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They put themselves in the position to be victimized - they share some responsibility for this. The guy didn't even have to pick a lock or kick in a door - they practically invited him in with that door wide open. I have a hard time mustering sympathy for people this clueless. True victims have done all in their power to assure their safety and THEN been robbed, beaten, raped, murdered etc.
When did the scales tip? When did the homeowner who worked his a** off to buy a home that had a lawn big enough to require his attention become more stupid than the man who would come and rob a woman at gunpoint in the bedroom of her own home? Is this home owner any less stupid than the man owns a convenient store and holds it open all day while sitting behind a register full of cash? Is this store owner "asking for it"? Why are we stupid and they're clever??? Loves, the very fact that you are thinking this way tells me that something is very wrong and the criminals are winning his fight. When they start to creep into the minds of the intellegent, level headed , wise ones who keep the rest of us grounded.....well, that tells me that they are winning. Yes, we need to use our heads, but leaving yourself access to your tools while caring for your lawn should not make you the stupid party in a trial. I know police are frustrated that we continue to live our lives as though we do not know crime exists and I swear, I know why.(long story) But cops, and politicians, will continue to appeal to the people they can reach because it is more possible than than getting the damn criminals to stop committing crimes!!!! As long as we allow each other the comfort of thinking "THEY" could have done something to avoid the crime, we allow the criminals to soar. We elect the politicians, they promise results. If they are not going to hold criminals responsible then we need to find a way to hold them responsible!!! But Dammit, if I'm going to hold my neighbor responsible for a man walking into her bedroom in the middle of the day and demanding everything her family, and the family before her worked hard for because he "wanted It " ?????
When we start thinking that we are at fault for the crime cast upon us, we let the criminals win and we let the very officials we elected off the hook for protecting us.!!!
THE SQUEAKY WHEEL GETS THE OIL....DON'T SETTLE FOR A LUBE JOB.
We need our taxes to go to KEEPING these criminals off the streets which will ultimately send a message to "would be " criminals to go somewhere else. It should only take a dozen or so really stiff penaly's????
Please forgive my rantings and my run on sentences.
Gosh..this is scary and a bit "funny" to read. When I was living in Maine, we would go to bed in the summer w/ the front door wide open and only the screen door closed to keep out the bugs. I too will take precautions but when it gets to the point I have to live 24/7 behind locked doors I will move.
Gosh..this is scary and a bit "funny" to read. When I was living in Maine, we would go to bed in the summer w/ the front door wide open and only the screen door closed to keep out the bugs. I too will take precautions but when it gets to the point I have to live 24/7 behind locked doors I will move.
from the wife,
I agree. When the time comes that I have to close my garage door while I am outside in my own yard it is time to move. That is no way to live IMO.
Okay. Here are my thoughts and here are my habits. I used to have a side entry garage. Now I have a front entry garage. If I am in the front yard working, I may have my garage door up and definitely will have my front door unlocked. If I go to the back yard, I walk through the front door, lock it and then close the garage door, and proceed to the back yard. Now I don't think that is strange. I have been doing this for years. Also, my dog stays inside, and she can open doors, so we have to keep either the main door shut or the storm doors locked. So for me, no biggie.
With a side entry garage, depending on the orientation of your home, it may not be so obvious as to whether or not your garage door is open. Plus, many people have a back entry to their garages (used to in a former house - do not now). So it all depends on where you are working in the yard, what is convenient for you, etc. We had a rash of break-ins in my former neighborhood, all happening while homeowners were in the back grilling or working, so we all got more conscious of closing the garage doors and locking front doors while in the back. If you have back entries to your house, why would this be an inconvenience?
The point is - whatever works for you. I am in no way blaming the victims at all. But as in most things in life, assigning "fault" and "blame" don't really matter in the end. . . what matters is "results." Crimnal's fault? Yes. Blame criminals? Yes. But the end result is still that the homeowner was confronted w/ a bad situation that could have had even a worse outcome. The thug had a gun pointed at the homeowner. So the result is a very scary situation for homeowners - regardless of it being the "fault" of the criminal that he perpetrated a crime. All a person can do is reduce his/her chances for getting caught up in some miscreant's actions.
If you don't feel comfortable doing things like Loves mentioned (wh/ are my habits, also, and have been for many years) . . . then you have to realize you are putting yourself at a higher risk to be a target. Does that make you irresponsible? No. Does that make you paranoid if you employ consistent safety habits? No. It is all a matter of what makes you feel comfortable. I feel more comfortable knowing I have taken steps to be what I consider as prudent and aware. I am into "thwarting" criminals. That is just me. Might not be for everyone. I consistently note that some people truly feel imposed on (and even saddened) by the thought that they would have to do things like shut garage doors. If it makes you feel imposed on or depressed to live w/ those habits, then you have to make decisions based on what makes you feel comfortable in your environment.
A man's home is, indeed, his castle!!! For some of us, doing things like locking the front door while we are in the back makes us feel more secure and less concerned about crime. It is like having that "first line of defense" - it is our figurative "moat" around the castle. For others, this may make them feel entrapped or inconvenienced. It all depends on your situation. For a personality type such as mine, when I fail to do something such as close a garage door, and then a cat gets in and sprays my tent and camping gear, I am not furious w/ the cat - I am disgusted w/ MYSELF for allowing the situation to occur. I beat myself up for allowing the situation to occur. So for some of us, it is just better we take precautions ahead of time . . . so we don't end up feeling stupid about ourselves later. Not everyone thinks this way and not everyone is going to react this way.
Do what makes you feel comfortable in your environment.
Last edited by brokensky; 06-06-2008 at 06:09 AM..
Reason: typo
Okay. Here are my thoughts and here are my habits. I used to have a side entry garage. Now I have a front entry garage. If I am in the front yard working, I may have my garage door up and definitely will have my front door unlocked. If I go to the back yard, I walk through the front door, lock it and then close the garage door, and proceed to the back yard. Now I don't think that is strange. I have been doing this for years. Also, my dog stays inside, and she can open doors, so we have to keep either the main door shut or the storm doors locked. So for me, no biggie.
With a side entry garage, depending on the orientation of your home, it may not be so obvious as to whether or not your garage door is open. Plus, many people have a back entry to their garages (used to in a former house - do not now). So it all depends on where you are working in the yard, what is convenient for you, etc. We had a rash of break-ins in my former neighborhood, all happening while homeowners were in the back grilling or working, so we all got more conscious of closing the garage doors and locking front doors while in the back. If you have back entries to your house, why would this be an inconvenience?
The point is - whatever works for you. I am in no way blaming the victims at all. But as in most things in life, assigning "fault" and "blame" don't really matter in the end. . . what matters is "results." Crimnal's fault? Yes. Blame criminals? Yes. But the end result is still that the homeowner was confronted w/ a bad situation that could have had even a worse outcome. The thug had a gun pointed at the homeowner. So the result is a very scary situation for homeowners - regardless of it being the "fault" of the criminal that he perpetrated a crime. All a person can do is reduce his/her chances for getting caught up in some miscreant's actions.
If you don't feel comfortable doing things like Loves mentioned (wh/ are my habits, also, and have been for many years) . . . then you have to realize you are putting yourself at a higher risk to be a target. Does that make you irresponsible? No. Does that make you paranoid if you employ consistent safety habits? No. It is all a matter of what makes you feel comfortable. I feel more comfortable knowing I have taken steps to be what I consider as prudent and aware. I am into "thwarting" criminals. That is just me. Might not be for everyone. I consistently note that some people truly feel imposed on (and even saddened) by the thought that they would have to do things like shut garage doors. If it makes you feel imposed on or depressed to live w/ those habits, then you have to make decisions based on what makes you feel comfortable in your environment.
A man's home is, indeed, his castle!!! For some of us, doing things like locking the front door while we are in the back makes us feel more secure and less concerned about crime. It is like having that "first line of defense" - it is our figurative "moat" around the castle. For others, this may make them feel entrapped or inconvenienced. It all depends on your situation. For a personality type such as mine, when I fail to do something such as close a garage door, and then a cat gets in and sprays my tent and camping gear, I am not furious w/ the cat - I am disgusted w/ MYSELF for allowing the situation to occur. I beat myself up for allowing the situation to occur. So for some of us, it is just better we take precautions ahead of time . . . so we don't end up feeling stupid about ourselves later. Not everyone thinks this way and not everyone is going to react this way.
Do what makes you feel comfortable in your environment.
Bravo my friend! Very well said
I take the steps I take because I refuse to ever be a victim if I can help it. I feel very safe in my home, neighborhood and city. I'm not foolish enough to think I could never be a victim of crime - but I do believe some of you will be victims long before I ever will be ("you" being the figurative you, not necessarily any one of you). But like you said, people need to find their own level of comfort and do what works for them. To the couple who left the garage wide open and doors unlocked so that the guy with a gun could waltze right in at 10 o'clock IN THE MORNING I'd say, how's that working for ya?
[quote=Doorway;4008654]When did the scales tip? When did the homeowner who worked his a** off to buy a home that had a lawn big enough to require his attention become more stupid than the man who would come and rob a woman at gunpoint in the bedroom of her own home?
I hear ya Doorway and it makes me angry too. And I do feel very sorry for the folks robbed, I am sure they were quite shocked and scared. No one should have to ever feel that way in their own home. But like I said, it is what it is.
In all our home purchases, we always looked at access to major highways as an easy get-away for criminals. As such, we tend to go "inland" as best as possible, preferably in a cul-de-sac. Our front door is always locked. Our neighbors watch out for one another. It is common on our block to call each other when we think something looks unusual in a someone's home.
When did the scales tip? When did the homeowner who worked his a** off to buy a home that had a lawn big enough to require his attention become more stupid than the man who would come and rob a woman at gunpoint in the bedroom of her own home? Is this home owner any less stupid than the man owns a convenient store and holds it open all day while sitting behind a register full of cash? Is this store owner "asking for it"? Why are we stupid and they're clever??? Loves, the very fact that you are thinking this way tells me that something is very wrong and the criminals are winning his fight. When they start to creep into the minds of the intellegent, level headed , wise ones who keep the rest of us grounded.....well, that tells me that they are winning. Yes, we need to use our heads, but leaving yourself access to your tools while caring for your lawn should not make you the stupid party in a trial. I know police are frustrated that we continue to live our lives as though we do not know crime exists and I swear, I know why.(long story) But cops, and politicians, will continue to appeal to the people they can reach because it is more possible than than getting the damn criminals to stop committing crimes!!!! As long as we allow each other the comfort of thinking "THEY" could have done something to avoid the crime, we allow the criminals to soar. We elect the politicians, they promise results. If they are not going to hold criminals responsible then we need to find a way to hold them responsible!!! But Dammit, if I'm going to hold my neighbor responsible for a man walking into her bedroom in the middle of the day and demanding everything her family, and the family before her worked hard for because he "wanted It " ?????
When we start thinking that we are at fault for the crime cast upon us, we let the criminals win and we let the very officials we elected off the hook for protecting us.!!!
THE SQUEAKY WHEEL GETS THE OIL....DON'T SETTLE FOR A LUBE JOB.
We need our taxes to go to KEEPING these criminals off the streets which will ultimately send a message to "would be " criminals to go somewhere else. It should only take a dozen or so really stiff penaly's????
Please forgive my rantings and my run on sentences.
What a wonderful post and must more elaborate than what I said.
Responsibility is a pretty strong word and these people were not responsible in any way, shape or form.
I can't agree. After the rash of home invasions where thugs were entering homes via the garages of the victims, one would think that people that want to keep their homes safe would keep the doors closed. If people aren't going to accept any responsibility for their personal safety then they can expect to be preyed upon.
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