[buggyone]

Originally Posted by shankerman

My security system includes a 9mm semi-auto pistol and a 38 special revolver. The 38 is lighter and easier for the wife to handle.

Remember that shooting a target at a gun range is 100 percent different than shooting at a human while under stressful circumstances.

[Jejuca]

When we first came to The Villages we were surprised at how many people left their houses unlocked and golf carts in their driveways with the keys in ignition.
After 40 years in law enforcement my husband says that criminals will take advantage of the easiest target and some of us do provide the perfect opportunity for them.
There is far less crime here than in most areas and luckily for us it is rarely violent in nature.
Bomb threats are common now even if you don't hear of them. Most communities do not respond as cautiously as The Villages did by emptying the town squares so we never even know they have happened.

[billethkid]

repeating again, the incidents most talked about are for the size of the population, isolated incidents.

Over our ten year period here I would estimate that 50% or more of the incidents discussed could have been eliminated with common sense.

I don't find that I made any changes to my lifestyle regarding security as a result of living in FL, specifically in the bubble of TV. Like most warm climate areas the home style living is more open. Add to that our age group and what it brings (make your own list).

I recall reading an article about a small midwest town that was all concerned about it's increasing crime rate. As it turned out there was actually a reduction over a multiple year period. What did change was the instant availability of information technology available to almost every resident.
The conclusion was just more people becoming aware of what was going on....and the major amplifier of it being discussed as we do on TOTV for example.

TV is no less safe from crime than when we came here 10 years ago. For other than crime related safety TV has in fact improved during that same period.

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by Jejuca

When we first came to The Villages we were surprised at how many people left their houses unlocked and golf carts in their driveways with the keys in ignition.
After 40 years in law enforcement my husband says that criminals will take advantage of the easiest target and some of us do provide the perfect opportunity for them.
There is far less crime here than in most areas and luckily for us it is rarely violent in nature.
Bomb threats are common now even if you don't hear of them. Most communities do not respond as cautiously as The Villages did by emptying the town squares so we never even know they have happened.

In the Daily Sun article regarding the bomb threat, Villages officials and Lady Lake police indicated they did not clear the square. They were quoted saying some business's did close and entertainment ended early. They went futher that this was counter to what was being posted on some media.
Once again the ole rumor mill just kept chugging along.

[gomoho]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

No, not going on.........................it happened in 2009.

Thank you for clearing up my misunderstanding.

[Happydaz]

I lived for over ten years in bucolic Vermont and remember how safe we all felt. We didn't lock our doors and there were very few burglaries or major crimes committed. An Associated Press article in today's Daily Sun shattered my view of Vermont when I read of the major heroin problem Vermont is having. The article states that "Nearly everyday, police across Vermont are responding to burglaries or armed robberies investigators believe are prompted by the unslakable hunger for money to feed heroin or pill habits." To think I once thought of retiring to Vermont! The Villages may be seeing The same problem Vermont has with people stealing things to feed a drug habit. Hopefully our problem stays smaller than Vermont's. Let's hope the police catch these people as soon as possible.

[NotGolfer]

I think our community is probably like most any other in the nation. I believe we do need to be aware of our surroundings at all times and not relax because we think T.V. is safer than other places. We moved from a small (12K) town in the Midwest...we had drugs, gangs in the schools, crime etc there as well. For a time we had break-in's into homes (even while folks were there) during the day. I remember being warned about keeping purses on our bodies (not in the shopping cart) while shopping because there were robberies that way too. I know of this type of thing happening in even smaller communities as well.

Maybe, it's a sign of the times or maybe it's just that there are people with evil intent everywhere. To criticize our community is probably out of line. It's not the developer's fault nor our police force that this is happening. Just my 2-cents worth........

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[Happydaz]

Further reading in that AP article talks of "Heroin, painkiller abuse stirs battle cry in Vermont." The governor of Vermont, Peter Shumlin devoted almost his whole State of the State address to this drug abuse problem. Who would think that Vermont would have such a serious problem? If they start robbing tourists the state could be in serious trouble as so much of Vermont's economy depends upon tourism. Let's hope we can nip this recent spate of buglaries here in the Villages so we don't end up with a much more serious problem that Vermont is experiencing.

[jblum315]

Oh, Vermont has been a druggie haven for many years. Since the 60's in fact, when it was famous for its many hippie compounds.