Does Close Proximity Force People to Act More or Less Civilized? (crimes, living)

[FlowerpotFlowers]

I have considered leaving NJ for a less densely packed state. I would really like to not see any neighbors around me and have more space. However, it seems like most of the news stories I read about where people are abducted and killed, etc, happen in places where there is more room. Is there any connection between living close to a lot of strangers and less opportunity for crime?

For example, the Jessica Ridgeway case where a teen abducted a little girl and killed her. At this point, I kind of expect to read about these things happening in places like Colorado. It just seems more rare for people in NJ to act so brazenly and I wonder if it isn't because they are all packed in like sardines...unpleasant as that may be for some of us.

On the flip side, we may not get killed, but are forced to deal with people and their issues...rudeness or what have you...because they're always nearby.

[nybbler]

Naa, crime's just so common in packed places it's not national news.

[FlowerpotFlowers]

Originally Posted by nybbler

Naa, crime's just so common in packed places it's not national news.

You think so? I don't think there are a lot of crimes where a stranger abducts someone and kills them here. It seems more rare.

[hikinman63]

i myself don't wanna necessarily hang out with my neighbors but i always give a hello greeting

i work with people who would rather look down at the floor or turn sideways to look at a wall while passing you instead of saying hi or goodmorning ,go figure huh


but i force those people to be cordial and say hello every morning