1
00:00:04,879 --> 00:00:07,160
Speaker 1: What's going on? Thank you so much for listening to

2
00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:09,640
this podcast. It is heard live every day from noon

3
00:00:09,679 --> 00:00:12,480
to three on WBT Radio in Charlotte. And if you

4
00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:16,719
want exclusive content like invitations to events, the weekly live stream,

5
00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:19,239
my daily show prep with all the links, become a patron,

6
00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:22,640
go to dpeakclendershow dot com. Make sure you hit the

7
00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:25,160
subscribe button, get every episode for free, write to your

8
00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:27,719
smartphone or tablet, and again, thank you so much for

9
00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:31,760
your support. So the Charlotte Observer piece by Mary Ramsey

10
00:00:32,439 --> 00:00:37,960
headlined crime takes focus in Charlotte mayoral race after Southend

11
00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:44,240
light rail stabbing. This might explain why the mayor, who

12
00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:49,000
is up for reelection as a primary maybe why she

13
00:00:49,200 --> 00:00:53,479
called an emergency session of the Metropolitan Transit Commission met

14
00:00:53,520 --> 00:00:56,600
today at nine am. And as I mentioned last hour,

15
00:00:57,119 --> 00:01:00,159
I watched it so you didn't have to, because I'm

16
00:01:00,159 --> 00:01:04,719
a giver. This is what I do. The pace of

17
00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:07,959
the Charlotte Observer begins. Charlotte mayoral candidates are rolling out

18
00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:11,439
plans to address crime after a high profile murder on

19
00:01:11,480 --> 00:01:15,000
the city's public transit system and calling out current Mayor

20
00:01:15,120 --> 00:01:19,200
Vy Lyles's response to the situation, which is not mentioned

21
00:01:19,200 --> 00:01:21,760
in the piece, but I will note here that her

22
00:01:21,799 --> 00:01:26,879
initial response to the stabbing was a single sentence thoughts

23
00:01:26,879 --> 00:01:28,920
and prayers for the victim, the twenty three year old

24
00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:32,480
Ukrainian refugee who had settled in Charlotte after fleeing a

25
00:01:32,519 --> 00:01:37,359
war zone, and one sentence their thoughts and prayers were

26
00:01:37,359 --> 00:01:40,640
for her family, and then five paragraphs about how somehow

27
00:01:40,680 --> 00:01:45,840
we the community all failed the suspect and you know,

28
00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:50,280
we need to do better by him, and people thought

29
00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:53,319
that was a little tone deaf after it took her

30
00:01:53,439 --> 00:01:56,239
like four days to even issue any kind of a

31
00:01:56,280 --> 00:02:00,680
statement at all. Multiple city council members now called for

32
00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:03,799
action to improve safety on public transit in the wake

33
00:02:03,799 --> 00:02:07,079
of the killing. Lyles issued a statement, as I mentioned,

34
00:02:07,159 --> 00:02:12,000
days after the incident, offering condolences to Zerutzka's loved ones

35
00:02:12,479 --> 00:02:16,599
that's Arena Zeruitzka, the victim here, and calling the case

36
00:02:16,639 --> 00:02:20,319
a tragic situation that sheds light on problems with society

37
00:02:20,479 --> 00:02:23,560
safety nets related to mental health care and the systems

38
00:02:23,599 --> 00:02:25,000
that should be in place.

39
00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:25,240
Speaker 2: Right.

40
00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:30,280
Speaker 1: So it's always this call to spend more money on

41
00:02:30,319 --> 00:02:34,479
more stuff, more services. How did we fail that suspect?

42
00:02:36,280 --> 00:02:39,919
Some of her opponents in the Democrat primary are questioning

43
00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:45,520
whether she has done enough to address crime. However, you've

44
00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:51,840
got candidate Brendan McGinnis. He called Lyles's initial response to

45
00:02:51,879 --> 00:02:55,560
the stabbing quote less than adequate. He told The Observer

46
00:02:55,639 --> 00:02:58,199
that he worries that the Trump administration could use a

47
00:02:58,280 --> 00:03:03,879
high profile killing to justify intervening in Charlotte. I don't

48
00:03:03,879 --> 00:03:07,400
even know if Trump knows Charlotte exists. Okay, No, okay,

49
00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:13,520
he does know it exists. But I don't think it's like,

50
00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:20,960
I don't think we're on his radar for the crime situation. Okay.

51
00:03:21,159 --> 00:03:26,280
I think he's looking at cities like LA Chicago, DC,

52
00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:31,599
you know where, like until he works all the way

53
00:03:31,639 --> 00:03:32,479
down that list.

54
00:03:33,039 --> 00:03:33,240
Speaker 2: You know.

55
00:03:34,800 --> 00:03:37,199
Speaker 1: I don't think you got to worry about that, mister McGinnis.

56
00:03:37,759 --> 00:03:40,560
I do applaud him, though, because he actually released a

57
00:03:40,759 --> 00:03:43,159
public safety plan he calls it, in the wake of

58
00:03:43,240 --> 00:03:45,120
the stabbing, and I looked it over. I read through

59
00:03:45,120 --> 00:03:49,879
his plan and it's a lot of expansion of government

60
00:03:49,919 --> 00:03:53,840
spending and services in order to address the very things

61
00:03:53,879 --> 00:03:58,479
that vy Lyles said in her statement, which he called

62
00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:04,599
less than adequate. So he says he wants there to

63
00:04:04,639 --> 00:04:10,800
be two hundred cameras installed across Blue Line stations, uh,

64
00:04:10,840 --> 00:04:13,879
and link those to the Charlotte Chlamburg Police departments Real

65
00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:17,319
Time Crime Center. This was actually part of the meeting

66
00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:22,959
today h the transit Metropolitan Transit Commission members was Uh.

67
00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:25,600
They were asked about, you know, all of the cameras

68
00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:31,639
that we've got there, do they connect into the you know,

69
00:04:31,720 --> 00:04:35,639
the the CMPD Real Time Crime Center where they got

70
00:04:35,680 --> 00:04:38,079
all these you know, monitors and stuff, and they can

71
00:04:38,319 --> 00:04:40,680
they can see cameras from all over the city. And

72
00:04:40,759 --> 00:04:43,920
the answer is no, they're not tied in. There's not

73
00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:49,920
a direct feed into CMPD. And so look, I mean

74
00:04:50,079 --> 00:04:53,040
that's an idea. I'm not I'm not against that. If

75
00:04:53,079 --> 00:04:55,519
you if there's a way to give them a feed

76
00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,480
somehow of these cameras, I think that would be helpful.

77
00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:01,959
Right if they're trying to track somebody down, they want

78
00:05:02,040 --> 00:05:04,480
some evidence of some kind or whatever they think it's

79
00:05:04,480 --> 00:05:07,000
going to help. If they think it's going to help,

80
00:05:07,040 --> 00:05:11,000
do it, sure, why not. He also wants de escalation

81
00:05:11,199 --> 00:05:15,199
training for cats operators. That's what it always comes down to.

82
00:05:15,279 --> 00:05:18,600
It's always like de escalate the person who's you know,

83
00:05:18,680 --> 00:05:24,160
behaving insane right. What about what about criminally insane? What

84
00:05:24,199 --> 00:05:27,399
about people who are who are deranged?

85
00:05:27,800 --> 00:05:31,439
Speaker 2: Right? I don't know.

86
00:05:32,560 --> 00:05:36,120
Speaker 1: You think the bus drivers getting some de escalation training.

87
00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:39,399
I mean, I guess it could help, but I would

88
00:05:39,439 --> 00:05:42,279
say probably the primary problem is that they're you know,

89
00:05:42,439 --> 00:05:46,160
driving the bus for example, And while there are a

90
00:05:46,279 --> 00:05:48,240
lot of buses, I don't think you can put a

91
00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:53,480
cop on every single bus. Although I will say the

92
00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:56,600
cat's officials say they're trying to beef up security. Right now,

93
00:05:56,639 --> 00:05:59,399
the system has one hundred and eighty four officers on staff.

94
00:05:59,600 --> 00:06:01,920
They want to raise that to two hundred and nineteen.

95
00:06:02,399 --> 00:06:06,519
So they want to add well that's sixteen plus ninety,

96
00:06:06,519 --> 00:06:13,519
so they want to add thirty five more security officers. Okay.

97
00:06:14,959 --> 00:06:20,680
They want to decouple the security from the fair collection. Okay.

98
00:06:20,839 --> 00:06:24,040
But something I heard Brent Kagil say. It was the

99
00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:26,680
interim CEO of CATS. I heard him say today at

100
00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:29,759
the meeting. He said that, you know, fair collection and

101
00:06:29,879 --> 00:06:37,160
fair enforcement is mainly like a revenue protection operation. That's

102
00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:42,800
why they do it well. Right, But that's that's one

103
00:06:42,920 --> 00:06:47,120
part of it. It's the right to protect your revenue collection,

104
00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:51,439
which I would submit that's also important. However, when you

105
00:06:52,240 --> 00:06:56,879
crack down on fair jumping, you are also making your

106
00:06:56,920 --> 00:07:01,000
transit system safer because the people who who would jump

107
00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:03,839
the fares, jump the turnstiles to get into your system

108
00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:08,639
right to not pay. They then feel emboldened to engage

109
00:07:08,680 --> 00:07:11,759
in more criminal activity because it doesn't cost them anything,

110
00:07:11,839 --> 00:07:14,079
especially if they're under the age of eighteen. They can

111
00:07:14,160 --> 00:07:16,600
run amok, they can get arrested, they're gonna get released

112
00:07:16,639 --> 00:07:19,279
right back out to their parents or guardians within hours,

113
00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:22,600
and there's no penalty, right so at least if you

114
00:07:22,720 --> 00:07:24,560
have to pay it again in why do you think

115
00:07:24,759 --> 00:07:29,600
Disney charges so much money to get into their theme parks?

116
00:07:30,120 --> 00:07:32,920
As Neil Boorts would tell you, famous talk show host

117
00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:36,000
out of Atlanta, it's to keep the riff raff out.

118
00:07:38,319 --> 00:07:42,000
And maybe that's offensive for you to hear, or some

119
00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:45,800
lefties to hear. Oh my gosh, he said, riffraff. Yeah,

120
00:07:46,079 --> 00:07:50,279
that's behavioral. If you're going to behave like a jackass,

121
00:07:50,519 --> 00:07:53,480
then you don't get to come onto the property. If

122
00:07:53,519 --> 00:07:58,160
you cannot abide by the social norms of a civil society,

123
00:07:58,360 --> 00:08:01,839
then you don't get to participate in those privileges that

124
00:08:01,879 --> 00:08:06,680
the society pays for. That's the deal. If you don't

125
00:08:06,759 --> 00:08:10,000
like that deal, then go live off somewhere else where

126
00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:13,600
there are no transit services, right, and there might not

127
00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:20,480
also be a lot of victims for you to pray upon. Uh,

128
00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:24,319
let me go to Ralph. Hello, Ralph watching.

129
00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:28,199
Speaker 3: Yes, I would like to come in defense of live

130
00:08:28,279 --> 00:08:31,279
bials read and I why it took so long for

131
00:08:31,319 --> 00:08:34,399
her to make a statement four days she was keeping

132
00:08:34,519 --> 00:08:40,159
her grandchildren that week, and I mean, you know I

133
00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:45,240
ever heard this probably you know her number one priority

134
00:08:46,039 --> 00:08:49,399
and everything you know for tidy town. We don't like

135
00:08:49,480 --> 00:08:52,000
these little messes. We would need to squeak them under

136
00:08:52,039 --> 00:08:56,440
the rug. And especially the news media outt they don't

137
00:08:56,480 --> 00:08:59,639
need to be reporting because if we if we won't

138
00:08:59,759 --> 00:09:03,159
visit to come to Charlotte, we don't need this kind

139
00:09:03,200 --> 00:09:04,039
of coverage.

140
00:09:04,399 --> 00:09:07,720
Speaker 1: Well, then it's a fair point. I do not deny

141
00:09:07,759 --> 00:09:10,320
that mentality exists. I would submit, if you don't want

142
00:09:10,320 --> 00:09:13,639
the coverage, then address the crime, address the problem, Ralph.

143
00:09:13,639 --> 00:09:15,279
I appreciate the call, Buddy, good to hear from you.

144
00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:18,840
I think that's really the like, that's the problem. The

145
00:09:18,919 --> 00:09:22,360
problem is the problem. It's not the coverage of the problem.

146
00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:26,480
So when I was a kid, my Grandpa died with Alzheimer's,

147
00:09:26,519 --> 00:09:28,679
and before he died, my mom and my dad took

148
00:09:28,759 --> 00:09:31,000
care of him as he got worse. Forty years ago,

149
00:09:31,080 --> 00:09:34,159
there were no treatments and not much support for caregivers

150
00:09:34,159 --> 00:09:36,759
and family. But things are different today because of the

151
00:09:36,799 --> 00:09:39,960
work of so many people, including the Alzheimer's Association of

152
00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:43,600
Western Carolina. It's a great organization with awesome people with

153
00:09:43,759 --> 00:09:46,519
huge hearts. I've been a supporter for twenty five years.

154
00:09:46,559 --> 00:09:49,879
This cause means a lot to me. I participate in

155
00:09:49,960 --> 00:09:52,759
the annual Walk to end Alzheimer's and I'm leading a

156
00:09:52,879 --> 00:09:55,960
Charlotte team again this year, and it's called once again

157
00:09:56,080 --> 00:09:58,440
Pete's Pack. You can sign up and you can join

158
00:09:58,480 --> 00:10:01,320
the team and walk with us. It's on October eighteenth,

159
00:10:01,320 --> 00:10:05,360
that truest field. Sign up at alz dot org slash

160
00:10:05,440 --> 00:10:07,840
walk and then you could search for my team name

161
00:10:07,960 --> 00:10:11,360
Pete's Peck. There's also a link at thepetepod dot com.

162
00:10:11,399 --> 00:10:14,120
There's also a link in the description of this podcast. Also,

163
00:10:14,480 --> 00:10:17,799
I'll be am seeing the Gastonia Walk on October eleventh,

164
00:10:17,840 --> 00:10:19,639
and so you can make a team and join that

165
00:10:19,679 --> 00:10:22,000
one too, or make a donation and help me hit

166
00:10:22,039 --> 00:10:24,279
my goal of five thousand dollars. If you do, I

167
00:10:24,399 --> 00:10:26,759
really appreciate it. There are a bunch of other walks

168
00:10:26,840 --> 00:10:29,440
all over the Carolinas. You can go to alz dot

169
00:10:29,559 --> 00:10:32,559
org slash walk for all the dates and locations. We're

170
00:10:32,559 --> 00:10:35,440
closer than ever to stopping Alzheimer's. Can you help us

171
00:10:35,440 --> 00:10:37,799
get there? Will you walk with me? For a different future,

172
00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:41,639
for families, for more time for treatments. This is why

173
00:10:41,679 --> 00:10:47,480
we walk. I got this text from Dana. You keep

174
00:10:47,559 --> 00:10:51,399
speaking on George Floyd's murder, almost as if you think

175
00:10:51,440 --> 00:10:54,600
it was his fault that he was choked out. You

176
00:10:54,720 --> 00:11:00,679
don't know it, but you sound like an undercover racist. Okay, sorry, Dana,

177
00:11:01,039 --> 00:11:07,720
that charge carries no purchase any longer. Here there is

178
00:11:07,799 --> 00:11:13,399
a difference between commenting on the way George Floyd was

179
00:11:13,480 --> 00:11:19,960
killed and the way that he was essentially elevated to

180
00:11:20,240 --> 00:11:27,240
martyr status by the left and the media. Okay, that's

181
00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:28,840
why I call it. That's why I call him, you know,

182
00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:31,840
Saint George Floyd, because that's what was done to him.

183
00:11:31,840 --> 00:11:32,559
Speaker 2: That is that is.

184
00:11:32,559 --> 00:11:37,679
Speaker 1: A commentary on the media reaction to him. They disregard

185
00:11:37,799 --> 00:11:39,919
all of the stuff that he did, all of the

186
00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:44,159
contributing factors everything else, and it just becomes this this

187
00:11:44,399 --> 00:11:49,159
hagiographical figure. That's it. And then in his name, now

188
00:11:49,399 --> 00:11:51,600
defund all the police, tear down all the systems of

189
00:11:51,639 --> 00:11:55,799
oppression and institutional racism, and now here we are. And

190
00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:59,639
people like me were saying you're being stupid at that time,

191
00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:04,600
and now we are in the reaping phase. Not very pleasant,

192
00:12:05,720 --> 00:12:08,159
but I would venture to guess I know which side

193
00:12:08,159 --> 00:12:10,639
of that argument you were on, and now you are

194
00:12:11,320 --> 00:12:17,559
trying to avoid the responsibility of what we are reaping, right, Craig,

195
00:12:17,639 --> 00:12:18,559
Welcome to the program.

196
00:12:18,559 --> 00:12:21,399
Speaker 2: Hello Craig, Hey, how are you good?

197
00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:21,960
Speaker 1: How are you.

198
00:12:23,840 --> 00:12:26,639
Speaker 2: So? I don't believe that paying the fare is a

199
00:12:26,679 --> 00:12:29,639
priority for our mayor or any of our city council,

200
00:12:29,720 --> 00:12:32,639
because if it was, they would have had things and

201
00:12:32,679 --> 00:12:35,960
programs in place from day one to ensure that it was.

202
00:12:36,879 --> 00:12:39,679
Being that. They are Democrats who think that pretty much

203
00:12:39,679 --> 00:12:42,799
everything should be free. I can pretty much guarantee you

204
00:12:42,840 --> 00:12:45,279
they believe that there should be no fair being charged

205
00:12:45,279 --> 00:12:48,360
with us are light Rail, so they don't care about

206
00:12:48,399 --> 00:12:49,879
trying to make sure anybody pays it.

207
00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:53,799
Speaker 1: Well, that would be I mean, that would explain sort

208
00:12:53,799 --> 00:12:58,440
of the response today from the interim CEO of CATS,

209
00:12:58,519 --> 00:13:03,879
Brent Kagel, who said that, you know, fair enforcement is

210
00:13:03,960 --> 00:13:08,720
primarily a revenue protection operation. And to your point, if

211
00:13:08,720 --> 00:13:12,919
they don't care about revenue protection, then they wouldn't care

212
00:13:13,159 --> 00:13:17,639
about enforcing the fares. When in fact, there's a twofold

213
00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:20,600
reason for the fair collection, which is, as I said,

214
00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:22,600
you know the other part of it is to keep

215
00:13:22,639 --> 00:13:23,679
the riff raff out.

216
00:13:25,519 --> 00:13:28,000
Speaker 2: Well, I don't believe they do care because as we

217
00:13:28,039 --> 00:13:31,360
all know, this one penny sales tax, it's going to

218
00:13:31,440 --> 00:13:36,200
happen on the votes just a formality. So if they

219
00:13:36,240 --> 00:13:39,440
can just keep going back and raping the taxpayers for

220
00:13:39,519 --> 00:13:42,600
the money that they need to run these programs, then

221
00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:45,399
they're not going to concern themselves with warring about making

222
00:13:45,480 --> 00:13:47,600
people pay. They don't believe these people should have to

223
00:13:47,600 --> 00:13:50,879
pay anyways. They think that they're poor and they're maligned,

224
00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:54,600
and they're unserved and any other adjective democrats like to

225
00:13:54,600 --> 00:13:57,799
say about people, and that they're basically owed a free

226
00:13:57,879 --> 00:13:59,960
ride because of their situation in life.

227
00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:03,639
Speaker 1: Book, there are yeah, I mean there are the City

228
00:14:03,639 --> 00:14:06,600
of Ashville. I mean not just reparations. They literally just

229
00:14:06,639 --> 00:14:11,440
did this, Uh, they did their reparations presentation this week.

230
00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:15,840
But they also they have done free buses in Ashville

231
00:14:16,519 --> 00:14:18,879
for years. They've been doing that for that for those

232
00:14:19,039 --> 00:14:22,879
very reasons, and they are rolling homeless shelters, and then

233
00:14:22,919 --> 00:14:25,080
they wonder why people don't want to get on the

234
00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:29,240
buses and sit in somebody else's vomit and defecation. Right,

235
00:14:29,559 --> 00:14:32,279
And you're again like you you can't come to me

236
00:14:32,399 --> 00:14:36,039
and ask me to increase funding for your transit system

237
00:14:36,080 --> 00:14:39,679
through this referendum while the transit system has the has

238
00:14:39,720 --> 00:14:44,039
these problems. Right, It's a hard sell to now have

239
00:14:44,120 --> 00:14:48,480
to make. And I'm not so sure that I'm not

240
00:14:48,519 --> 00:14:51,000
so sure that they aren't too worried that they aren't

241
00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:54,399
worried about the way this election might go, because I mean,

242
00:14:54,440 --> 00:14:57,440
this is going to be an off year low turnout

243
00:14:58,279 --> 00:15:01,480
election for where this reference is up. You've already got

244
00:15:01,600 --> 00:15:04,960
voters that are mad because it doesn't have funding for

245
00:15:05,120 --> 00:15:08,200
the light rail to Huntersville, right, So people are complaining

246
00:15:08,679 --> 00:15:11,600
or not hunters But but Matthew's right, they're complaining about that,

247
00:15:12,559 --> 00:15:16,240
and the North side is complaining about bait and switch stuff.

248
00:15:16,519 --> 00:15:18,759
I'm not so sure that there isn't going to be

249
00:15:18,919 --> 00:15:22,440
enough of an oppositional force that may very well turn

250
00:15:22,480 --> 00:15:25,000
out and vote this thing down. It is a county

251
00:15:25,039 --> 00:15:28,399
wide referendum, so it could happen.

252
00:15:29,519 --> 00:15:30,919
Speaker 2: I mean they hope it does.

253
00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:33,120
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean the the Arena vote back in two

254
00:15:33,120 --> 00:15:36,360
thousand went down in a you know, an in an

255
00:15:36,440 --> 00:15:41,039
odd year off cycle referendum vote too, because if you

256
00:15:41,159 --> 00:15:43,919
just get the angries that get out and vote, you

257
00:15:43,919 --> 00:15:45,799
could have a lot of people that are angry, you know,

258
00:15:46,200 --> 00:15:49,039
for different reasons, and then they all create one big

259
00:15:49,080 --> 00:15:51,960
coalition to vote it down. So it's possible, Craig, I

260
00:15:52,000 --> 00:15:53,840
appreciate the call man. Good to hear from you. And

261
00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:57,240
to Craig's point, I got this message from Mark who

262
00:15:57,279 --> 00:16:00,000
says the blame for this rests squarely on the show

263
00:16:00,440 --> 00:16:04,120
of Pat McCrory and ron to Pat McCrory, the former

264
00:16:04,159 --> 00:16:09,799
mayor of Charlotte, ron Tober the original Cats CEO. They

265
00:16:09,840 --> 00:16:13,519
were the ones driving the train, if you will. No

266
00:16:13,639 --> 00:16:17,519
consideration was given to securing access to riders who had

267
00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:22,320
paid by installing security turnstiles. That is, not the little

268
00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:26,399
green ones with a silver waste bar, but actual security

269
00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:29,960
where a person cannot breach the system. Of course, that

270
00:16:29,960 --> 00:16:32,399
would imply there were people in Charlotte that weren't the

271
00:16:32,440 --> 00:16:36,279
patrician Southerners that the mcrory's and Tobers and others thing populate.

272
00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:40,240
The Queen City curses upon them all. So, yeah, this

273
00:16:40,440 --> 00:16:43,080
was the original design flaw with the system was the

274
00:16:43,120 --> 00:16:46,679
open platforms, Like you can walk up to any of

275
00:16:46,679 --> 00:16:51,039
these platforms. They wanted it nice and clean and tidy, right,

276
00:16:51,279 --> 00:16:53,559
They wanted it all nice and clean and open, so

277
00:16:53,559 --> 00:16:56,519
anybody could just walk up. And that's the whole idea

278
00:16:56,519 --> 00:16:59,279
with the trolley line too. Oh, just like I got

279
00:16:59,320 --> 00:17:02,480
these visions of San Francisco, I just jump aboard the

280
00:17:02,639 --> 00:17:06,200
trolley and I just write it up the hill. That's

281
00:17:06,400 --> 00:17:09,920
that was the vision. And yeah, how are you gonna

282
00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:12,559
stop the fair jumpers? How are you gonna keep the

283
00:17:12,640 --> 00:17:17,440
revenue protected? They didn't care to. It was the original

284
00:17:17,440 --> 00:17:20,519
design flaw. They're not gonna go back on retrofit this

285
00:17:20,519 --> 00:17:23,680
stuff now. Game on Week one starts now, and every

286
00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:26,440
touchdown brings you closer to a payout. With Draft Kings

287
00:17:26,440 --> 00:17:29,279
sports book and official sports betting partner of the NFL.

288
00:17:29,559 --> 00:17:33,279
This isn't just football, it's first touchdown fireworks. Anytime TD

289
00:17:33,359 --> 00:17:36,720
rushes live bets that ride. Every momentum shift a Draft Kings,

290
00:17:36,759 --> 00:17:39,400
Every play is your next shot to win. Will the

291
00:17:39,400 --> 00:17:42,720
Panthers win? Will we even get a touchdown? New customers

292
00:17:42,720 --> 00:17:44,960
bet just five dollars and get three hundred dollars in

293
00:17:45,000 --> 00:17:48,000
bonus bets instantly, plus get over two hundred dollars off

294
00:17:48,119 --> 00:17:51,279
NFL Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. So your

295
00:17:51,319 --> 00:17:54,440
season starts now. Download the Draft King sports book app

296
00:17:54,480 --> 00:17:57,000
and use code Pete to get three hundred dollars in

297
00:17:57,039 --> 00:17:59,799
bonus bets instantly when you place your first bet of

298
00:18:00,279 --> 00:18:03,240
dollars or more plus over two hundred dollars off NFL

299
00:18:03,279 --> 00:18:06,359
Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. But you gotta

300
00:18:06,440 --> 00:18:10,400
use promo codepeat. In partnership with DraftKings. The Crown is yours.

301
00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:13,640
Gambling problem called one eight hundred gambler In New York

302
00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:17,119
call eight seven seven eight hope and why, or text

303
00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:21,079
hope and why four six seven three six nine. In Connecticut,

304
00:18:21,079 --> 00:18:23,440
help is available for a problem gambling Call eight eight

305
00:18:23,519 --> 00:18:26,519
eight seven eight nine seven seven seven seven or visit

306
00:18:26,640 --> 00:18:31,039
CCPG dot org. Play responsibly on behalf of Boothill, casino

307
00:18:31,079 --> 00:18:34,480
and resort Kansas. Fees may apply in Illinois, twenty one plus.

308
00:18:34,519 --> 00:18:38,960
Age and eligibility varies by jurisdiction void in Ontario. Bonus

309
00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:42,759
bets expire seven days after issuance. See Sportsbook dot DraftKings

310
00:18:42,799 --> 00:18:46,079
dot com slash promos NFL Sunday Ticket offer for new

311
00:18:46,079 --> 00:18:49,559
subscribers only and auto renews until canceled. Digital games and

312
00:18:49,599 --> 00:18:54,039
commercial use excluded. Restrictions apply additional NFL Sunday Ticket terms

313
00:18:54,119 --> 00:18:57,039
or at YouTube dot com slash go Slash NFL Sunday

314
00:18:57,039 --> 00:19:00,720
Ticket Slash terms Limited time offer. Let me get back

315
00:19:00,720 --> 00:19:08,839
to the text line with some more commentary. Do these people,

316
00:19:08,960 --> 00:19:10,920
this is from a nine to eight zero number, do

317
00:19:11,839 --> 00:19:14,599
these people realize that you aren't going to find volunteers

318
00:19:14,599 --> 00:19:17,759
to check tickets? You would be the one being knifed.

319
00:19:18,119 --> 00:19:22,880
Oh that's from Doug. Well, yeah, I mean cats employees

320
00:19:23,319 --> 00:19:25,640
you would hire. You would hire employees and they would

321
00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:29,960
walk the trains and they would check the tickets, and

322
00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:33,519
then if somebody doesn't want to show the ticket or

323
00:19:33,559 --> 00:19:36,079
doesn't have a ticket, whatever, they then call that in

324
00:19:36,759 --> 00:19:40,720
to the security and then the security comes and removes

325
00:19:40,759 --> 00:19:46,799
the people. The cat's conductor isn't supposed to be doing enforcement,

326
00:19:46,960 --> 00:19:53,279
Like they're not cuffing people and anything like that. Bob says, uh,

327
00:19:53,640 --> 00:19:56,039
felony rap sheet. I wish the courts and judges were

328
00:19:56,039 --> 00:20:00,640
civilly liable for felonious behaviors in some circumstances. I've heard

329
00:20:00,640 --> 00:20:03,160
that kicked around as a potential way to reign in

330
00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:05,400
some of these people. Baine thanks me for taking his call,

331
00:20:05,440 --> 00:20:06,880
and not a problem. I always good to talk with you.

332
00:20:06,960 --> 00:20:07,079
Speaker 2: Ban.

333
00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:15,440
Speaker 1: Whatever happened to institutes that housed all of the crazy people, Well,

334
00:20:15,480 --> 00:20:18,519
it's funny you mentioned that there actually are still some

335
00:20:18,599 --> 00:20:23,039
of these. Now, there was a piece I pulled from

336
00:20:23,079 --> 00:20:27,640
actually twenty twenty one North Carolina Healthnews dot org. So

337
00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:31,720
this was at you know, twenty twenty one. The defund

338
00:20:31,759 --> 00:20:34,799
the police movement was really you know, genned up at

339
00:20:34,839 --> 00:20:39,119
this time. And one of the things that they were

340
00:20:39,119 --> 00:20:42,279
talking about in the North Carolina General Assembly actually before

341
00:20:42,519 --> 00:20:46,359
the summer of fiery but mostly peaceful riots. Before that,

342
00:20:46,880 --> 00:20:52,000
they had passed a law on involuntary commitments or ivc's,

343
00:20:53,279 --> 00:20:56,000
And part of the problem North Carolina has is that

344
00:20:56,200 --> 00:20:59,240
there aren't a lot of these institutions still open for

345
00:20:59,319 --> 00:21:04,000
and involuntar Harry commitment, and most counties use their sheriffs

346
00:21:04,200 --> 00:21:09,400
deputies or law enforcement in general to transport people to

347
00:21:09,559 --> 00:21:14,599
the to the hospitals, and the mental health professionals are saying,

348
00:21:14,839 --> 00:21:19,240
have been saying for years that that compounds the trauma,

349
00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:22,519
so there needs to be some different kind of an

350
00:21:22,559 --> 00:21:26,319
ambulance service. Basically, we shouldn't be handcuffing people and sending

351
00:21:26,319 --> 00:21:30,759
them to these hospitals. Although I would point out, as

352
00:21:30,839 --> 00:21:34,079
Russ did here in a message on Twitter, that all

353
00:21:34,079 --> 00:21:37,240
the people who want to prioritize de escalation over police

354
00:21:37,359 --> 00:21:40,839
use of force seem totally unaware that professional mental health

355
00:21:40,839 --> 00:21:46,799
institutions also use very large people with straight jackets, batons,

356
00:21:46,920 --> 00:21:53,319
and tasers in case the de escalation fails, right, I

357
00:21:54,799 --> 00:21:57,000
This idea that you just got a couple of you know,

358
00:21:57,160 --> 00:21:59,920
nurses that are talking kindly to somebody, and that's going

359
00:22:00,279 --> 00:22:04,680
to de escalate the situation, Yet it ignores the fact

360
00:22:04,720 --> 00:22:07,599
that they are backed up by three or four very

361
00:22:07,759 --> 00:22:13,400
large guys in white lab coats or smocks, right, that

362
00:22:13,480 --> 00:22:17,359
are able to physically restrain somebody who is a danger

363
00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:23,000
to themselves or others. Let me see, I let me

364
00:22:23,119 --> 00:22:27,680
clear out another texter to do do you? De escalators

365
00:22:27,720 --> 00:22:28,480
will not help?

366
00:22:28,920 --> 00:22:29,039
Speaker 2: Uh?

367
00:22:29,079 --> 00:22:34,759
Speaker 1: Says another Texter, Tell that jackass that said in the

368
00:22:34,799 --> 00:22:36,839
meeting this morning that there is no way to check

369
00:22:36,839 --> 00:22:39,519
tickets for every rider to take a ride on Amtrak,

370
00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:43,680
Long Island Railroad or any well run public transportation. The

371
00:22:43,839 --> 00:22:46,519
LI double R has been doing it successfully for as

372
00:22:46,559 --> 00:22:51,119
long as I've been alive, seventy years. Yeah, it's like

373
00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:55,000
it's a very simple it's a very simple system, right,

374
00:22:56,240 --> 00:23:00,079
Like train technology is not new, Okay, it's been a

375
00:23:00,160 --> 00:23:03,319
round for over a century, So they figured this out

376
00:23:03,359 --> 00:23:05,880
a long time ago. Guy walks through with a little

377
00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:08,559
ticket puncher and he puts it onto your seat, this

378
00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:10,960
little clip on the seat, and you stick the ticket

379
00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:14,000
on the seat, and they know that you have paid

380
00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:17,359
for that ticket, and you click, you punch the hole

381
00:23:17,400 --> 00:23:18,960
in it, you put it on the seat, and now

382
00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:21,640
they know I've already come through, I've already talked to you.

383
00:23:21,759 --> 00:23:24,359
Because there are a lot of stops, so they're constantly

384
00:23:24,400 --> 00:23:32,359
walking through checking for tickets. Mike says the state needs

385
00:23:32,400 --> 00:23:35,319
to change the law for legal concealed carry on cats

386
00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:38,559
trains and buses. That would help the crime problem, No,

387
00:23:38,680 --> 00:23:41,799
because then then the bad guys would conceal carry on

388
00:23:41,920 --> 00:23:46,480
the buses and trains too. Mike. Oh wait, oh, they

389
00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:53,880
already do, if you want to call their bluff, says Stan.

390
00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:56,720
Put the light rail up for sale so somebody can

391
00:23:56,839 --> 00:23:59,920
run it and maintain it for a profit. That's an idea.

392
00:24:00,079 --> 00:24:02,960
Why not privatize it, See if somebody else can do

393
00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:07,279
a better job. Simple solution until they can figure out

394
00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:13,480
is to bring in the National Guard. Bring off duty

395
00:24:13,599 --> 00:24:16,359
sheriffs and CMPD officers, team them up with the National

396
00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:20,000
Guard MP or soldier and let them patrol the light

397
00:24:20,039 --> 00:24:24,240
rail until they get it under control. Uh yeah, I

398
00:24:24,279 --> 00:24:26,440
mean the mayor can ask for some assistance from the

399
00:24:26,480 --> 00:24:30,279
state if she wanted to. Betty says, let me get

400
00:24:30,319 --> 00:24:32,240
this straight. They want me to vote yes to millions

401
00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:35,400
of light rail dollars and the revenue is not rider shared.

402
00:24:35,880 --> 00:24:39,000
I am voting no anyway, because the upticking businesses and

403
00:24:39,079 --> 00:24:41,400
dwellings that spring up around the rail should fund it.

404
00:24:41,440 --> 00:24:42,680
I am really voting no.

405
00:24:42,680 --> 00:24:42,960
Speaker 2: Now.

406
00:24:43,160 --> 00:24:46,599
Speaker 1: How arrogant and irresponsible of the council. Yeah, they're not

407
00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:50,960
even protecting their revenue share. That's the frustrating thing too,

408
00:24:51,279 --> 00:24:53,279
Like you have this light rail that has spurred all

409
00:24:53,279 --> 00:24:55,599
this development, and yet you want to ask me for

410
00:24:55,680 --> 00:24:58,160
more money on everything I buy. But you're not even

411
00:24:58,200 --> 00:25:00,559
trying to police the fair collection. All right, So you've

412
00:25:00,559 --> 00:25:03,119
heard me talk about Creative Video for almost a year.

413
00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:05,799
But did you know they also offer a game changing

414
00:25:05,839 --> 00:25:09,200
app for businesses that reward their teams with incentive trips.

415
00:25:09,400 --> 00:25:12,079
Well they do. It's called Incentive Trip Kit. If you

416
00:25:12,119 --> 00:25:14,319
want a business or work at one that offers these

417
00:25:14,319 --> 00:25:18,359
incentive trips, this is a mustap. It maximizes the impact

418
00:25:18,359 --> 00:25:21,519
and value of these motivational trips. It's a super easy

419
00:25:21,559 --> 00:25:25,119
to use app built just for your group, with private messaging,

420
00:25:25,319 --> 00:25:29,039
shared photos, important trip documents, even a find the group

421
00:25:29,119 --> 00:25:31,920
locator just in case somebody gets separated. And when I

422
00:25:31,960 --> 00:25:34,559
say it's private, I mean it. No personal emails, no

423
00:25:34,680 --> 00:25:38,480
phone numbers, no ads, no account sign ups. Everyone uses

424
00:25:38,519 --> 00:25:41,680
one shared login, so it's super easy, no hassles. During

425
00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:44,160
the trip, everybody can post their best photos and short

426
00:25:44,240 --> 00:25:46,400
video clips, and folks back at the office can even

427
00:25:46,440 --> 00:25:49,160
follow along. And then after the trip, Incentive Trip Kit

428
00:25:49,319 --> 00:25:52,680
turns those memories into a professional storytelling video you can

429
00:25:52,759 --> 00:25:55,599
use to motivate, inspire, and get people fired up for

430
00:25:55,680 --> 00:25:59,680
next year's trip. More fun, more memories, more ROI check

431
00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:03,000
it out now at incentive tripkit dot com or call

432
00:26:03,160 --> 00:26:05,680
Eric at eight eight eight five three three seventy six

433
00:26:05,799 --> 00:26:10,799
thirty seven Extension two seven for the details. Don't know

434
00:26:10,839 --> 00:26:13,079
who this is from. I don't think hang on um

435
00:26:14,039 --> 00:26:17,799
no pete. I grew up here, but I lived fifteen

436
00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:22,359
years in the DMV area. That was about how long

437
00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:25,079
it felt when I was last at the DMV. Anyway,

438
00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:29,759
I rode the DC Metrorail every workday for a long time,

439
00:26:30,000 --> 00:26:32,599
and when I took the Charlotte light Rail, I was

440
00:26:32,759 --> 00:26:37,839
floored that there were no security turnstiles to prevent fair jumping. Granted,

441
00:26:37,880 --> 00:26:41,480
the metrorail is the only major public transportation system that

442
00:26:41,559 --> 00:26:44,759
I know of that is supported by a tax or sorry,

443
00:26:44,839 --> 00:26:47,160
that is not supported by attacks. It's supported by the

444
00:26:47,279 --> 00:26:53,160
riders and the jurisdictions promised to pay. So it's a

445
00:26:53,279 --> 00:26:57,839
tax from those jurisdictions maybe, but not a standalone in

446
00:26:57,880 --> 00:27:01,160
sales tax. I guess, but I don't understand it because

447
00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:04,359
seeing homeless people pandering in the or panhandling in the

448
00:27:04,400 --> 00:27:08,279
system was way more uncommon up there. Well, that's because

449
00:27:08,839 --> 00:27:12,200
the people who work in government don't want to see

450
00:27:12,240 --> 00:27:16,680
this stuff. This is just for you people to see

451
00:27:16,720 --> 00:27:19,119
and have to suffer through when you ride the train

452
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:22,039
when it's their train. No, no, no, no, they're going

453
00:27:22,119 --> 00:27:24,599
to make sure that they're not exposed to any of

454
00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:32,759
those people. Stan asks, I wonder why they don't enforce

455
00:27:32,839 --> 00:27:35,680
tax collections the same way they enforce fair collection on

456
00:27:35,720 --> 00:27:38,559
the light rail. Make it the honor system. I like it, right?

457
00:27:38,599 --> 00:27:42,960
Why not that? That makes me think too. It's like,

458
00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:47,640
if you paid more attention to the collection of the fares,

459
00:27:48,319 --> 00:27:51,880
you wouldn't have to ask me to pay more money,

460
00:27:52,440 --> 00:27:55,839
and you wouldn't have to outsource the fair collection to

461
00:27:56,160 --> 00:28:01,839
local businesses because that's what you're doing, right. You're having

462
00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:06,960
the local businesses collect the sales tax and then refund

463
00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:09,440
the sales tax, you know, through the state and then

464
00:28:09,480 --> 00:28:14,880
back around. So it's going to devalue that total revenue

465
00:28:15,039 --> 00:28:18,839
and then give it back to the local so the

466
00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:22,839
businesses become your fair collectors. Is that fair?

467
00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:25,200
Speaker 2: No?

468
00:28:25,319 --> 00:28:30,160
Speaker 1: But there's certainty. See, there's certainty. If ever, there's an

469
00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:36,519
indictment on public versus private right, the public sector doing

470
00:28:36,599 --> 00:28:43,240
something versus the usual superiority of the private sector doing it.

471
00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:44,319
This is it no?

472
00:28:45,359 --> 00:28:45,519
Speaker 2: Right?

473
00:28:45,599 --> 00:28:48,799
Speaker 1: You have the private sector that is able to actually

474
00:28:48,799 --> 00:28:52,759
collect all of the sales taxes to fund your train system.

475
00:28:53,559 --> 00:28:57,480
When you cannot do it, nay, you refuse to do it.

476
00:28:59,039 --> 00:29:03,799
Here's from the story that wbt's news director Mark Garrison

477
00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:10,200
wrote up after the Metropolitan Transit Commission meeting today. Transit

478
00:29:10,279 --> 00:29:14,839
chief Brent Cagel told the city council quote, with an

479
00:29:14,960 --> 00:29:20,519
open system, it will always be impossible to check every

480
00:29:20,599 --> 00:29:27,640
passenger every day. I'm going to need some numbers on that. Actually,

481
00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:30,480
I'm going to need to see some analysis before I

482
00:29:30,599 --> 00:29:33,599
say that that's true, before I agree with that premise.

483
00:29:33,680 --> 00:29:36,720
I'm going to need to see some data. How many

484
00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:42,480
people would it take to walk the trains because the

485
00:29:42,519 --> 00:29:45,680
buses are a different animal, Okay they are, I mean,

486
00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:48,279
because you've got way more buses than you have trains.

487
00:29:48,960 --> 00:29:51,680
So I'd like to see what it would cost, Like,

488
00:29:51,759 --> 00:29:54,279
how much revenue would be generated if you got close

489
00:29:54,319 --> 00:29:58,160
to one hundred percent fair collection, how much revenue is

490
00:29:58,200 --> 00:30:01,799
brought in for that versus the cost of hiring the

491
00:30:01,880 --> 00:30:07,000
personnel to do it right. And then also I'd kind

492
00:30:07,039 --> 00:30:10,200
of like to see what impact that has on public

493
00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:16,599
safety security because a greater presence on the trains, I

494
00:30:16,640 --> 00:30:19,759
mean other cities have shown us that when you crack

495
00:30:19,839 --> 00:30:22,119
down on this stuff and you put more police presence

496
00:30:22,119 --> 00:30:29,759
in your transit system, you get less crime. By the way,

497
00:30:29,799 --> 00:30:32,119
President Trump told the Daily Caller that he is open

498
00:30:32,160 --> 00:30:36,279
to bringing back insane asylums to institutionalize mentally ill individuals

499
00:30:36,880 --> 00:30:41,319
on America's streets. So there's that. And also came across

500
00:30:41,359 --> 00:30:44,359
this too, Tim Wigginton over at the Blue Ridge Times,

501
00:30:45,039 --> 00:30:48,119
reporting that the ashvill City Council passed an update to

502
00:30:48,200 --> 00:30:52,440
the city Ordinance addressing panhandling and solicitation in high traffic zones.

503
00:30:52,640 --> 00:30:58,319
The update increases high traffic areas to now include areas

504
00:30:58,359 --> 00:31:03,079
that experience a large amount of pedestrian foot traffic as

505
00:31:03,119 --> 00:31:07,440
well as bicycle traffic. Previously it only applied to areas

506
00:31:07,480 --> 00:31:11,160
of downtown and built more village. So they're expanding this out.

507
00:31:12,000 --> 00:31:16,240
And so in general, panhandling and solicitation are allowed on sidewalks,

508
00:31:16,440 --> 00:31:19,880
but it's prohibited anywhere within the high traffic zones. Prohibited

509
00:31:19,880 --> 00:31:28,000
on a median in the street or on a roadside shoulder. Congratulations, Ashville. Finally,

510
00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:31,880
I don't know, maybe cleaning up just a tad all right,

511
00:31:31,880 --> 00:31:34,240
that'll do it for this episode. Thank you so much

512
00:31:34,279 --> 00:31:36,319
for listening. I could not do the show without your

513
00:31:36,359 --> 00:31:39,119
support and the support of the businesses that advertise on

514
00:31:39,160 --> 00:31:41,960
the podcast, so if you'd like, please support them too

515
00:31:42,000 --> 00:31:43,680
and tell them you heard it here. You can also

516
00:31:43,720 --> 00:31:46,279
become a patron at my Patreon page or go to

517
00:31:46,440 --> 00:31:50,160
thepetecleanershow dot com. Again, thank you so much for listening,

518
00:31:50,240 --> 00:31:56,119
and don't break anything while I'm gone.

