>>They do not have specific neighborhoods here, so they go to the malls and college areas. I guess in some other cities up north they stay in their own areas. Areas where people who live in nice neighborhoods don't go. I guess that would be safer.
>>
>>http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/3305482/
>
>This is really a pebble in your shoe, isn't it? How come? Just curious.
>
>I suppose me position on the whole parental vigilance is closest to Nick Mason's, among those who have weighed in here. I am not blind to the dangers out there, and have made sure my daughters aren't blind to them, either, but believe kids will be handicapped as adults if they are kept on too short a leash. This outlook comes specifically from my own experiences. I realize others have seen the dark side more closely and are therefore more protective.

I think because we've already seen traces of it in the area we live. We have a nice place, but it is sort of an island in the midst of a lot of rental properties and economically-challenged areas. I think I mentioned a couple situations where we've had groups of kids steal our girl's stuff from her playhouse and also the police raiding our neighbor's house looking for a gang member. Guns drawn, shields, vests, the whole thing. That does make it more personal, but I see plenty of activity when we drive in/out to our home as well. We really like our house/property, but we are really starting to question where we live. Tamor would argue that the problem is our neighborhood, but when we go to the mall and see groups of thugs - yes, if you're not a complete naive idiot you can tell them from the teenagers with angst - and then hear about the stabbings and shootings in public places that are in good areas, then we have to question the level of safety at these places. Is this the average? Not sure. But people from the nice protected neighborhoods shop at these same malls and stores, so I'm not sure how they think that they are safer because they go home to a different place.