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I'm arguing that it's a more complicated statistical problem than "we see more criminal 'events' in this neighborhood, so we should send more cops there."

• searine 10y ago
  Offering criticism without offering an alternative isn't helpful. Of course it's complicated, and of course crime stats are a simplification. Most stats are. The point is, stats are much better than going by biased "gut feelings". Yes there are underlying issues with stats such as underreporting, but the solution isn't to get rid of the stats. It's to improve the underlying cause of the bias in the data, such as improving police/public relations.
  • dangerlibrary 10y ago
    Your conclusion and the one I implied in my comment are not mutually exclusive. My solution, implied in my comment, was not to use naive statistical models or ideas (i.e. 75% of "crime").
    • searine 10y ago
      An "implied" solution isn't a solution because it was never suggested. And your now stated solution is easier said than done, and certainly not immune to the same kind of biases a naive solution may be subject to.