Comment by sophacles | Hacker News Reader

Comment by sophacles | Hacker News Reader

Oh man. I've been noticing this divide for a long time now. Im a sorta-lock person. Im not opposed to locking stuff, but I don't go out of my way for it. I used to lock much less, when I had roomates -- convenience really. I don't lock up my bike either, when I'm at the coffee shop or bakery or whatever anyway. My garage is never locked. I live in a "bad" neighborhood and have yet to be robbed. Some say it is only a matter of time, but statistically this is unlikely.

This area seems to contain the best anecdotal evidence for something like karma too. Seems those who are most fearful, and super lock everything also get robbed a lot. Those who don't worry about it don't get robbed as often.

Anyway I think its funny that the people who are afraid of robberies and "double lock" and "tripple lock" talk about how its "inevitable" they will get robbed, and that it makes "common sense" that the extra locking is required. Of course if that was so true, the number of "no-locks" reporting 0 robberies would be way fewer. Seems that there is a huge amount of fear manipulation happening in the lock industry.

I've seen houses covered in locks, and all the locks do is make me think that the owner must have lots of valuables inside if they have locks like that. I guess thieves must think the same thing.

Another intersting "it doesn't work that way" thing I have noticed: when the drug dealers moved in about a block away, shady activities and late night noise decreased. Seems that they don't want attention drawn to themselves, so they are good neighbors. Their clients all seem to know better than to linger in the area too.

This of course goes against conventional wisdom of "there goes the neighborhood".

Edit: That should be: "other shady actvities..."

Depends on what kind of dealers and where, maybe. Around here, you definitely do not want to be anywhere near dealers. They generally squat in vacant houses, and are usually gang connected, violent, etc.

When I went to grad school my wife and I rented a run down shack of a house next to the projects. People were always amazed we lived there and didn't believe us when we explained that nothing ever happened. We had 2k worth of computer parts delivered in marked boxes while we were out of town for about a week and it was just sitting on the porch when we got home.

I asked my dad about this, he grew up in a bad neighborhood when he was a kid... and he said, "These people all know lesson one, you don't shit where you eat".

A few years ago here in London I saw stickers put up by the Socialist Workers Party saying "Thieves! This is a working-class area. Don't steal from your own people!". Obv there's a whole lot wrong with that as a statement, it's interesting to see the same principle involved.

I think the parent's statement is different. It has less to do with "your own" class warfare, than it does with simple cost benefit analysis. In your own neighborhood: everyone can know you are a theif, but since you don't steal from them or their friends, they don't really care as much, and so, don't report you. In your own neighborhood chances of a witness recognizing you goes way up. Even thieves have friends, and they don't want to rob from them. There are a few more I'm forgetting probably.

When I was in college, I never locked my POS car because I figured there was nothing worth taking in it. One night some kids got in it and took everything that wasn't nailed down - absolutely nothing worth anything to anyone else, but stuff that cost me a lot of time and irritation.

I always lock my car now, and I wouldn't ever fail to lock my house either. Not putting up that minimum barrier is just foolhardy.

The only difference is that now you have to pay for a busted side window for somebody to find out that there is no meter change in the ashtray

Some people are going to be bent on stealing enough that not much is going to stop them. A locked door will stop some people; an unlocked door will stop no one.

Car lock can be easily destroyed. Locking your car when you have nothing valuable inside may cost you the lock. That was in the case of my friend. Also possibly window if interested party has just a stone on him.

Maybe. In my case, it would have definitely made the miscreants move on to the next car. At least if the offender breaks something, insurance will pay for it (if you have insurance), and you have something concrete to file a police report on.

Insurance will pay and raise your insurance premium because you become higher risk person.

I rent, so I'm mainly concerned that if someone were to ransack the place, and it came out that I hadn't locked the door, then I'd get the blame for the damage and the landlord would try to get me to pay for repairs.

As for bikes, I have a fairly nice one ($900 new). I lock it all the time but only to stop crimes of opportunity -- some teenager seeing it undefended and riding off with it. I know (from experience) that bike locks don't stop determined thieves, so I try not to leave it unattended for long periods of time.

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