Modernceo Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 I heard on the news this morning, on 740AM that the Guardian Angels are going to come to Houston, to begin their volunteer patrols in the Sharpstown area. They know that the apartments are a real blight to the area, and consider that to be a big part of their focus. Although I dont live in Sharpstown, I have a few friends that do, and I also work near the Sharpstown area and hope for improvement. This seems promising.. Cory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevfiv Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 the mission and values of the organization is great - i hope good things happen! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeightsGuy Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 the mission and values of the organization is great - i hope good things happen!More important than that sevfiv is the bad publicity quotient that this announcement brings to city hall. White and Hurtt may have a plan for the recent increase in murders in Houston, but this will hopefully add to the pressure of getting something done about it. Giving tired overworked cops mandatory overtime does not a long-term solution make. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 The Guardian Angels need to head a little further south of Sharpstown, they need to be around the Beltway 8 and 59S. area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 Mayor White is on the verge of being exposed.He talks a good game, but he has no follow-through.The road to hell is paved with good intentions, and Hurtt is driving the hearse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevfiv Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 More important than that sevfiv is the bad publicity quotient that this announcement brings to city hall. White and Hurtt may have a plan for the recent increase in murders in Houston, but this will hopefully add to the pressure of getting something done about it. Giving tired overworked cops mandatory overtime does not a long-term solution make.indeed! only one can hope that this kickstarts something here, without importing charity (although it is appreciated). knowing us, though, it'll be another version of the michigan militia, southern style Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talbot Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 Are the Guardian Angels the people that were in the D.C. area when the sniper was on the loose up there a couple of years ago? The ones that would fill up peoples gas for them so they wouldn't have to get out of their cars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevfiv Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 Are the Guardian Angels the people that were in the D.C. area when the sniper was on the loose up there a couple of years ago? The ones that would fill up peoples gas for them so they wouldn't have to get out of their cars?yuphttp://www.wndu.com/news/102002/news_16631...PRINT_VERSION=1Members of the Guardian Angels are out at filling stations in Alexandria, Virginia pumping gas for residents. The group is not affiliated with local law enforcement, but members say they just want to help people in distress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 I want one of those cool red leather jackets & berets. No wait.. I'm thinking of that movie The Warriors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talbot Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 yuphttp://www.wndu.com/news/102002/news_16631...PRINT_VERSION=1Alright, thought so. They sounded familiar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmainguy Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 Mayor White is on the verge of being exposed. Exposed as what? BTW, he was inaugurated today after winning 91% of the vote. Please tell us in the 91% what we missed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dalparadise Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 The Guardian Angels were here in the late 80s, patrolling lower Westheimer. It was good PR for the city when people felt they were no longer needed and pulled out. Having them try to throw their berets into a suburban neighborhood seems like a really bad thing.In the Lower Westheimer environment where there was lots of pedestrian traffic, their purpose was well defined and they were mostly a welcomed presence. For the most part, they protected the locals from the hundreds of kids who came down to harass prostitutes and fag bash on the weekends. They would simply escort anyone to and from stores, clubs or bars who needed it and would keep an eye on hotspots like the parking lots off Fairview and around Numbers.They are not and never were police, however, nor would I imagine that they could be very effective in a patrol environment to curtail crime on private property, where there aren't many people around, such as in an apartment complex in Sharpstown. No doubt, some will benefit -- especially those who'd like to walk to a grocery store, or something. But the crime dynamic in a neighborhood like this is very different from that of an urban, pedestrian environment. What Sharpstown needs is more accountability by the landowners.I predict the Guardian Angels will quietly pull out after a few months of being ineffective in Sharpstown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 I agree with you there Dal, unless they are patrolling Sharpstown Mall mostly, or strictly apartment complexes in the area, I don't think they'll be of much use either. They could definately do some good patrolling the parking garages of The Galleria, but of course you know the uproar that would cause by lower income community leaders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Meanwhile HPD and Mayor White do NOTHING.Think about that for a minute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmainguy Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Meanwhile HPD and Mayor White do NOTHING.Think about that for a minute. I'll ask again: Why can't you tell us what Mayor White is on the verge of being exposed as? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Exposed as red-light synchronization expert. So he took a ride in a HPD cruiser last month in the Gulfton Ghetto. Wowza.If that's not leadership, I don't know what is. There is a crime crisis in the works, and nobody is doing anything.Meanwhile, in cities that get it:Chicago targets gang crime hotspotshttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4553378.stm91% of the vote.That's easy to do. Can you even name one of his opponents? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmainguy Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Exposed as red-light synchronization expert. So he took a ride in a HPD cruiser last month in the Gulfton Ghetto. Wowza.91% of the vote. That's easy to do. Can you even name one of his opponents? Exposed you say? EXPOSED??? Yeah, 91% is like falling off a log...happens all the time. Yes, I could name one but I'll give you all 4: Gladys House, Luis Ullrich, Jack Terence, Anthony Dutrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 So you feel confident about his leadership?Low expectations are self-fullfilling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProHouston Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 So you feel confident about his leadership?Low expectations are self-fullfilling.I'm with nmainguy. I think White is a good mayor, has fulfulled (or is at least working on) many of his campaign points, and he's well liked. We haven't seen that since Mayor Lanier and he couldn't even get us a stadium built. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 I like him, too.But he has gone for the low-hanging fruit so far. That's easy.Push has come to shove, Mayor White. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevfiv Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 push has come to shove on several issues - white has the potential to make things happen, i just hope he uses it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeightsGuy Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 On this subject I fully agree with Midtown. White has completely dropped the ball on the violent crime explosion. Look, crime waves don't occur overnight, they're a process that builds when criminals see other criminals getting away with it. You can blame New Orleans all you want to, but all NO did was add a tinder to a firebox that was already set to blow. But, IMO, because of NO, the fact that murders in Houston jumped 70% in November is a much better gauge of the overall problem than the lower (but still high) 23% jump in murders for the year as a whole. And what has been City Hall's response so far? A $4 million overtime program. Yeah, that's going to take a bite out of crime. Overtime for officers all ready shellshocked after an 8 hour shift will get to go back into the breach to fight this problem. That my friends is what 91% vote does for someone. If the mayor had a worthy opponent, that person would be screaming at the top of their lungs about this, but the issue is going to get swept away until the statistics start shouting by itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Houston, we truly do have a problem. White is a nice guy, but nice does not fight crime. On a related note: More problems found at HPD crime labhttp://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3564238.htmlAnd FWIW, the red light are out of sync again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmainguy Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 So you feel confident about his leadership?Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Coog, those HPD Lab problems occurred before White was elected to office. How is that his fault?Heights, your comment on how crime works may sound good, but it is not backed up by your own facts, nor is it backed by facts anywhere else. Fact is, crime in Houston overall has dropped 2.2% in 2004. Are you guys blaming White for that, or just the bad murder statistic?Murder is the most unique of crimes, in that it does not follow the same trends as other crimes. It often is committed by acquaintances, such as spouses or boyfriends. High unemployment and other stressors are often linked to increased murder rates. Even though New Orleans residents have only accounted for about 10 of Houston's 336 murders, the evacuees have moved into already crowded areas of town, increasing stress in those areas. The New Orleans paper did an in depth article on the Houston murder rate. They found that ALL of the increase is confined to 2 police districts. Most of the increase is at 5 apartment complexes. The HPD plan to increase patrols at these high crime complexes is a smart move. A higher police presence, while not a cure all, will calm the populace a bit, relieving some stress. As time passes, and many of the evacuees move back to NO, or become working Houston residents, stresses will decrease. As for overtime, HPD is not shellshocked. Even at 336 murders, it is less than half our murder rate in the early to mid 80s. Police officers often work extra jobs, so getting some overtime on the streets will just replace other work. The issue facing HPD now is replacing the hundreds of officers who are retiring after HPD's big hiring spree in the 1980s, which, if you do your math, is 20 years ago. 20 years is the retiring line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 How is that his fault?It might not be his fault, but it is his problem. We have been passing this buck for far too long. If not White, then exactly WHO is accountable?All the while, White continues with his pie in the sky drivel. White asked Houstonians and community organizations to get involved in two areas not normally associated with city government: reducing the high school dropout rate and conserving energy to reduce toxic emissions."Wouldn't it be great if Houston was recognized as not only the energy capital of the world, which we're very proud of, but as the energy-efficiency capital of the world?" he said.http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metrop...an/3563745.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 "All the while, White continues with his pie in the sky drivel." QUOTEWhite asked Houstonians and community organizations to get involved in two areas not normally associated with city government: reducing the high school dropout rate and conserving energy to reduce toxic emissions."Wouldn't it be great if Houston was recognized as not only the energy capital of the world, which we're very proud of, but as the energy-efficiency capital of the world?" he said.Spoken like a true Dodge owner. I understand the commercials now.Have fun at the Rodeo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Is that the best you got? White talks the talk. He's good at it. He's also good at distracting himself from the task at hand.I am surprised he did not ask us to turn off the light when we leave the room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Is that the best you got? White talks the talk. He's good at it. He's also good at distracting himself from the task at hand.I am surprised he did not ask us to turn off the light when we leave the room.Coog, I just have to ask if you felt the same way about Mayor Brown ? Did his PAYOFF to Cheif Bradford have any effect on you ? I think alot of the HPD's crime lab troubles can be linked to Brown's reign as Mayor and when he was Police Chief. White got handed a ____ sandwich, and he is trying his best to eat it, and get us back on track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 Is that the best you got?No, I've tired of debating those who do not put thought into their arguments. Whether it is your condescension at those who wish to clean up Houston's environment, or others who think that invading Iraq was good, because the new Shiites in charge will somehow be friends of the US, instead of beholden to Shiite led Iran, I've tired of the whole thing.My New Year's resolution is to watch our long inexorable decline into mediocrity with a certain satisfaction that I somehow warned everyone that shortsighted stupidity, under the guise of "The American Way", will not work.Kind of reminds me of Dean Wormer's famous quote:"Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life." Of course, I would add, "Fat, sober and evangelical is not going to cut it, either."There. Better? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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