And the entire system is a travesty. And it is not limited to Chicago. Every major city had the same set-up, and the Democratic Party operated the system with vigor.

The "political machine" system got its start as ethnic-protection societies and many of the ethnic and racial problems in major cities were either created, enhanced or exploited by this system. In Boston I can remember two very active ethnic "machines," and they operated with great efficiency in vote-gathering, power-grabbing and ruling along ethnic lines. The party was slick, in that it placed all the blame on city control via two ethnic groups on the groups and not the party, and then recruited amongst the others by claiming the party (as the party of the little guy) was in the best position to level the political playing fields amongst the ethnics. The fact that it never happened was testament to superlative salesmanship.

This "captain" also filled the role of party enforcer if someone didn't toe the line according to the party's direction.

So, whether "needs were or are met" or not depends on whether you were or are a member of the class being "protected" by the system. Not everyone was or is, and those not within the protected "class" tend to see things differently.

The "city worked" just as you describe Chicago, but only for the party members who fed the system. For everyone else, they got some of the left-overs, but were out in the cold unless they acquiesced to the party and the block captain.

Sounds to me a lot like other places in the world where a one-party system rules by privilege and force.