I wrote yesterday that things in our nearby town seemed “shockingly normal.” Sadly, that’s not the case in much of the country.
For example, I read today about a young mother was beheaded in front of her house in San Carlos, Calif., allegedly by her baby daddy. Beheaded with a sword? That a scene out of some crime movie, not real life.
In New York, a 21-year-old tourist was raped on a subway platform. If you have to travel in a big city at 3 a.m., don’t take the subway. Call an Uber.
On Friday, a man, woman and three children were shot in their home in Maryland, close to the Delaware border.
These are just the most extreme crimes that make the national news. The smash-and-grab robberies, the carjackings, the gang-related shootings, and the drug overdoses that happen every day don’t make the news. That’s those crimes are normal in far too many cities. For example, thanks to a TikTok on how to steal certain Hyundai and Kai automobiles in 30 seconds, car robberies have skyrocketed. Car theft is up 800 percent in Chicago.
Don’t Think It Can’t Happen to You
If you live in a “nice” neighborhood, you may think it can’t happen to you. Unfortunately, that’s not true. Some criminals specialize in robbing homes in wealthy suburban neighborhoods. Even run-of-the-mill criminals look to steal from places that have something worth taking.
In one city where I lived, a burglar broke into the house of my boss who lived in a very high-end neighborhood. Their teenage son was home. He grabbed a hatchet and chased the thief out of the house and down the driveway, where she jumped into a car driven by a guy and they made a quick getaway. Each of them was lucky the other wasn’t armed with a gun.
In the area we lived, which was outside the suburbs, a neighbor noticed someone who didn’t live there park in the driveway and go inside a neighbor’s house. He called the police and then got into his truck and parked it in position to block the driveway. When the thief came out of the house carrying a bunch of the homeowner’s property, the neighbor yelled at him. The man dropped what he was carrying, jumped into his car, and drove across the front yard and across a berm and a ditch to get away. The police didn’t catch him, but the neighbor prevented anything from being stolen. There was a stack of loot positioned inside the door the thief was planning to quickly load into the car.
These days, people are getting their cars stolen while pumping gas at a gas station. If you are traveling by interstate highway, don’t stop for gas at an exit in a city. Wait until you are in a nice rural area. It should be safer.
Get Used to Crime
Just as Americans have gotten used to the high price of gas and food, the constant threat of COVID-19, and having the occasionally empty shelf at the store, they are getting used to more and more crime. For example, I didn’t see any outrage that a young woman got beheaded, just fear.
I also see little outrage in Illinois at a law that does away with bail for people charged with second degree murder, drug-induced homicide, kidnapping, aggravated battery, arson and at least seven other felonies. So that guy who just burn down your neighbor’s house is going to be let out of jail to burn down yours. (The law goes into effect January 1.)
I predict this law will lead to an increase in crime with many repeat offenders, result in criminals not showing up for trial, and see illegal immigrants leave the state or country to avoid trials. We should increase our law and order stance, not loosen it. I can only conclude that the left wants more crime. They’ll even accept an increase in black-on-black crime as long as the crime on wealthy white people also increases.
It may have started with decriminalizing marijuana and defunding the police, but it’s not going to stop until most of the things we consider crimes are decriminalized.
Move to a Red State
It makes me happy I live in a red state where these laws are unlikely to pass. I’m also glad to live in a county where the Sheriff and State Police who patrol our area aren’t afraid to shoot bad guys. Since we moved here, there have been at least three high speed pursuits of criminals. In one case, the bad guys crashed and got arrested. The other two ended in the criminals getting shot. As far as I can see, there was no outrage and a good deal of support for our local law enforcement officers.
That kind of policing and the high number of legally armed citizens is going to allow us to enjoy a minimal threat of violent crime for the foreseeable future.
