(End of the American Dream)—The city of Chicago has become a time bomb, and it is a prime example of a very disturbing trend that is happening all over America. Criminal gangs are thriving in most of our major urban areas, and Joe Biden’s open border policies are greatly fueling their growth. With each passing day, more deeply impoverished young migrants pour into our cities, and many of them are quickly recruited by gangs. It would be difficult for me to overstate the seriousness of this crisis, but it is largely being ignored by the mainstream media.
A number of years ago I wrote about the gang problem in Chicago, and at that time gang members outnumbered police by 10 to 1.
Unfortunately, things have gotten so much worse since then.
Today, the CPD has identified more than 280,000 gang members in the city of Chicago…
The Chicago Police Department maintains two massive gang databases, collectively labeling more than 280,000 people as “gang members.” 95% of those people listed are people of color, most being young men in their late teens and 20s, but also thousands being Black and Latinx youth and elders.
That is the size of a small army!
And it is important to note that these are just the individuals that the CPD has been able to identify and put into their databases.
There are undoubtedly more that they don’t know about or have not been able to identify.
Meanwhile, the size of the CPD has been hovering just above 12,000…
However, the size of the Chicago Police Department was essentially unchanged on Johnson’s 100th day in office as compared with his first day in office. CPD had 12,360 employees on Johnson’s first full day in office and 12,363 employees on Monday, according to a city database. The number of sworn officers has also remained steady, with 11,720 officers on duty as of May 1, and 11,722 on the force as of Aug. 1, according to a database maintained by the Chicago Police Department.
Once I had the numbers, I did the math, and I discovered that gang members now outnumber police in the city of Chicago by a ratio of 22 to 1.
So it should come as no surprise that major crime in the Windy City was way up in 2023…
Overall major crime was up in 2023 by 16%, with robberies up 23%. There is likely significant underreporting of crimes given police shortages. Over half of “high priority” 911 calls did not have an officer available to respond when the call came in. This is a huge increase compared to 2019, when 19% of all calls didn’t have an officer available.
Memphis is another city that has an absolutely massive gang problem.
It is being reported that the mayor recently met with gang leaders and “asked them to agree to a seven-day ceasefire”…
The mayor of Memphis, Tennessee, met with local gang leaders and asked them to agree to a seven-day ceasefire, as crime has seemingly spiraled out of control in the city.
The mayor said that he had talks, not “negotiations,” with Memphis gang leaders, with community representatives adding that the number of gangs in the city has also become a problem in itself.
A seven day ceasefire?
That sounds like something that would happen in the Middle East.
But of course the truth is that Memphis really has become a war zone.
If you can believe it, over 3,500 property crimes were reported in Memphis during the month of January alone…
The gang members told the mayor a recent “epidemic of car break-ins” was simply due to their younger gang members being bored and having nothing to do.
Including the break-ins, more than 3,500 property crimes were reported in January 2024 alone, according to police statistics.
Yesterday, I wrote an article about how wonderful the state of Tennessee is, but I also warned my readers to avoid the Memphis area entirely.
It really is that bad.
The Atlanta metropolitan area is also caught in a downward spiral. Crime is completely out of control, and over the weekend a massive riot that involved hundreds of young people made headlines all over the nation…
One person was shot when suspects opened fire on police during a riot involving hundreds of ‘youths’ at a Six Flags amusement park in Georgia over the weekend, according to reports.
The shocking string of events unfolded on Saturday evening in Austell, a city in the Atlanta metro region.
Thousands of people turned out for opening day at Six Flags Over Georgia before the event devolved into extreme mob violence.
Hundreds of mostly-younger guests began fighting and sowing chaos throughout the park, forcing evacuations as security lost control of the crowd.
We wanted to push every shred of traditional morality out of our schools.
So the truth is that we have brought this on ourselves.
Our young people didn’t have to turn out this way. If we had raised them differently we would have gotten different results.
Coffee the Christian way: Promised Grounds
Right now, the state of California is experiencing an absolutely relentless crime wave, and authorities are telling us that approximately 300,000 gang members currently reside there…
The California Department of Justice estimates that there could be as many as 300,000 gang members in this state.
California has had a problem with crime for decades, but never anything like this.
According to one recent survey, a whopping 86 percent of business owners in the state believe “that crime has increased in their area”…
More than 86% of business owners in California say that crime has increased in their area, while 67% from the same survey claimed to be considering moving their headquarters out of the Golden State, according to the latest numbers from RedBalloon and PublicSq.’s Freedom Economy Index.
At this point, I don’t know why anyone would still want to live there.
Two California business owners that were interviewed by Fox News explained why they are thinking of leaving…
“The building where I have my office has just installed floodlights throughout the parking lot, installed new doors and upgraded the security system to improve safety,” Carvalho detailed. “Throughout the neighborhood, there are signs reminding people not to leave valuables in their cars.”
“It used to be this very nice town, now it is just horrible,” Falwell said. “We have been in our home for 17 years, we have had mail theft. The crime has impacted my desire to even leave my house or business.”
When crime is so bad that you don’t even want to leave your own home, it is definitely time to look for greener pastures.
Of course the truth is that crime is getting worse virtually everywhere, and the open border policies of the Biden administration are certainly not helping matters.
This week, we learned that the Biden administration has actually been flying hundreds of thousands of “asylum seekers” directly into the United States…
A Freedom of Information Act lawsuit has revealed that the Biden administration has flown at least 320,000 migrants into the United States in an effort to reduce the number of crossings at the southern border, according to Todd Bensman of the Center for Immigration Studies.
“The program at the center of the FOIA litigation is perhaps the most enigmatic and least-known of the Biden administration’s uses of the CBP One cellphone scheduling app, even though it is responsible for almost invisibly importing by air 320,000 aliens with no legal right to enter the United States since it got underway in late 2022,” wrote Bensman.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had initially refused to disclose information about the flights, which use a cell phone app, CBP One, to arrange.
“Under these legally dubious parole programs, aliens who cannot legally enter the country use the CBP One app to apply for travel authorization and temporary humanitarian release from those airports. The parole program allows for two-year periods of legal status during which adults are eligible for work authorization,” Bensman continues.
Overall, it is being estimated that there will be over 8 million “asylum seekers” living in the U.S. “by the end of September”…
More than 8 million asylum seekers and other migrants will be living inside the U.S in legal limbo by the end of September — a roughly 167% increase in five years, according to internal government projections obtained by Axios.
We are witnessing a spike in migration that is unlike anything we have ever seen before.
And this is one of the primary reasons why gangs are experiencing such explosive growth.
The stage is being set for societal chaos on an epic scale.
Unfortunately, there is no turning back now. Our leaders have been making disastrous decisions for a long time, and those disastrous decisions are going to have extremely bitter consequences.
Michael’s new book entitled “Chaos” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can check out his new Substack newsletter right here.
Five Things New “Preppers” Forget When Getting Ready for Bad Times Ahead
The preparedness community is growing faster than it has in decades. Even during peak times such as Y2K, the economic downturn of 2008, and Covid, the vast majority of Americans made sure they had plenty of toilet paper but didn’t really stockpile anything else.
Things have changed. There’s a growing anxiety in this presidential election year that has prompted more Americans to get prepared for crazy events in the future. Some of it is being driven by fearmongers, but there are valid concerns with the economy, food supply, pharmaceuticals, the energy grid, and mass rioting that have pushed average Americans into “prepper” mode.
There are degrees of preparedness. One does not have to be a full-blown “doomsday prepper” living off-grid in a secure Montana bunker in order to be ahead of the curve. In many ways, preparedness isn’t about being able to perfectly handle every conceivable situation. It’s about being less dependent on government for as long as possible. Those who have proper “preps” will not be waiting for FEMA to distribute emergency supplies to the desperate masses.
Below are five things people new to preparedness (and sometimes even those with experience) often forget as they get ready. All five are common sense notions that do not rely on doomsday in order to be useful. It may be nice to own a tank during the apocalypse but there’s not much you can do with it until things get really crazy. The recommendations below can have places in the lives of average Americans whether doomsday comes or not.
Note: The information provided by this publication or any related communications is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial advice. We do not provide personalized investment, financial, or legal advice.
Secured Wealth
Whether in the bank or held in a retirement account, most Americans feel that their life’s savings is relatively secure. At least they did until the last couple of years when de-banking, geopolitical turmoil, and the threat of Central Bank Digital Currencies reared their ugly heads.
It behooves Americans to diversify their holdings. If there’s a triggering event or series of events that cripple the financial systems or devalue the U.S. Dollar, wealth can evaporate quickly. To hedge against potential turmoil, many Americans are looking in two directions: Crypto and physical precious metals.
There are huge advantages to cryptocurrencies, but there are also inherent risks because “virtual” money can become challenging to spend. Add in the push by central banks and governments to regulate or even replace cryptocurrencies with their own versions they control and the risks amplify. There’s nothing wrong with cryptocurrencies today but things can change rapidly.
As for physical precious metals, many Americans pay cash to keep plenty on hand in their safe. Rolling over or transferring retirement accounts into self-directed IRAs is also a popular option, but there are caveats. It can often take weeks or even months to get the gold and silver shipped if the owner chooses to close their account. This is why Genesis Gold Group stands out. Their relationship with the depositories allows for rapid closure and shipping, often in less than 10 days from the time the account holder makes their move. This can come in handy if things appear to be heading south.
Lots of Potable Water
One of the biggest shocks that hit new preppers is understanding how much potable water they need in order to survive. Experts claim one gallon of water per person per day is necessary. Even the most conservative estimates put it at over half-a-gallon. That means that for a family of four, they’ll need around 120 gallons of water to survive for a month if the taps turn off and the stores empty out.
Being near a fresh water source, whether it’s a river, lake, or well, is a best practice among experienced preppers. It’s necessary to have a water filter as well, even if the taps are still working. Many refuse to drink tap water even when there is no emergency. Berkey was our previous favorite but they’re under attack from regulators so the Alexapure systems are solid replacements.
For those in the city or away from fresh water sources, storage is the best option. This can be challenging because proper water storage containers take up a lot of room and are difficult to move if the need arises. For “bug in” situations, having a larger container that stores hundreds or even thousands of gallons is better than stacking 1-5 gallon containers. Unfortunately, they won’t be easily transportable and they can cost a lot to install.
Water is critical. If chaos erupts and water infrastructure is compromised, having a large backup supply can be lifesaving.
Pharmaceuticals and Medical Supplies
There are multiple threats specific to the medical supply chain. With Chinese and Indian imports accounting for over 90% of pharmaceutical ingredients in the United States, deteriorating relations could make it impossible to get the medicines and antibiotics many of us need.
Stocking up many prescription medications can be hard. Doctors generally do not like to prescribe large batches of drugs even if they are shelf-stable for extended periods of time. It is a best practice to ask your doctor if they can prescribe a larger amount. Today, some are sympathetic to concerns about pharmacies running out or becoming inaccessible. Tell them your concerns. It’s worth a shot. The worst they can do is say no.
If your doctor is unwilling to help you stock up on medicines, then Jase Medical is a good alternative. Through telehealth, they can prescribe daily meds or antibiotics that are shipped to your door. As proponents of medical freedom, they empathize with those who want to have enough medical supplies on hand in case things go wrong.
Energy Sources
The vast majority of Americans are locked into the grid. This has proven to be a massive liability when the grid goes down. Unfortunately, there are no inexpensive remedies.
Those living off-grid had to either spend a lot of money or effort (or both) to get their alternative energy sources like solar set up. For those who do not want to go so far, it’s still a best practice to have backup power sources. Diesel generators and portable solar panels are the two most popular, and while they’re not inexpensive they are not out of reach of most Americans who are concerned about being without power for extended periods of time.
Natural gas is another necessity for many, but that’s far more challenging to replace. Having alternatives for heating and cooking that can be powered if gas and electric grids go down is important. Have a backup for items that require power such as manual can openers. If you’re stuck eating canned foods for a while and all you have is an electric opener, you’ll have problems.
Don’t Forget the Protein
When most think about “prepping,” they think about their food supply. More Americans are turning to gardening and homesteading as ways to produce their own food. Others are working with local farmers and ranchers to purchase directly from the sources. This is a good idea whether doomsday comes or not, but it’s particularly important if the food supply chain is broken.
Most grocery stores have about one to two weeks worth of food, as do most American households. Grocers rely heavily on truckers to receive their ongoing shipments. In a crisis, the current process can fail. It behooves Americans for multiple reasons to localize their food purchases as much as possible.
Long-term storage is another popular option. Canned foods, MREs, and freeze dried meals are selling out quickly even as prices rise. But one component that is conspicuously absent in shelf-stable food is high-quality protein. Most survival food companies offer low quality “protein buckets” or cans of meat, but they are often barely edible.
Prepper All-Naturals offers premium cuts of steak that have been cooked sous vide and freeze dried to give them a 25-year shelf life. They offer Ribeye, NY Strip, and Tenderloin among others.
Having buckets of beans and rice is a good start, but keeping a solid supply of high-quality protein isn’t just healthier. It can help a family maintain normalcy through crises.
Prepare Without Fear
With all the challenges we face as Americans today, it can be emotionally draining. Citizens are scared and there’s nothing irrational about their concerns. Being prepared and making lifestyle changes to secure necessities can go a long way toward overcoming the fears that plague us. We should hope and pray for the best but prepare for the worst. And if the worst does come, then knowing we did what we could to be ready for it will help us face those challenges with confidence.