“Therefore, what is lacking in all these policies is simply common sense. Policies should be made to improve people’s lives, not disrupt them. Whether dealing with increasing crime in the neighborhoods or fighting inflation at the gas pumps, we need politicians who use common sense. That is where Tom Suozzi stands out from others who are vying for the job of the Governor of New York State. He truly believes that every American should have the same right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. If someone is out there to destroy that American dream, he/she should be held accountable.”

Looking at the video, one can only witness with horror how a gang targeted Virani Jewelers on the Oak Tree  Road in Iselin, New Jersey a few days ago, smashed and grabbed hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of gold jewelry in a matter of minutes, and disappeared. We should not see this as an isolated incident, and it is not. What we are witnessing is not just crimes being normalized but the beginning of a total breakdown of the law enforcement mechanism around the country, a prelude to an end of civil society.

The Asian Indian community, known for its hard work and disciplined living, is increasingly wary of the rising crime in their neighborhoods. Even riding the subways in New York has become a life challenging experience as an ever-increasing number of people are pushed in front of the oncoming trains, and some have paid with their dear lives. Robberies are on the increase, and people are once again afraid to walk the streets.

As someone who has arrived on these shores five decades ago, I could recollect a timeframe in the past when one could not walk in the Time Square without being harassed by drug kingpins, pimps, or prostitutes. Morningside Park uptown was known as a killing field. It could have been considered a death sentence if one dared to walk at night in a certain part of the city. Yes, crime was rampant, and people were simply fed up. My own experience included three muggings and one at gunpoint, and I had to thank my parents for their prayers. Many of us know how that situation was turned around with the election of Rudy Giuliani as Mayor of New York. As an adage goes, it is obvious that an election has consequences. However, once again, politicians are playing with people’s lives. With the so-called progressive ideology, some appear to be sanctioning laissez-fare to commit the crime and disrupt the lives of innocent people who just want to live peacefully and bring up a family. Many immigrants who have come ashore have fled crime and violence in their own homelands. America was a breath of fresh air, a nation that was respectful of individual liberty and freedom. The constitution guaranteed protection for the lives and property of every citizen. On unfreedom in a Laissez-fare state, a Cambridge study said the following: “when liberty is defined as a negative constraint or intrusion to the person, the most obvious threat to liberty comes from the powers of the State. In this view, the State, except when it enforces contracts and punishes crimes, is the negative agent of liberty: its inaction ensures a sphere of free action for individuals. A Laissez-faire state, the State that does not extend beyond the enforcement of criminal and private law, seeks to justify its inaction on the grounds that it protects the liberty of individuals”.

Defunding the police and deactivating law enforcement systems would only lead to chaos, as we are witnessing today. There is no doubt that there are underlying social issues to be tackled regarding why our young people are becoming increasingly violent. The country may also need to look at the increasing level of drug addiction, rising mental illness among the young, and the easy availability of guns. There should be a bipartisan effort to deal with such exigencies and find long-term solutions to these ever-simmering problems. History is there to learn from and be inspired or unlearn evil deeds of the past, never to repeat. However, it should not be used as a cover to avenge past grievances or exact concessions from a detached new generation.

A family who lost his loved one on the subway tracks of New York City to a vagrant is not interested in a lecture from a politician leading a privileged life in a safer neighborhood with high levels of security. What happened to common sense in dealing with day-to-day issues? The cash bail reform, as they call it, turned out to be a disaster for ordinary people who happen to live within the inner city who these repeat offenders increasingly terrorize. The New York Legislature passed bail reform in 2019, which eliminated cash bail and judge’s discretion of setting bail for most misdemeanor and nonviolent crimes. The State says this is to keep people out of jail as they wait for their day in court. America was mostly run by pragmatic visionaries who were willing to change their points of view if that would harm the country. However, today, the country is so polarized that the ideological battles are waged with reckless abandon. Whether in State or national capitals, it has become a zero-sum game for politicians and bureaucrats. Rahm Emmanuel’s famous line of ‘you never want a serious crisis to go waste’ has become the mantra for so many among the elites who run the country today.

Some say Fossil fuel is terrible, and they want to save the planet. They tend to forget that the earth has provided us with fossil fuel, and we should use it responsibly. We should go for it when we can safely switch to cleaner and renewable energy with enough supply to meet the demand. However, some ideologues want to wreak misery and havoc upon the nation to fulfill their utopian dreams. The ordinary people are once again becoming the guinea pigs for the ill-conceived policies and plans architected without public scrutiny. Therefore, what is lacking in all these policies is simply common sense. Policies should be made to improve people’s lives, not disrupt them. Whether dealing with increasing crime in the neighborhoods or fighting inflation at the gas pumps, we need politicians who use common sense. That is where Tom Suozzi stands out from others who are vying for the job of the Governor of New York State. He truly believes that every American should have the same right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. If someone is out there to destroy that American dream, he/she should be held accountable.

(The author is a former Chief Technological Officer, United Nations, and Vice Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress USA.  He can be reached at gta777@gmail.com)