Prioritize New York! You are getting things mighty backwards.

Two recent news stories show how lackadaisical thinking harms public policy. The first was the state’s Attorney general bragging that he had eliminated the plague of realistic-looking toy guns. The other headline was that half of the shootings and 40% of the 300 homicides in New York City alone thus far this year were gang related. Keep in mind that NYC homicides are up over 5% this year (this despite the so-called SAFE Act of 2013, which enacted a wealth of new gun control laws … which appear to be doing nothing).

Ponder that. It is likely that toy guns resulted in zero deaths, yet gangs resulted in at least 120, not to mention the non-fatal stabbings, shootings, beatings and other pastimes gangs enjoy. With 375 different street gangs and a rising homicide rate, gangs would be an obvious priority in New York state. The Attorney general reported 189 toy guns sold into the state – 189 toys that caused no harm, and 120 dead in just the Big Apple from gang violence.

This is an example of ideology triumphing over logic. Rational people (which evidentially excludes New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman) look at the list of things they need to attend to, and take on the most troublesome first. Only after some progress is made there do they attend to the next worrisome issue. Gang violence and homicides tied to other criminal activity are the top priorities according to the FBI’s Supplemental Homicide Tables. Yet in New York State, toy guns are considered a menace.

Given that gang membership rates and gang violence profiles dwarf other nations, New York should find a new Attorney general, one who can prioritize properly.