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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0pSM9VRyVM

The above link is a 44 minute long National Geographic documentary of the drug scene in Houston's 5th Ward.

At one point in the video, they show a map of the City of Houston's 6 wards. IIRC, the 5th Ward is the NE corner
of the City. There are various Houston scenes in this video, including I-610, and the spot where I-45 and Texas 249 cross.
There are various street signs seen in the video. Of course you Houston folks probably wouldn't be in those areas anyway.

This video is not appropriate for viewing by children due to drug use and language. It's NSFW (Not Suitable For Work).

It does point out the drug scene in Houston, as well as money laundering, and LEO activity to stop these things.

Houston PD, the Harris County Sheriff's office, the Fort Bend County LEO's, Hidalgo County Sheriffs, and the Falfurrias, TX checkpoint are covered,
including the US 59 drug route from Laredo to Houston.

As far as weapons seen in the video:
Smith and Wesson .45 revolver, large knife suitable for beheading, a long machete,
and some kind of large semi-automatic long gun (it's not an AR-15, but it's BIG). Can anyone ID this firearm?
The last 3 weapons are seen in the last few minutes of the video.

Note that the drug dealer in the black wool ski mask mentions that he owns 13 guns.
The black semi-auto on the table in front seems to have a star on the grip. Is this a Tri-Star 9MM?
For a guy that makes thousands of dollars a week in profit, it seems that he would have a better pistol, IMHO.

Stay safe out there my Houston people. Carry onbody with an extra mag. :-)

SIA

Unfortunately, my line of work takes me into all areas of Houston. (and not always in daylight hours) Fortunately, my job allows me to carry for this very reason.

I saw that on a show called Drugs Inc. My son lives in Houston. That documentary made me worry but Dallas and Ft worth have their dark sides as well. It would be hard to argue which city is the most dangerous.

Even the Aryan Brotherhood is controlled by the Mexican cartels. Wild.

Redneck_Buddha wrote:Even the Aryan Brotherhood is controlled by the Mexican cartels. Wild.

It is all about the drug money and the Mexican cartels have control of all the drugs.

ive seen this documentary and i wasn't in the least surprised..... I don't go anywhere near the wards thankfully and I stay on my my little corner of Houston for the most part. even though every time i turn on the news Cypress had another home invasion or murder at a party

I drove through 5th Ward on accident once when I was a teenager. ONCE was all I needed to know I didn't need to go back . . .

Pulled off the freeway looking for gas, stopped at a station to witness a fight. Immediately left & kept driving west until I found another gas station.

I volunteer occasionally at a Christian-based private school that supports the poorest of the poor. It's in the 3rd Ward. The tuitions are paid for 100% by donations from business and individuals. These kids have such a hard road ahead, that it is just sad. This school provides an amazing opportunity for them to get out of their current environment. The area is horrid of course... The playground's chain link fence has to be spray painted red to keep it from being stolen. They own an outdoor, covered basketball court just down the street, but don't even try to utilize it because it's constantly overrun by gangs and thugs.

When I go there, I'm at condition YELLOW at a minimum, and constantly. SA is more important than ever because I'm going to a school... no option to carry. I'm not even comfortable taking it in my car because of theft, but I do, and I keep it in one of the gun safes tethered to my car. There's no way I could retrieve it in time for self defense however. It's just there for the ride there and home.

This is when I'm more upset than ever about the inability to campus carry. Once on campus, there are armed security personnel, so it's not quite so bad, but the walk to and from my car... ugh.


EDIT: The video is marked private. Is there a way I can see it?

If you don't know your way around, the wards can be extremely bad news and a regular killbox for outsiders. Nothing to New Orleans or east LA areas though.

No place is totally safe. The Wards have a lot of nice people in them, but there are a lot of scum too. If you go into the Wards don't look like bait, look like a predator and look like you have a purpose and a reason to be there. It decreases the odds of becoming a victim of some criminal.

I live a few blocks, less than 1/2 mile, from where Yoli Perez was murdered going to pick up her kid from school. I was home at the time and only noticed when the news helicopters were hovering over the house. http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas ... 163504.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

EDIT: The video is marked private. Is there a way I can see it?[/quote]

I did not realize this until you posed the question. IIRC this was a "Drugs Inc." documentary.
I am not aware of how you may access this video. Happy hunting. If anyone can access this
somehow, please share your navigation to it on this thread.

TIA / SIA

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/c ... n-houston/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Try this.

Cedar Park Dad wrote:If you don't know your way around, the wards can be extremely bad news and a regular killbox for outsiders. Nothing to New Orleans or east LA areas though.

I would totally disagree about New Orleans. I spent 30 years there. My father spent 20 years pastoring an intercity mission church. There isn't an underbelly of New Orleans I haven't seen.
For a number of years I managed offices in New Orleans and Houston in ares that would be very similar in description. I never had a single issue at my New Orleans office. I eventually had to close down the Houston office due to theft, vandalism, and threats to the safety of my employees. I wouldn't hesitate to go anywhere in New Orleans - I refuse to so much as drive through Houston.

jmra wrote:

Cedar Park Dad wrote:If you don't know your way around, the wards can be extremely bad news and a regular killbox for outsiders. Nothing to New Orleans or east LA areas though.

I would totally disagree about New Orleans. I spent 30 years there. My father spent 20 years pastoring an intercity mission church. There isn't an underbelly of New Orleans I haven't seen.
For a number of years I managed offices in New Orleans and Houston in ares that would be very similar in description. I never had a single issue at my New Orleans office. I eventually had to close down the Houston office due to theft, vandalism, and threats to the safety of my employees. I wouldn't hesitate to go anywhere in New Orleans - I refuse to so much as drive through Houston.

Ironic, because post-Katrina, Houston's crime shot up.
One of my best friends works for HPD in west Houston and his neighborhoods went to hell fast. He said, "These people are a special kind of mean and angry. Their gangs are nothing like what I've seen before."

Not far from nice homes in Memorial are Katrina evacuees, still getting subsidized by our taxes, and I see them weekly... and agree with his analysis.

Scott in Houston wrote:

jmra wrote:

Cedar Park Dad wrote:If you don't know your way around, the wards can be extremely bad news and a regular killbox for outsiders. Nothing to New Orleans or east LA areas though.

I would totally disagree about New Orleans. I spent 30 years there. My father spent 20 years pastoring an intercity mission church. There isn't an underbelly of New Orleans I haven't seen.
For a number of years I managed offices in New Orleans and Houston in ares that would be very similar in description. I never had a single issue at my New Orleans office. I eventually had to close down the Houston office due to theft, vandalism, and threats to the safety of my employees. I wouldn't hesitate to go anywhere in New Orleans - I refuse to so much as drive through Houston.

Ironic, because post-Katrina, Houston's crime shot up.
One of my best friends works for HPD in west Houston and his neighborhoods went to heck fast. He said, "These people are a special kind of mean and angry. Their gangs are nothing like what I've seen before."

Not far from nice homes in Memorial are Katrina evacuees, still getting subsidized by our taxes, and I see them weekly... and agree with his analysis.

As is your choice but it would be based on a very small sampling and would suggest that now I am even more correct as the worst of what lived in New Orleans before Katrina now lives in Houston.