Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Condition... Clear?

I'm trying to think of what the condition even more oblivious than white would be for the people in the article Stretch just sent me:

Police Warn Of Cell Phone Thefts In Minneapolis

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — It’s a crime wave happening around the country and it’s hitting the Twin Cities hard.

Thieves are stealing smart phones — sometimes right out of the hands of the owners while they are on the phone.

These obliviots make life more difficult for the rest of us and are doing a grave disservice to the goblin public. By making themselves such easy, inviting targets, they're making the petty thieves jobs, far too easy. Eventually, the crooks will forget how to actually rob people, and will wind up starving to death once their perishable stealing skills have vanished... But seriously, with enough people in this condition less-than-white, thieves are going to get more and more brazen until what would have been a standard grab-n-run is going to turn deadly.

It's also interesting to note what is *not* being said in the article. They mention using a passcode and a "find my phone" app, which is good information; however there is nothing about "don't get so engrossed in your call that you tune out the outside world." How many times do you see someone so engrossed in their phone call that they step out into traffic/walk into something/ignore simple signs that most 5 year olds would see that there is trouble ahead?

Or should we start referring to smartphones as "Darwin boxes"???

That is all.

9 comments:

bluesun said...

Darwin Boxes... I like it!

Barry said...

Bold, brazen & total disregard for the laws that are supposed to protect it's citizens. I was told by my conceal carry instuctor to "stay away from Minneapolis". If you are involved in any confrontation & found to be carrying leagal, you will go to jail, legal or not. This thinking enables the criminal element to commit crimes without any citizen involvment to deter such crimes. Scary thing is, my daughter is moving right into the hotbed known as "Little Mogadishu/MSP" to be closer to her job. God help her.

Stretch said...

One grandfather came from Minneapolis. My Great-Uncle John showed me the sights of the city back in late '70s and early '80s.
Last time I visited in the late '90s I was unable to show my wife the ol' family home because they were now occupied (in every sense of the word) by Somali refugees. Large sections of MSP are now as much 'no go' areas as any in London or Paris.
Thank you Dept. of State.

aczarnowski said...

I work in downtown Minneapolis and ride the LRT into the office. (Yeah, yeah. I don't like that it exists either but it works for me so I'll use it.) The metro transit folks that run LRT are pretty announcement happy. Like two and sometimes three announcements as trains approach the station.

*BEEEEEP* ...sounds of Charlie Brown's teacher...

Damn annoying. The one that got me to write metro transit had to do with cell phones being stolen. It, at least, tells people to pay attention to their surroundings. Still damn annoying, what with having to watch everybody with their white ear buds in oblivious to the message striking into my skull because, yes, I'm trying to retain some situational awareness.

The response I got from metro transit? "We have to do something." *sigh* I'm paying for that well equipped transit police force yes? How about they catch some bad guys?

maddmedic said...

Sigh I commute 50 miles one way into Robbinsdale daily...(No Public Transit for me!)
I am very close to North Mpls, West Broadway, etc. etc.
This was not far away the other night..

http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/138366614.html

This happened in my hometown, where my folks still live, about 60 miles South of Mpls..

http://owatonna.com/content/incident-bar-leads-charges

I carry my Kahr all the time these days..

cryptical said...

I've lived here in MSP most of my life, and it's really not the hellhole it sounds like. If you stay clear from North Minneapolis, Downtown, South Minneapolis Between Cedar & Lyndale down to 46th, St Paul along the University corridor and the East Side you ought to be ok. There's really only a couple of neighborhoods that I'll avoid at all costs, even though I carry. Just not worth the trouble.

The Somalis are mostly around Cedar-Riverside, there have been a rash of armed robberies in the neighborhoods surrounding the U. It's a victim-disarmament zone, so no wonder.

aczarnowski said...

While we're riffing on Minneapolis problems I'll note that Officer William Palmer is one of the bad ones. Something that is, apparently, pretty common in the MPD given the average yearly settlement amounts the city coughs up. And he'll get away with it. Joel has since passed away.

Hell, they give medals to the SWAT guys for shooting up the wrong house around here.

And people wonder why I'm fixing up the house so we can sell.

Mad Saint Jack said...

How 'bout Condition Green.

Like a Vegetable.



WV:trympato

M&P? I will stick with my Glocks. kthxbi

Hecate said...

One of my instructors always called it "condition brown" after where their heads were located . . .