Thread by @Steve_Sailer

Perhaps, but it's worth noting that Steven "Freakonomics" Levitt's claim that legalized abortion cut crime between 1985-1997 was due to his making an error in his code:

economist.com/finance-and-ec…

In reality, the immediate post-Roe v. Wade cohort had an extremely high homicide rate

https://twitter.com/ImranRasul3/status/1130344620985077761

I pointed out to Steve "Freakonomics" Levitt way back in 1999 in our debate in Slate that the murder rate among black teens born soon after Roe v. Wade (1973) was many times higher than the murder rate of black teens born right before Roe. This was due to the Crack Wars 1988-94.

Here's my 1999 debate in "Slate" with Steve "Freakonomics" Levitt of U. of Chicago on his theory that legalized abortion made survivors more law-abiding. For whatever reason, Slate has removed our named from their files, but this is my response to Levitt:

slate.com/news-and-polit…

I paid a lot of attention to Steve "Freakonomics" Levitt's abortion-cut-crime theory from 1999-2005, but not in last 14 years, so it could be that his theory turned out more valid in the 21st Century. In late 20th Century, though, it only made sense if you didn't remember crack.

My impression is that in 1970s:

Middle class used contraception
Working class used abortion
Under class used the maternity ward

So, murder rate among teens born after Roe V. Wade in 1973 went up from 1984-1991.

On the other hand, I haven't paid much attention to homicide rates in the 21st Century, until Ferguson. Obama's decision in 2014 to back #BlackLivesMatter led to a 22% increase in homicides in the US from 2014-2016, especially where BLM triumphed: St. Louis, Baltimore, Chicago.

So, my impression remains that homicide rates go up and down mostly due to:

A. Drug markets (such as crack)
B. Is the government on the side of the cops (e.g., Giuliani/Bloomberg NYC) or the criminals (e.g., Obama Administration in Ferguson Era)?