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Eric Adams says NYC has become ‘a laughingstock’ as crime surges under his watch

March 28, 2022 | | Print Article

Mayor Eric Adams bemoaned the “dysfunctionality” in New York City amid soaring crime rates and likened himself to a “wartime general” in his proposed efforts to combat the lawlessness.

The Democrat and retired police captain declared that New York City has become “a laughingstock” as he spoke at the annual NYPD Holy Name Society communion mass on Sunday.

During the breakfast at the Midtown Hilton, Adams cited the crimes and homelessness that have plagued the Big Apple, referring to recent shootings in Brooklyn where two children, ages seven and three, were injured, according to the New York Post.

“It’s just not OK to leave a daycare center with your baby and hear gunshots, or walk across Kings Highway with your 7-year-old and hear shots,” he said.

“Anything goes in the city of New York,” Adams added. “The most important city on the globe has become the laughingstock of the globe. And the dysfunctionality of our city has cascaded throughout the entire country.”

With random attacks on innocent residents and tourists, the spike in crime in the city has continued despite Adams’ campaign promises to deal with the issue head-on. Recent reports suggest he is considering using drones in an effort to combat crime.

According to Daily Mail:

His push to combat crime also comes as the NYPD’s February crime statistics showed an almost 60 percent increase in felonies compared to the same time last year and a recent poll of more than 9,000 employees revealed that 40 percent of those working in Manhattan wanted to move away due to rising crime. About 48 percent of those working in the other four boroughs agreed.

 

“Don’t let anyone break your spirit, tell you that New Yorkers don’t love the men and women of the NYPD,” Admas reportedly said with more than 500 police officers in attendance at the event.

“Everywhere I go they say, ‘Protect our police.’ Ignore the noise. Ignore Instagram, social media. Facebook,” he said.

“Ignore all of that because the people of the city are watching,” Adams added. “The people of their city want their city back.”

He renewed his commitment to law enforcement using terms that evoked a war-tine image.

“There are wartime and peacetime generals. I’m a wartime general,” he said. “I’m going to be on the front line. Those of you in transit, I’m in the subway system at 2, 3 a.m. with you. I’m going to your precincts. I’m going to call you up when you make those arrests.

“I’m not sending you to the front line and leaving you there,” Adams continued. “I’m going to be at the front line with you. I’m going to lead you into battle.”

The mayor also contended that he wouldn’t just be mouthing words but will be making bold moves in the crime-fighting effort.

“The audacity that someone comes along and says, ‘I want to be your mayor,’ and simply says, ‘Follow the rules, follow the rules,'” he said. “Let’s acknowledge that the heat is being turned up. We want to turn it down so we don’t watch our city boil to death.”

Last week, the mayor connected the spike in shootings and a decline in NYPD officers issuing traffic summonses.

“As you know, we have been dealing with a real crisis of gun violence — 29 people shot in a short period of time last week,” he told reporters at a Brooklyn press conference on Friday. “But we’re going to get our traffic enforcement personnel involved and send a real message out to all of our police commanders that public safety includes vehicle crashes.”

The frustrations over homelessness and crime in New York City were addressed in a recent Morning Consult poll, conducted for Partnership for New York which showed that 84 percent of those surveyed said “conditions in the city have worsened over the past two years.”

And as 94% indicated that “not enough is being done to address homelessness and mental illness in the city,” 40% of those who live in Manhattan responded that they want to move out.

“Safety, homelessness, and mental illness rank as top issues for New York City’s private sector employees,” Morning Consult’s report indicated. “They are resisting return to the office until something is done to address them, particularly on public transit.”

Meanwhile, the comments and promises from Adams sparked plenty of skepticism on social media.

“Eric is delusional,” Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angels who ran as a Republican opponent to Adams in the mayoral race, tweeted.

“He appointed himself a general who is losing the war to bring back safety & a good quality of life. Instead of admitting his plan has not worked he says our city is a laughingstock,” Sliwa added. “Look in the mirror, the only laughingstock is you.”

Yeah 27 shootings 35 victims in 1 weekend you are a great crime fighter lol

— Joseph Jacaruso (@JacarusoJoseph) March 28, 2022

Frieda Powers
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