Crime in Atlanta - Holy cow what have I gotten myself into? (Columbus: cheap house, quality of life)

[mike7586]

This whole thread is ridiculous. Some people are in denial about crime here and others think Atlanta is a war zone! And what the hell does STD rates have anything to do with crime?! Yes, we have crime here, it needs to be reduced and our police force needs improvement, but is this one of the most dangerous cities in the country like some make it out to be??? Is this city going to implode on itself? I mean, really? Seriously??? I find it hard to believe when 100,000+ people moved into the city and the crime rate has gone down compared to 10-15 years ago. Although it has gone down, yes, it still needs to be improved.

For now, have some street smarts and lets give the Mayor a chance - we are about to get a new police chief (hopefully) and more police officers and the Peachtree Pine Shelter has been foreclosed on and bought by a developer so lets hope it closes for good soon!

[jurban8]

Originally Posted by mike7586

This whole thread is ridiculous. Some people are in denial about crime here and others think Atlanta is a war zone! And what the hell does STD rates have anything to do with crime?! Yes, we have crime here, it needs to be reduced and our police force needs improvement, but is this one of the most dangerous cities in the country like some make it out to be??? Is this city going to implode on itself? I mean, really? Seriously??? I find it hard to believe when 100,000+ people moved into the city and the crime rate has gone down compared to 10-15 years ago. Although it has gone down, yes, it still needs to be improved.

For now, have some street smarts and lets give the Mayor a chance - we are about to get a new police chief (hopefully) and more police officers and the Peachtree Pine Shelter has been foreclosed on and bought by a developer so lets hope it closes for good soon!

For once the voice of reason prevails lol! And yeah I was perplexed by the STD thing too, like don't sit on an Atlanta toilet seat they're so dangerous!

[a|ex]

FBI crime stats 2009

L. A.
Atlanta (http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/prelimsem2009/table_4co-id.html - broken link)

Washington D.C. has about the same population with Atlanta but has a higher crime rate.
More bad guys = more crimes. More citizens with guns = more dead bad guys. i like GA.

-a|ex

[mike7586]

Thought I'd post this in here:

Reed: Safe streets mean business - Atlanta Business Chronicle

[sonofstarwars74]

What can an average citizen do? After hearing the opinions and thoughts on this thread and doing more extensive research, I think the biggest risk in finding a solution to this problem is public apathy - I think nothing bad could come from trying to create a more vocal and more active community that makes their civic leadership accountable for putting more police on the streets and cracking down on crime. Other cities have proven that crime is not a given or an intractable problem - and it takes more than just a police state - the problems are obviously deeper and more complicated than that.

so my question is - short of joining the police force myself - what can I do? what organizations are out there promoting change? hell with all these reports of no one able to pick up emergency phone calls, I'll work the switchboard if I have to.

This issue is too important to let fall the wrong way.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Originally Posted by sonofstarwars74

What can an average citizen do? After hearing the opinions and thoughts on this thread and doing more extensive research, I think the biggest risk in finding a solution to this problem is public apathy - I think nothing bad could come from trying to create a more vocal and more active community that makes their civic leadership accountable for putting more police on the streets and cracking down on crime. Other cities have proven that crime is not a given or an intractable problem - and it takes more than just a police state - the problems are obviously deeper and more complicated than that.

so my question is - short of joining the police force myself - what can I do? what organizations are out there promoting change? hell with all these reports of no one able to pick up emergency phone calls, I'll work the switchboard if I have to.

This issue is too important to let fall the wrong way.

ATAC
your hood's neighborhood assoc,

[a|ex]

Originally Posted by sonofstarwars74

What can an average citizen do? After hearing the opinions and thoughts on this thread and doing more extensive research, I think the biggest risk in finding a solution to this problem is public apathy - I think nothing bad could come from trying to create a more vocal and more active community that makes their civic leadership accountable for putting more police on the streets and cracking down on crime. Other cities have proven that crime is not a given or an intractable problem - and it takes more than just a police state - the problems are obviously deeper and more complicated than that.

so my question is - short of joining the police force myself - what can I do? what organizations are out there promoting change? hell with all these reports of no one able to pick up emergency phone calls, I'll work the switchboard if I have to.

This issue is too important to let fall the wrong way.

start with the young. be a big sister or big brother and break the chain of violence. there's nothing you can do with stopping bad guys from doing bad things (unless you join the many trained citizens who carry/conceal firearms). you can support your local youth organizations and hope they create a better future.

-a|ex

[afonega1]

Originally Posted by a|ex

start with the young. be a big sister or big brother and break the chain of violence. there's nothing you can do with stopping bad guys from doing bad things (unless you join the many trained citizens who carry/conceal firearms). you can support your local youth organizations and hope they create a better future.

-a|ex

So true.I agree ONE HUNDRED percent.Many of these kids have never left their own "hood" for to see even the other side of town.Virginia Highlands might as well be Seattle.It all seems so far away and different from their surroundings

[billl]

Originally Posted by a|ex

Washington D.C. has about the same population with Atlanta but has a higher crime rate.

According to who? Not according to the FBI.

2008: Atlanta 46381, DC 36894
2009: Atlanta 40708, DC 34593

Now if you want to look at just violent crimes, then yes DC is higher.

[Sikaranista]

Each one teach one.

The states in the U.S. with the lowest crime rates are also the ones with lowest percentages of high school dropouts, the lowest percentages of teen pregnancies, and the lowest percentages of divorce.

Reach out to one other person and help them stay on track, and have them to another person and help them stay on track. If we help our young people stay in school, not get knocked up, and be serious about the important relationships in their life, we can make a positive change