The gangs problem

[Van Canna]

I find this interesting:

http://ymaa.com/articles/gangs-a-bigger ... -you-think

[gmattson]

Perhaps if all law abiding citizens gave up their weapons, the gangs would not feel we were a threat and would therefore allow us to live without fear!

[Steve Hatfield]

Pretty interesting article Van. I was involved quite a bit in the Palm Beach County gang problem as I had to transport most of them back and forth to court and manage their trials. There have always been people who form groups but when the groups adopt habits of violence, intimidation, threats, extortion, ect. then it goes downhill from there. I was amazed at how they each had adopted those characteristics so young and so easily. They really believed they had to be as dangerous as they could just to survive. In their minds, acting like what we call civilized society just wasn't an option. It reminds me (and I know I'll get hate mail for this one) of the violent video gaming subculture. Many many years ago comedian George Carlin (and I know this sounds racist, I'm just repeating his joke) told a joke that went something like this. You take one white guy and you put him in a group with ten black guys and after a few weeks the white guy will be talking, walking, acting like the black guys. I'll end it there. Point being, when you subject yourself to constant violence, constant anger, constant killing, constant anything, eventually you're going to be caught up in believing that that's how life really is. And you transfer your (video self) or (gang self) into the real world. I've personally felt it when I played particular video games for hours or over and over and can actually feel my heart rate elevate, sweat beads form on my forehead, etc. So you take a prospective gang member, lure him or her in with the false hype of the brotherhood, money etc., and then subject them to the "atmosphere" of the gang long enough and they're in, they're hooked. They believe that's how life is and will be. The other striking thing I realized (that smacked directly opposite of how I was raised) was how there was a complete lack of remorse. Dead eyes. Even when sentenced to life in prison they almost took it as a badge of courage. This was the culture that truly scared me. I was constantly reminding my deputies that these folks would kill them for no apparent reason. And dead is dead. I won't take my family anywhere near where I even suspect there might be gang activity. And at the slightest sign of it we're out of there immediately. Dangerous stuff. And for the rare occasion where someone tries to get out of a gang. Even more dangerous.

Steve

[Jason Rees]

Good reasons I won't live in L.A., Chicago, etc... but even in Anchorage there are gangs.

In 2007, there was a small riot in a notorious part of the city.
In 2008, it was considered a big problem - Media pays attention.
In 2009, the media was still paying [url]http://juneauempire.com/stories/070709/sta_460684983.shtml]attention.[/url]

In 2010, there was a shooting at a mall, and some drug busts.
In 2011, we didn't hear much.
In 2012, bodies started turning up in lakes. Heh.

[Van Canna]

Great posts, Steve and Jason.

Reason why I started this thread is because this is a 'in your face' problem that grows exponentially as days go by, yet many people do not recognize the potential pitfalls and move about with blinders on.

I have encountered such groups in shopping malls, and it seemed like they were just looking for an excuse to give
Someone a 'beat down' …

The reason why in my writings I caution to the 'all is in sanchin' crowd to be extremely careful of who the potential enemy might be out there, they may find themselves locked in battle with.

You will never know when you might suddenly find yourself chosen for a 'wilding'…matters not where you are.

Once you read someone as a gangbanger…it is suicide to even think about fighting him with your super-confident Uechi. There is no winning there…

Rory Miller has approached this in his books.

In one of his articles he talks about what you should be aware of

Situational awareness is an over-used phrase. Without specific education about the things you need to be aware of it's only words. Meaningless.

For this type of crime, what you are looking for are patterns of motion. You’re looking for groups moving purposefully together; groups that cease talking and laughing and split up after spotting a mark; the patterns of a pincer movement or triangulation; staged loitering, where people lounge against walls, but with unusual separation, so that when you walk past they are perfectly staged, one in front of you and one or more behind.

Sometimes, in neighborhoods with experience of gang violence or where a violent group is creating trouble, you can read the flow of other people. As a rule of thumb, if you’re in an unfamiliar place and all the natives clear the street, you might want to think about it as well.

If you become the center of a Group Monkey Dance (GMD) it is hard to overstate the level of danger. The safest of the variations is the simple group mugging for cash. There’s no value in excessive damage and the bloodier the crime the more it gets investigated.

But if any member of the group is insecure and senses a loss of control he will explode into violence. Emotions being contagious, the rest of the group will likely join in. The damage can be horrific. None of the other variations are better.

[Van Canna]

Rory

There are four tactics that I have known to prevent a Group Monkey Dance. Three require special abilities.

The most obvious and the easiest was an act of such overwhelming violence that it shocks and scares the group. An officer and friend stopped a riot in a jail by walking into the module, grabbing the largest of the rioting inmates, spinning him in the air and slamming him into the ground. Not many people can snatch up a 240-pound man and lift him overhead.


The second is to make the threats laugh. That’s hard to do. Don’t count on it. The things that make a group of people who enjoy hurting others laugh are not the same things that tickle audiences in nightclubs. This will not work if the GMD was triggered by betrayal or a perceived betrayal.


The third tactic is to increase either the doubt or the danger level. If the threats know that you are armed, it raises their risk. Looters in major disturbances famously avoid armed premises in favor of unarmed. I generally don’t advocate ever showing a weapon, except perhaps in this case. Like any time that you show a weapon, if the threat display doesn’t work, you will almost certainly have to use the weapon or it will be taken away and used against you.


People who have allies, back-up or a reputation for fighting all raise the risk. People who do not respond like victims, who stay unusually calm or act strangely increase the doubt. Neither of these will matter in betrayal or some random acts of group violence but they might dissuade a group lacking in confidence without a personal issue with you, the victim.

The fourth and most effective tactic is to get the hell out of there. Run.

[Steve Hatfield]

One more point.........the thought that it only happens if I go into "that" neighborhood, or some other place designated as where "those" types of people hang out doesn't apply anymore. Gangs increasingly show up in high end neighborhoods, malls, etc..

Van you mentioned how it's escalating more and more, I wonder what it was like back in "the day" when the Irish, Italian, Polish, etc., gangs in New York were in their day?

Steve

[Van Canna]

Hi Steve,

I agree...a gang member may just be that !@@#$ tailgating you or the one stealing your parking space in a mall. And they do not always travel in packs...we may meet one of them randomly anywhere...and this is where we must be trained to be observant of our potential opponents, lest we get ensnared into a trap with no way out.

[Van Canna]

I wonder what it was like back in "the day" when the Irish, Italian, Polish, etc., gangs in New York were in their day?

This brings to mind the movie 'Gangs of New York'_ Steve.

[Steve Hatfield]

That's exactly what I was thinking of Van. LOL