I've lived in Pine Bluff a long time. I grew up there. I was a cop there for two decades . Now I'm a criminologist. PB has a homicide rate almost 12 times the national average. By the end of 2023, it'll easily be 13 or 14 times. Its overall rate of violent crime is the highest in state. It's close to highest in the nation. It was rated by the Wall Street Journal as "the most miserable city in the United States." In 1994, it had a population around 60K. Now it is lower than 40K. It was AR's second largest city. Now it's 12th. Over 700 people a year move away permanently. 1 in 4 standing structures are vacant. According to Census, DHS, BJS, and other valid/reliable sources, PB is one of the most dangerous, least healthy, poorest, least educated places in the nation. This isn't editorial. These are empirically demonstrable facts. By any acceptable meter, it is as bad as "they" say. Of course, you'll find apologists who'll try to convince you that "it's this way everywhere." By all rational measures, it's not. It's only this bad here. Editorial: The city leaders are all out of ideas. The current police chief has presided over the greatest loss of officers in city history. The one bright idea the city leaders had was a PPP called Go Forward Pine Bluff. Predictably the money was mismanaged. There are scandals and few tangible results and little transparency. I live downtown. In thirty years here, I have seldom gone a day without hearing gunfire. This is no hyperbole - Every darn day. I was awakened yesterday (Thanksgiving morning) by no less than a dozen gunshots less than two blocks away. So, the powers that be can put all the lipstick on the pig they want, but that doesn't change the facts. Sermon over. Thank you for your time.