a warning and a visit from bambi

The coolest thing happened the other night.. we live literally around the corner from a major thoroughfare here.. a main drag if you will.. but every once in a while, a family of deer wanders over into our neighborhood from the park.. the other night when letting the dog out for her last potty break, I looked out beyond the fallen trees and saw the family of deer, just hanging out in the yard. I quickly brought the dog in so she wouldn't try to play with our new friends. They didn't stay long.. but it was nice to see them again...

on to more annoying events..

there is an email circulating.. you may have gotten a version of it already, I know it's going around in georgia cause I've gotten it several times in the past 24 hours from different people.. be aware that someone may take a current crime event in your area and shape the email to it and send it on.. it is sad, it's racist and it is so wrong.. Be aware that it's out there, and if you get it, make sure you address back to the people that got it that it is wrong..

here is the text of the email.. below that my response to it..




Some of you may have seen the news yesterday where a woman was carjacked at Cobb Parkway and Highway 92 (Acworth). While fleeing, the carjacker crashed into a cement truck and the victim was killed instantly. (She was 30 yrs.old and a mother of two small toddlers) As the carjacker was fleeing, (with a gun) a citizen shot and killed him! The police think this is the same man who raped a woman last weekend, (school teacher 2 months away from retirement), took her to her bank and had her clean out her ATM, and then stabbed her! (thankfully she did not die). The police also think this man is from New Orleans.

Today here at the office we had a patient who came in who is a 9-1-1 operator. She said that calls are coming in like crazy over the past 2 weeks with carjackings! (right around the time we have had this influx of new residents!)

The media have said that there are 4,500 sex offenders that were let out of prison in New Orleans who have NOT re-registered! All the communities who have taken in these folks are now at risk.

The purpose of this email is to put all of you on ALERT! Lock your car doors the minute you get in. Keep your homes locked. This is not the same community we had 2 weeks ago.

Please let others know about this, as I would feel horrible if something happened to one of my friends or family members and I had this knowledge.

Be Safe!


here is my response.. the blank ____spots are where someone's name was..



While no one will question that I also care about the safety of others, I want to clarify that while this email that ______ received was intended to make people more aware of their safety.. it was also intended to scare people.
The perpetrator in question was NOT from New Orleans, He was from right here in georgia, was a sex offender and was not on the georgia state registry. why? well officials don't know..

While I don't know where the statistics that _____ spoke about came from, it is important to note that scaring people because there is an influx of people who are here, not because they want to be, but because they have no where else to go, serves no one.
In researching the numbers, yes the 4,500 number is correct, and has been reported widely, but a number of those people are offenders the likes of prostitutes and voyuers.. 300 is the number that I find that had crimes in which they had to check in with authorities.
We should ALL be aware of our surroundings, lock our car doors and homes, regardless of whether there are new residents around.
and I am sorry, but the overall tone of the email to me reads very much like.. "be scared of the (black) people who came here from New Orleans..they are criminals and carjackers" and that is just wrong.

and _______, I know that you didn't write the email.. and I know that you just want people to be safe.. I am just making a statement about this email and others like it... as a member of the media.. trust me... if that story exists that carjackings have gone through the roof in the past two weeks, someone is going to report it. as a matter of fact I am going to have it checked into more thoroughly tomorrow.

Emails like this are flying around.. among any number of rumors .

No, this is not the same community we had two weeks ago, nor is it the same country we had two weeks ago.. But more blaming of the victims and hyping fear on an influx of people who by and large are not criminals, does nothing to help the situation..

So, lock your doors, and windows.. and be careful.. of EVERYONE. You should be doing that anyway.. I really don't want to cover a news story on you at this or any other time, because you were a crime of opportunity.

In this time, after such a horrific disaster, we should be helping one another, helping those people who literally have nothing.. someone is taking advantage of this opportunity to scare people.. and that is truly sad
Regards,
biscuit


Reading that angered me like I can't even tell you..
so be aware that it's out there.. and oh yeah.. lock your doors and windows.. you should be doin that anyway!