Seems like everyday I read about some teen killed around here. (Pittsburgh: home, to buy)

[gg]

Originally Posted by scottrpriester

They may be, but dump or not, they are suburbs.

What gets me is I only have little Aspinwall protecting me and just a shade of O'Hara. Waterworks is really close to me and you know that is riddled with crime. Right across the Highland Park Bridge is loaded with crime. As I ride my bike dangerously through there I often see countless police cars rushing to some crime scene. Seems like it is nonstop and really everyday. I hope the city can handle all this crime and keep it more confined to the city. The bleeding over isn't a good situation.

[TechieTransplant]

Originally Posted by h_curtis

What gets me is I only have little Aspinwall protecting me and just a shade of O'Hara. Waterworks is really close to me and you know that is riddled with crime. Right across the Highland Park Bridge is loaded with crime. As I ride my bike dangerously through there I often see countless police cars rushing to some crime scene. Seems like it is nonstop and really everyday. I hope the city can handle all this crime and keep it more confined to the city. The bleeding over isn't a good situation.

We are at Waterworks a lot, and we always comment on the variety of people we see there. We often see the Pittsburgh Police at one store or another, mostly at Wal Mart.

I really don't think you have anything to worry about in Fox Chapel. If things would get to bad, I believe Fox Chapel would turn in to another Mount Lebanon, which is heavily guarded by their elite police department. Those police don't miss a beat.

As for us, I'm more concerned about the home invasions. Although nothing is for sure, for the most part, the murders seem to be centered around drug and/or gang activity. Thankfully, the percentage of innocents involved in these murders seems to be very low. It seems that most of the victims have some role in illegal activity.

It seems as though our area of Point Breeze fell victim to the drug wars during the period that WPipkins is referring to, and it was sucessfully reclaimed over the past ten years. I'm hoping it doesn't turn the wrong direction again, because as you know, I'm a huge advocate of living in this area. I'm taking lots of extra precautions these days, and hope this nonsense doesn't spill over.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by wpipkins

What most people fail to realize is that this type of iniquitous dysfunction runs deep in some families. Families who have multiple murdered young men seem to have this happen in every generation. There are mothers who have lost all of their sons to murder. Although it is sad, you have to look at yourself as a parent. What did you do (or not do) to cause ALL of your sons to be senslessly murdered. Most of the young men come from families where the fathers and uncles before them are dead and buried as well. Where is the example?

My grandparents had 10 children (6 girls and 4 boys) All of the children went on to college and none of the sons (or daughters) went to jail. I have a very large family spread across the US and Germany and none of my grandparents children, grandchildren, or great grandchildren became or took part in senseless murders. Why is that?

I know I'll sound like a broken record on this, but here goes.

Real hardened criminals tend to have a number of personality traits in common. For example, poor impulse control, lack of planning skills, and quickness to anger. All of these traits seem to be approximately 50% due to genes, and 50% due to social environment. Hence crime can run in families because kids inherit the genes which predispose them to a criminal life.

There's actually data backing this up. A Danish study tracked adopted children who came from both law-abiding biological families and those with a criminal history from 1924 to 1947. In some cases, the kids ended up in law-abiding adoptive families, and in others, they ended up with criminal adopted parents. There was correlation between the Danish adopters having a biological parent and becoming a criminal. There was no correlation between having an adoptive parent who was a criminal and becoming one. That said, admittedly few parents who are criminals were allowed to adopt, so this is less rigorous of a conclusion. Still, it seems like genes matter a whole lot more than home environment.

I am not saying, of course, that African-Americans are more likely to be criminals for genetic reasons. The social environment a lot of kids grow up in in the ghetto causes children who might otherwise be normal conform to the local youth culture of being delinquents. But the real bad apples are probably born, not raised.

[gg]

Originally Posted by scottrpriester

We are at Waterworks a lot, and we always comment on the variety of people we see there. We often see the Pittsburgh Police at one store or another, mostly at Wal Mart.

I really don't think you have anything to worry about in Fox Chapel. If things would get to bad, I believe Fox Chapel would turn in to another Mount Lebanon, which is heavily guarded by their elite police department. Those police don't miss a beat.

As for us, I'm more concerned about the home invasions. Although nothing is for sure, for the most part, the murders seem to be centered around drug and/or gang activity. Thankfully, the percentage of innocents involved in these murders seems to be very low. It seems that most of the victims have some role in illegal activity.

It seems as though our area of Point Breeze fell victim to the drug wars during the period that WPipkins is referring to, and it was sucessfully reclaimed over the past ten years. I'm hoping it doesn't turn the wrong direction again, because as you know, I'm a huge advocate of living in this area. I'm taking lots of extra precautions these days, and hope this nonsense doesn't spill over.

There might be a day we need to reinstall bars on the windows pretty much everywhere. I don't want to be the last one doing it. I don't know if an alarm is really enough these days. The fastest method is try and take care of it yourself, so you aren't waiting for police.

Waterworks is a disaster. No one from FC likes it at all as anyone could imagine. It is the worst possible situation. What a total dump. Good State Store though. At least that is one store in the entire place that is geared towards the residents here. Other than that, it is all about crap stuff. Dollar store or whatever all those places are. Goodness you see all kinds there. A TON of theft, to the point I can't believe anyone can stay in business.

Good to hear Mt. Lebo is doing okay. They are close to bad areas that may bleed over.

I do worry about you folks dealing with all those break ins. That is probably going to increase in all areas neighboring the bad spots as these young gun carrying kids get more and more brash. They sure are pushing it. I don't see it ending.

[Love2Golf09]

Originally Posted by h_curtis

Waterworks is a disaster. No one from FC likes it at all as anyone could imagine. It is the worst possible situation. What a total dump. Good State Store though. At least that is one store in the entire place that is geared towards the residents here. Other than that, it is all about crap stuff. Dollar store or whatever all those places are. Goodness you see all kinds there. A TON of theft, to the point I can't believe anyone can stay in business.

Where do people in the Fox Chapel area go to shop? Pittsburgh Mills?

[gg]

Originally Posted by Love2Golf09

Where do people in the Fox Chapel area go to shop? Pittsburgh Mills?

Mills, Shadyside and Ross Park mostly. Take the State Store with the big wine section out of the Waterworks, there might not be a single local person ever there. Horrible dump that place is.

[ferraris]

I never understood all the hate for the waterworks. I have never heard of any violent crimes there (especially against innocent bystanders). I haven't even heard of cars being robbed there like I hear happens at the Waterfront. The waterworks certainly isn't upscale, but it isn't ghetto either. It always seems to be safe and functional to me.

[Uptown kid]

I won't even bother to add what I think is going on!
-The Wilkinsburg G'z feud with themselves plus the Braddocc Crips, some of the Homewood Crips and the East Hills Bloods, plus they don't get along with Penn Hills hybrid gangs or any other neighborhood besides Larimer Idk what's going on there right now...

-An OG from the Gute Block Gang (an old Blood set originally from Elmore Square that relocated to Chuancey Drive) was killed in a drug deal in Munhall so the Bedford Ave shooting could be relation of or more killing of Gute Block Gang members. Then again the Hill District Blood sets don't get along with most non Blood gangs in the county so Idk what's going on there right now.

-The Beltzhoover Crips feud with the Darccide Crips which mostly got relocated to Knoxville, but they also don't get along with the other Crip factions in Arlington, Arlington Heights and Carrick and they don't get along with most non Crip hoods so Idk what's going on there right now.

If deemed gang related then even the police know that all of these killings will have retaliation shootings/stabbings that they can't prevent.
-The Larwanceville killing was drug related and the suspected killers are under custody & the North Versailles section 8 Apartment homicide was probably domestic according to the news... So the violence isn't likely to continue in these areas.

[Love2Golf09]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

I never understood all the hate for the waterworks. I have never heard of any violent crimes there (especially against innocent bystanders). I haven't even heard of cars being robbed there like I hear happens at the Waterfront. The waterworks certainly isn't upscale, but it isn't ghetto either. It always seems to be safe and functional to me.

Well, you must not be paying attention because it happens. Most of the crime is theft, fights, and small things. Pretty much the same as hoodrat Monroeville Mall. Occasionally, there is a major, violent, crime. A few years ago some woman and her child got kidnapped and drove to Ohio where she was repeatedly raped.

I knew a guy that worked as a manager of a store at Waterworks. He hated working there and his comments were borderline racist. He flat out told me that he follows the black kids from the city around the store because they steal so much and cause so much trouble there. It was strange because this guy was flamboyantly gay. An obvious gay guy discriminating against a black kid...I guess he didn't see the irony in that.

[gg]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

I never understood all the hate for the waterworks. I have never heard of any violent crimes there (especially against innocent bystanders). I haven't even heard of cars being robbed there like I hear happens at the Waterfront. The waterworks certainly isn't upscale, but it isn't ghetto either. It always seems to be safe and functional to me.

It is full of theft and small crimes. People around here don't want to deal with that. Managers chasing people, cops called and whatever. I don't know anyone around here that wouldn't want it torn down and a nice town put in, like they have in Sewickley, but no it is a dump strip mall, filled with people not from our area. No one likes going there, but we do for certain things. Its there now, so bring on the Five Below, Ross and whatever other crap leftover store they can find. Glad it is at least fenced, so the access to Aspinwall is visible for police to see what is going on. There is a pretty strong police presence in Aspinwall, thank goodness.