What would happen to a city if its government effectively stopped enforcing laws protecting public space and private property? Oakland, California, has been testing the proposition. Many have heard about Oakland’s extraordinarily high violent-crime rate, which, despite recent declines, remains roughly four and a half times the national rate and the worst among California’s big cities. But in recent years, the city has also struggled to enforce laws against illegal dumping, burglary, car break-ins, and squatting.
I bet Chow’s handlers are taking notes.
