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1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Economic MIsery & Crime Waves: A glimpse into our foreseeable future! Nov 05, 2009
By Randy Atlas
"Ratlas"
Severin Sorenson's new book is titled "Economic Misery & Crime Waves". As a leading criminologist and practitioner and trainer of CPTED, the prediction of our near future appears to be coming true. Everyday, I have been reading articles and getting emails and phone calls for new projects that are testimonials to the consequences of our economic implosion. Ordinary citizens are being pushed by desperation of lack of legitimate opportunities into criminal behavior. Recently in Indianapolis, a gunman was robbing a check cashing business and explained to the clerk that he had resorted to robbery of $20 to support his 2 year old child, after the gunman was laid off and unemployed. Walmart is downsizing its security staff to save money at their stores, and as a result shoplifting and internal pilferage is quickly worsening. Reports by police of theft of copper and aluminum from utility and infrastructure facilities is growing the last two years so that it can be sold on the black market of recycling. Home and apartment roof air-conditioners are being ripped off to scrap for precious metals. People are desperate to make a quick buck any way they can to eat, or pay their mortgage. The police are being overburdened by the consequences of burglary, and trespassing as a huge increase in vacant residences and commercial buildings.
The book makes for fascinating reading, and has a down to earth and logical presentation of the relationship between economic downturn and criminal behavior. Criminal justice professionals and criminologists will find the book a real world case study in the effects and consequences of poor political policies, corporate greed, and an economic perfect storm. Police departments are laying off officers, crime prevention units are being disbanded or assimilated. Private security usage is shrinking rather than increasing. Training budgets are taken away. At a time of tight budgets, policy makers want to reduce law enforcement, public and private security and reduce social services in desperation to balance their budgets. Yet, the criminological research has shown that with sharp economic downturns, and the general populations' "Misery index" increasing, now is the time to increase spending to protect our assets and on social controls to help create legitimate opportunities for work, affordable housing and health care.
We are on the brink of a possible revolution if the economy continues to decline, and public trust continues to erode in justice, and law and order. The strategies taken in the Great Depression are a reminder of how bad things can be in the 21st Century if better decisions are not made. The book is good reading and recommended.
Randall I. Atlas Ph.D., AIA, CPP
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
May we heed these warnings and forge a path forward Nov 03, 2009
By M. Fedeli
"M. Fedeli"
To me, the great value of Severin's book is the timing of it. By looking at recent (and ongoing) economic decisions in the cool light of history, this book instructs us with a clear warning: crime waves follow economic downturns, and the crime waves to follow our present recession have only begun to surface.
Severin's arguments are simple, logical, and compelling. Look at the news. The warning signs are there. Gang activity and violent crimes are on the rise.
What intrigues me is the relevance even in my own neighborhood. I talk to friends who are facing economic hardship. When the broader economic environment does not make it easy to provide for one's family, a person will naturally be looking at all available options. Certain things once called crime now look more like necessity to put food on the table.
If that kind of thinking persists and habits are formed, what else can we expect to be the result but a crime wave? If those crime waves harden in our society over a long enough period of time, what then? I am not predicting doomsday, but there are many concerning scenarios to consider.
I don't want to go too far, but I could not help reading this book and thinking through some probing questions for our political leaders. These are questions whose implications I really don't want to have to stop and consider, but knowing what we know about the compromises of our political culture in Washington, how can I not contemplate questions such as:
> Do our leaders in Washington share Severin's concerns and expectations?
> Do they have data to counter his arguments?
> What if the data supports his arguments, but cast a bad light on government policy? Would they admit it if that helped the people prepare?
> Where are the new leaders with a vision for economic recovery?
> Is America ready to candidly discuss--without our partisan biases--the need to free the free markets from government overreach on the one hand and excessive de-regulation on the other?
> What if the players in the criminal world benefit from a boom time and find their influence reaching through our present lobbying channels into the halls of political power?
The last point may be going too far, but while reading I could not help but think about our neighbor to the south in this regard, where efforts by the government to extricate itself from the criminal element have brought great hardship to the poor Mexican people. Consider the astronomical murder rate in Juarez, Mexico today. While it is probably far-fetched to see such crime waves infecting our cities, one's imagination can begin to wonder...
Of course there are some clear differences between past downturns and this one which may help us find a way to higher ground. There are now tools of data collection and communication that position people to be proactive, to track events, and to do the contingency planning needed to enable them (us!) to depend on themselves and their local communities, rather than on an over-stretched government that is limited by the downturn through lost tax revenue and rampant spending obligations.
Though it looks dicey up ahead, the simple fact is that we cannot predict the exact way that things will play out. Severin is humble enough to admit he may be wrong--and that he hopes many of his predictions don't come true. Yet, he was bold enough to give direction for planning ahead. That's why Severin's call to action is so valuable. He could have written a political book for an influential audience. Though it should be considered carefully by our elected officials, I see the chief value of his call to action coming at the personal level: prepare yourself for these possibilities, pursue multiple income streams, and set a long term expectation for how long this might last.
I am doing just that. Thanks to Mr. Sorensen for combining his academic training and practical experience in economics and in security to produce this valuable work. May each of us heed these warnings and be able to forge a path forward if and when these difficulties harden in our society.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 'What's past is prologue.' Oct 30, 2009
By Grady Harp
Severin L Sorensen leads a security management consulting practice while being President and CEO of his own company Sikyur (pronounced 'secure'!): he is well versed in Security measures and able to advise major security officers in matters of security preparation and assurance. It seem, then, that Sorensen would have an insider's view of the science of crime study and it is this knowledge that leads him to write this rather terrifying evaluation of the side effects of recession. He writes about how every recession or economic crisis we have experienced since 1954 has been followed by an increased crime wave. His observation is that if even the most moral of men are placed in a situation where they have lost everything - income, savings, hope - the possibility of justifying even the smallest means of gaining food for the table and shelter may include criminal acts.
Sorensen's writing style is not unlike a television talk show host: he is able to generate interest, garner the attention of the reader, put on a show of facts and figures, and gather relavent quotations to make his point. At first this writing style may annoy the reader but Sorensen presents such a solid data base for his convictions and then offers a light at the end of the economic crisis tunnel, gaining not only our attention but our respect. He is talking about the current recession and how if we do not take precautions that we could possibly/probably fall into the same pattern of increased crime waves associated with past and even less frightening economic slowdowns. 'Economic misery is that economic misery cocktail of unemployment and underemployment that includes unemployment, under-employment, and those unemployed not actively seeking employment; additionally, the measure includes a broader measure of the loss of purchasing power through inflation, contraction of credit, loss of retirement savings, and deflation creating negative homeowner equity.' So unemployment coupled with loss of purchasing power can lead to illegitimate methods of survival! He quotes Reagan: 'Recession is when you neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours.' and with other quotes from famous thinkers he pleads his case for the fact that when economic crises occur, crime waves rise. Unemployment and the potential for crime exist now as they have in the past.
As with any good historian making a case for a theory Sorensen spends a chapter on the Great Depression and the examples of bootlegging etc that followed (he also wisely reflects on the manner in which the New Deal programs of Roosevelt circumvented many of the potential problems that were developing due to massive job loss) before addressing the gradual decline of the economy since 2007 and the status of where we find ourselves today. But instead of leaving the reader with a sense of hopelessness, he instead spends chapters outlining how to recognize and hence thwart the growing potential of a crime wave (now involving all the parameters of the internet and other advanced forms of communication and identity fraud) by offering guidelines for vigilance and prevention and repair. All of this makes for a fascinating read and may frighten some into action, but it is a book meant to accomplish its title: ECONOMIC MISERY & CRIME WAVES: The second great depression and the coming crime wave, and what we can do about it. And as with the popular TV talk hosts he raises questions, allows us to investigate and think, and act. A good read. Grady Harp, October 09
Economic Misery & Crime Waves Feb 07, 2010
By Annmarie Fennelly
"Lawrence J. Fennelly"
Economic Misery & Crime Waves
Severin L. Sorensen, CPP
Published by Sikyur Publications, 2009, 212 pages
When I started in Crime Prevention years ago Bob Bradley (now Chief of Police) was the Crime Prevention Officer for Somerville, MA. Bob was always looking for that advanced course in Crime Prevention - `where is the next step.' This is the book. In Chapter 5 "Lessons Learned from Combating Past Crime Waves" he discusses "Opportunity Blocking" - a concept that needs to be considered more fully when dealing with highly motivated criminal offenders in our day.
He discusses `what works' in Crime Prevention. Severin L. Sorensen and Ronald V. Clarke put together an invaluable chart in sixteen sections in "Crime Prevention & Crime Analysis in Public Housing." The concept will work and apply to non-public housing as well. The book discusses `Crime Control Strategy & Tactics."
Severin's book is loaded with proactive tips and advice in dealing with situational crime prevention, for example: "Track what is working and what is not and change when the evidence and circumstance warrant action. Think maneuvers warfare and keep criminals moving, changing methods, changing techniques and discourage them to move on to softer targets."
Severin's writing is pure and distinctive of our time. Professional practitioners need this book.
I have to tell you I really like this book and recommend it highly.
Reviewer: Lawrence J. Fennelly is a Massachusetts author and security manager. His latest book is Security in the Year 2020 published by ASIS, 2010
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