Ooops, They Did It Again!

Sunday afternoon, my son's car was broken into in our very own driveway...in the middle of the day, in broad daylight, with me, Roger and our two very big, but obviously very deaf, dogs watching the football playoffs.

Believe me when I tell you that this, combined with our stolen mail episode, has me seriously considering going Rambo and taking some matters into my own hands. Really, who among us hasn't wanted to go all "Sharon Osbourne" on someone every now and then? And, while maybe it's not the most civilized reaction we could have, it might just be the most effective and I'm willing to BET it would be the most SATISFYING.

Who knows why the thieves broke out Alex's car window, ripped out his CD player, and rifled through his trunk, looking for treasure? All during the hours of 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. on a sunny Sunday afternoon? Why did they choose Alex's car when there were at least 5 other cars within 50 feet of his? Cars that were much newer and nicer than Alex's car?

The answer is that Alex had an above average CD player in his car. One that apparently caught the eye of someone who was too lazy to work for it but wanted it, anyway. A little smash and grab - a little breaking and entering and voila, the CD player was theirs for the taking.

Why did they think they could get away with it during prime time on a busy weekend day? Because they could, and they DID.

Maybe it's because they knew that when the police received my 911 call at 2:00 p.m. it would take them until 5:00 p.m. to show up at our house. I have no idea how to break into a car and rip a CD player out of the dashboard, but I'll bet even I could do it if you gave me three hours to get it done.

This isn't our first experience with crime in our neighborhood. Several years ago our area was targeted for a series of petty thefts and vandalism. We responded by organizing a Crime Watch and holding several informative meetings, which were well attended by neighbors and even community leaders.

The police department gave us tips on crime prevention and assured us they were on the case. The Superintendent of our School District (who has since retired) reminded us this was to be expected, since we lived in the wealthiest neighborhood in the city. Keep in mind this is a city whose motto could be: "Mesquite...we put the Middle in middle-class".

Ironically enough, in that case, police arrested several youths responsible for the crime spree; Kids that live in a nearby small town. A much more affluent town, by the way. Kind of shoots down the whole "the have NOTS will steal from the HAVES" doesn't it?

I have no idea what the reason is behind the latest crimes plaguing our area, and honestly, I don't care WHAT the reason might be.

All I know is, if I catch someone vandalizing and/or stealing from us again, they'd better HOPE the police have improved their response time. The criminals don't want us to have to wait three hours for the police to arrive. It's three hours they WON'T enjoy...I WILL, but they WON'T.