Lubbock's violent crime wave
Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 1:03 pm
A visit with an employee of the DA's office and an EMT last week confirmed some of my assumptions regarding the wave of violent crime (home invasions, robberies) that has plagued this city since last fall. Like so many modern crimes, the Meth connection seems to be fueling this latest surge. A few weeks ago, combined federal, state, and local agencies conducted a large-scale sweep which effectively dried up the Meth supplies here. After a lag of a few weeks, new suppliers moved in, the suppliy crunch eased, and prices went up, creating the need for ready cash and the desperate measures to get it. (Our personal involvement in this consists of the front door kick-in of the rental apartment of my mother-in-law, Granny Glock's mom, which is located behind her main house; fortunately no one was home at the time).
Unlikely as it seems, though, there is occasionally humor. Last Tuesday night around midnight, a close friend was watching TV in his living room when he heard a knock at the front door. Without thinking, his son bolted to the door and flung it open, revealing an Hispanic male in his late 20s, who claimed to be passing through town and needed cash for car repairs. This, of course, didn't jive with the fact that my friend lives in the middle of a large residential neighborhood, distant from thoroughfares, and it was midnight. The caller became insistent, whereupon my friend, a grizzled, 60-ish Marine sniper who served two Vietnam tours, walked to the door in all of his suspendered, shirtless glory. Supermex took a look, then one giant step backwards off the front porch, rolled upright, and split like a streak. No guns were drawn. Sometimes the look is all that's needed, that is, if one has the look.
Bottom line is that we West Texans are confronting a situation that seems to be worsening exponentially, especially now that ephedra and other precursor Meth chemicals are available in bulk just across the Rio Bravo, and that the new stuff represents a quantum leap upwards in potency, being essentially 100% addictive, permanently. We all need to keep after our local law enforcement and our elected representatives to fight this problem, just as we need to adapt our defenses to protect ourselves and our families against this increasing threat. If there's any connection, my wife and all the kids are marksmen, proficient in the use of small arms, and they stay away from drugs. They're also very safe at home. I believe that it is very important to teach children, at appropriate ages, to be aware of the new problems that they will face in their generation, and strategies to deal with these new risks and dangers. All the best, and watch your six.
Unlikely as it seems, though, there is occasionally humor. Last Tuesday night around midnight, a close friend was watching TV in his living room when he heard a knock at the front door. Without thinking, his son bolted to the door and flung it open, revealing an Hispanic male in his late 20s, who claimed to be passing through town and needed cash for car repairs. This, of course, didn't jive with the fact that my friend lives in the middle of a large residential neighborhood, distant from thoroughfares, and it was midnight. The caller became insistent, whereupon my friend, a grizzled, 60-ish Marine sniper who served two Vietnam tours, walked to the door in all of his suspendered, shirtless glory. Supermex took a look, then one giant step backwards off the front porch, rolled upright, and split like a streak. No guns were drawn. Sometimes the look is all that's needed, that is, if one has the look.
Bottom line is that we West Texans are confronting a situation that seems to be worsening exponentially, especially now that ephedra and other precursor Meth chemicals are available in bulk just across the Rio Bravo, and that the new stuff represents a quantum leap upwards in potency, being essentially 100% addictive, permanently. We all need to keep after our local law enforcement and our elected representatives to fight this problem, just as we need to adapt our defenses to protect ourselves and our families against this increasing threat. If there's any connection, my wife and all the kids are marksmen, proficient in the use of small arms, and they stay away from drugs. They're also very safe at home. I believe that it is very important to teach children, at appropriate ages, to be aware of the new problems that they will face in their generation, and strategies to deal with these new risks and dangers. All the best, and watch your six.
, the snow would get deep at times. The wind on the plains made riding a bike tough. There's only about three fences between Lubbock and Canada to break the wind.
Remember) are really bad news. The wife's Dad still lives there & we are always concerned for him at 84 & still living by himself. 48th & Ave U area. The bars on Q are too close.