Editorials

The digital map of reported crimes in Calhoun County virtually pulses with data. Each blue flag represents a crime registered with local authorities. Click one and discover details of the crime. The Star's new online feature — located at www.annistonstar.com/crimemap — is handy, another layer of reporting for a community newspaper.

No matter the map's useful-ness, some finer points of lawbreaking are missing. It can't show crimes that did not happen. Nor can it illustrate the men and women who might have turned to a life of crime had someone or something not intervened to put them on the straight and narrow.

Perhaps most importantly the map cannot measure the public perception of crime in a community.

By anecdote and informal survey, it's all but certain most Annistonians believe crime in their city is rising and that they are less safe than in some bygone era. A recent outbreak of violence, some of it deadly, in Anniston supports those fears.

When it comes to public perception, stipulations that it's not as bad as it seems aren't reassuring.

Safety — either actual or perceived — means a lot to a city, particularly if it wishes to grow and prosper.

Anniston faces a decision: Regain a reputation as a safe city or resign to a long, steady decline.

Anniston's future is not written in stone. Creative solutions, community support and leadership will put the city on the road to safety. An opportunity exists. Here is a progressive agenda for candidates running for city office this August to tackle.