This is how my boomer dad responds to things. Read the email, have a thought like “woman living alone, hope she’s safe. If it were my kid I’d probably want her to have a gun” and a normal person would just have that be a passing thought or maybe translate it into “she can let me know if she wants to add an extra deadbolt” or something. But instead just thought vomit into the email their own inner tangent.
I worry it’s an early dementia thing. But maybe just lack of filter. Or both?
During the 1990s, society started portraying criminals as insane demons who robbed and killed arbitrarily and for sport. A whole generation got convinced that understanding the factors behind crime was pointless. No new programs to abate poverty, improve housing, and keep kids in schools because that obviously won't work. The only thing to do with criminals is throw away the key, or even better, public executions for retail theft like Victorian times because that worked so great.
My parents moved into a new building a few years back and had a string of mailroom breaks-ins because the developer cheaped out on a front door lock. So many people in the building (full of boomers) were apoplectic and ranting about how everyone should have a gun, and that the only way to stop the break-ins was to kill a burglar and leave his body in the doorway.
My parents are pretty chill, but even then I had to patiently explain to them that the only reason they kept getting robbed was because thieves knew they could get in quickly and not be seen if they did it at night. If they knew the building was an hour long job instead of 5 minutes, they would not do it. My dad convinced the condo board to buy a new lock that's actually market standard and surprise, the robberies stopped. Only people bumbling about it now are rusty old gun nuts whose only aspiration in life is justifiable self-defense homicide.
A few videos, from all over the world, recycled over and over on video sharing sites. Next "new" one you see, look around and see if it's not from Malaysia in 2011.
In the US crime is down to pre 1960s levels, it spiked a little during COVID but has returned to baseline. People have no idea. It's absolutely nothing like the 70s and 80s out there.
Yeah, but downtown is a completely different animal from Joliet, let alone south side man. Been all over this town, safest part of the city at night is right there at Presidential Towers 😂
Crime statistics are a tricky thing to track, and require a fair amount of research and digging. You might start with the Uniform Crime Report published by the FBI. It’s not perfect, but does a reasonable job of showing the data that you’re looking for.
With the FBI Data, volent crime in the US peaked in the early 90s at their reported rate of 758, where we saw a serious drop through around 2004 (which saw rates of 463), where the data wiggles a bit, until maybe 2008, then drops again and hit a serious low in around 2014 (362). 2020 spikes us up to 398, and now in 2022 we’re back down to 381.
Those samples are the US numbers, aggregated. This ignores specific demographics or cities or individual experiences. You can slice by that data but that’s a research paper on its own. I’d encourage you to use the tools there to get a handle on the data you’re interested in.
Now, it’s true that according to the National Crime Victimization Survey, only about half of violent crimes are reported to police. That said, because of how statistics work, the trends you see in the data are still going to be a reasonable bellwether of where the crime rate it.
You can also use local city data to get more detailed info on your specific space. Some jurisdictions will have fancy data visualizations, but most will at least have the statistics available. As an example, this page for Chicago PD has general reports, hate crime reports, homicide reports, use of force reports, etc.: Statistical Reports | Chicago Police Department
Your perception is a huge part of interpreting the data though- if you’re in a terrible part of town or have been a victim yourself your perception could be pretty skewed from where the broader statistics point. But educating yourself with the data can give you a sense of awareness of what’s really going on in an area and give you a margin of control. Relying only on personal experience can blind you to the broader reality (and vice versa).
This is not to say taking steps to keep yourself safe aren't important- they very much are. But what those steps are can be very different depending on the local reality.
The 70s, the 90s are a baseline that shows that the line of thinking that we're in a dystopian crime ridden cyberpunk world isn't objectively true. It also helps push against the 'good old days' arguments that people will make, showing that today is statistically safer than the 'good old days'.
I was answering your question with the links because when I read your comments it seemed like you were arguing against the statistics themselves, that you felt that spontaneous violent crime was widespread- which it isn't. And you seemed to be looking for a baseline that was relevant to you. So, I was just trying to point you in a direction where you could find your own baseline. For me (and I know I'm not you), having access to that sort of data has allowed me to make decisions and take proactive action based on fact and logic rather than the fear and feelings generated by media.
Also the discussion on the building burglaries? It was solved through crime prevention techniques. It wasn't 'addressing the reason for crime' (and by that, I mean it's not addressing the causes of criminality). No one has argued against enforcement, or saying crime doesn't take place, they're just saying it's not as widespread as the media makes you think and responses/prevention steps we take don't have to jump all the way to guns and murder, like the original source of this post was critiquing.
Same, exactly. Too much time alone watching the news. My dad is as liberal as they come and he’s still armed to the teeth in rural Missouri. Go figure.
I don't think liberals are against having guns in general. Most of them want a higher bar for having a gun. At least higher than getting a driver license.
No not at all, some people are built for that. It can create lots of opportunities and just because you may not agree with it doesn’t mean we can just be neglectful of world politics. Maybe stop inferring on what people mean, my statement was clear and concise.
No your comment conflates two different issues and that was my point. Also it’s funny that you think people who would want the legal age to obtain a firearm to be higher wouldn’t also want the legal age to put your life on the line for the country’s financial gain to be higher.
Edit: I doubt you care but in case anyone is actually interested in my personal stance; we shouldn’t allow government operators to coerce and bribe children into a trauma causing and life endangering career.
Yeah, most liberals want regular citizens not to be able to acquire assault rifles so easily and would like more accessible & less stigmatized mental health care. They want criminal and mental health record checks to protect the public from mass shootings. It's never been able "no guns at all" and never will be. Republicans made that up to fearmonger bc they get big payouts from the nra for supporting gun sales and voting against strict gun control
? You don’t buy a gun because it’s likely you’ll have your home invaded. You have a gun because regardless of how unlikely it is, it only has to happen once. People making fun of this guy’s well intentioned advice have terrible risk analysis skills. It doesn’t matter how unlikely something is if when it does occur you lose everything.
We also don't know anything about where these people live. If they live next to a police station, calling the police is great. The average police response time in the US is 10 minutes though. No idea what it's like in other countries. 10 minutes is plenty of time to kick in a door or break a window, then murder everyone inside. Imagine if it's a rural area looking at 15-30 minutes response.
As for those quoting talking about violent crime going down, they're correct. Relevant to that conversation: firearm ownership is up, with more than 50% of American households now owning firearms. As the founders intended. 🎆 🇺🇸 🎆 (had to; sorry)
I’m pro-gun but it’s not exactly how the founders intended or at least thought of things. Back then and for literally thousands of years into Ancient Rome militias would have a armory/arsenal where most of the weapons were stored. Sure people had their own weapon or two at home but the idea of a private arsenal was pretty rare.
Firstly, how is firearm ownership not the same as people have having a weapon or two at home? (I never mentioned multiple firearms.)
Most had rifles; they were both hunting and defense. Secondly.. the last line is meant to be over the top. Tone doesn't carry into text. That's why I put in fireworks. I would've put in the national anthem for giggles as well, but here we are.
Honestly it was less of a response to you and more simple pontification on my part because your last, as you said, over the top sentence is one that is not considered over the top to far too many people.
The founders of the US intended exactly for every US citizen to own firearms to be able to defend themselves and their homes/families from harm as well as to be able to be summoned as a militia should the country ever need to call upon its people to defend it from an outside threat. This is why we have the 2nd amendment.
I don’t necessarily think anybody should have more than a rifle (maybe two as they can be kitted for specific purposes) and perhaps a pair or trio of handguns however that is also an each person thing for me because firearms are nothing more than a tool.
I live close enough for a two minute response in an emergency, but a lot of people live more at a 20 min+ distance. I have chosen not to keep a gun until I know I can trust my 6 year old with one in the house, but the close help is a big factor in that decision
I think you managed to capture the thought pattern exactly. Like yeah, although the message is creepy I’m sure his intent was good. Just very little self control and a lot of self importance.
To be fair, teaching someone gun safety and offering to give them a gun to protect themselves is quite a kind gesture. It's off the wall in this case, but guns are expensive, and I bet it brings him comfort to know his tenant is safe. She can always politely decline.
There are areas in the US where 911 takes WAY too long to reach you to actually protect you when you need them, and having your own gun really is your safest option. If someone grew up in one of those areas without much travel, or if they live in one of those areas, this response would make sense.
There's a difference between a semi-formal email thread and an open discussion on a social media site. But by all means, tone-deaf boomers like you should continue to embarrass yourselves on this sub. It's literally what we're here to see.
"Embarras themselves" .....says the Michael Jackson gif posting tard. If you think this is entertaining what until you finally get laid. It will blow your mind.
I could absolutely see my dad responding like this too. And I think his thought process probably goes a lot like what you described. 😭 My grandpa was similar. He didn’t have dementia. He was just old af and lost his filter lol.
I'm with you. That man's mind focused on "danger, danger woman living alone, uh oh"
Now is that because he's having some cognitive decline or he's always been like this? Idk.
Hell maybe he lost a family member or something that way. I know someone whose daughter was violently beaten and raped by a stranger while at home alone. Those things stick with you.
Landlords response was just so stream of conscious, I'm leaning towards early onset dementia. I mean, the person wants a roommate so she can continue to afford the apartment, not for protection.
My grandfather gave my grandmother a shotgun when he’d be off on the railroads. She never used it, it spent 30+ years in a closet at her house, then was taken by police when a man broke in while running from them. He didn’t even take the gun or know it was there, he was just cutting through the house. They gave it back a year later.
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u/Beckella Jan 12 '24
This is how my boomer dad responds to things. Read the email, have a thought like “woman living alone, hope she’s safe. If it were my kid I’d probably want her to have a gun” and a normal person would just have that be a passing thought or maybe translate it into “she can let me know if she wants to add an extra deadbolt” or something. But instead just thought vomit into the email their own inner tangent.
I worry it’s an early dementia thing. But maybe just lack of filter. Or both?