Manhattan Institute legal policy fellow tax Tal Fortgang argues that decarceration fans like County Supervisor Susan Ellenberg get it all wrong, and that violent crime is overwhelmingly the work of a small group of repeat offenders—that is, it is highly concentrated. The remedy, Fortgang argues, is not social engineering but incapacitation: keeping the violent few from striking again.

Despite government efforts and a solid economy, homelessness in San Jose and Silicon Valley continues to surge. Latest data suggests that, contrary to local homeless advocates' claims, homelessness tends to arise in the context of long-term, severe deprivation rather than large and sudden losses of income. A recent cross-country analysis found that about two thirds of adult homeless people suffer some form of mental illness. Econofact explores. 

How lowered expectations--for employees, managers, and elected representatives--become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Zsolt Farkas explains on Medium.

It's always somebody else's fault. State policies. County gov't malfeasance. Systemic something. Local politicians sidestep accountability for failed programs by deflecting blame somewhere, anywhere else--as long as responsibility isn't theirs.  Governance website examines the science behind the modern day political dodge.

With generations of civil service leaders failing to get a grip on performance management, it is time to get rid of lifetime employment guarantees for gov't workers. UK Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden dares to endorse the obvious, summarized in The Institute for Government. 

“Economic development” departments in SV cities and across California spend tens of billions for private capital. So says Mark Moses, who argues in CPC that incentives rarely influence a firm’s decision to move in. When budgets are blown out for pyrrhic ribbon cuttings, infrastructure crumbles. Cities then patch new budget holes with more taxes.