The United Kingdom (crime) (house, safe area, quality of life)

[Livinginabox]

I left the UK 5 years ago and in all honesty, I have never looked back, or regretted that decision one bit. In fact, I have not even been back to visit the UK and it would not bother me if I never went back again.

One of the main reasons why I don’t miss the UK is the fact that British society as a whole is seriously ill. Anti-social behavior is out of control, gangs of drunken and drugged up youths basically rule the streets of pretty much all British towns and cities. They walk the streets, vandalizing anything they see, harassing anyone they see, committing acts of violence, intimidation and even murder. If you think that I’m talking out of my backside, I suggest you simply Google the words “British justice”, “yobs”, “murder” and “chavs” and you’ll find hundreds of articles in relation to young British criminals literally getting away with murdering innocent people.

I laugh when other British people talk about how “bad” the United States is, in terms of crime. I always tell people that I feel 1,000,000 times safer here than I ever did in the UK, and that’s the truth. Generally, American cops don’t tolerate nonsense from people in general when it comes to anti-social behavior. There are no ASBO’s (Anti Social Behavior Orders) here – just JAIL and cops who won’t take any nonsense.

British justice (or British injustice) is a joke. It favors the criminal pretty much every time, not the victim. Many years ago, there was a case where a farmer in Norfolk was sent to jail for shooting two teenage scumbags who broke into his farm – pathetic. Over here, you have the RIGHT to defend your home, your family, your property.

I often check the UK news online and I read countless stories of innocent people being beaten to death by gangs of youths and despite the fact that I am far away from that god-forsaken island, it still pains me to think of the sheer injustice.

If you speak out against this crap in the UK, you are labeled a “Conservative”. You are somehow, supposed to feel sorry for these pathetic pieces of crap who carry out these despicable acts. Most of them don’t work – they scrounge welfare. Would I sound too harsh if I said that most of them should simply be “put down”, like rabid animals?

But Britain is a country that won’t even arm its police with firearms, despite the fact that gun crime has been on the increase for years. Instead, they choose to deny that the problem exists….let the bobby’s on sticks prevail, while dangerous gangsters are armed with the latest weapons.

When I lived in the UK, I was so tired of the political correctness – feeling that as a nation, we were being forced to bend over backwards for scum…scum who refused to work and chose to scrounge off the state instead, or scum who would do nothing but engage in acts of anti-social behavior. I suffered from major anxiety, because like many people, I was literally afraid to go out. Now, I am far more active....I feel much safer here. Even in Miami (which has a bad rep for crime, apparently!), I feel safer than I ever did in the UK. No one messes with you here and people seem to have a lot more respect for one another (and the law).

Just tale a trip down any British High Street on a Friday or Saturday night (or any night, actually) and you'll see dozens of drunken brawls and people (guys AND girls) making complete a--sses of themselves in public, boozing, boozing, puking, fighting and boozing some more....such is British culture these days.

The United States does indeed have a serious problem with gun crime, but I can honestly tell you that aside from the “bad” areas, the streets are 1,000 times safer over here. You simply don’t see groups of youths congregating everywhere, causing trouble and harassing innocent people.

Britain needs to pull its head out of it’s you know what and crack down on crime. It’s negatively affecting the quality of life for too many law-abiding citizens, and it’s about time people took a stand and said “enough is enough”. Even if it means abandoning left-wing values for a short time, just do it. Vote for any party that promises to crack down on crime, because Britain would be a good place to live without the chav-scum.

On top of that, you have the likes of Pete Doherty getting away with feeding crack cocaine to a kitten, or Chris Langham, who was given a pathetic 10 month sentence for downloading child porn. It just goes to show how ridiculously lenient British justice has become.

Until things change for the better, I will never return to the UK and I would not recommend moving to the UK to anyone, unless that person happened to be a glutton for punishment. Don't listen to any Brits bashing other countries for their levels of crime....at least other countries don't suffer the same levels of anti-social behavior as the UK does.

[Scotslass]

Hi Livinginabox,

I thought your post had a valid point. I hear it mostly every night about someone being beat up, raped or stabbed but the government isn't actually acting on it and having the same attitude as the US when it comes to justice.

Where i live is a nice area but there is some places i wouldn't touch.

Is it really safe where you live even although mostly everyone has a gun?

I think the UK government needs a good kick up the ass, its just pityfull, we're supposed to be setting an example, the criminals get more rights than the victim. If someone breaks into your home with a weapon and you defend yourself by killing them you get put in prison for murder. What happened to self defence??

Take care

[connie&dave]

LivinginaBox-I couldn't agree with you more, I'm an American living in the UK and I don't feel safe at all. What I have experienced is exactly what you say about what you see on the weekend on the high street of any town big or small. You don't really feel safe on a Saturday night with all the drinking that goes on here, it's funny to see brits who are so "controlled and stiff upper lip" by day turn into complete chavs and out of control muppets by night; men and women alike can be just as bad, many are just looking to start a fight for fun because they are so bored with their lives. Don't get me wrong I love a good glass of wine but sometimes you feel it's just not worth the hassle of it all.

Also astonishing is the fact that if you happen to accidentally leave valuables in sight in your car its very likely your car will be broken into, and you see this EVERYWHERE, posh neighborhoods or slums of London. There is a beautiful country park nearby and their is a warning sign police have posted that says cars have been broken into 36 times this summer alone. I lived in California for 30 years and never experienced any break-ins or theft and I constantly left my mobile or purse in the car.

Although we do have lots of gangs and guns in America they usually STAY in there own turf to defend it from rival gangs and don't venture into the suburbs. When my husband would visit me in Southern California before we married he would be so shocked to see me leave my bikes and skates outside on the porch and nobody would take anything (I'm not talking about the greater LA area). At least you have a choice: if you want to live in a safe area you move to the suburbs or small towns whereas here in the UK the crime is everywhere and will find you no matter where you live.

Truth is I never would have believed it had I not experienced it first hand- it really is shocking that such a powerful nation and evolved society allows so much crime - You are spot on with saying the punishment doesn't fit the crime at all, brits really need to wake up and smell the espresso...times have changed and police really need to protect themselves and the law abiding citizens of this great nation.

p.s. just moved from Essex to "the royal county of Berkshire" and crime is just as bad here, a couple got assaulted at our train station on Sunday a woman pushed another woman and her husband CUT the others face! Knives instead of guns

[annielf]

Originally Posted by connie&dave

LivinginaBox-I couldn't agree with you more, I'm an American living in the UK and I don't feel safe at all. What I have experienced is exactly what you say about what you see on the weekend on the high street of any town big or small. You don't really feel safe on a Saturday night with all the drinking that goes on here, it's funny to see brits who are so "controlled and stiff upper lip" by day turn into complete chavs and out of control muppets by night; men and women alike can be just as bad, many are just looking to start a fight for fun because they are so bored with their lives. Don't get me wrong I love a good glass of wine but sometimes you feel it's just not worth the hassle of it all.

Also astonishing is the fact that if you happen to accidentally leave valuables in sight in your car its very likely your car will be broken into, and you see this EVERYWHERE, posh neighborhoods or slums of London.

No, it's not everywhere. I'm also an American in the UK and we don't bother locking the door of our house unless we're gone for the day. We also leave the keys in the cars. Yes, there are drunks at the pub at night who get into fights afterwards or vandalize, but that's it. I live in west Scotland (semi-rural) and I love it. You couldn't force me to live in the US again.

[connie&dave]

Originally Posted by annielf

No, it's not everywhere. I'm also an American in the UK and we don't bother locking the door of our house unless we're gone for the day. We also leave the keys in the cars. Yes, there are drunks at the pub at night who get into fights afterwards or vandalize, but that's it. I live in west Scotland (semi-rural) and I love it. You couldn't force me to live in the US again.

Ok not everywhere-maybe not a tiny town on the edge of nowhere with a pop. of 300 people and 100 sheep...what I mean is it's wide spread of course there will be some exceptions.

[Futcha]

Originally Posted by Scotslass

Hi Livinginabox,If someone breaks into your home with a weapon and you defend yourself by killing them you get put in prison for murder. What happened to self defence??

Well, that is not entirely true. It depends on the situation. First thing to do is call your local police department. Second, WAIT. Don't try and take the criminal out yourself because you're probably going to lose. Deadly force is a last resort. Killing someone over taking your little necklace just isn't worth it. People seem to think they are tough enough to take on a criminal. Yeah, not a chance. Leave it to the police.

[Anarchy]

Originally Posted by Livinginabox

I left the UK 5 years ago and in all honesty, I have never looked back, or regretted that decision one bit. In fact, I have not even been back to visit the UK and it would not bother me if I never went back again.

One of the main reasons why I don’t miss the UK is the fact that British society as a whole is seriously ill. Anti-social behavior is out of control, gangs of drunken and drugged up youths basically rule the streets of pretty much all British towns and cities. They walk the streets, vandalizing anything they see, harassing anyone they see, committing acts of violence, intimidation and even murder. If you think that I’m talking out of my backside, I suggest you simply Google the words “British justice”, “yobs”, “murder” and “chavs” and you’ll find hundreds of articles in relation to young British criminals literally getting away with murdering innocent people.

I laugh when other British people talk about how “bad” the United States is, in terms of crime. I always tell people that I feel 1,000,000 times safer here than I ever did in the UK, and that’s the truth. Generally, American cops don’t tolerate nonsense from people in general when it comes to anti-social behavior. There are no ASBO’s (Anti Social Behavior Orders) here – just JAIL and cops who won’t take any nonsense.

British justice (or British injustice) is a joke. It favors the criminal pretty much every time, not the victim. Many years ago, there was a case where a farmer in Norfolk was sent to jail for shooting two teenage scumbags who broke into his farm – pathetic. Over here, you have the RIGHT to defend your home, your family, your property.

I often check the UK news online and I read countless stories of innocent people being beaten to death by gangs of youths and despite the fact that I am far away from that god-forsaken island, it still pains me to think of the sheer injustice.

If you speak out against this crap in the UK, you are labeled a “Conservative”. You are somehow, supposed to feel sorry for these pathetic pieces of crap who carry out these despicable acts. Most of them don’t work – they scrounge welfare. Would I sound too harsh if I said that most of them should simply be “put down”, like rabid animals?

But Britain is a country that won’t even arm its police with firearms, despite the fact that gun crime has been on the increase for years. Instead, they choose to deny that the problem exists….let the bobby’s on sticks prevail, while dangerous gangsters are armed with the latest weapons.

When I lived in the UK, I was so tired of the political correctness – feeling that as a nation, we were being forced to bend over backwards for scum…scum who refused to work and chose to scrounge off the state instead, or scum who would do nothing but engage in acts of anti-social behavior. I suffered from major anxiety, because like many people, I was literally afraid to go out. Now, I am far more active....I feel much safer here. Even in Miami (which has a bad rep for crime, apparently!), I feel safer than I ever did in the UK. No one messes with you here and people seem to have a lot more respect for one another (and the law).

Just tale a trip down any British High Street on a Friday or Saturday night (or any night, actually) and you'll see dozens of drunken brawls and people (guys AND girls) making complete a--sses of themselves in public, boozing, boozing, puking, fighting and boozing some more....such is British culture these days.

The United States does indeed have a serious problem with gun crime, but I can honestly tell you that aside from the “bad” areas, the streets are 1,000 times safer over here. You simply don’t see groups of youths congregating everywhere, causing trouble and harassing innocent people.

Britain needs to pull its head out of it’s you know what and crack down on crime. It’s negatively affecting the quality of life for too many law-abiding citizens, and it’s about time people took a stand and said “enough is enough”. Even if it means abandoning left-wing values for a short time, just do it. Vote for any party that promises to crack down on crime, because Britain would be a good place to live without the chav-scum.

On top of that, you have the likes of Pete Doherty getting away with feeding crack cocaine to a kitten, or Chris Langham, who was given a pathetic 10 month sentence for downloading child porn. It just goes to show how ridiculously lenient British justice has become.

Until things change for the better, I will never return to the UK and I would not recommend moving to the UK to anyone, unless that person happened to be a glutton for punishment. Don't listen to any Brits bashing other countries for their levels of crime....at least other countries don't suffer the same levels of anti-social behavior as the UK does.

No point putting my response as it would be on the same lines as this message so everything he/she said

[annielf]

Originally Posted by connie&dave

Ok not everywhere-maybe not a tiny town on the edge of nowhere with a pop. of 300 people and 100 sheep...what I mean is it's wide spread of course there will be some exceptions.

BTW, my area has about 15,000 people. Vandalism and drunken fights in the town at night. Big deal. Never got mugged or had a gun stuck in my face like I have in the US.

[Mexi-in-Arlington-Heights]

About people respecting the law and there actually being justice here. I will tell you that the same type of things happen here in the US. A criminal breaks into a home and tries to steal a lamp from the second floor when he comes back down he trips and falls and than sues the homeowner for damages sustained while falling in her home he broke into. <that isn't a joke it really happened.
There was also a case where a teenager broke into a home through the backdoor and a dog ended up attacking him and biting him in the arm. The teen's parents sue the home owner for the bite and guess what? They win the case.

[Scotslass]

Originally Posted by annielf

BTW, my area has about 15,000 people. Vandalism and drunken fights in the town at night. Big deal. Never got mugged or had a gun stuck in my face like I have in the US.

Im glad we dont have gun problems here, it would be turmoil!