Sure, we know that the important political news is how Sen. Martin Heinrich has landed the sixth spot on "The Hill's 50 Most Beautiful List" but we'll save that for another time. (By the way, the hard news about Heinrich from our Potomac Alligators is that Steve Haro, Heinrich's longtime chief of staff, is soon departing for a slot at the Dept. of Commerce.) In any event--beauty contests notwithstanding--today we stay on the more serious side of the aisle and run a wide range of reader reaction we received to our Wednesday blog on ABQ's disturbing new crime paradigm. Vox Populi, take it away. . .

Dennis Gabaldon writes:

Joe, Hooray! Your article is spot on and hits the nail on the head. Finally a voice telling it like it is, and pointing the finger at Mayor Berry, Chief Administrative Officer Perry, the APD brass and the media. The Journal and the TV stations have been giving a pass to this administration and also to the Martinez administration, and where has it got us? No jobs, no teachers, violent crime, and all are brightest young people fleeing to Denver and Phoenix. Lower the corporate taxes and watch our infrastructure crumble, then try to make up for it with higher gross receipts tax. The Democrats are just as guilty, for sitting on their hands and not having the guts to stand up to all this travesty. We need all the media to open up their eyes, and follow your lead. Great Work!

James Jimenez writes:

All I can say is thanks for being a voice of clarity on our leadership failures.

Anonymous writes:

Very well done piece. I actually just bought a Smith & Wesson.

John Ingram writes:

Joe: We share your outrage. We attended an "Oasis" class last week wherein a former UNM professor of Greek Classical History spent an hour and a half taking about the final decades of the Roman Empire, entitled "We had to destroy the Empire to save it." His lecture caused us to reflect on the state ABQ is now in, a state of decline which you so accurately describe in your blog today.

Gina St Jean-Bracamonte writes on our Facebook:

Well said, Joe. The ABQ fire department dispatcher response to the shooting of a teenager ("I'm not going to deal with this" click) highlights the apathy and non-compassion that seemingly prevails in our city. Change on ALL levels has to occur.

Thanks, Gina. That chilling story of the 911 dispatcher hanging up on the caller who was seeking help for her dying 17 year old friend made the NBC Nightly News and other national media. The dispatcher has since resigned.

Also from Facebook, Andy Weiman writes:

We had many of these same issues in the first term of Mayor Berry. Why did the public re-elect him?

Joe Craig writes:

"One man with courage is a majority." Thomas Jefferson. Thank you, Joe Monahan.

Thanks for that, Joe, but there's more than one. Read on. . . .

VOX POPULI CONTINUES

Melissa Ariel Romero shared our post on Facebook and writes:

This is an important read for everyone who calls or has called Albuquerque home. . . Albuquerque has been in a state of decline and decay for years, and I am not the only one who left, in whole or in part, because of crime and the wholesale lack of accountability of our law enforcement and leadership, who accept this status quo as inevitable and unavoidable, or even celebrate the glamorization of this trend on national television, despite the very real victims involved. Until there is real and genuine turnaround, the brain drain and value drain from New Mexico will continue unabated, and ridding ourselves of the tyranny of low standards would be a good start.

Anonymous writes:

A recent front page of the Journal contains a graphic example of the disconnect between aspirations and reality in our struggling city and state. A columnist reports on the results of a query he put to readers about "how to put Albuquerque on the map." At his invitation readers suggested ideas from a Sandia Skywalk  to a Venice, Italy themed canal system off of the Rio Grande, to a water slide from the Sandias to the river, among others. All were well intentioned ideas but surrounding them on the front page were the other headlines: "Murder suspects grandma goes to jail," "Suspect in carjacking makes major criminal leap," "Wrong man arrested in student's death," and the lead story, "NM's drug deaths highest ever." Seems we are already "on the map" but for all the wrong reasons. None of Dan Herrera's correspondents suggested ideas to alleviate these unfortunate signs of the local state of affairs.

Keith Miller writes:

Simply, the people that are "ruining or running" the state are like professors at schools of "higher" education. They are vested, they get their salary, their retirements, they hang out with their cronies, pass around what little comes in and tell us we should be happy for their patronage and expertise. People are SICK of the BS and it is getting ready to hit the fan.
Melissa Williams posts:

Albuquerque needs help. The news broadcasts are so terrifying. . . Something has to be done to clean up the crime and image of this beautiful city. . . The criminal activity is frightening and it's frightening that that is all the news stations emphasize. People are leaving here in record numbers. Hello Mayor! Hello City Council! Hello Governor! Help this city pick and clean itself up. Where is law enforcement?

E.g. Boston writes;

Well said, Joe. After being a neighborhood association vice-president for about 9 years, I had observed much of what you have observed. Time for everyone to demand better of our influential citizens, politicians, and law enforcement departments. We need to take back our city!

Liz Bustamante writes:

You nailed it again, Mr. Monahan. 

Thanks Liz and to all who took time to comment. This is it. . .

The home of New Mexico politics.

E-mail your news and comments. (jmonahan@ix.netcom.com)

Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.

(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2014. Not for reproduction without permission of the author