To stop urban crime and disorder, read Hobbes: Adrian Wooldridge

The theory is simple. And it comes from a 17th-century philosopher. The tragedy of the flight of American business from core cities is that policymakers have a tried-and-tested solution to the problem: be tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime. Adrian Wooldridge argues that the combination of violent crime and growing disorder will speed corporate movement to the suburbs and sunbelt until America can solve this urban crisis; the hopes of a workforce renaissance in these areas will be lost.