Safety issues make me sad

[MikeyST1957]

This is in NO way meant to spark a political discussion

I used to go down to the Chicago lakefront after dark to shoot skyline shots with my mini2
We are lucky to have the entire length accessible in such a long lakefront of parks and paths and beaches
Beautiful views of the lit-up city

I just don’t feel safe doing it anymore
All my drone gear and iPhone, and I’m frequently pretty absorbed in my flight and unaware of my surroundings
I never used to worry about that
When I first moved here 30 years ago, I was amazed at how safe it was to be out late at night. There were people everywhere

I don’t fly down there at night anymore
( I don’t think it’s unique to Chicago)

 

[BigAl07]

While it's not "unique" to Chicago, its VERY prevalent in Chicago and other "similar" areas. Where I live in Rural North Carolina, we still have that "Safety Factor" going for us. Believe it or not, many of my neighbors don't even lock their doors. One of my neighbors just returned from a week-long trip out of the USA and they didn't lock a single door nor arm their alarm. That says a LOT about this area and also a lot for our "robust" Neighbor Hood Watch System.

I'm sure as Decent Society declines and populations (and other factors) increase this diminishing Safety Factor will continue to sweep the planet. Like it or not, Evil & Bad people are getting more and more of a foot hold and ruining it for everyone else.

 

[kpmac]

I don't fly at night at my local civic center for the same reason. At night it becomes a gathering place for loud "music" fans, thugs, and cruising carloads of dope-smoking idiots.

 

[Felix le Chat]

This is in NO way meant to spark a political discussion

I used to go down to the Chicago lakefront after dark to shoot skyline shots with my mini2
We are lucky to have the entire length accessible in such a long lakefront of parks and paths and beaches
Beautiful views of the lit-up city

I just don’t feel safe doing it anymore
All my drone gear and iPhone, and I’m frequently pretty absorbed in my flight and unaware of my surroundings
I never used to worry about that
When I first moved here 30 years ago, I was amazed at how safe it was to be out late at night. There were people everywhere

I don’t fly down there at night anymore
( I don’t think it’s unique to Chicago)

I don't think it's down to the world changing, it's more down to us getting older and seeing it differently. See if you can find an extra pair of eyes - someone with similar interests who's game for a blue-hour shoot

 

[Deleted member 177263]

This is in NO way meant to spark a political discussion

I used to go down to the Chicago lakefront after dark to shoot skyline shots with my mini2
We are lucky to have the entire length accessible in such a long lakefront of parks and paths and beaches
Beautiful views of the lit-up city

I just don’t feel safe doing it anymore
All my drone gear and iPhone, and I’m frequently pretty absorbed in my flight and unaware of my surroundings
I never used to worry about that
When I first moved here 30 years ago, I was amazed at how safe it was to be out late at night. There were people everywhere

I don’t fly down there at night anymore
( I don’t think it’s unique to Chicago)

if you're over 21 it says HERE you can get a licence to carry a handgun, I'd just do that,

 

[BobaFut]

if you're over 21 it says HERE you can get a licence to carry a handgun, I'd just do that,

So some guys roll up on you while you've got your head buried in your screen and both hands on your controller and you're going to do, what, exactly with your concealed handgun?

Violent crime is down DRAMATICALLY now compared to 30 years ago. Despite a decent increase in the murder rate in Chicago since 2020 (other violent crimes haven't increased as much), it's still less than the early 1990s. Crime in the US in the early 1990s was BAD and it doesn't make any sense to view that as some carefree era compared to now. The US is, by basically every measure of public safety, safer now than it was then (not quite as good as the 2010s, but covid almost certainly caused a crime blip that has mostly subsided in other parts of the country).

I think you should always be aware of your surroundings, but I've flown my drones in downtown Baltimore and the waterfront in Camden, New Jersey and not had a problem. And honestly, if someone does steal my drone, I have insurance.

 

[EssenYVR]

I don't think it's down to the world changing, it's more down to us getting older and seeing it differently. See if you can find an extra pair of eyes - someone with similar interests who's game for a blue-hour shoot

When I was young I used to go down to the waterfront at night to have fun with my friends and it was perfectly safe. Nowadays, though, there's a bunch of young hooligans partying all night down there.

​

 

[MikeyST1957]

Yeah same with me
I used to play guitar in the blues clubs till 4 am… walk to my car a couple city blocks after that with my guitar in-hand

Not now
I could never go to the lakefront at night with drone gear
Might as well put a target on my back

 

[Felix le Chat]

When I was young I used to go down to the waterfront at night to have fun with my friends and it was perfectly safe. Nowadays, though, there's a bunch of young hooligans partying all night down there.

​

. Same here but in a different country. I still see one of the rowdy buggers every day..... Every time I look in the mirror to shave.

 

[MikeyST1957]

I have the same problem in a different way…
Every morning I look in the mirror and wonder who this old-guy is staring back at me

 

[Felix le Chat]

I have the same problem in a different way…
Every morning I look in the mirror and wonder who this old-guy is staring back at me

 

[GregS]

if you're over 21 it says HERE you can get a licence to carry a handgun, I'd just do that,

Chicago is a "Gun Free Zone". meaning only criminals have guns! It's a crime for law abiding citizens with an Illinois Concealed Carry permit to be in Chicago:
'A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by up to a year in the county jail and a $2,500 fine'.

 

[RBrotzman]

While it's not "unique" to Chicago, its VERY prevalent in Chicago and other "similar" areas. Where I live in Rural North Carolina, we still have that "Safety Factor" going for us. Believe it or not, many of my neighbors don't even lock their doors. One of my neighbors just returned from a week-long trip out of the USA and they didn't lock a single door nor arm their alarm. That says a LOT about this area and also a lot for our "robust" Neighbor Hood Watch System.

I'm sure as Decent Society declines and populations (and other factors) increase this diminishing Safety Factor will continue to sweep the planet. Like it or not, Evil & Bad people are getting more and more of a foot hold and ruining it for everyone else.

I just have one question. If it's as safe in your area of rural North Carolina as you say it is, and if your friends really did feel it was OK to take a week-long trip out of the USA without locking the doors of their home, why did they spend money to buy an alarm system that they don't arm? That doesn't make a lot of sense.

 

[BigAl07]

I just have one question. If it's as safe in your area of rural North Carolina as you say it is, and if your friends really did feel it was OK to take a week-long trip out of the USA without locking the doors of their home, why did they spend money to buy an alarm system that they don't arm? That doesn't make a lot of sense.

Listen smarty britches, if it's ANY of your concern (and it's not), they bought the house as-is. The builder installed an Alarm System as part of their standard package. Does that make any more sense at all?

You assuming makes no sense at all...

 

[YVRGUY]

Listen smarty britches, if it's ANY of your concern (and it's not), they bought the house as-is. The builder installed an Alarm System as part of their standard package. Does that make any more sense at all?

You assuming makes no sense at all...

BigAl07, in the event of, it’s easy for the thieves and vandals, easy for the insurance company claims, and hard for law enforcement. I’ll keep my doors locked on my car even though locks are “standard package” No one is immune…

 

[djwak59]

This is in NO way meant to spark a political discussion

I used to go down to the Chicago lakefront after dark to shoot skyline shots with my mini2
We are lucky to have the entire length accessible in such a long lakefront of parks and paths and beaches
Beautiful views of the lit-up city

I just don’t feel safe doing it anymore
All my drone gear and iPhone, and I’m frequently pretty absorbed in my flight and unaware of my surroundings
I never used to worry about that
When I first moved here 30 years ago, I was amazed at how safe it was to be out late at night. There were people everywhere

I don’t fly down there at night anymore
( I don’t think it’s unique to Chicago)

I know exactly what you mean. I’m originally from the lower south side of Chicago, the Pullman district. Now I live in NW Indiana. Long story short, I was a wedding/party DJ for 15 years and used to have an occasional job downtown or at Navy Pier. REALLY nice view of the skyline from the cruise boats ! I would have thousands of dollars of equipment and music with me. I worried about it even back then, but NOW ?? I haven’t DJd now for at least 7 years. You couldn’t pay me enough to go down there now.

 

[rjwmorrell]

While it's not "unique" to Chicago, its VERY prevalent in Chicago and other "similar" areas. Where I live in Rural North Carolina, we still have that "Safety Factor" going for us. Believe it or not, many of my neighbors don't even lock their doors. One of my neighbors just returned from a week-long trip out of the USA and they didn't lock a single door nor arm their alarm. That says a LOT about this area and also a lot for our "robust" Neighbor Hood Watch System.

I'm sure as Decent Society declines and populations (and other factors) increase this diminishing Safety Factor will continue to sweep the planet. Like it or not, Evil & Bad people are getting more and more of a foot hold and ruining it for everyone else.

Your mileage may vary. A friend of mine runs a gas station in Mars Hill. They've had thefts and even robberies (technically... a theft with a weapon brandished). Down the road a ways in Weaverville there's been shootings. But overall, the area is VERY safe compared to urban areas of eastern NC, and even SC, from my understanding.

I've been to Chicago, and it was a lot different then... not even that long ago (2005). I felt relatively safe walking around downtown. However, I won't set foot there now.

Same with NYC. It was wild in the late 80s when I first went, then super enjoyable to visit and walk around quite safely in the 2000's. Now it's becoming dangerous in many areas again.

For comparison, where I live, Hamilton, Canada, is one of the highest crime cities of its size in Canada and I feel safe flying in most of downtown day or night, no one bothers me except the panhandlers.

 

[BigAl07]

Your mileage may vary. A friend of mine runs a gas station in Mars Hill. They've had thefts and even robberies (technically... a theft with a weapon brandished). Down the road a ways in Weaverville there's been shootings. But overall, the area is VERY safe compared to urban areas of eastern NC, and even SC, from my understanding.
........

I totally agree. Unfortunately Mars Hill now has the new I-26 going right through there and their crime rate has skyrocketed since it opened... Coincidence? I think not. And their nearest neighbor Weaverville... whew yea they are getting the spill over from Asheville (now called Trashville due to horrible city/county Govt policies) and it's really hurting them a lot. Thank goodness they are geographically a world away from our rural area even though we share an area code.

 

[rjwmorrell]

I totally agree. Unfortunately Mars Hill now has the new I-26 going right through there and their crime rate has skyrocketed since it opened... Coincidence? I think not. And their nearest neighbor Weaverville... whew yea they are getting the spill over from Asheville (now called Trashville due to horrible city/county Govt policies) and it's really hurting them a lot. Thank goodness they are geographically a world away from our rural area even though we share an area code.

I liked visiting Asheville, but yes stuck to mainly touristy restaurants etc and my friend down there doesn't visit it a whole lot for those reasons.

Beautiful part of the country, however.

 

[BigAl07]

I liked visiting Asheville, but yes stuck to mainly touristy restaurants etc and my friend down there doesn't visit it a whole lot for those reasons.

Beautiful part of the country, however.

Most of us avoid it like the plaque and only go downtown when we must. It's well on it's way to being just like some of those towns you see in California with "Tent Cities" and all that go along with them. It's sad as we used to go into Asheville a lot and we dropped a lot of $$ in downtown but that's a thing of the past now.

It's dirty.... it's pathetic.. it's sad.... and it's now DANGEROUS in downtown Asheville. I'll take a hard PASS