Huberman pressured into putting brakes on Duncan's homicidal policies

Correlation is not causation, but youth violence spiked in Chicago in the years following Arne Duncan's reckless school-closing spree -- now going national with big bucks behind it.   Coincidence?  Maybe.  Duncan's heavy community opposition repeatedly warned him that his policy would produce violence.  And when the beating death of honors student Derrion Albert was caught on video, even the mainstream media speculated that there might be a connection with school closings (fancifully named "Renaissance 2010").  Of course, when asked about it, Duncan bristled at the suggestion, calling the notion “absolutely ridiculous".  And we know he is right because everything he does is for the kids, and we did not, after all, see him wielding a club in the video.

Now, in an apparent flash of community concern, Ron Huberman, Duncan's replacement as Chicago school boss, is backing off (a little) on his plan for closing more schools, citing "safety concerns."  In other words, the political powers that rule Chicago have realized that: (a) the suggestion that closing schools may contribute to violence is not -- sorry, Arne -- quite so ridiculous  and (b) youth violence is not good for the image and reputation of the city, and hence it is bad for those who own much of its real estate. 

Huberman spins it as a "the community spoke, we listened" story, which is patent nonsense, since he always turned a deaf ear to the community before.

Huberman said Wednesday his latest plans show he listened to the community. He said he took very seriously concerns about gang conflicts, arguing that it's tough to foresee some potential problems until the shake-ups are announced.

"Tough to foresee potential problems."  Let's transcribe that: "I was being a good boy and going ahead with the plan.  How was I to know that the political winds were going to shift and that Ren10 was suddenly going to become a problem for the rich and powerful who are calling the shots?"