If you thought life in California couldn’t get any more ridiculous, think again.
The city of Oakland has reached a new low in its battle against rampant crime and homelessness.
In a move that screams “we’ve given up,” officials have removed traffic lights from a busy intersection and replaced them with stop signs because criminals keep stealing the wires.
Yes, you read that right – they’ve taken down the traffic lights because they can’t stop criminals from stealing the wires.
Let that sink in for a moment.
RELATED: 14,000 Cars Abandoned in Oakland In Just Six Months Because of Massive Theft Issue
Locals are understandably outraged.
Tam Le, a business owner near the intersection, told CBS News, “It’s just telling us that the city is giving up on us.” He believes the real solution is to clean up the massive homeless encampment nearby, but apparently, that’s too much to ask.
Driving through the intersection has become a game of Russian roulette, with accidents just waiting to happen.
As resident Mason Young put it, “We gotta stop just putting band-aids on things. Although, a band-aid is better than bleeding out.” Truer words have never been spoken.
But the problem goes far beyond one intersection.
Why do OPD's crime reports regularly underreport crime numbers, sometimes as much as 97%? @nbcbayarea's Investigative Unit found out.
— IamKeishaKeisha (@IamKeishaKeisha) May 17, 2024
Violent crime in Oakland has skyrocketed by 22% this year, and commercial burglary is up nearly 10%.
In September, over 200 fed-up business owners shut down their stores to protest the government’s pitiful response to the crisis.
To add insult to injury, the city even missed a deadline to apply for state funding to fight retail theft.
You can’t make this stuff up.
So, what’s Oakland’s brilliant solution? A grant program to help small businesses host events like workout classes and movie nights to lure back customers.
Because nothing says “safe and welcoming” like doing yoga next to a homeless encampment while criminals run wild.
It’s worth noting that Oakland hasn’t had a Republican mayor since 1977.
Decades of Democratic leadership have led to this mess, and it’s hard to see how they’ll fix it when their idea of a solution is to remove traffic lights.
Elderly Oakland man’s prized antique Corvette stolen from his home in broad daylight: ‘No consequences in this city’ https://t.co/m3IcBqWK8x pic.twitter.com/gu4c8STJVA
— New York Post (@nypost) May 19, 2024
As Californians watch their once-great state crumble, it’s clear that drastic changes are needed.
Band-aid solutions won’t cut it anymore.
It’s time for leaders to step up, tackle the root causes of these issues, and restore some semblance of sanity to the Golden State.
Until then, good luck navigating the mean streets of Oakland – you’re going to need it.
