Skye Schmolke's Blog

I learned a lot through this project. Crime was a topic that I never bothered to delve into very deeply. Instead when I thought of crime I thought of the news and murders and severe cases of crime. However, crime is much more complex than murder. Crime consists of theft, vandalism, drinking and driving, and etc. This project allowed me to see what the main crimes in Austin are and how we could lessen the total amount of these crimes. Through my interview I learned that drinking and driving is one of the most prevalent crimes in Austin, and that a way to decrease the commonality of this crime is to uphold the laws that are in place. Most of the people interviewed by my group agreed that the best way to eliminate the large amount of crimes in Austin to make sure that there is always a fair trial, that laws are enforced, and a bigger budget for training officers. If we have more officers with good training then it will be easier to enforce the laws. When officers are in a limited quantity that makes officers decide which crime is more prevalent and needs to be watched/regulated. I had a great time learning about crime. It’s definitely changed how I perceive crime and it also helped me see that I may want to pursue a career in law.

Through all of my experiences thus far in the Wicked Problems LLC I have learned a great deal about crime in Austin. I’ve learned that some people believe that crime will always exist and some believe that one day it could go away. I personally believe that crime will always be in society because there will always be that small part in everyone person that wants to rebel. I don’t mean rebel in a horrible context, such as murder, but in a way such as theft or substance abuse. Everyone wonders what it would be like to deliberately do something they shouldn’t do; they want to feel that rush of adrenaline.

Reading the interviews we group conducted definitely confirmed my thoughts on what the major crimes are in Austin and why they exist, but I wonder what a criminal’s view might be. I wonder how they might explain their crimes and whether or not they feel guilt. Through all of our interviews we got crime officials’ opinions, but those will definitely differ from those of a criminal. Also, I’d like to hear from a family whose had a loved one sent to jail due to a crime in order to show in our presentation that crime truly does affect every single person in the community.

This week I interviewed a criminology Professor at St. Edward’s University.This interview was informative and very interesting for me. When Professor Andresen pointed out that the most prevalent crimes in Austin are substance abuse crimes, such as underage drinking. This shocked me because when you hear the word crime you automatically think of murder or assault or theft, however alcohol abuse being the most common crime is understandable. Austin has UT and St. Edward’s University which means there are a TON of college kids which translates to underage drinking-especially with Sixth Street just down the road.
This fact makes crime a definite Wicked Problem because underage drinking doesn’t have an easy, clear cut solution. Professor Andresen said that some ways the city of Austin has tried to solve this Wicked Problem are: drinking and driving enforcement, and focusing on bars who overserve or serve to minors. However, he also said that not much is done to bars that create problematic situations. This means that the rules/guidelines for bars are being overlooked for them to gain more revenue from those that are underage drinkers. This is an issue that definitely needs to be looked into so we can find a better way to stop the abundant amount of drunk driving.

On September 12th, Raul Alvarez came and spoke to my class about the Austin Community Advancement Network (Austin CAN). Before this presentation I had never even heard of the Austin CAN group. However, after this presentation I have a much better understanding of what this group does and what the wicked problems are and how they have increased over the years.

The most interesting element to me from this presentation was the statistics. The statistics helped me grasp how some wicked problems, such as young adults finishing college, has decreased and progressively gotten worse over the past few years. After I listened to this speaker I felt much more aware of what is going on in Austin and how I can help make a difference.

I think it’s important to hear about local Wicked Problems because I’m a part of this community therefore I have the right to know of the huge problems effecting the whole town. Learning about local Wicked Problems helps us understand how the government works on a much smaller scale, helps us see how privileged we are compared to some people, and shows us how we can help out.

(The reason this post is being uploaded late is because I accidentally posted it on my personal blog and not the wicked problems one)

This past week I was sick and unable to attend class, but I talked to some of my friends and I’ve heard that Dr. Kennedy’s lecture was intriguing. From my perspective it seems that Dr. Kennedy’s wicked problem is centered upon communication. We have approximately 6900 languages in the world. How can we communicate a single thought or idea to hundreds across the world?

The answer is photography. Photos can communicate so much and they don’t have to say or have a single word written upon them. Photos capture moments, emotions, and thoughts. Dr. Kennedy asked the class where meaning comes through in an image and that is through emotion. Every photo will draw out some type of emotion out of the viewer, however every person will have their own perspective on what they see in the image.

Photography is is a way to help bridge the gap between people. Miscommunication comes very easily, and so does misunderstanding.  But, a photo is indeed worth a thousand words and that is the start of how the world can bridge the gap between our miscommunication.

Crime is something that effects everyone in a community. When an individual breaks the law this causes a police officer to come arrest the individual. This cop then brings the individual to a jail where they are allowed to make one phone call and have the right to an attorney who will plead their case. Now, an attorney is involved which means this case could possible go to court meaning a judge and a jury will be called upon to help resolve this issue. Also, crime effects families because a parent, child, or sibling may be the one being arrested or a family can be effected due to the arrested individual performing said crime towards them. Crime is a seemingly never ending cycle that causes a tangled web in communities 

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