The real cause behind Jordan Neely case and it’s not race

With the indictment of Daniel Penny, the Jordan Neely "subway strangulation" case continues to grab headlines across the country — mainly driven by the media’s insatiable desire to racialize everything.  

The incident seems destined to become one of those iconic cases New York specializes in; an event that captures America’s urban zeitgeist, for better or worse.  

If so, it is worth noting: this time, something feels different. 

INDICTMENT OF MARINE VETERAN DANIEL PENNY 'DEFIES LOGIC,' SAYS LOCAL NY OFFICIAL: 'SOMETHING ROTTEN'

Sure, we quickly got the usual bleats from the usual suspects. On cue, New York Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called Neely’s death a "murder"; New York state Senator Julia Salazar — think "AOC lite" — called it a "lynching."  

MSNBC host Al Sharpton, NYC Council Leader Adrienne Adams, The New York Times, a handful of over-indulged protestors in a contrived protest on subway tracks … all defaulted to the narrative they’ve become accustomed to bullying us with. 

Naturally, Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, whose efficacy and leadership in that storied office reminds one of a current Russian army general, is leading the charge. Suddenly he’s trying to sound like a prosecutor and not Dr. Phil.  

He’s reportedly managed to indict Penny on the top charge of Manslaughter 2 (a rare felony indictment for that office that doesn’t involve a former president). 

But a funny thing has happened regarding this case. So far, at least: The racial narrative hasn’t really taken hold.  

A closer look at the facts – and the one video released thus far – is telling. One of the men helping Penny restrain Neely is in fact a man of color. A woman on the train stated that she was "praying" for Penny, and that she immediately went to the local precinct to give a statement in support. Then a Black woman on the subway car stepped forward to call Daniel Penny "a hero" in the press. All three are potential testifying witnesses. 

This is not how the script was supposed to run. Shouldn’t we be burning tires and looting stores by now? Is there an "occupy" going on somewhere that I missed? 

Nowhere is this shift more vivid than in the comments to the original articles by The Times. In a near-sexual fervor, Times writers began to churn out article after article sanitizing Neely’s very troubled life, and (naturally) demonizing Penny.  

These articles have a Mad Libs quality; the buzz-terms are always the same ("white supremacist," "racism," etc.). Usually, the "reader comments" to this stuff run the gamut from "I agree" to "I fully agree!" 

Not this time. 

I don’t ever recall seeing such push-back to Times op-eds. Clearly, even some — in fact, many — Times readers ride the subway. And they’ve all been in situations where they were praying for a Daniel Penny to show up. 

It’s not just the Times comments. As a current Manhattanite, I can tell you: while the people in the bars, restaurants, in online forums — most of whom would likely characterize themselves as lefties — recognize that Neely’s death is a tragedy, they generally don’t want Daniel Penny jailed for it. 

So what gives? 

It’s simple: None of the people most publicly calling for Penny’s head ride the subway.  

For instance, AOC — who likes to affect a "Jenny-from-the-block" persona but who actually grew up in upstate New York — is rarely even in her district, never mind on the subway. Comptroller Brad Lander — who called Penny a "vigilante" on Twitter — has a city-funded driver. 

This is the Uber Class — the folks who can afford to car service everywhere, even daily to work (if they don’t have a chauffeur). 

The rest of us are the Subway Class — condemned to hurtle around town in a metal tube that has become a rolling psych ward. 

It’s like H.G. Wells’ dystopian novel, "The Time Machine." It’s the Above-Grounders versus the Under-Grounders, the enlightened Eloi versus the unwashed Morlocks. 

Some recent subway-related headlines from Morlock, New York:  

New York Post: "NYC Straphanger Arrested After Macing ‘Disorderly’ Man in Subway Station: Cops" 

New York Daily News: "Man Slashed on Brooklyn Subway Train For Intervening in Fight: NYPD" 

Naturally, Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, whose efficacy and leadership in that storied office reminds one of a current Russian army general, is leading the charge. Suddenly he’s trying to sound like a prosecutor and not Dr. Phil.  

Daily Mail: "NYC straphanger charged with manslaughter after 'stabbing ex-con who harassed him and his girlfriend"  

It was, of course, the Uber Class that created the defund-the-police movement – and so the vacuum Penny and other under-grounders have felt compelled to fill.  

Has it somehow escaped the notice of the Uberites that Jordan Neely had recently been sentenced to an "incarceration alternative" for yet another felony assault? And that he was able to simply walk away from it?  

These are the elites who favored the $800 million Bill de Blasio gifted his wife for their "Thrive New York" mental health initiative. Or who approve of the nearly quarter-billion dollars that will comprise the Department of Homeless Services budget next year.  

The programs grow. Their efficacy does not.  

You would have to have a heart of stone not to feel something from the image of Neely lying on that subway car floor, in his ratty sneakers and dirty pants, dying.  

He was violent; he hurt people, yes. But he was crazy and he was a human being. After 42 priors, some violent, he should've been locked up in a humane environment. Forcibly incarcerated as an incorrigible, receiving coerced treatment. 

Despite the billions spent, New York – indeed, nearly all of our (Dem-run) major cities – seem incapable of doing that.  

So there will be a trial. At bottom, the case will turn on whether Penny’s use of force was commensurate with the threat he faced. It is significant that in Penny’s recent videos, he states that Neely shouted, "I will kill you." That raises the stakes in that subway car – potentially helping the defense.  

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Taking all this into account, my prediction is: a hung jury.  

But there’s a long way to go. And the Uberites will have their say, helped along by the media. 

The political elites driving all this revealed their motivations early. When Penny was arrested before a grand jury was convened -- indeed, almost certainly before the toxicology report was even back – it was clear the battle lines had been drawn.  

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These folks will be watching the case closely. Here in New York – indeed, across the country – they’re looking at the Neely/Penny case, and they’re thinking one thing: "votes."  

And count on it – they all have drivers.  

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