I got robbed

Probe, my statement stands on it own...because it is also a "fact".
 
Lena I get you....no worries, besides I was only "half" offended, teehee! I know that attitude you speak of quite well, sadly!
 
Here in Dallas they are actually trying to OUTLAW sagging pants because they feel it will improve the cities image, or at least give cops yet another reason to harrass people of color...lol!
 
A cop on TV actually said that..."it will give us another way to make contact with suspicious persons"..lmao!
 
Dress codes in most public schools prohibit sagging and "colors" already...and of course most work atmoshpere's do also. Not sure what right they have telling someone how to wear their pants outside of that. If someone wants to look like an idiot...lettem! []

ORIGINAL: rwbeagles

Probe, my statement stands on it own...because it is also a "fact". 
 

 
Ummmmm, I believe I agreed with you, so I am not sure who you want to argue with.  []

OMG!! Lena, hope you're OK!  Hugs & kisses, feel better soon.
Hope the police catch that creep, we see it in S Florida all the time. 
 
 

ORIGINAL: ladiebug

we see it in S Florida all the time. 

 
But in Florida, UNLIKE in Canada, an effective option, to provide for your self defense, is available to you.  Specifically, you can legally carry a gun in Florida.  Shooting punks like this makes it much easier for the cops to find them.  []

You're partly right, Billy.  Blacks do comprise a disproportionate number of prison inmates, but it doesn't necessarily mean that blacks are committing a disproportionate number of crimes.  It's just that in most cities, blacks tend to be poorer and thus less able to hire a decent attorney. I think in a good many cases the PD, as well meaning as he/she may be, is not going to put in the effort for you that a $500 an hour lawyer will.

Joyce

We do not have slums or ghettos here. We don't have poor blacks because our system takes care of everyone equally. Alot of people here work for minimun wage and find ways to make ends meet, it just the way life is. What I don't understand is why some people think that they can use the system and top off their income by causing grief to others. I don't have a racist bone in my body but I can say literally that I have no use for people who take it upon themselves to hurt others just so that they can have the best in life.
In this country, we cannot even carry pepper spray. These type of people know the rules and also know that the average citizen is not going to break them, that's how they feel powerful.
Brass knuckles are my next option. If I can't pummel the sucker, I sure will scratch the crap out of his face.

I hear ya. I live out of the city and I could never live in the city. I am paranoid to begin with. I grew up in the slums and at a young age of 6 I saw things noone should ever have to see.It's bull the way women are treated, we should be able to carry something for protection. I'm 5'2 and not strong enough to defend myself. Cripe I couldn't even pin down my husband for the remote last night.[8|] He laughs at me because he is so much stronger, but I don't like feeling weak.  If I could carry pepper spray I would.

Oh Lena, I'm so sorry this happened to you.  I'd love to send Aspen to you.  He may not be a fierce dog but he's one h@ll of a snuggler. 

First I'll express my sympathies and send you a puppy kiss from Russell for what you've been through!
 
Second I'll pipe in that even if you could carry a weapon, it's not really safe to do so. Most of the time that weapon is more likely to be used against you if you were ever attacked again. It's better to take a self-defense class... not even so much to defend yourself physically but to regain your confidence and sense of safety. I also would say it might not be a bad idea to go to a counselor - even just for a session or two. Though it was such a brief incident, and you are okay, trauma is trauma... seeing someone to talk about it might help.

ORIGINAL: fuzzy_dogs_mom

Blacks do comprise a disproportionate number of prison inmates, but it doesn't necessarily mean that blacks are committing a disproportionate number of crimes. 

Technically, you're right, it doesn't NECESSARILY mean that, but it is a pretty damned good indicator.  You see, in the good ol' US of A, a person accused of a crime must be proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  This is an ENORMOUS burden on the prosecution.  I submit that the reason a disproportionate percentage of blacks are convicted of crimes is because they commit a disproportinate percentage of them.  There is no other logical explanation, that will stand up under close scrutiny.
 

It's just that in most cities, blacks tend to be poorer and thus less able to hire a decent attorney.

 
Saying something like that might make you feel good, but I don't think you can support it with facts.  Here you go:

Of the 265,100 state prison inmates serving time for drug offenses in 2002, 126,000 (47.53%) were black, 61,700 (23.27%) were Hispanic, and 64,500 (24.33%) were white.
 

Source:  Harrison, Paige M. & Allen J. Beck, PhD, US Dept. of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prisoners in 2004 (Washington, DC: US Dept. of Justice, Oct. 2005), Table 12, p. 9.

 
I know that statistic ONLY looks at drug offenses but surely we can agree that drugs are usually a factor in crimes like those committed against Lena.  But even if you look at the prison population as a whole:

[linkhttp://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/glance/tables/cpracetab.htm]http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/glance/tables/cpracetab.htm[/link]

The numbers are just too lop sided to conclude that it is an issue of being "poor," especially since there are more poor white people in this country than there are blacks.

[linkhttp://www.census.gov/hhes/poverty/histpov/hstpov2.html]http://www.census.gov/hhes/poverty/histpov/hstpov2.html[/link]
 
I don't think there is any question that blacks do commit a disproportinate amount of the crime in this country.  The real question is, why?  In my mind, it has to be more than just economics and poor representation within the legal system.
 
Edited to correct spelling error.

ORIGINAL: jones


Second I'll pipe in that even if you could carry a weapon, it's not really safe to do so. Most of the time that weapon is more likely to be used against you if you were ever attacked again.

 
Do you have any actual evidence to support this statement?

Oh for heavens sakes can we NOT have racial discussions?
 
I have twice been a victem of violent crime.  Armed robbery and attempted rape.  Both perps were black.  However, the WORST abuse I took in my life was at the hands of my WHITE ex husband.  So, I'm guessing from my experiences I should just not trust anything with male genitalia?

ORIGINAL: glenmar
Oh for heavens sakes can we NOT have racial discussions?

 
Wouldn't it be best if you just wouldn't read them?

There is black time and there is white time. And justice goes to the highest bidder. And, for the longest time, it has been the whites who had the money to keep themselves out of prison, where as a poor african-american has to make do with a public pretender, I mean, defender, who, even if he or she means well, as a limited budget to operate from.
 
T. Cullen Davis, a rich white guy in Texas, was accused of killing his wife and her boyfriend and accidently wounding his daughter. His attorney was "Racehorse" Haynes. He didn't serve a day. If they catch the guy who took Lena's purse, he will go to jail. And he should. But he won't have the money of Davis to get out of it.
 
Some of it is due to disenfranchisement. There is still racism, in all sectors of population, even amongst the african-americans. The hardest part is to get each individual, regardless of color, to live up to their potential, which can often require getting over monstrous obstacles.

Do you have any actual evidence to support this statement?

 
Yes.
[linkhttp://caag.state.ca.us/publications/womansrights/ch7.htm]http://caag.state.ca.us/publications/womansrights/ch7.htm[/link]
 
If you like I can qualify it and say that people who are not trained in self defense should not carry weapons, particularly smaller people and many women, as lena mentioned that her brother calls her "runt." If you are not able to quickly disable your attacker that weapon is going to be a weapon against YOU.