I'll Look Down and Whisper "No."

Back in the mid-80's, there was a comic book published that ended up on a list of Top 100 novels. The limited series was called, "Watchmen" and we've paraphrased a telling quote from it a couple of times. A few readers caught the reference, but most don't recognize it:

• This city is afraid of me. I have seen its true face. The streets are extended gutters and the gutters are full of blood and when the drains finally scab over, all the vermin will drown.
  
  The accumulated filth of all their sex and murder will foam up about their waists and all the whores and politicians will look up and shout "Save us!"... and I'll look down and whisper "No."

Unfortunately, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois seems to be right there, staring into the abyss. Here's another symptom of the downfall:

• A raucous and "very dangerous" gang party that brought 1,000 people to a Near West Side park late Sunday was so out of control, Chicago police struggled to shut it down, one alderman said.
  
  Despite calling for police and politicians to address notoriously loud and sometimes violent gang parties for years, neighbors living near Touhy-Herbert Park report that this weekend's massive all-night party that spilled over into the streets was worse than ever.
  
  The footage of the post-Father's Day party, captured in photos and on video just two blocks west of the United Center, shows hundreds of people crowding the streets, drinking, smoking and at times, fighting. As music is blasted over car stereos, women illuminated with floodlights dance on the hood of cars, and the blue lights of police squad cars flash in the background.
  
  One area neighbor called the out-of-control party "Armageddon."

We're pretty sure Armageddon will be much bloodier, but for people not accustomed to seeing what cops have seen, this is a shocking wake-up call to just how far the city and this Department has fallen.

DNAInfo pulls no punches - a rarity in the media:

• The neighbor said he personally called 911 and met with about eight officers in his alley about 3:30 a.m. Monday as the mayhem continued.
  
  "They proceeded to tell me every reason they couldn't do their job, from not having enough resources to not visually seeing illegal activity to not wanting to escalate a situation," he said. "There are laws being broken all the time, and they are not being enforced."
  
  After the party went on for hours Sunday, one officer who arrived on the scene did take action to clear the streets, according to a neighbor who has lived in the area for two years.
  
  "One of the cops finally took out his rifle and said, 'C'mon, we've gotta clear out these streets,'" she remembered.
  But the group of more than 1,000 people was defiant, the neighbor said.
  
  "They know the cops aren't going to shoot them, especially with all the cellphone videos," she said. "The crowd just stands there knowing that they can't do anything. They just stand there, mocking them."

This however, is pure fantasy:

• Burnett said neighbors need to be able to rely on police to quell violence and illegal activity on the Near West Side. The alternative is frightening.
  
  "They're going to force people in the communities to be vigilantes to protect themselves," Burnett said. "We need to be able to rely on the police."

Reliance is a two way street there Wally. Where is our backup? Where is our support? Where is our pension money? Where are our defenders?

• .....all the whores and politicians will look up and shout "Save us!"... and I'll look down and whisper "No."

Get used to it.