Lave wrote:
I think that the media is succesfully increasing the fear of crime and I hate them for it.
Frankly, looking out of the window here would increase the fear of crime.
In the space of one week at either the end of last year or beginning of this, there was a man shot to death, two young men stabbed and two policemen shot, all on the short 100 yard road where I live. I think the media quite accurately reflects many of the pockets of the community around areas such as parts of Brent, and what is reported is the sort of stuff that goes on around here depressingly often. Actually, i always wonder why more of the stories around here aren't reported because I do not think that people know the half of it.
Two policemen being shot wasn't reported on the news, the nightclub owner shot in his own club wasn't on teh news, the people being shot at around here every couple of days aren't reported. My friend' neighbour (lived on the floor above her) was shot in the head for telling off another neighbours kid. Another of her neighbours was shot at through teh window whilst she did the washing up.
I know that not everyone lives in an area like that, but I think that a lot of people need to wake up a bit more to those areas existing. the crime isn't in 'my' community - I am an unlikely target, but I don't bury my head in the sand about the problem, because a lot of the people that ARE involved are the kids that are now at school with my brothers - their peers and friends. My older brother was almost dragged into this about ten years ago, so his dad had to take him away and so moved to Cheltenham to escape it, otherwise my brother's life could have taken a very different part.
I'm not frightened, but I am not stupid, and I know it is best to be astute and stay out of trouble.
So, yeah, the stuff reported on the media happens here all of the time, and I do think it is a real issue. if you don't have postcodes sprayed onto walls to mark out boundaries, then that's all good, but some areas are like that.