burnet and North Loop are maddeningly moronic. Green for the Burnet traffic for a long time, and then the traffic backed up on North Loop gets a fraction of the time to get through the intersection, which really sucks in late afternoon when nearby Lamar and McCallum schools get out. 

And the city made it worse by closing a dedicated right turn lane on eastbound North Loop at this intersection for it’s “mobility” bullshit. If you live in my hood, you know what I’m talking about.

For decades this city has been putting fucking idiots in charge of the city’s infrastructure.

We like going to meet our oldfart happy hour group at La Mancha on Hancock once every couple of months. 
However, the aggravation of leaving the restaurant about 5 or 5:30 in the middle of rush hour to drive north on Burnet to 183 to get onto northbound MoPac is worse than driving I-35. 

[Deej 76846]

24 minutes ago, Cap33 said:

How about all the cars sitting through multiple light cycles trying to make a fucking left turn to get to work because some dipshit timed the light to let exactly four cars through during rush hour?

You mean two cars, maybe, depending on how long it takes for the first person in line to look up from their phone?

[Nicole44 22068]

https://www.kvue.com/article/news/crime/increased-patrols-schools-after-string-of-alleged-abduction-attempts/500-661187dd-429a-445e-a4d0-a454b2a4973c
 

Hopefully, they catch the POS perp before he kidnaps and kills somebody’s daughter. I would almost guarantee this person has a record and shouldn’t be out free. As is the case with most of these POS. They CANNOT be rehabilitated and quite honestly we should spend more time on young people and foster kids and such and stop worrying about the POS who are wasted of space. They should be incarcerated for life. Or dead. I don’t care which. 
 

SMDH. We spend so much time worried about the absolute shittiest fuck ups in society when we should be saving people who haven’t earned the right to be fucking eradicated. It baffles me. We linger over the worst of society and lament it. Instead of recognizing some people aren’t worth it. 

Edited February 18 by Nicole44

[bschoolprof 6268]

1 hour ago, Cap33 said:

We'll be reminded that improved sidewalks and bike lanes are what passed in the mobility bond. I'm not sure it would have gotten the same support if people understood the trade off of constricting traffic flow to get those improvements. 

Never underestimate the naiveté of the average Austin voter.  

[Modessit 5603]

A couple years ago Denver recognized the negative effect the homeless in downtown were having on business and tourism. In about six months they pushed most of them out and down I-25 to Colorado Springs. Austin should bring in some Denver folks to help relocate their urban campers to San Antonio.

35 years ago you didn't go into downtown Denver at night. We were told not to wear our dress uniforms downtown because the Bloods would kill anyone in the wrong area in blue. A high school kid got shot and killed for wearing a red baseball cap while unknowingly riding a bike thru a Crips area.

[demos 3004]

I don't think they really give a shit about smart traffic flow.

They don’t. Just look at Congress. They put a protected turn lane at 5th but not at 7th, which is the street people turn down to get to 35. Made no sense. And without the 3rd lane, now traffic stacks up because of people wanting to be in the right hand lane to turn onto 6th.

[Herbie Hancock 7368]

35 years ago you didn't go into downtown Denver at night. We were told not to wear our dress uniforms downtown because the Bloods would kill anyone in the wrong area in blue. A high school kid got shot and killed for wearing a red baseball cap while unknowingly riding a bike thru a Crips area.

Even the gangbangers got tired of the homeless in Denver. Now you have to go to Wheat Ridge to find anyone of ill repute!

[B00M 6423]

21 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

How long did it take you to compile those images?  I’m as big a google maps nerd as anyone and it never occurred to me to use it as a homeless camp identifier. 

I use my DJI as a fun way to keep tabs on our greenbelt. I haven’t needed to use it to drop water balloons yet. 

[Guest]

Primary early voting start tomorrow. On the ballot is our terrible DA -- Jose Garza -- and I feel like there hasn't been shit mentioned about this race. In other words, we're going to be stuck with him again. 

[Samson's Wig 3193]

On 2/18/2024 at 8:12 AM, Herbie Hancock said:

A couple years ago Denver recognized the negative effect the homeless in downtown were having on business and tourism. In about six months they pushed most of them out and down I-25 to Colorado Springs. Austin should bring in some Denver folks to help relocate their urban campers to San Antonio.

San Antonio was already much faster on the draw in this regard.

[bschoolprof 6268]

 

1 hour ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Primary early voting start tomorrow. On the ballot is our terrible DA -- Jose Garza -- and I feel like there hasn't been shit mentioned about this race. In other words, we're going to be stuck with him again. 

I've seen a few tv spots for Sylestine . . . emphasizes "tough on crime" 

[CTC2 2797]

On 2/18/2024 at 8:16 AM, hayden_horn said:

why is it that cops never ever ever direct traffic in this city? stoplight out? thunderdome. stalled car? thunderdome. closed lane for construction? thunderdome. 

also the way the stoplights are programmed in this city is fucking stupid. sunday morning stoplights shouldn't run the same exact way as Tuesday 4pm stoplights. stoplights at road closures for construction should be turned off or blinking. hell, we need more blinking red and yellows at night and on Sunday mornings. 

wtf.

They are too busy chatting over the free food and coffee at the Rudy’s on Lamar.  Roll my eyes every time I see them all SWAT’ed up with tactical gear. 

[Mittens 8287]

25 minutes ago, bschoolprof said:

I've seen a few tv spots for Sylestine . . . emphasizes "tough on crime" 

Saw the 1st one today.  I'm voting for him even though I had no clue he existed 2 hours ago.

[bolverk 29694]

44 minutes ago, Mittens said:

Saw the 1st one today.  I'm voting for him even though I had no clue he existed 2 hours ago.

If it's any concern to you, it might be worthwhile to see who's funding his campaign.

[Mittens 8287]

That is concerning, and I'm a lefty for the most part, but Garza kinda sucks at keeping people who should be in jail, in jail.  I realize that's not 100% on him, but at this point I'm for anyone-but-Jose.

[MonkeyDoughnut 10326]

On 2/18/2024 at 8:16 AM, hayden_horn said:

why is it that cops never ever ever direct traffic in this city? stoplight out? thunderdome. stalled car? thunderdome. closed lane for construction? thunderdome. 

also the way the stoplights are programmed in this city is fucking stupid. sunday morning stoplights shouldn't run the same exact way as Tuesday 4pm stoplights. stoplights at road closures for construction should be turned off or blinking. hell, we need more blinking red and yellows at night and on Sunday mornings. 

wtf.

There aren't enough officers right now.  Any given shift there are sometimes only 30-40 officers for the entire city of Austin.  

[Bozo_Casanova 26500]

On 2/18/2024 at 9:43 AM, Nicole44 said:

 

If only homelessness was a housing problem.’

[ChickenSandwich 9843]

3 hours ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Primary early voting start tomorrow. On the ballot is our terrible DA -- Jose Garza -- and I feel like there hasn't been shit mentioned about this race. In other words, we're going to be stuck with him again. 

anyone but Garza, come on down Jeremy

 

From the article posted, it looks like Soros dumped Jose after contributing $650,000 in 2020

"Garza’s January filing was much less interesting (no George Soros donations this round). He took in just over $39,000 – perhaps because he entered the primary with a mountain of cash on hand. He spent $112,000, which left him with about $158,000 in cash as of Jan. 25."

Edited February 19 by ChickenSandwich

[Brisketexan 105161]

Yeah....I have long-time friends who remain plugged into the DA's office.  These are far from MAGA types.  They uniformly describe the Garza administration as a shitshow.  

There's nothing wrong with having a candidate who says he'll do things right, and things that you'll like....but then his execution once he takes office is shitty....so you bail on him.  What would be stupid would be sticking with something that's not working.

A DA can emphasize both alternatives to prosecution/rehabilitative approaches AND prioritizing public safety.  It doesn't have to be either or.  Or, frankly, it doesn't have to be "I said I'd do both, but am really fucking it up."  If something we've tried isn't working - and this Garza experiment is not working - then there's no shame in making a change.

[jimmyjazz 45991]

3 hours ago, MonkeyDoughnut said:

There aren't enough officers right now.  Any given shift there are sometimes only 30-40 officers for the entire city of Austin.  

That seems to be an exaggeration.  For one thing, APD is larger than it has ever been.  For another, we employ ~ 1,800 officers (as per 2022 data).  If officers are working 40-hour work weeks, then it takes ~4 per week to cover that duty (7 x 24 / 40).  1,800 officers covering 4-ish rotating duties means at any one time ~ 450 should be on the job.  Yeah, that's probably a little high, but a factor of more than 10X too high?  Even if we assume half of those officers on duty aren't actually on the road, it's an out of whack estimate.

[Bozo_Casanova 26500]

26 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

That seems to be an exaggeration.  For one thing, APD is larger than it has ever been.  For another, we employ ~ 1,800 officers (as per 2022 data).  If officers are working 40-hour work weeks, then it takes ~4 per week to cover that duty (7 x 24 / 40).  1,800 officers covering 4-ish rotating duties means at any one time ~ 450 should be on the job.  Yeah, that's probably a little high, but a factor of more than 10X too high?  Even if we assume half of those officers on duty aren't actually on the road, it's an out of whack estimate.

But, feelings!

[MonkeyDoughnut 10326]

29 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

That seems to be an exaggeration.  For one thing, APD is larger than it has ever been.  For another, we employ ~ 1,800 officers (as per 2022 data).  If officers are working 40-hour work weeks, then it takes ~4 per week to cover that duty (7 x 24 / 40).  1,800 officers covering 4-ish rotating duties means at any one time ~ 450 should be on the job.  Yeah, that's probably a little high, but a factor of more than 10X too high?  Even if we assume half of those officers on duty aren't actually on the road, it's an out of whack estimate.

Ask an officer, that's not a typical number but it's occurring.  As for 1,800 officers, that's the budgeted number. Actual number barely 1,400 right now. Losing patrol faster than anyone and once others get moved to patrol they are finding new jobs outside Austin quickly.