Ross: The divide between the reasonable and the unreasonable comes down to what works

A listener directed me to a speech last week by podcaster (and former KIRO Reporter) Brandi Kruse.

She was talking to a visiting delegation from the state of Georgia about solving the crime problem in downtown Seattle.

“What I came to realize and what I very much believe today is that the divide in our country isn’t between warring political factions. It was then, and still is between the reasonable and the unreasonable,” Kruse said. “What I came to realize is that building bridges doesn’t work if you’re trying to build bridges with someone whose only goal is to burn them down.”

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And I agree completely. Back when I was doing a talk show I used to say that the real divide was between “the normal people and the wackos” – but I must admit now that the phrase lacked nuance… so allow me to put it this way instead.

The struggle is between people who want solutions that actually work, and people who push ideas they think should work, but which don’t.

For example, we know that reforming the police can work, but defunding the police does not.

We also know that to close down cities and empty jails without a sufficient police presence is to turn over the streets to lawlessness.

There will always be people in crisis, and one of the reasons we pay taxes is so the government can humanely get them off the streets. I was happy to see in The Seattle Times that neighbors in Seattle’s 3rd and Pine neighborhood have actually noticed less drug use and less shouting thanks to Seattle Police patrols.

But our obligation – as people who are not in crisis – is to return to the cities when the emergency is over. Because that, too, is a big part of public safety.

I go down to Pike Place Market 2-3 times a week, and when a cruise ship is in town and the place is packed – you feel safer!

My wife and I stayed at the MarQueen hotel over the weekend. We walked to the ballet, which meant walking past the tents along Mercer Street – but there were enough people around that we felt safe. We went downtown the next day to see a play at ACT theatre, walked through Freeway Park, and saw a guy snorting something from a can. Not pretty, but we just walked past. Afterward, on the way to church, we stopped at a burger joint, a guy wanders in talking gibberish to himself – but the owner of the place didn’t seem fazed, so we just kept eating.

I may have a different perspective because when I first got here in 1978, I would walk from downtown to the old KIRO Studios at 3rd and Broad street when that stretch was a gauntlet of panhandlers, shelters, and people sleeping in doorways. Those of you longing for the good old days should know that the 3rd and Pine Bus stop was pretty creepy back then, too.

And yes – I wish I had a few more friends with martial arts skills, or the size of D.K. Metcalf, willing to join us on our trips downtown. But I’m not going to insist that Seattle become some kind of Disneyland before going back.

Listen to Seattle’s Morning News with Dave Ross and Colleen O’Brien weekday mornings from 5 – 9 a.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

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