Well I guess I have to move now...again!

[jcemitte]

i must be some kind of trouble magnet... i seriously go to work come home eat dinner surf the web and go to bed, thats all i do. every time i move some where gangs start popping up around me. tonight i was outside with my best friend while he was smokin a cigarette and this guy moves one small truck load of shit into the apartment across from me, then comes over and introduces himself as carlos," but they call me dopes. im a southerner" he is a nice guy and everything but ive been fooled before and it wont happen again. now that my stupid friend and him are tight homies he tells us hes packin heat, hes got a tec 9, and is asking us if we do yao.

so i have a coke doing, automatic weapon wielding 23 year old living across from me..... it never freaking ends in california!!!!!!!!!! even in the nice neighborhoods!!!! im so freaking donw with this state its bullshit

[bkndacn]

Thats almost about as bad as me... I moved across country to find out about the apt building next door had been firebombed (due to a gang affiliation)a few months before we moved over here! That made me a lil nervous and now I am like that guy that eyes every new person in my building!!

[yarisitis]

Living in Visalia might have something to do with it, lol.

[djct_watt]

Originally Posted by yarisitis

Living in Visalia might have something to do with it, lol.

Yup. The whole central valley is a hotbed of crime. You want something nice, move to Monterey. . . or how maybe the Sonoma. Or you could try something like Watsonville?? I dunno. . . the best bet is just to get outta there. That's what I did. I left the country. I tired of complaining. I got tired of stupid people ranting about politics and not knowing what they were talking about (they cheer like they cheer for sports teams). The people have officially lost track of education and the major source of news and information are things like Letterman and The Daily Show. There are nice areas still, but you have be a millionaire to live there. And I'm sorry, I just don't see myself spending $600,000 for a POS home in a gang infested neighborhood. $1M+? Forget it. There was a time when older generations paid off a home in 10 years. That time is gone. Yeah you could move in with some sheep out in the middle of nowhere, but that's not going to happen.

In Thailand, if you have good skills, you can make good money. And you can still buy a home for less than $50,000. . . and it'd be a high floor high rise luxury condo. Meals seldom cost over $2, and I can go out all night long and pay for my friends for less than $30. An hour long cab ride costs $4, no joke. And I net more money in my pocket at the end of the month than I ever did in the States.

[firemachine69]

Here's an idea.

Call the cops, let them sort it out.


In some other states, gangs don't exist, 'cause they're scared shitless of being confronted by law-abiding armed citizens.


Food for thought.

[JumpmanYaris]

Originally Posted by firemachine69

Here's an idea.

Call the cops, let them sort it out.


In some other states, gangs don't exist, 'cause they're scared shitless of being confronted by law-abiding armed citizens.


Food for thought.

You must not know Cali

[firemachine69]

Yes, the rest of the world calls it "commie-cali" for a reason...

[Kioshi]

....Cops are being reduced left and right here in California ;)
They dont report to scary people next door or...small house burglary. It's a totally different ballgame out here :P

[Astroman]

My girlfriends family lives in Lindsay, and when I'm down there we frequently go to Visalia. She's an ex gang banger and so is her older brother. At least I'm with someone who knows the area and gang hotspots when I'm down there.

[nemelek]

I have found that where ever you live there is always an idiot next to you.

[SilverBack]

El Monte isn't the greatest town to live in either. From what I've seen at least half the people here don't know how to act civilized and the cops still don't do anything about it (if they even show-up to begin with). Now if someone like me were to do something harmless like externally mod on my car, they'd pull the name of a random offense out of a hat as an excuse to pull me over and pat both me and my car down for crack and pistols. Seeing as how this is such a backwards town, the best thing to do is just lay as low as possible and not attract any attention.

[djct_watt]

Originally Posted by SilverBack

El Monte isn't the greatest town to live in either. From what I've seen at least half the people here don't know how to act civilized and the cops still don't do anything about it (if they even show-up to begin with). Now if someone like me were to do something harmless like externally mod on my car, they'd pull the name of a random offense out of a hat as an excuse to pull me over and pat both me and my car down for crack and pistols. Seeing as how this is such a backwards town, the best thing to do is just lay as low as possible and not attract any attention.

I used to live in Pico Rivera and work in Alhambra, commuting through El Monte. I know exactly what you mean. Beware of Alhambra cops. . . they're busy posting their speed traps throughout the whole area. But when there ever is a crime, they take an hour to respond. But crimes don't make money now, do they?

[SilverBack]

Originally Posted by djct_watt

I used to live in Pico Rivera and work in Alhambra, commuting through El Monte. I know exactly what you mean. Beware of Alhambra cops. . . they're busy posting their speed traps throughout the whole area. But when there ever is a crime, they take an hour to respond. But crimes don't make money now, do they?

Right on bro! I lived in Alhambra for 4 years before moving here, and yes I've witnessed first-hand they've never been the sharpest tool in the shed when it came to handling REAL problems. And you're right, crimes don't make money for their donut expenses. Tax dollars coming out of our hard-earned paychecks do. Meh but what can you do...

[tomato]

Originally Posted by nemelek

I have found that where ever you live there is always an idiot next to you.

+1

I've lived in the so-called "nice neighborhoods" (read, really upscale and expensive) and my car was broken into just as many times, if not more, go figure. Makes you wonder.

[djct_watt]

^ The entire state of CA is a hotbed for crime (and we have the strictest gun laws, because criminals are not scared of breaking any law except a gun law because the government gets really really mad at them).

But the SF Bay Area as well as Socal is high up on the nation's auto theft and break ins. I lived in a multi-million dollar neighborhood. Some rich kid had his parents import him a JDM Integra Type R from Japan and it was stolen in less than a month. There is no escaping petty crime in California.

However, those nice neighborhoods are usually good at eliminating violent crimes, and I'd rather be a victim of petty over violent. To think that if you kill in intruder who is robbing your home, you can go to jail in CA. You have to justify use of deadly force and (it seems) the criminals often have more rights than victims.

[tomato]

Originally Posted by djct_watt

^ The entire state of CA is a hotbed for crime (and we have the strictest gun laws, because criminals are not scared of breaking any law except a gun law because the government gets really really mad at them).

But the SF Bay Area as well as Socal is high up on the nation's auto theft and break ins. I lived in a multi-million dollar neighborhood. Some rich kid had his parents import him a JDM Integra Type R from Japan and it was stolen in less than a month. There is no escaping petty crime in California.

However, those nice neighborhoods are usually good at eliminating violent crimes, and I'd rather be a victim of petty over violent. To think that if you kill in intruder who is robbing your home, you can go to jail in CA. You have to justify use of deadly force and (it seems) the criminals often have more rights than victims.

Funny you should mention it. And I do have to agree with you about the petty over violent comment.

We were burglarized 2 days ago, on Sunday night. I kept kicking myself in the behind all day Monday because I probably forgot to put my car alarm on (?), so I heard nothing. But it is probably a good thing that I heard nothing. They came, ransacked our storage units, broke into some cars, stole some stuff and left. Some property damage, some loss, yes, but everybody's healthy, able to pick up and move on with their lives.

If had heard (or my neighbors') my alarm, I probably (or they) would have run down the stairs to see what's going on. Its pretty safe to assume that everybody here committing a crime is also packing. We're not. So what would have happened next, then, is anybody's guess.

When I lived in Marin County, I had countless break-ins but never worried about getting shot. Here, I generally don't worry too much about my property but I wonder sometimes if I'm gonna catch a stray bullet when I come home late from work And I do live in a so called "nice neighborhood," but every day I have to commute through the "not so nice" parts and I always wonder if one day I'm gonna run out of luck...

Just the day before yesterday, we had a freak shoot at the police 2 miles away from here http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...MNMN1EHB37.DTL (good thing the police stopped him in his track before he actually did some real damage)

The day before that, some guy who came from another state to interview for a job at Google, got shot downtown Oakland coming out of the dentist ??? http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_1554...rce=rss_viewed He had a whole $17 on his person!! They shot him for that!!

In another incident, some douche called the police in a section 8 building some place downtown or not too far, and the police responded .... only to be shot at from the top of a building by a sniper. (can't find the link, but I'm definitely not making it up, unfortunately).

The irony is that last week, they laid off 80 cops in Oakland, which is not exactly a peaceful city,

http://articles.sfgate.com/2009-01-0...-demonstrators

can't find the recent link for this ^ but we had another round just a week ago, after the verdict of manslaughter came out ... and they're talking about laying off another 150 cops in the near future!!

Don't think this is confined to Oakland.

More shootings... in SF this time.

http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-06-2...stephen-powell

ah, but they're used to it, they did it last year too, in the same neighborhood, too.

sorry about the rant, guys.

[DevilGirl]

Originally Posted by djct_watt

To think that if you kill in intruder who is robbing your home, you can go to jail in CA. You have to justify use of deadly force and (it seems) the criminals often have more rights than victims.

Not just in CA. That's in a lot of states. The general rule is that you use only enough force as necessary. And if you think about it, it does make a little sense. Why should you be allowed to kill somone who is just stealing stuff from your home? If they came in and did nothing to your person physically or mentally (i.e., threatened you with bodily harm to the point that you felt your very life was in danger), then your person was still safe. It's only when your life is threatened and there is no other alternative (i.e. run), that you are allowed to use deadly force.

To put it another way, sure a guy comes in to rob you, and you shoot to kill. You've just committed manslaughter. Why should you be held to a different standard just because someone was trying to take a possession that is replaceable? A life is not. Killing is still a crime, there are just some instances when there are mitigating circumstances (i.e. self defense, military at war)

[djct_watt]

Originally Posted by DevilGirl

Not just in CA. That's in a lot of states. The general rule is that you use only enough force as necessary. And if you think about it, it does make a little sense. Why should you be allowed to kill somone who is just stealing stuff from your home? If they came in and did nothing to your person physically or mentally (i.e., threatened you with bodily harm to the point that you felt your very life was in danger), then your person was still safe. It's only when your life is threatened and there is no other alternative (i.e. run), that you are allowed to use deadly force.

To put it another way, sure a guy comes in to rob you, and you shoot to kill. You've just committed manslaughter. Why should you be held to a different standard just because someone was trying to take a possession that is replaceable? A life is not. Killing is still a crime, there are just some instances when there are mitigating circumstances (i.e. self defense, military at war)

Your argument is very well put, and I respect it, but also disagree. I believe that a person has the right to defend their property, and anything less than deadly force is not a deterrent. Let's face it, you get robbed and let the their go, he/she'll probably never get caught unless they make a mistake. You effectively are allowing the theft to occur. However, if you decide to fight back, there is no way of knowing how many intruders there are, how heavily they are armed, or their intentions. If I decide to take action, I'm not going to take any risks to protect someone who should have less rights (as they are encroaching on mine). Imagine I put up an electrified fence and a burglar dies by getting shocked, despite the warning signs. Should I be accountable for his stupidity? I believe (and this is a no win argument) that it should be an assumed risk that you could die breaking into someone's home, and that if you (the burglar) get killed, it's due to your own ignorance. To me it's no different than jumping in front of freeway traffic and trying to blame the driver if he cannot stop. And in that situation, I'd mow down the person than even consider risking my own life trying to swerve.

I had some kid (westerner rich kid with vandalism intentions) break into our house here in Thailand once... We found out who it was and called the cops. In front of the kid and parents, the cop told us to just shoot him on site (a bit extreme, I know) if he's in our property again. I don't think I've ever seen him again and I know he moved out of the neighborhood.