[senior citizen]

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[senior citizen]

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[redwitch]

Sadly, predators are everywhere. Always have been, always will be. One in three women over the age of 60 have been sexually molested. One in five over 60 molested before they were 10 years old. Our world was just as unsafe as this world is -- it just wasn't reported back then. (Don't know the statistics for men but wouldn't be surprised if the numbers were similar for under 10.) If a woman was raped, she was blamed for being out, wearing the wrong clothes, etc. If Uncle John molested a child, the child was usually convinced to not tell their parents and if the parents found out, there was too much shock and shame that it was someone they trusted to be with their child that had harmed their child.

The Villagers is bound to have some predators both of children and adults. It's too large of a community to not have them. Any parent or grandparent who doesn't watch their kids is being negligent at best. At the same time, I wouldn't hesitate to let my grandson play outside with me just watching from the window here. At the squares, I am with him at all times and he is no more than a hand grasp away from me -- even when we're dancing. It would be the same regardless of where I lived.

We need to be diligent in protecting ourselves and our families. This doesn't mean we have to be paranoid and afraid of every shadow. Be aware that bad things happen to good people but don't let that fact rule your life.

[graciegirl]

Registered sex offenders in Vermont

Vermont has about 625 thousand total population as of latest figures.

I would hazard a guess that the same percentage of residents in Vermont are sex offenders as anywhere else.

Most sex offenses are committed by someone known to the victim.

http://csom.org/pubs/mythsfacts.html

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by senior citizen

Thank you for sharing that.

I just "went back" and reread the posts from this past August 2013

As we were preparing to leave on a family reunion vacation during that time period.........I never got the chance, back in August, to read those last posts............wow. Sounds like a bunch of middle school (Junior high) school gals......a clique of sorts.

Hey, for years we thought our little town in Vermont was the perfect utopia to raise a family.......and it was. But times change. All over.

A week ago, our cops and detectives and state police cooperating with the state of Vermont drug task force....had a "second sweep" of heroin and cocaine and meth "DEALERS".....low and middle level sellers......the first sweep was back on January 16 and a BIG one whereby they rounded up, wearing S.W.A.T. gear, helicopter overhead......between 40 to 50 DRUG DEALERS and booked them all the same day. This time it was under 20.

They were "selling" near a school and right in the center of "downtown".
Our cops use undercover cop informants to buy the drugs, etc.
The rest is history.

Our cops are on the ball and trying to "get back our community" from the ones who come up from the cities to infiltrate our community and get the kids hooked on drugs. I'm paraphrasing what the police chief of our town and the state police say in our newspapers.

The cops make no secret about the fact that these druggies see Vermont as a soft target and are here to get kids hooked....they are always making statements to be printed in our newspaper.......or t.v. news.

It's no secret. No one up here keeps secrets. No town is perfect.

But this town was as close as perfect as you are going to get, once upon a time..........we don't have our heads in the sand and we don't do a mass marketing "coverup".........it is what it is. This was a "Leave it to Beaver" kind of town.....thankfully, our children got off to a very good start in a safe environment and were able to walk to everything....parents were not fearful at all then.....there was nothing to fear.

Again, it's different lately.

They even printed all their MUG SHOTS.......on our online newspaper.

Young girls, young men......middle aged guys and one middle aged woman. All Vermonters or transplants to Vermont......except for the kingpin drug dealers who came up from the city and stand out like a sore thumb up here...........

No one in our town will DENY that there has been a HUGE SEA CHANGE in the town dynamics.........this is why the cops are so gung ho on ridding out town of this scum..........right now most of the new ones are in jail........on high bail. Two of them were also arrested back on Jan. 16.

The lesser ones were let out; long story...........but our crime rate "statistics" have GONE UP since these two drug raids............but the oldtimers in our town and other towns across Vermont...........who remember the old days.......are GLAD the cops are on the ball.

Our police chief is a young 40 something dad with a family and little kids of his own........he remembers how his childhood was and wants the same for his children.

It's crossed my mind, and I've discussed this with my husband, that our property values will not increase favorably due to these two drug raids which were BIG NEWS. I can go to the statistics and see how our rating has changed.

But people moving into town with young children do have a "need to know"..........this is all called free speech and freedom of the press.

There actually were a few (three to be exact) "attempted break ins" of homes on the street above us, in back of us (our neighborhood is terraced on hills).......two of which were doctor's homes and one a realtor's home.

The "perps" would call the house to ask if a special delivery package could be delivered........just to see if anyone was home. In one of the doctor's homes, his adult son was there alone, visiting.........and called the police.

Our states attorney, a neighbor of ours, is aware of this and all of the people have been told by our mail lady who delivers to our mailboxes at the end of our driveways........it's a grapevine......she said "arrests are imminent".........two days later the big drug raid occurred (last week)....

SO IT HAPPENS.....crime is among us. We all know it.
Not happy. But no one would ever deny it....or "make jokes about it".

NOT ONE PERSON demeans or belittles others for their concern.
Our entire town is concerned.......

The ones of us who have been neighbors in this community for 43 years and who have raised our children together, are NOT HAPPY with the turn of events.........but again, our heads are not in the sand. We don't make lightly of it BECAUSE our police are not making lightly of it. They are saying exactly what the problem is and it's a HUGE PROBLEM.

Now, the drug kingpin , from January, is getting three years in jail and then will be returned to New York City to do more time there. Townspeople are up in arms , saying it is too light of a sentence, but it costs a small fortune, in this small state, to keep a perp incarcerated in Vermont.

SO, NO SECRETS UP HERE........why is that?

We would also be concerned to have so many sex perverts in our midst.
Especially those who prey on children.

Thanks for reposting all of those hyperlinks from the recent past.......
Appreciate it.

p.s.
In reading of teenaged girls in cars who "ran into an open garage in TV" and stole golf clubs........I was just telling a doctor friend of ours about what happened to us earlier this past summer.......I was at my desk and happened to look out the window............two teenagers, in black hoodies, one a girl (I think) and one a guy......were crouching low and walking hunched over and peering into the window.........they were beyond our deck.........but still walking on our property too close to the house and looking into the windows..........we made eye contact. To be that close to the house, they had to walk past our three season sun porch from left to right............they gave me the creeps. The girl had red hair hanging out of her hoody. I went into our garage to tell my husband but by the time he had gone around to the back, they were already through the tree line.

We kind of know "who they belong to" as there are twins at the end of the cul de sac........one of which is "bad news" with mental issues, who we've been warned about for decades.....since he was little, by another neighbor who is a sheriff......and other neighbors who have experienced his outbursts........he's been in mental hospitals......he's an ADULT in his early twenties but still living with his parents.......the cops are always coming to their home to break up fights .................anyway, all of these "kids" need money to support their drug habits........right around that time, they were arresting other teens for stealing from local merchants during night time break ins............lately several jewelry stores and craft places have been broken into via smash and grab, even with security alarms.........

IT HAPPENS.........

Our N.J. family members would come up to Vermont every single weekend and then tell us "You don't live in the real world up here".....meaning the low crime, etc.......or non existent crime.....at that time. But times have changed.

And yes, when I compared the crime rate in The Villages Florida to the crime in our town..........which has a population of slightly under 16,000 people and is not an exit off a highway......but surrounded by the Green Mountain Forest and farmlands.......we are higher. TV is lower.

I speak the truth. I don't care for demeaning, submissive remarks from cliques....that should be mature women but act like school girls.

All of this "information" does what? Take any community in the US and one could say the same thing. Your inferences about TV that are referenced by what has or has not happened in your community are irrelevant. Warning villagers or future villagers about the "safe zones" and places to "watch out for" are creating unnecessary worry. All this coming from a non-Village resident.

[senior citizen]

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[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by senior citizen

This is kind of a P.S. to my earlier this morning post re freedom of speech and freedom of the press regarding criminal types in one's home town.

I forgot to mention that in our small town DAILY newspaper which we all get by 4 a.m. each morning..........they print on page two all of the court information......including the arrests of the day before, the trial convictions, etc. and so forth.

Whereby years ago, one NEVER saw so many "boyfriends" of moms of little kids...being arrested and convicted for child molestation, it is now a daily occurrence.

It seems they hook up with these young women to get to the children.......and then they all claim "I was drunk; don't know how I ended up with the child"....blah blah blah.........

Ditto for domestic violence against women. Boyfriend / girlfriend abuse.

Society has changed.........no doubt about it. Our town has changed.

T.V. and movies probably contribute to crime as well.

We can watch shows like Dexter, Breaking Bad and Criminal Minds and certainly are not going to go out and follow suit.......but kids who were brought up on violent movies and t.v. shows, may become desensitized...

My kids watched THE WALTONS and LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE.

My dad controlled the television set and he liked westerns like Bonanza with Little Joe Cartwright.......and VICTORY AT SEA...etc. We got to watch Superman on Saturdays and Rama of the Jungle. Sky King. Captain Video.
I had a little brother.

Because of freedom of speech and freedom of the press, we all know what's going on in our town. I think all papers should print the truth. Not only what is happening in our town but in the surrounding areas as well............and it does. Our young reporters and journalists are spot on as far as digging up the dirt.

I too remember a simpler childhood.......where noone ever heard of a child being abducted or molested..........our parents gave us the freedom to roam......so either they also were not concerned..........or else they were hoping to get rid of us. But, no one bothered to harm us in any way.
We talk about this all the time............no one remembers any kids being abducted way back when (in the cave man days)........when we were reading Dick and Jane........and Sally.

I think the point is being missed. I think the point has well been made by many posts before this one.

Sex offenders are generally people known to the victim.

The people who live here know and report the things happening here. We do not live in an inferior information gathering climate. We have the same level of information about this area as any other area in the U.S.

I do not think that summaries can be made by people who do not live here.

EVERYONE should pay careful attention to children at all times. Unfortunately, blood relatives too often commit sex offenses.

This place is as safe as any place in the U.S. I think it is safer than most.

If you will look at my previous post on this thread I have posted a good link to "MYTHS ABOUT SEX OFFENDERS.".

[senior citizen]

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[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by senior citizen

Believe me, we are not paranoid.

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Yes, I would want to know if a group of perverts are renting a home or homes in the vicinity where we would be buying a home in TheVillages.

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What if you did buy a house in TV. And then 6 months later, as you say, a pervert moves in next door. What do you do then? Just sayin..................

[DaleMN]

The Villages: America's Friendliest Home Town.

[senior citizen]

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[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

What if you did buy a house in TV. And then 6 months later, as you say, a pervert moves in next door. What do you do then? Just sayin..................

That is a very important thing to think about. It is valid WHERE EVER you choose to live.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

For those who are concerned about their grandchildren when the come to visit, I'd suggest you look up the area where your grandchildren live permanently. See where there are more sex offenders. That'll give you something else to worry about.

[quirky3]

It is possible for residents to join together in an effort to pass a resolution not to allow registered sex offenders to live in the community. I currently live in a community that has such a resolution (near Jacksonville FL). A registered sex offender can own a property in the community but cannot live there, and it is not allowed to rent to registered sex offenders. Granted, there is some monitoring that goes along with that, but it goes a long way toward peace of mind.

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by quirky3

It is possible for residents to join together in an effort to pass a resolution not to allow registered sex offenders to live in the community. I currently live in a community that has such a resolution (near Jacksonville FL). A registered sex offender can own a property in the community but cannot live there, and it is not allowed to rent to registered sex offenders. Granted, there is some monitoring that goes along with that, but it goes a long way toward peace of mind.

Does that community have 100,000+ residents? How was the resolution created and passed?
Its obvious that TV has sex offenders, like other communities, but..........is there a problem that needs addressing?