Give us back the power to protect our property

[Munga]

My wife is very ill (in hospital now and has been for 23 weeks off and on this year) and due to ambulances missing our driveway at times I installed 16 solar lights down the drive which is 100 meters and a internally lit sign (name and number) at the entrance, last friday evening three lights were taken and I put it down to kids last night nine were smashed some thrown against our house and three street signs were pulled out and one speared through the illuminated sign. This all happened while we were home but by the time I got a torch and got outside they were nowhere to be seen.It takes more than a primary school kid to pull a 50mm steel post and sign out of the ground.

I rang the police immediatly and was told there was nothing they cauld do, not even come and have a look, even though I told them who they possibly were as 3 big kids were seen the week before riding around with the lights.:mad:

So I should have kept my mouth shut but I didn't and told the officer I would catch them my self and when that happened they wouldn't be able to pull out signs and throw peoples property around in fact possibly unable to walk properly, then I copped the lecture about taking the law into my own hands, well what is one supposed to do when they cant be bothered to assist, please don't get me wrong I have alot of very good friends in the force and I know they are stretched to the limit but even a small token of interest would help.:mad:

If by chance my wife had been home and we had called an ambulance and they had missed our place and she had died as a consequence nothing would save these mongrels:mad: , they tell me prison food isn'tto bad.

Rant over now going out to try and repair the damage

Arch

[womble]

yes its a sad freakin world isn't it? I wonder how long society will put up with the mindless acts of vandalism that happen every day to our private property and the community in general.

We live in a pretty wealthy country compared to the rest of the world with few problems like war, disease and famine to make peoples lives hard and yet some see fit to 'rebel' against the 'system' because they have it so 'bad' :confused:

Vandals are just bored, spoilt knobs really


ps. yeah prison food isn't bad at all, I used to be a corrections officer

[Bob38S]

I believe it was Teddy Roosevelt [feel free to correct me]

"There are times when you need to walk softly and carry a big stick".

I really appreciate how you are feeling mate but don't do it - the little barstewards would like you to so that they can then bring the full force of the law against you.

Munga - you wouldn't be in the Whale city would you?

[Coldamus]

The law should be changed to make parents financially responsible for any damage caused by their kids up to the age of 18. Over that age, the perpetrators themselves should be responsible. By this I mean that either the parents or the juvenile should be made to repair any damage or compensate the victim for it and/or do the equivalent in jail time.

"Victim" should include the general public in the case of damage caused to public property and should be repaid to the relevant council or government body.

I think kids would get some discipline pretty quick once their parents had to fork out a few thousands for their wanton destruction.

I suppose it would be too much to adopt the South American solution of a bullet to the head and being left to rot by the roadside as a reminder to others. Smelly but effective.

[Munga]

Bob no I won't do anything stupid but I can dream of revenge I've never been known for my patience but I'm learning my turn will come.

I'm 20 klm out of Marybouough.

Arch.

[old_picker]

This will cost some dough but will be worth it.
Install some IP cameras that are tripped by a movement sensor. They are connected to you computer and dump the video feed directly to your hard disk. Also connec a couple of 500 watt halogen lamp . When they come next at least you will know what they look like, have evidence for the cops and also probably know where to find the parents.

Confronted by a blinding flash of light the stupid little bu##ers will probably move on to a softer target. To add to the show you can also hook in a loud alarm as well.

My stepson and his brainless buddies used to do similar stuff in our street a few years ago. Steal flags, knock over bins, wreck letter boxes etc etc. When caught and told what they were doing was wrong the response was usually a shrug accompanied by "Whatever" and a "Get over it" thrown in for good measure. My neighbours still dont speak to me and on more than one occasion had to confront 18 stone monsters in my driveway wanting to take him out. They [teenagers on bikes] really just dont give a damn and indulge in mindless destruction as entertainment. When challenged they just dont get it that there is a problem. It's like "how can you stop me doing what I want??"

[DavidG]

I have a camera watching the driveway and any motion triggers the record on the computer.

Two smallish kids decided to have fun with the old knock and run trick.

They stopped laughing when they came to do it again and they found their photo taped to the door with a note " Please smile for the camera".

[Stuart]

Good point

You can also do it with a webcam, and some software I have that records whenever it detects motion. It can be set to record stills, or video, and can even be set to email the file straight to you immediately.

And if you use one of those email - SMS services, it will be sent straight to your mobile phone.

The program is WebcamXP - they have a trial you can download.


David beat me to it!

[old_picker]

I suppose it would be too much to adopt the South American solution of a bullet to the head and being left to rot by the roadside as a reminder to others. Smelly but effective.

The children you are talking about usually belonged to a group of homeless. They are treated in this manner as a warning to other homeless children to stay away from tourists. Homeless children in these countries hang around tourists as a way of getting money. The governments in these countries provide little in the way of support for homeless people of any age.

Thank god we live in a country were the police are under stricter control and life is not so cheap.

[Metal Head]

Sorry Arch to read of your situation I can feel for you. Why do some kids need to go to such lengths to get their kicks, when there are plenty of things legal) to keep them entertained these days:confused:. I have seen a bus stop just around the corner from us smashed 3 times in as many months, don't their parents teach them the correct values in life. Why don't their parent(s) punish them when they are naughty?. I posted on a thread where parents in the UK are (or will be) responsible for their kids poor actions and about time here. If people want kids, then they (and not society, teachers etc) are responsible for the bringing them up with the right morals, ethics, social behaviour, etc. parents who cannot correct their kids, then should acquire conselling on "how to bring them up correctly" or they will be punished. Why do the majority of adults who do the right thing in life be stressed, picked on by these mindless thugs.

Cheers
David