From Omar Simpson, Esq.:
Crime Prevention Requires Multi-Faceted Approach
When will government learn that you just can’t police yourself out of fundamentally social and economic problems? Simply adding more police, jails and increasing arrests, while comforting to some, won’t solve the underlying problems…Poverty and Broken Families.
Attack Poverty and Broken Families by Creating Stronger Men.
The young men you hear about selling drugs, shooting and hustling are trying to solve an economic problem, namely,”How do I feed myself and my loved ones today?” A lot of these kids have little or no knowledge on how to do so legally. Most of us learned these survival skills from our parents, churches or loved ones…the importance of school, the value of a dollar, the need to be social, empathetic and compassionate. By and large, the young men you see on the police blotters everynight didn’t have the critical life lines that develop this knowledge.
Until we present a realistic solution to the throngs of young men that are being put out on the streets every day without survival skills, we are going to continue to have growing crime and violence as these men seek to survive the only way they know how. A man with no education, no family and no knowledge on how to provide for himself, in his eyes, has nothing to lose…he may do anything at anytime to anyone. Solution: We must create stronger men by giving them the tools to survive in a modern world.
Stronger Men Means Stronger Families and Safer Communities.
How do we create stronger men? In my mentoring program called Hu$tle-Nomics, I make stronger men by first convincing these men, logically, that violence and drug dealing are not in their best interest. Second, I convince them that they can survive and thrive legally; and third, I show them exactly how to survive and thrive legally even if they have a past criminal record, a poor education or a bad family environment.
“Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.” Once a man knows how to feed himself and loved ones, he can focus on being a good and loving husband and father. A man that knows he can provide has more self-confidence and drive. A man that can provide a home, car and financial security for his family never want to lose this security, so he is much less likely to risk them by engaging in criminal activity. Bottomline:
If we want safer communities, we need to focus on creating better, self-sufficient Stronger Men.
The following email was sent by Omar J. Simpson to Harford County State’s Attorney Joe Cassilly, Sheriff Jesse Bane, County Executive David Craig, and County Councilman Dion Guthrie and Councilwoman Mary Ann Lisanit:
Good morning Mr. Cassilly and Sheriff Bane:
We’ve had our battles in the past and we may not always agree on everything, but one thing I’m sure we can agree on is that we all DESPISE violence and drug activity in Harford County. I am contacting you about a program called Hu$tle-Nomics I have developed to reduce violence and drug related crimes in Harford County. (especially in Edgewood, Aberdeen and Joppa).
I have attached the information on the program. It will help your Offices and the Court address the drug and violence problems that plague our county. The program focuses on prevention (getting kids before they get involved in drugs and violence) and intervention (getting them out of the drug and violence game once they become involved).
I see the damage drugs cause first hand…I live in Edgewood…one of the poorest and hardest hit areas of Harford County. I personally shadowed and assisted the Office of the Public Defender pro bono for close to a year to learn the current situation with respect to drugs and violence in Harford County. I witnessed firsthand State’s Attorneys and Public Defender’s burdened with dozens of cases daily. I can tell you from personal experience that the OPD, State’s Attorney’s Office and Judiciary are overwhelmed with cases related to drugs and violence…many of these cases are from Edgewood, Aberdeen and Joppa. As such, addressing the drug and violence problems is a must for me and a must for you.
Hu$tle-Nomics can help you and the County by reducing your caseloads. Adding Hu$tle-Nomics as a tool will protect the community by reducing the number of would-be criminals. Your Office, the County and the Courts would benefit by expanding it to at risk kids in Juvenile Court, District Court, Circuit Court and the Detention Center. How? By requiring Hu$tle-Nomics as a condition of probation or parole for all defendants you suspect are involved in drug or gang activity. I have already begun Phase I of Hu$tle-Nomics in the middle and high schools in Edgewood, Joppa and Aberdeen. The missing piece is reaching those young people already involved in the penal system and redeeming those that can be redeemed.
In conclusion, this could be a powerful tool for you and your Office. Requiring Hu$tle-Nomics as a condition of a pleas, probation or parole would ensure that these young people have a full understanding of the odds and consequences of illegal activity.
Please contact me when you are available so that we can meet and discuss this innovative program and how it can help you. My phone number is [redacted] and my email address is omar@thesimpsonfirm.com.
Would you, or an appropriate representative, be available to meet next Tuesday, July 10th, 2012, at the District Courthouse at 11:30 a.m. for about 30 minutes? I could explain the entire Hu$tle-Nomics program, how it could be implemented and how it would benefit your organizations.
Warmest Regards,
Omar J. Simpson, Esq., Attorney-at-Law
Really? You make it sound like the major problems are in Edgewood, Joppa, Aberdeen, Typical lawyer. There are huge issues outside of these areas, yes the Sheriff and Neon Dion will probably meet with you but this is a county wide problem. Crawl out of your shell and you might see this. The Sheriff and Neon Dion need to look at the county as a whole I am tired of hearing Edgewood, Joppa and Aberdeen, Its a county issue not a town or a community. Will you work pro-bono for every citizen Omar or do you have to be from Edgewood, Joppa or Aberdeen?
Ask yourself this: “If I wanted to buy crack in Harford County, where would I go?”
Yes, other areas have problems, but Edgewood/Aberdeen/Joppa/HdG are where many problems (or problem citizens) are concentrated together. Law enforcement only has so much money in the pot for the year, so going where the crime is most prevalent is the smart choice. Do you go fishing in the pond where there might be 2-3 fish, or the pond you can see scores of fish jumping?
Omar will you represent me if I am from Bel Air or is that outside or your area. This is kind of a joke Omar, drugs and crime are everywhere not just Joppa, Aberdeen and edgewood Omar. How about you meet with your leaders about county wide problems Omar??????? I am bit diappointed Omar. Yiu dont care about me because I live in Bel ir Omar.????????????
Freakanomics already covered this under “Why do drug dealers live with their moms?” Only the distributors make any money, everyone else could do just as well working at McDonalds.
Kharn, I agree with what you said, but I would like to add that this is not the only outlet they have for illegal activity.
In my personal experience with the girl I have described in other columns on related subjects, she has branched out into a variety of areas designed to subsidize not only her needs, but the needs of the four children she has from three different fathers, as well as her new husband that was released last year form prison for trying to pass a forged prescription. None of the fathers provides support and she is dependent on the state for food and medical care. She also applied for and received $20,000 in unemployment benefits which supplemented her income she was making as a waitress. The state is now trying to recover their monies form her, as well as two former lease holders she has defaulted on, and my own $3000 in civil judgments against her.
While I am concerned for her well being, my efforts to get the state to intervene have fallen on deaf ears. She has been beaten by the husband and the children have been exposed to this type of home life in at least six different residences in three years. That is the kind of stability they have.
You are correct, the problem is real and the money they make is small, but they are likely using other outlets (illicit) to support their habit and their business.
@KHARN: Right on!
Omar,
While your attempts to help people are appreciated, the real problem is poor parenting. You say “teach a man to fish…”, well, how about teaching a parent to be a parent?
For every parent you fix, you will fix 2 or 3 misguided children, and generations to come.
BTW – why aren’t girls part of your program?
Thank you all for your comments.
First let me say that I go to the places where I will get the most bang for the buck…the places where I can positively effect the most people that are in need of help. Data from the Sheriff’s Office, Council meetings, community meetings and police blotters dictate where I focus my efforts. I am one person with limited resources…I can only go to so many places, so I choose the places in Harford County I know there are people I can help. My research indicates in Harford County Edgewood, Aberdeen and Joppa need the most help. I don’t think that’s even debatable.
As far as having women in the program, Hu$tle-Nomics focus is to end drug dealing and violence. The vast majority of violent crimes and drug related crimes are committed by men. So, I focus on rehabilitating and re-training men in Hu$tle-Nomics.
I agree that parenting is a major issue. My position is you must create stronger men to create stronger families. The best way to create stronger men is to teach them how to survive and thrive in the modern world without dealing and violence. A man needs to know he can take care of his loved ones. That is why Phase II of Hu$tle-Nomics focuses on legal money making. Improve parenting by creating stronger, more confident men…that is my approach.
I understand people’s frustrations…times seem to be getting harder, crime is a serious concern…just keep the faith, focus on solutions and do whatever you can to make positive change. That’s what I intend to do. Thanks for your input.
I would have a better time buying your statement about “best bang for the buck” if you lived in Norrisville. In fact, you live in Edgewood. While I still greatly appreciate your attempts to give back to the community, why not just be transparent about your intentions and say what you are doing – helping your neighbors?
There’s no shame in that, and it is pretty clear to everyone anyway.
So I went through all the slides. I really want my time back. I don’t understand why you address this to the Sheriff’s office and the State’s Attorney. Perhaps this is better geared towards the schools with high risk populations, but this is more geared toward basic knowledge of business and investments. I don’t see any recomendations, I don’t see any action items, I just see a very teachy power point.
Clearly you missed the point FACT CHECK. It recommends that if you have a criminal record and can’t get a job, then just start your own business! Just like that that, get some friends together and BOOM start a business. It’s SUPER simple.
This looks like it was put together by teenagers. Complete waste of time. If the threat of jail time and low wages were a concern, then no one would be drug dealers. You won’t win one person over with this half ass junior power point presentation. It’s embarrassing. Try getting some input from the drug dealers and actually try and see their point of views as far as why they do it. I’m willing to bet no one points to Rap Artists. This isn’t 1995.
Thanks for your comments.
First with regard to your comments on the presentation looking like a power point presentation for high shool kids, that is because it is meant primarily for high school kids and middle school kids. The idea is to start working on changing young minds as early as possible. That is why we are already working with Edgewood High, Edgewood Middle, Magnolia and other students in Aberdeen, Joppa and Edgewood.
Second, with respect to entrepreneurship as a means of getting income, every business you see came from an entrepreneur. And who ever said being an entrepreneur was easy? It is not, but the reality facing a lot of young people with criminal records is that they will struggle getting “regular” jobs. Their best choice will often be becoming an entrepreneur. Even if they lack the skill to run a company, they can still learn to make money legally by investing and trading.
As you point out, not everyone is cut out to start a business. But anyone with a basic understanding of simple math can become a trader or investor. Learning to trade and invest is great because even if you can’t run your own business, you can invest in the people and companies that know how to make money. If you can read and do basic math, you can learn to trade and invest. Why is that important?
On 7/12/12 in The Atlantic an article titled, “How the Richest 400 People in America Got So Rich”. The article was written by Derek Thompson. The article’s basic conclusion is that the wealthiest people in America are getting richer through “Capital Gains” (a.k.a.: profit from the rising value of an investment, such as stocks or property)Less than 10% of their income came from old-fashioned wages. Conclusion: One gets rich from capital gains and one gets capital gains from knowing how to invest.
Finally, the focus of Hu$le-Nomics is to teach this basic truth: One gets wealthy by knowing how to invest. One ends up broke, in prison or dead with Violence. Others may have a different view and a different approach, but Hu$le-Nomics’ focus is and will be teaching those in need how to get out of the drug and violence game by learning to play the real game…investing and trading. Peace.
The average drug dealer might make $27,000 sitting on a corner, but just like the reason every American goes to work, the young black kid without a future is going to go to the corner to try and reach that top rung, the head guy, just like every person with a real job (sorry I exclude lawyers that don’t work in someone else’s firm) goes to work everyday with the dream of becoming the boss. The American Dream isn’t to be a secretary, it’s to have a secretary. We don’t want to tax the rich, because all of us want to be rich one day.
You can’t stop the cycle by a powerpoint, you have to have the strong families first, not the other way around.
The average drug dealer may only make 27,000 but thats tax free,maybe like 45,000 salary. good money with no overhead! Then he gets free food/housing/medical benefits and transportation. He then qualifies for a free cellphone to conduct business. When he gets caught we even give him a free attorney to get out of jail if he even gets that far with out a probation deal? The tax payers pay for his 6 children, at about 15,000 a year/per child because the momma don’t know who the daddy be! Really Omar you need a reality check! Why would a young African American want to get an education and work. The public should read the book “The Corner” This book profiled one corner in Baltimore City. This is not about parenting it is about poor government starting at the White house and slithering to Annapolis!
Really Bill? It’s the generations of failed government that we have to blame for the cycle of inner city violence that failed them?
Even David Simon didn’t have proven solutions, he just pointed out problems. He bemoaned the failed schools and failed politicians that gave lip service, but the reality that he wouldn’t admit is that it’s not something that government can fix.
I completely disagree, it’s not that the kids in the more affluent neighborhoods have money and that equates to success, they have parents that care, they have someone to disapoint, they have someone they respect, and someone who respects them enough to keep them in line.
For David Simon though, he knew he couldn’t make parents care, so the only hope was to force the Government to somehow care. Will decriminalization take the kids off the corner, or will it just lead people without the proper moral compass (given by parents that care) to find another easy way to make money.
We are the caretakers of our brothers. If you are too busy improving your life and not the lives of those around you, when you can, then what is the value of the world that you live in when you have saved yourself and no one else?
I’ve seen this in people that espouse to be Christians. It is little more than personal opportunism when they are saved, but they do not care to help anyone else out, or cannot see that doing good for others is important to the greater good. You complain about government, but if the private sector was truly concerned for the well being of the less fortunate, we wouldn’t have a system that pays them to sit in the corner, eat, take their drugs and hopefully leave the rest of us alone.