Preception and reality don’t meet in Farmers Branch
I have been writing about this for some time now so I just couldn’t let this pass without comment.
Star-Telegram | 02/05/2007 | Public opinion doesn’t follow the numbers
Wow, it sure looks like illegal immigration has increased Farmers Branch’s crime rate and has hurt their property values something awful doesn’t it? That was the reason for the anti-immigrant laws that their council voted for, wouldn’t it have been a good idea to make sure that your reasons are sound before you voted. Alright, well maybe they were wrong about the crime and the property values but their argument that their schools are suffering must be true.
Public opinion doesn’t follow the numbers:
The Carrollton-Farmers Branch school district’s average SAT score bounced up and down for the last seven years but is still up 83 points from a decade ago, according to the Texas Education Agency. The class of 2005’s average SAT score was 1008. The state average was 992.The district’s state accountability rating, which is based on how well its students score on standardized state tests, rose to recognized from acceptable. The rating’s rise came after more and harder tests were introduced, agency spokeswoman Suzanne Marchman said. She said most school districts’ ratings went down under the tougher standards.
Oh my, how could that be! Their crime rate hasn’t gone up, their property values haven’t gone down and their schools are doing just fine. Well, then where are these horrible problems that immigrants are causing? Tim O’Hare, never to be one to turn down publicity does comment.
Public opinion doesn’t follow the numbers:
City Council member Tim O’Hare, who proposed the city ordinances now in dispute, dismissed the numbers and argued that Farmers Branch is not doing well compared with other cities in the county. He said real estate agents and teachers tell him in private that illegal immigrants are hurting the city.
“We have a large population of illegals in our city, and to say that does not affect property values or schools is just plain ignorant,” he said, pointing out that property values increased only 1.07 percent from 2005 to 2006.
He said property values are harmed partially because of illegal immigrants’ low incomes and their tendency to pack into one house or apartment.
O’Hare said such low-income areas tend to have higher crime, and he also linked that, in part, to illegal immigrants.
“Illegal immigrants, as a rule, don’t make a ton of money,” he said.
What incredibly sweeping generalizations you spew, Mr. O’Hare. I am so glad people have told you in private that they perceive a problem. I suppose if we stretch far enough every evil in the world could be linked to illegal immigrants can’t it? My goodness, there isn’t possibly any American Citizen that is low income and of course we know American Citizens who are low income don’t commit crimes, it’s only the low income illegal immigrants. Yeah, that makes sense. Not! So, what we are really talking about in Farmers Branch isn’t reality it is mass delusion.
Public opinion doesn’t follow the numbers:
Harvard University sociologist Robert Sampson said many people may not see the progress shown by state figures because they see so many Hispanics.
“People tend to perceive higher rates of crime and disorder in neighborhoods where there are higher concentrations of immigrants and minority groups,” he said.
Sampson and University of Chicago sociologist Stephen Raudenbush interviewed more than 3,500 Chicago residents about their perceptions of disorder in their neighborhoods. Their research found that increased concentrations of blacks and Latinos significantly increased people’s perception of disorder.
Maybe a reality check is in order. I think Tim O’Hare is beyond hope because it sure seems he has an ulterior motive for his actions but the rest of Farmers Branch needs to do a gut check and look at why they perceive disorder when the reality doesn’t bare that out.
Technorati Tags: Farmers Branch, Tim O’Hare, Illegal Immigration, English only laws, Texas, hispanic, latino,
Filed under: Farmers Branch, Tim O'Hare, education, fake, hispanic, illegals, immigrants, immigration, latino, politics, texas, texas politics
Your an idiot. Home values have risen everywhere due to federally lowered interest rates. As far as crime goes try contacting the jails and find out how many illegals go free even if they have committed a crime, because it is a federal responsibility. Wake Up!
Well, thank you, Dan. I aspire to making people like you call me names. It is what I live for.
Thanks for stopping by. Just because I am in a nice mood today I will mention that the crime statistics are reported crimes, not charged crimes or convicted crimes so whether or not illegal immigrants “get off scott free” that doesn’t affect the crime statistics.
On another note if someone would truly like to discuss/debate this topic, I would be more than happy to engage.
Tim’s mind is clearly made up. Please don’t try to confuse him with the facts.
It’s so much easier to prey on people’s fears than it is to actually work for a solution.
If some how every illegal alien could be magically transported back home then what? How would we replace them and the $17.7 billion they contribute to the state’s economy. [A fact courtesy of Carole Keeton Strayhorn's recently issued report.]
I’m sure Time doesn’t really want to get rid of all of them them; just those next door to his McMansion which hasn’t gone up in value enough for his greedy pocketbook.
Hi Liz,
I think you are right. I don’t actually think he really cares one way or another I think he is really doing it for publicity.
Excellent post! I’ve followed this from the beginning, too. Here’s an interesting blog entry I found while researching. It’s by an attorney who knows Tim O’Hare and chronicles a meeting he had wih O’Hare before this all started. Here’s another interesting link. It’s a report on city council meeting last April about what could be done to promote Farmers Branch. At the end is a list of O’Hare’s suggestions. Not one word there about illegal immigrants at all.
I plan to link to your post in my next post over on my little blog. Thanks for a great post.
Michelle
Thank you, Michelle.
I have several people that have just gotten under my skin since we started this blog in October and Tim O’Hare happens to be one of them. He never fails make some outrageous comment based in fiction in every news story about Farmers Branch. It is a shame that thinking beings can succumb to this kind of mass hysteria. We as human beings seem to have an almost uncontrollable need to blame someone for whatever we perceive as our problems. It doesn’t even have to be a real problem, just a perceived one. Farmers Branch is fighting a perceived problem and I really hope we find out that the majority of people in Farmers Branch aren’t falling for it. I suppose we will see when they vote.
Dig ad veritas — I also think that the more we promote the link — in my comment — about O’Hare’s ambitions — the better prepared the people of FB will be. O’Hare has a very big microphone in Gallagher. Mike Gallagher is hawking the T-shirts and can make the short roadtrip to FB. I had wanteded to, but couldn’t last time.
Your analysis is right on. It’s what I had always thought was true. You proved it here. It should be game over, but it is not.
Michelle