[Closed] Child snatchers, radicals and paranoia

I live in a grubby area and would love to move but can't afford to.

Perception plays a big part here though. I don't believe that there's been a sudden explosion in the number of wild nonces roaming our streets particularly, but rather we're so very much better at reporting them these days.

You want rural Wales.

Indeed. The phrase "don't read the news" springs to mind.

Try googling some stats and work out the odds.

high risk child snatching random murder issues

Those issues seem to be mostly in your head, though. The rumour of white van tempting kids goes around everywhere - I repeatedly see that from excitable people on FB. Almost never turns out to be true, it's a Chinese whispers thing. And occasional people being boisterous you've turned into an idea about them following you home and killing you.

I live in a supposedly dodgy area - one of the poorest in Scotland. But never have any safety worries for me or my family. There have been a couple of murders around here, but it's been a gang family thing.

Stop reading the Daily Mail, and lay of the gin.

I tend not to bother with the news as it is mostly fear mongering. We appear to becoming like America, where everyone is out to get you!! Russell Howard's Good Newa is my main news source 🙂

Perceived danger > actual danger.

Also worth Remembering that stories like "Teenage Goth* goes on errand for elderly neighbour" does not sell papers. However "Snow storm imminent as giant muslamic spiders wage jihad on baby robins" does.

*insert section of youth we are to be fearful of today.

tinribz - Member
Try googling some stats and work out the odds.

So, figures vary but 569 adbuctions this year of which 70% were by strangers - so about 400. There are roughly 11 million children under 12 in the Uk so that's be 0.05%?

Probably increased by a factor if I'm in London, but yes I see the point.

Now, what chance of me or mine being hacked to death by a random Jihadist?

You are Sheila Broflovski and I claim my £5.

"Look at those frail and fragile boys, It really gets me down, The world is such a rotten place, And city life's a complete disgrace, Thats why I moved to this redneck meshugannah quiet mountain town."

[quote=Kryton57 ]
Probably increased by a factor if I'm in London,
Really? I wasn't aware that London was a high risk place for child abductions.

Now, what chance of me or mine being hacked to death by a random Jihadist?

I worry too much 🙁

Snow storm imminent as giant muslamic spiders wage jihad on baby robins

I so want this to happen.

I worry too much

Definitely. And definitely lay off the gin or you'll be booing your eyes out in next to no time.

Think "new bike" and imagine riding that instead of how some yoot will mash up your peace or something. Thinking things like that is a total waste of the imagination...

Lol, the Gin wasn't the cause of the paranoia and I only drink once a week... I only had four with slimline tonic, and that was enough to induce a hangover.

I'd be done on four gins, personally. You in training for the welsh trip or something...? 😉

But then, is there anywhere without a local nutter/youth gang/masons where I could live in peace? Really?

Yeah....here.

[img] [/img]

"[i]That's the whole trouble. You can't ever find a place that's nice and peaceful, because there isn't any. You may think there is, but once you get there, when you're not looking, somebody'll sneak up and write "**** you" right under your nose. Try it sometime. I think, even, if I ever die, and they stick me in a cemetery, and I have a tombstone and all, it'll say "Holden Caulfield" on it, and then what year I was born and what year I died, and then right under that it'll say "**** you." I'm positive, in fact.[/i]" - [b]Catcher in the Rye.[/b]

I'd be done on four gins, personally. You in training for the welsh trip or something...?

In fact yes - normally I'd have one normal beer and revert to Erdinger Alkoholfrei...

I

only had four with slimline tonic, and that was enough to induce a hangover.

You really need to drink more to build up some immunity. 🙂

Problem nowadays due to media hype and stupid people,everyone over 35 and most women, seem to think every man/youth/child poses a threat to them, their property, their kids etc.

Abductions have always happened,kids have ben killed , but more by parents or people known to them, if you bother with the media.

As for gangs of young people being boisterous, as above its always been going on since the start of time, along with lack of respect for other peoples privacy,property and peace of mind.

Unless parents learn and teach/make their kids learn the difference between right and wrong along with respect for others and them selves and accept responsiblty for their inactions people are going to be afraid.

Trick is to get to know the local yoof - it helped working in the local school where I used to live. The local kids alaways greeted me very politely, and I never worried about walking home late at night 😀

There are plenty of more rural places where such worries would be unlikely to happen, without retreating to somewhere along a track up a Welsh mountain, like large parts of Wiltshire, for example. Even a town like Chippenham can have occasional issues but it's got a population around 55k, and has plenty of countryside within walking distance of anywhere in town.
Loads of places like that around, but you'll still get the oiks yelling and shouting at night after a few in the pub.
Unless you move somewhere with a more mature population, then you become the de facto taxi driver when the kids get older, because there is NO proper public transport network if the kids want sports/cinema/friends/gigs/etc.
A village like Biddestone, where I drink, is lovely, but there are no buses, the nearest large town, Chippenham, is about three miles at its closest, nearer five if you want to drive, and a good torch is a must; there are no street lights, it's [i]very[/i] dark at night, and falling into the duck pond after a few is a real possibility!
It's only a couple of feet deep, though...
There are, as always, a great many pros and cons with finding a good life balance in the places you choose to live.

http://thenormchronicles.com

Dr img your car is pretty much the biggest danger you and kids face...

Me and my friends all had parents that tought right from wrong but that didn't stop us from being a bunch of semi feral monsters when some fireworks and a couple of bottles of white lightning where involved.

I'm sure plenty of kids also have good parents but their idiot kids will do horrible things regardless.

Funny this thread should come up.

I was at a theme park this afternoon with the missus and kids went to get coffees came back and my missus quietly says to me, [i]"Did you see that bloke go in the ladies then?"[/i] loos were 15 foot or so away. [i]"No"[/i] I reply.

[i]He was hanging about outside for about five minutes, looking really suspect to me"[/i] Says my missus.

[i]"Did he look like he worked here? Might just be changing the loo rolls or cleaning?"[/i]

[i]No, definitely looked weird"[/i]

Fella walks out wearing a jacket and a top underneath covered in the parks logos carrying cleaning equipment and a loo roll...

I just turned to my missus and said.
[i]Stop reading the bloody Sun."[/i]

She still wouldn't let go of the idea that this fella was up to no good.

I honestly don't know what makes her so susceptible to this sort of media driven paranoia, but it gets frustrating and sometimes quite embarrassing.

I am knocking on 50 and grew up in a small town in west Yorkshire we started with the abduction of Sahra Harper and then had the Ripper to shape our world view plus proper sustained terror threat from the IRA and a belief it was only a matter of time before the Russians came knocking.
In real terms society is a lot safer than it was and has been posted the biggest risk to you and yours is one that society deems an acceptable one and a small price for perceived convenience of travel .

Problem nowadays due to media hype and stupid people,everyone over 35 and most women, seem to think every man/youth/child poses a threat to them, their property, their kids etc.

I don't feel like that at all (at 41)

Although my positive view of most people has been improved massively by spending six months in the roughest street in a proper rough area, living opposite a scrapyard of a house and people who drink special brew in the street with a load of mates at 9.00 am pretty much every day, and spend every night doing the same, but with added arguments and random fighting.

Everyone I meet and see now just seem lovely.

When I've lived in grim areas and taken a stand against da yoof, I challenge them with the philosophy that I'd rather get a kicking as a consequence of doing the right thing than do nothing at all.

The same applies to witnessing domestic abuse etc.

I have no kids and I know what it's like to be kicked in the head, still here, still trying.

Me and my friends all had parents that tought right from wrong but that didn't stop us from being a bunch of semi feral monsters when some fireworks and a couple of bottles of white lightning where involved.

I'm sure plenty of kids also have good parents but their idiot kids will do horrible things regardless.

I was the same as you Doh. My mum would have been horrified by some of the things we used to get up to.
I think the difference was if you were apprehended by an adult or someone in authority , you would be respectful or just run away a little bit scared. These days the kids doing these things have little respect for authority , and you are more than likely to end up in an argument with them, or worse !

Krypton57 , are you in the south devon area?
We have had these warnings too down here.

project - Member

Problem nowadays due to media hype and stupid people,everyone over 35 and most women, seem to think every man/youth/child poses a threat to them, their property, their kids etc.

I had a weird moment out on a ride a while back, there was a huge group of kids out in the woods- playing music, drinking cider, having a wee fire and probably quite a lot of really bad shagging going on. Happens quite a lot around here, you can get into somewhere that feels reasonably remote with about 10 minutes walk. Anyway, I just thought, that's funny and rode through the middle, basically feeling reminiscent and a bit sad that's all behind me. None of the other guys I was with wanted to go anywhere near them. OK, I'm sure riding through was ever so slightly more risky than our average rides but... If you can't as an adult being an adult coexist with kids being kids then you're screwed. Somehow the generation above me survived my lot being little bastards.

[quote=Northwind ] I had a weird moment out on a ride a while back, there was a huge group of kids out in the woods- playing music, drinking cider, having a wee fire and probably quite a lot of really bad shagging going on. Happens quite a lot around here, you can get into somewhere that feels reasonably remote with about 10 minutes walk. Anyway, I just thought, that's funny and rode through the middle, basically feeling reminiscent and a bit sad that's all behind me. None of the other guys I was with wanted to go anywhere near them. OK, I'm sure riding through was ever so slightly more risky than our average rides but... If you can't as an adult being an adult coexist with kids being kids then you're screwed. Somehow the generation above me survived my lot being little bastards.
Like you, I'd just ride through and probably wave. On the fatbike, they'd more likely than not want to ask loads of the usual questions about it. The only thing that really pissed me off was when they'd leave trash lying around.

I had a weird moment out on a ride a while back, there was a huge group of kids out in the woods- playing music, drinking cider, having a wee fire and probably quite a lot of really bad shagging going on. I just thought, that's funny and rode through the middle, basically feeling reminiscent and a bit sad that's all behind me. None of the other guys I was with wanted to go anywhere near them.

Experienced the same situation quite a few times, other rides either rode aggresivgely into them or turned round, i just ride round them slowly, feeling so jealous, they probably think im to old to join in and have some fun again, usually theyre freindly and say hello, and more often than not they say thanks if you ask them to move slightly if theyre blocking a path etc, and they then say they dont like being shouted at by some walkerists and cyclists.

Krypton57 , are you in the south devon area?
We have had these warnings too down here.

No, London.

This pair in the White van get around a bit don't they ?
Apparently they are trying the exact same thing in Exeter .
Why don't people take the Reg number if they spot these things?

Seems a bit stereotypical , but then again the number of 7 year olds you see walking to school by themselves when I drop the young un off is quite worrying.
Perhaps it a bit of a bogeyman type story to get parents to be a bit more responsible !

I follow various GMP twitter accounts and there are a fair few abduction attempts reported by them

but it's a big city