[QUOTE=Sage327;2181643]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael G.
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Indeed. Crime is a biggie, and not just New York but Chicago, Portland, Minneapolis, etc. etc.
If anyone here reads V i l l a g e s - N e w s, the comparison is pretty stark. That publication thrives on sleaze and local criminal activity lives on the front page (or its electronic equivalent). But in point of fact, I'd say that probably 80% of what is called "crime" down here would elicit nothing but a belly laugh if called in to police departments of major NE and Northern cities. One recent story (if I'm recalling it correctly) was that local law tracked down and arrested someone who walked a $13 restaurant check!
Cops down here are allowed and encouraged to do their jobs, which is quite a stark change from the reality that many of us come from. It appears that law enforcement here knows who the troublemakers are, and keeps the pressure on them. How many times have we read of a person being stopped for stopping ahead of the white line, broken taillight, license plate not illuminated, etc. etc. etc., K-9 is called and the dog "alerts" to the presence of drugs in the vehicle, a search is initiated and inevitably a suspended license, drug paraphernalia, outstanding warrants, etc. etc. are discovered. The advocates UpNort would be screaming to high heaven if such tactics were used there. But here, it is done, and it keeps crime heavily in the "petty" bracket.