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OPINION
THE MESA TRIBUNE | DECEMBER 12, 2021
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Worst state? Hardly, when you look at the facts BY DAVID LEIBOWITZ Tribune Columnist
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ou live in Arizona for a few decades, you get used to our state’s inferiority complex: Reporters and residents here love to bash the place. I’ve never lived anywhere that so reveled in national studies and stories calling out its glaring shortcomings. Some headlines ripped from the pages of real life: “Arizona Ranked One of the Worst States to Raise a Family, According to New Study.” And: “Arizona Ranked Worst State in the Country for Teachers.” And: “Arizona Ranks Worst in the Country for Food Waste.” The coup de grace, as determined by CNBC in July: “Desert in Distress? New Study Ranks Arizona as Worst Place to Live in 2021.” Memo to CNBC: I checked the primetime ratings for all TV networks. Don’t
feel bad about finishing 62nd, one spot ahead of the Motor Trend channel. You did pull 249,000 viewers at peak viewing time. In a country of 330 million people, that’s a whole lot of upside. Anyway, rather than celebrate Arizona’s perpetual worstness, I’m here today with some uplifting news. It’s likely you’ve been hearing that our country is in the midst of a national homicide epidemic, with the murder rate spiking about 30 percent in 2020. In the last few days, a dozen major American cities have set new annual records for killings – with three weeks remaining in 2021. In Philly, Indianapolis, Portland, and Louisville, folks are murdering one another like crazy. Even Tucson – which I’ve always considered merely boring – set a new record for homicides in the year, with 80 murders as of Dec. 7. Given Arizona’s affinity for guns, you’re probably thinking, well, we must be atop the state list? Nope. The homicide rate in Arizona jumped 30 percent between 2019 and last year.
But – and it’s a big but – that’s merely average. In South Dakota, the murder literally tripled over the same time span. It spiked 66 percent in Wisconsin and 54 percent in both Georgia and Delaware. Pennsylvania saw murders jump by 49 percent. At the end of the day, Arizona’s murder rate of 6.9 intentional killings per 100,000 residents ranks a mere 22nd out of the 50 states plus D.C. and Puerto Rico. That’s right about the middle of the pack. A solid C. Ordinary. Who would’ve thought? How do I explain this ranking? In two ways. First, as one of the fastest-growing states in the country, Arizona has added about 800,000 new residents over the past decade. Our homicidal maniacs and gun loons can’t keep up with all the moving vans and California transplants. My second explanation is slightly more complicated. In big cities around the U.S., there has been a push to demonize police officers and defund police depart-
ments, an absurd movement that has attracted support in Tucson (see earlier paragraph), Phoenix (where homicides jumped 44 percent between 2019 and last year) and Tempe (which logged eight murders in both 2019 and 2020. The rest of Arizona has mostly rejected such nonsense, perhaps because most Arizonans have some common sense: We understand law enforcement is not perfect and should be both supported for the good it does and held accountable for its flaws and bad actors. But communities – or a nation – that spend years screeching about evil cops should not be surprised when actual murderous evil takes root in place of the many quality officers who have found themselves under attack. The moral to the story? Arizona is actually a fine place to live. Comparatively low taxes, solid economy, rising home values, incomparable weather. The Copper State is killing it. Just not like they’ve been killing it lately in South Dakota and Wisconsin. ■
remarkable victory. Sixty-five was also the age of a one-time motel owner who used his monthly Social Security check of $105 to buy a white suit, wear it with a string tie, lay claim to an honorific from his home state, and start franchising what is now a fast food favorite. Along the way, Colonel Harland Sanders concocted a “secret recipe” with 11 herbs and spices, but the real recipe for his success with Kentucky Fried Chicken was his own considerable life experience. Far from the cliffs of Dover and the hills of Kentucky, a woman was further advanced in years than either Churchill or Sanders when her country called her back into government service. Golda Meir was 70 when she became Israel’s prime minister.
And back in this country, it’s worth noting that the two most recent occupants of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue were both septuagenarians when they took up residency in the White House. A newly-minted senior’s aspirations may not include high political office or a fast food fortune; instead they may simply be seeking work in their chosen profession past age 50. If so, they could very well confront a professional paradox. Several jobs may remain unfilled, yet an application is turned down by a Human Resources functionary with an email that calls the applicant “overqualified.” “Overqualified” really means “over the hill.” It’s rare these days to even receive the courtesy of a response; instead, most HR Departments simply acknowledge receipt
of the resume and a promise to get back in touch if they have any interest. Think of it as the internet version of “don’t call us, we’ll call you.” Occasionally, empowered HR executives will call attention to their new approach for screening job candidates. At an area Chamber of Commerce social gathering not so long ago, a female human resources chief bragged that “when we get a resume from a white man over 50, it goes straight in the trash.” Sure, that HR Director may have had one wine spritzer too many—but in this instance it served as a type of truth serum. And the truth is that “wokeness” now prevails in the workplace. “Equity” has replaced “equality.” And “equity” demands vengeance.
Age is just a number – except to the ‘woke’ BY JD HAYWORTH Tribune Columnist
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ge. Encounter that word in any crossword puzzle, and its letters only fill three spaces. Talk about its effects in real life and it becomes a “four letter word.” George Bernard Shaw famously observed that “youth is wasted on the young.” He recognized the enormous amount of untapped potential still present in those living “past their prime.” History offers some examples worth remembering. Winston Churchill did not become Prime Minister of Great Britain until he was 65, leading his nation through World War II and forging a grand alliance with the United States that led to a
see HAYWORTH page 21
