
Lars Larson: ‘When even the presence of police doesn’t deter criminal violence … you know it’s bad’
Lars Larson
The Northwest Nonsense
I guess you could say Portland and Seattle are doing a “bang up” job of making their downtowns safe … lots of bangs if you’re foolish enough to go there.

This past weekend, two people shot in Portland’s Old Town-Chinatown, a man and a woman. They’ll survive, we’re told.
In Seattle a few days earlier, a man in a wheelchair, shot in the chest. He’s on the mend too. That shooting happened on the shiny new waterfront development that Seattle just spent 800 million bucks on.
Prospects for the two cities seem dim lately.
The “Big Pink” bank tower in Portland fire-saled at a nearly 90 percent discount from its value just ten years ago. The new Ritz Carlton hotel and condos in bankruptcy. Big retailers fleeing and those who can’t afford to leave boarding up their storefronts against Antifa terrorists who have friends at City Hall.
Nordstrom hints it may not keep its signature store at Pioneer Courthouse Square much longer because of crime and filth.
Police have been defunded. And this seems telling to me…police were actually watching the crowd where that shooting happened over the weekend.
When even the presence of police doesn’t deter criminal violence … you know it’s bad.
Also read:
- Opinion: Majority party policies still making life more expensive for WashingtoniansRep. John Ley outlines his opposition to new taxes, raises concerns about state spending, and details legislation he plans to pursue during the 2026 Washington legislative session.
- Opinion: What happens when you build a state budget on the most volatile tax sources?Ryan Frost argues that relying on volatile tax sources like income and capital gains taxes risks destabilizing Washington’s budget and undermining long-term fiscal planning.
- Letter: Has $450 million been wasted on a bridge that’s too low for the Coast Guard with a foundation too costly to build?A Seattle engineer questions whether hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on a bridge design he argues is unnecessarily risky and costly compared to an immersed tunnel alternative.
- Opinion: Fix Washington – House Republicans lead the charge against liberal chaosNancy Churchill argues that one-party Democratic control has driven up costs, weakened public safety, and harmed schools, and says House Republicans are offering a path forward through their Fix Washington agenda.
- Opinion: Biden agreed with Trump on Maduro, so why aren’t liberals celebrating?Lars Larson questions why American Democrats are reacting with outrage to the arrest of Venezuelan dictator Nicholas Maduro despite prior bipartisan agreement on prosecuting him.







