Pizza Begets Violence

What is it about the pizza business that has made it a focal point of the local police blotter? Just in anecdotal terms there's an indication of an entire class of crime has sprung up around pizza shops and the delivery of pizzas around the Akron area. Maybe its the latest iteration of youth gangs and street criminals exploiting the latest weakness in the community they victimize.

The latest and most troubling episode in the pizza crime chronicles is playing out in West Akron. The fallout from the "pizza guy fights back" shooting continues to stir up the sediment of the social and racial divide that exists in our town.  There is of course more to the incident than the incident itself.

A follow up on the aftermath of the shooting in the Beacon Journal attempts to add more layers to the story.  A business owner did shoot and kill a twenty year old robber in what was most likely a solid case of self defense.  A family is left to wonder why their son and brother made such a foolish and life altering choice  They say he was raised to respect his fellow citizens so how did he end up in that pizza shop wearing a mask and brandishing a sawed-off?  

A man who was exercising his right to protect his life and property ended up killing the would be assailant.  As much as you may feel gratified over the outcome, taking another person's life is a profound event.  It doesn't matter if its on the street or on the battlefield.

Addressing the real societal problems at play requires a certain level of maturity and sincerity. Brush aside the the gun-slinger machismo and race baiting from the fools on local talk radio and the corrosive effect of gun violence and youth crime is left revealed.  The issue is much more complex and is undermined by a society enamored with guns and a city that is awash in youth crime.  Akron like many urban areas has to contend with this problem before this latest generation succumbs to the unrelenting wave of despair and recklessness brought on by economic disparity and lack of positive influences.

I hope we spend less time dwelling on the white man shoots black man dialectic and try really hard to think about how we establish more solidarity against the growing epidemic of violent crime in Akron. Making headway on containing the spread of gang related crime comes first. This may be tied to the enhancement of policing trouble spots, shifting enforcement tactics (one good example here ) and getting the community more involved in pushing back against the hoodlums living in their midst. 

The corollary to this is continuing to prioritize education as the great equalizer and expanding opportunities for self sufficiency for all of Akron's residents.  I don't know of any other way.  Relying on more guns in the streets is not going to get us there.