Zuma Applies Deming's 14 Points To LA City's Crime Problem

I was listening to AM news radio this morning and heard that an eight-year old girl was shot and killed by a gang member's stray bullet while in front of her doorstep.

The City is already a buzz of this issue with Jamiel's Law, Special Order 40 revisions/clarifications and City Council's new "Parcel Tax" (tax on property owners) that will be on the November ballot for "gang intervention and youth development."

Now you know Zuma Dogg is critical of where the money goes and how it is spent on these non-profit programs designed to help provide options for crime-ridden communities (usually associated as "gang activity" in the media). But, conceptually, I am for these types of programs.

I am just concerned about the ways these programs are being operated under Los Angeles City Hall at this time.

And when I heard of this latest incident (girl being shot while playing), I could already hear the talk radio show hosts talking about nothing but this issue, and all other issues will go uncovered. (ZD calls it a "media blackout" when one issue dominates the media.) And although it sounds insensitive to think this way (the fact that I believe this issue of street shootings of innocent bystanders on the streets will be coming to a head in the media and around water coolers...it DOES come to my mind that a lot of other fraud, waste and abuse will go uncovered now.

BUT...I immediately countered that thought by responding to myself, "YEAH, that's because it's the most important issue in the city, these days. If you can't even walk down the streets to school or play outside in your yard...THEN I GUESS EVERYTHING ELSE DOES NEED TO BE PUT ON THE BACK-BURNER UNTIL A REAL SYSTEM IS PUT IN PLACE TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE OF "GANG CRIME" WHICH ZUMA DOGG SAYS IS REALLY JUST, "CRIME", WHICH IS REALLY JUST A RESULT OF THE ELECTED OFFICIALS AT CITY HALL WASTING THE MONEY FOR THE COMMUNITY AND IGNORING THE PROBLEM.

It's a political and economic problem. Gangs are the symptom.

If you were able to somehow theoretically round up every known gang member ever to walk the streets and drop them off outside LA City limits and started fresh with all new people;

you would soon find these communities in the exact same place (crime ridden) because you are not fixing the system that is creating this crime.

So when I heard about this girl; and realized this issue is going to be rising even more to the forefront -- I challenged myself to try and think of the way to "fix the system" (by applying Deming's 14 points) -- and not just saying, "keep the basketball courts open later; or hoping more money thrown into the same broken system ("intervention and development" programs) will help make a dent.

But the idea I am about to present is something that can be funded and operated under whatever program Janice Hahn, Tony Cardenas and Villaraiogsa are pushing for. Except instead of wasting the money as though you are sending it through the world's biggest paper shredder -- you can perhaps actually start to travel down the right path.

AND, most importantly, I think this is an idea that even the shadiest of corrupt politicians could support. Because you kinda have to operate under the premise that people inside City Hall actually support some of these gangs -- and may talk out of one side of their mouth -- but their actions support the other side. SO ANY IDEA ZD PROPOSES ALSO HAS TO BE SOMETHING THAT THE OPPOSITION CAN GET EXCITED ABOUT, TOO. (In other words, it won't threaten whatever it is they are hiding behind.)

And you know what? As soon as I drop the idea here on this blog, people will say, "The REAL problem are the schools!" (Yeah, but I am not in control of the schools as of today. I can speak out against problems and offer suggestions about LAUSD, but I can't start showing up on school grounds and start tutoring students. I can't make a lazy, vindictive, bureaucratic LAUSD principal care about kids. I can't be in every classroom to make sure teachers use common sense and are doing everything they can. SO I CAME UP WITH AN IDEA THAT CAN BE DONE WHILE THE REST OF THE WORLD IS WAITING FOR LAUSD TO FIX ITSELF. (Meanwhile, this idea will help deal with the symptoms of a broken school system.)

THEN, someone will say, "YEAH, you can't compete with gang members making a thousand dollars a day selling crack."

MAYBE SO...BUT NOT EVERY GANG MEMBER OUT THERE SHOOTING UP THE STREETS IS MAKING THAT MUCH MONEY. That's a VERY small percentage of people. Most of these people are just trying to make enough money to buy a dime bag of weed, a few bucks for food at the mini-mart, and a little to give their family (for mom/kids) if at all possible.

So to say, "You can't improve the situation because you can't compete with people making a grand a day selling crack" is correct. HOWEVER, Dr. Deming was a statistician by profession. And statistics will tell you this is a very small percentage of the problem. SURE, the big ballers are the ones that keep the rest of the game rolling.

BUT NOTHING IN THIS WORLD CAPTURES 100% OF THE MARKET!

You and I cannot drive around the streets like Councilman Dennis Zine or Batman, rounding up criminals on the street to help fix the problem.

So back to something someone like you, me or mere mortal Councilmembers can ACTUALLY do to help stop crime:

JOBS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: I know it sounds cliche'. But Zuma Dogg says that is the ONLY answer...and the good news is...it hasn't even been tried in a real and efficient way.

So for all the broke-ass people in the communities who ain't making $1000 a day selling crack -- are not bad people...just stuck in a dead-end community, neglected and cheated by their elected officials -- and would show up to "get paid" if there was something besides the strict hours and regiment that comes with something like McDonalds, ZD will be blogging one idea that can help provide some relief and hopefully start the community rebuilding process.

Because that's what it is. Deming was sent to Japan to help them rebuild after the war. That's how we need to approach this situation, too.

THE IDEA:

Forget about keeping basketball courts open till midnight. Zuma Dogg likes the idea of building telemarketing call centers in these crime ridden communities and allowing people to show up for work, instead of showing up at the basketball court. Imagine if word got out on the street that there were jobs in an air conditioned building, where you could pop into to start making money when you have time/need money. I think a lot of people from teenagers to parents would start showing up for work the way people started showing up at the docks/ports when they found out work was available.

WHY TELEMARKETING?: A lot of companies have outsourced their call centers out of the area and out of the country. It may be too expensive for DirectTV or AOL to run the call center; and it may be too expensive for an outside professional firm to handle the call center;

but a non-profit telemarketing call center in the center of the hood operated with some of this "youth development/gang intervention" money could sure help keep costs down and help put $50-$100 bucks in someone's pocket that day, just for stopping by could help a family out.

So while all the $1000 BMW driving crack dealers are out making a living, the little guppies in the community -- and O.G.'s who can't get a piece of the action -- or a parent that needs some extra work -- or you just get out of jail...instead of stopping by the recreation center for basketball -- you can pop in the call center and "get your 'earn' on."

Besides service call centers, you can use the phone banks and staffers for a variety of other "phone related sevices" including fund raising, telemarket research for outside firms and even City and County phone staffing.

OFFER THE COMMUNITY A REAL OPTION! This is not rounding up every gang member and locking them up, it's not fixing the school system, it's not a lot of things: BUT IT IS ONE THING THAT SOMEONE CAN ACTUALLY DO. And when it works, can be replicated.

I hope I didn't do a dis-service to the idea by putting only a little bit out there. But I don't like to wait around until things are perfect. I got this much out, now. I've already made some calls to try and get this idea out there. And I'll expand on it here on this blog in upcoming posts.

TAKE BACK THE CITY

AND YOU DON'T TAKE BACK THE CITY BY TALKING AND PHILOSOPHISING AND WAITING FOR SOME PERFECT SINGLE MAGIC PILL TO DROP IN YOUR LAP!

YOU WAKE UP AND SAY, "WHAT'S SOMETHING I CAN ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISH TODAY THAT IS ACTIONABLE AND IN MY CONTROL.

And you don't worry about all the reasons why something else may be better or why something may only be part of the solution, instead of the whole solution. DO SOMETHING THAT IS PART OF SOMETHING!

This isn't the only idea...but it is the first idea that ZD would like to throw out there as an example.

NEXT IDEA: Weekend parking lot street fairs as economic development and job creation.