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Don't Go to Camden. Don't Go to Newton Either, Actually.

MONDAY NOVEMBER 21 2005 6:00 PM

Submitted by MissTyrios. Edited By MissTyrios.

For the second year in a row, Camden, New Jersey has been named the most dangerous city in the US, and Newton, Massachusetts has been named the safest. Now, my school is located in Newton and, honestly, I'm surprised it's literally the "safest" place in the entire country, especially considering the way really rich people drive around in military assault vehicles. But apparently negligent driving and poorly planned roads and intersections don't come into play in the rankings - the criteria considered include violent crime and motor vehicle theft rates.

In Newton, the median household income was $86,052 in 2000, more than three times that of Camden's $23,421, statistics show. The median value of a Newton house was $438,400, more than 10 times that of Camden.

Camden has a 15.9 percent unemployment rate, compared with 2.9 percent in Newton. More than half of Camden's population is black and 39 percent is Hispanic, compared with 2 percent and 2.5 percent, respectively, in Newton. More than two-thirds of Newton residents have a bachelor's degree or higher, compared with 5 percent in Camden.

Camden faced both good and bad prospects after last year's ranking - the federal and state government did pledge to devote more resources to the city, and - as a result - the crime rate this year was down 18%. But the rankings also caused Camden to lose a major hotel development deal, and the Rutgers campus there has faced lower enrollment rates.

Not everyone agrees with the way the rankings are compiled by Morgan Quinto, the company that authors the study.

The method Morgan Quito uses to determine the rankings is attacked regularly by criminologists and sociologists, who criticize the company for not placing the data in context.

John Allen Paulos, author of Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences and a professor of mathematics at Temple, labeled the company's methodology "incomprehensible."

It "calls for a new category of crime: statisticide," Paulos said. "I think they should be sentenced to a course in probability and statistics."

Under its methodology, Morgan Quitno gives equal weight to six basic crime categories reported by the FBI: homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor-vehicle theft.

One city activist said that regardless of the publisher's methods, he was thankful that the ranking had brought resources to the beleaguered city.

"Being focused on the exact methodology obscures the fundamental problems going on in Camden," Jeff Brenner said. "It's a very dangerous city with enormous public safety problems, and we have a long way to go to make it a safe place for families, children and businesses to thrive.

"The only way we'll make change in Camden is by bringing a spotlight to the problem."

38 Comments

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JohnClement

Silver Spring, MD

January 2004

NOV 21, 2005 06:02 PM

I'd like to point out that Washington, DC didn't make the top 10.

Edit: I mention this because it seems many people on the site think DC is very dangerous.

[Edited on Nov 21, 2005 by BillHaverchuck]

aperfectkenny

Lothian, MD

April 2005

NOV 21, 2005 06:09 PM

definitely a surprise to me that dc didn't, however baltimore is number two i believe. nice and comforting.

wickedmonkey

Pawtucket, RI

June 2004

NOV 21, 2005 06:13 PM

newton's a great place...if you can afford it.

slowtostanding

Richmond, VA

September 2003

NOV 21, 2005 07:27 PM

RICHMOND! TOP FIVE BABY!

Stiles

New York, NY

November 2002

NOV 21, 2005 07:47 PM

This study uses old numbers that date to early 2004, IIRC. Things are supposed to be markedly better this year, although I'm sure Camden won't be displacing Newton anytime soon.

thefreak

NEWSWIRE

Gardner, MA

NOV 21, 2005 08:00 PM

Funny how Newton made it past any place on the Vineyard. What, Teddy spending more time on the roads than usual?

Gotta give up the MA love, though.

-TM

Virex

Collingswood, NJ

December 2004

NOV 21, 2005 08:41 PM

I live at most 3 miles from Camden. It's amazing how fast the conditions can change, as I live in the lower middle class bastard child of a fairly well to do town that I actually work in.

I go to a community college where I had a class in camden. Now, a 145 pound white guy draped in black wearing make-up carrying an iPod...you'd think I'd get stomped.

I actually got lost early one morning on a way to (a pretty lame) Ozzfest and walked through a particularly fucked up part. Perhaps all the bad shit just waits until dark, but either A.) It's not as bad as they say it is, or b.) we really DO live in a pretty safe country.

The political condition in this country is fucked. but I love my country. I recognize my countries problems because I want her to get better. So I try every so often to stop cursing the name of every political puppet around and try to compliment something, and while of course I've seen none of the bad, if Camden really is the absolute most dangerous city in the nation, to say the least, we could have it worse.

bairdduvessa

Centerville, MA

April 2005

NOV 21, 2005 09:10 PM

i used to want to go to newton when i was little, but then found out that they don't give away free fid newtons there...so i got discouraged

Gackt

Japan

July 2004

NOV 21, 2005 09:11 PM

aperfectkenny said:
definitely a surprise to me that dc didn't, however baltimore is number two i believe. nice and comforting.

nah, baltimore is six.. no need to sleep with guns by your bed.. though a good knife probably wouldn't hurt.

here is the link entire listing if anyone is interested: http://www.governmentguide.com/community_and_home/morganmostdangerouscities.adp

[Edited on Nov 22, 2005 12:13AM]

lilyk

I'm lost

December 2004

NOV 21, 2005 09:22 PM

When driving from West Philly to Cherry Hill, NJ, my father used to tell my sister and I not to stop at any stop lights in Camden.

gauss

I'm lost

September 2005

NOV 21, 2005 09:34 PM

lilyk said:
When driving from West Philly to Cherry Hill, NJ, my father used to tell my sister and I not to stop at any stop lights in Camden.

growing up just outside of philly, I was under the impression that camden burned the hell down every halloween!

egon

Las Vegas, NV

July 2003

NOV 21, 2005 09:48 PM

And people wonder why I didn't stick around camden after I graduated

crazydasaint

Washington, DC

OLD SKOOL

NOV 21, 2005 10:11 PM

Doof... I lived in Auburndale (a village of Newton-- did you know that of American cities Newton is second only to New York in its number of villages?) the year after I graduated from college. It was one of the worst years of my life, no shitting.

Not all the blame is on Newton, but it sure didn't help.

gut666

Moreno Valley, CA

April 2005

NOV 21, 2005 11:16 PM

they forgot richmond ca. and east palo alto ca.

_Sarah_

Kalamazoo, MI

January 2003

NOV 21, 2005 11:21 PM

Camden, a city of 80,000 people near Philadelphia, was listed as the most dangerous, followed by Detroit, Michigan; St. Louis, Missouri; and Flint, Michigan, according to the Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities survey by Morgan Quitno Press, a research and publishing company based in Kansas.

What's up with Detroit being second? Fucking slackers.