America’s three largest metropolises — New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago — should be our showcase to the world on how society should function. Unfortunately, they have become a source of embarrassment for the U.S.

These cities are plagued with high poverty, crime and expensive housing, which are some of the byproducts of the U.S. having the largest wealth divide in the developed world. We’re becoming more of a have-and-have-not society. If you’re White, you might want to take flight to avoid being blamed or shamed.

A deep-dive study into failure analysis needs to be done on our podium cities because previous solutions haven’t worked. The three inept mayors of these cities behave more like the Three Stooges than they do elected officials. They behave as if they’re from Superman’s Bizarro World, where everything is done in reverse.

So far, none of the far left’s great ideas — including defunding the police, decriminalization efforts and public shooting galleries for drug addicts — has worked. I could go on about other failed Democratic projects, including “affordable housing” programs and neglected public works that have left our once-lovely cities crime-ridden shadows of their former selves.

The usual solution is more funding, which means higher taxes, which in turn hinders economic development because it forces businesses to relocate. We must hold politicians accountable for these failed programs and stop funding them at the local, state and federal levels.

The voting public is too frequently guilty of rewarding politicians for their misdeeds and violations of public trust. If we continue on this path, it will be only a matter of time before we witness the demise of all of America.

LEE R. PITTS

Orlando, Florida