NC present condition (Charlotte: violent crime, landscaping, transfer)

[NC man]

Originally Posted by Bill Hitchcock

NC man,
Goldsboro a rural town?? That's big city folk for us here along the coast in Carteret County!!!!
According to this site the city of Goldsboro has a population of over 39,000! My entire county only has 65,000.

Blanket statements are rarely accurate. Each area has its own unique set of circumstances. Fact finding and digging will produce the answers But never ask the Hatfields about the McCoys or vise versa!!
Bill

Bill I guess that depends on how you define rural, And the fact finding part is required unless your personal experience gives you first hand knowledge, like 42 years leaving in NC ( native ) I drove thru it yesterday. I define non rural areas as the larger cities and while Goldboro is not a one horse town it is a small city. I also consider Havelock, Summerfield, brown summit, Angier, oxford, wise ,Norlina ect all rural not trying to tip your boat but thats my my view and yours is different, thats okay.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by Boston_Native

Horrible is over exaggerating and what you said about illegal immigrants is not a fair comparison. I am talking about moving within your own country to better your life, whether it's through a better job, climate, schools, or overall attitude of the place. Also, people migrating from other parts of the US are bringing their businesses and careers with them AND paying taxes to assist the state with growth. Statistically speaking, illegally immigrants wouldn't be contributing to any of these.

I guess not being from NC, when it was a much more rural area, I can't speak to what you are dealing with. I apologize for those comments, but I also feel the same way when I read posts about "how bad NC is getting or will get because of the large influx of people". I personally don't see NC getting that "bad". But my opinion of "bad" and yours will probably differ.

Not everyone is migrating just to NC, although it's probably the most popular state right now. Most of the sun belt states are growing at a steady pace and will continue to do so over the years to come. NC is a doing a better job, in my opinion, of handling the growth, which is why it's a popular destination. The fact there are so many great companies based or operating here, along with top notch schools and healthcare systems, make it a very attractive location for families looking to relocate. I just don't get all the negativity with the influx of people. If it was a large influx of illegal immigrants or people causing an increase in crime, drugs, etc, i could understand, but thats not the case.

Your statement here is part of the point I was trying to make:

"I just don't get all the negativity with the influx of people. If it was a large influx of illegal immigrants or people causing an increase in crime, drugs, etc, i could understand, but thats not the case."

BUT IT IS THE CASE. What you fail to comprehend is that all this astronomical growth/influx of people has caused exactly those things to happen. Illegals flock here to jobs building new homes for all the people who continue to pour in - more newcomers equals more illegals able to find jobs. And with a larger population come an increase in crime and drugs. Until about 5 years ago we had NO gangs in this city - now we are dealing with an ever growing presence of gangs. It makes some of us just sick to our stomachs to see the negative changes that have occured with all this growth don't you see? Many of us PREFERRED Charlotte at a population of around 200,000 - we had a good economy, a managable school system, very low crime - A GOOD WAY OF LIFE. We didn't miss that we didn't have Saks or Neiman Marcus to shop at.

I am certainly not blaming you or anyone else for wanting a better life, and we here in Charlotte has been very welcoming of those coming here to seek that. We know growth is not a totally bad thing. All we ask for is some RESPECT for who we are and what all this change is putting us thru.

[ShenandoahValley]

Carolina Native:

Aww shucks. I miss living there so much. How about urbania of Cary? Btw is Glen not the mayor anymore? I loved living there, yea in some areas its pricey. I used to work for a local re co near corner of high house rd and cary prkwy.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by lovesMountains

Your statement here is part of the point I was trying to make:

"I just don't get all the negativity with the influx of people. If it was a large influx of illegal immigrants or people causing an increase in crime, drugs, etc, i could understand, but thats not the case."

BUT IT IS THE CASE. What you fail to comprehend is that all this astronomical growth/influx of people has caused exactly those things to happen. Illegals flock here to jobs building new homes for all the people who continue to pour in - more newcomers equals more illegals able to find jobs. And with a larger population come an increase in crime and drugs. Until about 5 years ago we had NO gangs in this city - now we are dealing with an ever growing presence of gangs. It makes some of us just sick to our stomachs to see the negative changes that have occured with all this growth don't you see? Many of us PREFERRED Charlotte at a population of around 200,000 - we had a good economy, a managable school system, very low crime - A GOOD WAY OF LIFE. We didn't miss that we didn't have Saks or Neiman Marcus to shop at.

I am certainly not blaming you or anyone else for wanting a better life, and we here in Charlotte has been very welcoming of those coming here to seek that. We know growth is not a totally bad thing. All we ask for is some RESPECT for who we are and what all this change is putting us thru.

For the poster who dinged me and gave me negative rep for this post, please show yourself and tell me where I said "Mexicans are the cause of every social problem in NC"? Do not put words in my mouth please - I never said any such thing.

Are you going to actually dispute the fact that the building boom in NC hasn't attracted thousands of illegal immigrants here to work in construction? BECAUSE THAT IS A FACT. There is nothing racist or wrong in me pointing that out. Please do not try to turn this post or thread into something about illegals - that is not at all what we were discussing. The subject is GROWTH, and why some of us southerners aren't as grateful for it all as the poster Boston thinks we should be.

You either totally misunderstand my post or just didn't read it carefully enough.

[architect77]

Agriculture has been the biggest draw for immigrants in NC. Once here they discover other higher paying jobs. I don't think growth in general is to blame.

As far as gangs... Violent crime has always been statistically much higher in southern cities even before gangs.

Each county has the authority to reign in the out-of-control growth starting with the real culprits: the developers who are raping the NC landscape. I think native North Carolineans (me included) simply take for granted the natural beauty they've grown up surrounded by and see all growth as good. Fortunately NC is a progressive state governed by intelligent people, (I realized this after 7 years in Georgia.) and all hope may not be lost.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by architect77

Agriculture has been the biggest draw for immigrants in NC. Once here they discover other higher paying jobs. I don't think growth in general is to blame.

As far as gangs... Violent crime has always been statistically much higher in southern cities even before gangs.

Each county has the authority to reign in the out-of-control growth starting with the real culprits: the developers who are raping the NC landscape. I think native North Carolineans (me included) simply take for granted the natural beauty they've grown up surrounded by and see all growth as good. Fortunately NC is a progressive state governed by intelligent people, (I realized this after 7 years in Georgia.) and all hope may not be lost.

My point about gangs is that we didn't have any when this was a smaller city. Since we passed the half million mark gangs have gravitated here for many reasons. Put simply, growth equals more prosperity (for some) which equals opportunity for criminals.

Do not try to confuse the argument by saying southern cities have always had more violent crime even before gangs. The truth is that the south's tradition of violence has been mostly domestic violence. Now, given I'm not personally married to an abuser, or one myself, I am at very low risk from that kind of violence. GANG violence, however, is a whole other kind of violence. What with the lack of respect gang members have in general for human life, turf wars, drug trade and criminal acts encouraged by gangs for either initiation into a gang or to get money for their gangs, my family and I are now at significantly higer risk of being victims of crime. Before Charlotte grew to be such a large city there was not much to draw the criminal element here. So basically, one price people like me have had to pay for all this growth some of you love so much is peace of mind and personal safety.

[architect77]

I respectfully agree with you on many points. I think domestic violence deserves its own separate discussion, but I think for the last 10-20 years Atlanta has ranked no. 1 in violent crime per capita nationwide, and Richmond often has the highest murder rate per capita.

I don't live in Charlotte so I probably shouldn't be giving my two cents worth, and until I watched a PBS documentary about gangs I didn't fully understand the extent of their brutality. But I do know this: In 1990 the federal government listed the top 10 places that violent crime was expected to soar, and NC made the list. The drug trade was expanding into the south where millions of low income and under-educated victims awaited.

Personally I think the increased crime in Charlotte is all part of growing pains of a city that has promoted itself as a big city very hard over the last 20 years. Hopefully as the city matures it will level off. I am stunned when visiting wsoctv.com at all of the home invasions and people being hit by stray bullets. Hopefully the city's banking success won't result in too wide of a socioeconomic gap of haves and have-nots.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by architect77

I respectfully agree with you on many points. I think domestic violence deserves its own separate discussion, but I think for the last 10-20 years Atlanta has ranked no. 1 in violent crime per capita nationwide, and Richmond often has the highest murder rate per capita.

I don't live in Charlotte so I probably shouldn't be giving my two cents worth, and until I watched a PBS documentary about gangs I didn't fully understand the extent of their brutality. But I do know this: In 1990 the federal government listed the top 10 places that violent crime was expected to soar, and NC made the list. The drug trade was expanding into the south where millions of low income and under-educated victims awaited.

Personally I think the increased crime in Charlotte is all part of growing pains of a city that has promoted itself as a big city very hard over the last 20 years. Hopefully as the city matures it will level off. I am stunned when visiting wsoctv.com at all of the home invasions and people being hit by stray bullets. Hopefully the city's banking success won't result in too wide of a socioeconomic gap of haves and have-nots.

Thank you for your willingness to understand my point of view architect
In your last sentence you have addressed one of my biggest concerns. This really used to be a very middle class city. We are now quickly becoming a city of haves and have-nots, and it really worries me. As a more middle class city we took care of those less fortunate than ourselves. It seems to have gotten easier for some folks to not have to see or think about certain segments of our community. Don't want to turn this into a long diatribe, just appreciate it when folks like you make an effort to understand what is on the minds of the folks you may be coming to live among

[Sleestak]

It is worth mentioning that the Mexican drug cartels now supply the majority of the crystal meth on the streets today. After many U.S. states passed laws to control the availability of precursor chemicals, the cartels ramped up production in "Super Labs" in Mexico and California. The cartels are using the same routes to smuggle meth that are used by illegals. Any city with a substantial population of hispanic illegals provides the perfect cover for the Mexican Cartels. Violent crime from turf wars as well as opportunistic crime from addicts will almost certainly increase. It is not at all unreasonable to link increased crime with the presence of a large group of illegals in a given city. For those who want to learn more, the following article is a good start:

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0204mex-meth0204.html (broken link)

[NC man]

Let me start by saying that traffic in NC is nothing compared to Massachusetts. I understand the people who grew up in NC, probably are seeing traffic get worse with the influx of people, but us "outsiders" see this as a much better traffic situation compared to what we are coming from (especially if you are from MA, NY, NJ). ////////////////////////////


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This was my point with the post, people think it will never be like what they are fleeing from, but reality is it will be as bad or worse in some of the metro areas of NC. 40,000 plus people moved into the raleigh area alone last year,thats one year and more then that is expected this year. That did not happen in MA or NJ, it happened gradually over many years. Add forty thousand cars to a area the size of NJ in one year and expect that every year until, who knows. It is a big difference to have all this happen over night