I was complaining to my cop friend about "REALLY?! Out here?!" And she said the exact same thing - "Lish, it's perfect - if someone gets in, they have all the time in the world. No one will see a car out of place, no one will hear any screams, you can't be seen from the road. It's perfect" I hadn't viewed it from that perspective...Quote:
Originally Posted by ccw9mm
You want to really blow your mind, then? Role play, sort of, with you approaching your own home by evaluating what you'd need to know in order to succeed with entry into your home as a would-be burglar or home invader. Find the threats (dogs, people, alarms), easy entry points, etc.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lish
Start at the initial turn-off to your lane, then walk down your lane toward the house while you survey the landscape, catching the sight lines, looking to see who's going to witness your approach. Evaluate various paths to approach unseen, both from neighbors and the home itself.
Look to see if the windows can be breached easily or with difficulty, whether there are security lights/cameras around, whether there's a tool shed (with likely ladder, break-in tools available), whether there's a dog or two, or evidence of a dog inside the home. See if you can determine whether there's evidence of an alarm (ie, peeking inside windows looking for a motion sensor).
It can be humbling, if you treat it as though you're seriously a burglar (from an evaluation standpoint, I mean, of course) ... or, even that you're seriously locked-out and have to determine another way to get in without sparking your dog to attack, tripping the alarm, breaking anything, etc.
As with people watching, house "watching" can yield some surprising answers. Even more, if you scout the house with someone who's adept at seeing such things (ie, a competent local cop or deputy you know).
To answer your question........anywhere between the Atlantic and the Pacific (oceans that is). Thee are no immune house break-in communities that I am aware of. Gated or with security forces.
In reality......Quote:
Originally Posted by Edward7
We live in a nice suburb in the Denver area.
Our free weekly community newspaper has a humorous "Police Blotter" section. The paper also recounts various other crimes that happen on a regular basis.
I choose to read these to my wife. We are both quite aware that the next news item could be in our neighborhood or in our home. Believing otherwise is simply delusional.
Remember Lish, anytime, anyplace. And especially out in the middle of nowhere! The bad guys like that for it likely means no police for a good while, and not much in the way of witnesses, either. However it COULD mean armed insiders, and I bet that's why the burglars bolted when they realized someone was home: didn't want to take the chance. Glad you all were fortunate, and that you're armed now.
I live in IL -- I can ONLY be legally armed at home.
That said, I live in a quiet little suburb of Chicago with a crime rate substantially lower than the national average. That said, just within the last few years -- two blocks from my home, a (19-21yo if I recall) was murdered in his own home by gang-bangers. 100 yards from my home is an apartment complex that went "Section 8" and there are few weekends where you don't see lights & sirens going through for something... 300 yards from my home, less than 50 yards from a junior high school, three KIDS (12M, 14F, 16M) were shot by gang-bangers during a drive-by. Gang scrawl comes up frequently (and is usually obliterated quickly so that the general public, IMO, doesn't even understand how big the problem is getting). Caught a kid walking up my driveway towards my car just last year (there was a rash of petty thefts from mostly unlocked vehicles) until he saw me standing at the door having a smoke. Called the 5-0 just a few months ago after hearing 4 shots (and yes, I know the difference between gunshots and firecrackers) late on a Sunday evening.
And that's just the stuff I remember off the top of my head. In this quiet little suburb with a substantially low crime rate.
Ah yes, that's the quietude I miss from my home town... And its 'burbs...
Where a "good neighborhood" is measured in feet and yards away from violence...
"Where do you live that you think you need to be armed at home?"
Where exactly do you live that you don't need to be armed on your personal property for the safety of yourself and your family?
Well, if I was living on a military base I wouldn't feel too uncomfortable without guns in the house.Quote:
Originally Posted by GlassWolf
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lish
I lived in rural area for more than 12 years. The house was over 100 yards off the road. It was a great place. But make no mistake about it... Someone could take a chainsaw and cut their own door in the side of your house, and I guarantee the neighbors would likely never notice, call the police, or pay any attention to the sound of a chainsaw running. And if it's late at night, they are all snug in their homes and definitely not paying attention.
I live in a nice neighborhood by the beach in Southern California. There was a murder 4 doors away. We have burglaries regularly. There is a park a block away where gang members scrawl graffiti on the benches.... Oh, and we regularly go to the offshore islands where drug smugglers just rammed a Coast Guard vessel and "accidentally killed a Coast Guard officer.
Crack me up. I'm guessing most of you play the lottery too. You know, that special tax the state assess against people who don't understand the laws of probability...
So, do you have a fire extinguisher in your house... Or do you play the odds there, too?Quote:
Originally Posted by boatload
Gravel road 20 minutes or more from Sheriff's support.
Don't lock the door when I'm gone so the door won't be kicked in, always locked when I'm here.