Signs of the times?

Francis Porretto, (Francis notes in a comment that it’s not him, it’s contributor Linda Fox), blogging at Liberty’s Torch, has some helpful hints on post-unrest and post-riot “signs of the times” – or, how to tell if it’s time to get out of your neighborhood.

I well remember the 70s, and the way the cities broke apart after the riots. Previously, Cleveland’s neighborhoods had been generally clean, peaceful, and supportive of family life.

. . .

Shortly after the riots – neighborhoods such as Collinwood, Glenvale, and Hough were torn apart, burned, and left with few viable commerce (often literally ‘food deserts’) – the movement out of Cleveland, and particularly the downtown district, commenced. When leases were up, tenants left. Even lower rents couldn’t persuade them to stick around – the reduced foot traffic made those deals not worth it.

In the residential neighborhoods, people scrambled to get PART of their investment out of their house, and move to the suburbs. Most sold cheaply; some converted their unsalable home into multi-family units, and became instant ‘slumlords’. The city and the schools suffered from the loss of the tax base.

Arson grew in the newly depopulated neighborhoods – who knows how many of the fires were attempts to get the insurance companies to pay out, and give the owners some cash with which to start over?

Those who had choices, took off for greener, and less squalid, hills. Primarily those who were more stable – those having a family, a job, personal gumption – were the ones to leave. Those who were less mobile, those who had few resources to finance a move, those who were stuck in denial, and those that LIKED the “New Normal” – stayed. And watched the world surrounding them sink into barbarism.

If I owned property in the cities, I’d have my ear to the ground. I’d be very attentive to the signs of impending chaos. Many of us, before the cities fell in the 60s-70s, allowed the first signs of collapse to creep in, ignored by most.

. . .

The signs include:

• Trash/litter – this has nothing to do with the city services available. Do the homeowners have to clean up trash on a regular basis, that was deposited by others? Do the multi-family homes take care of the area in front of their own place, or do they let it pile up?
• Do the local stores put bars on their establishment? Are new buildings put up with limited access/few ground floor windows?
• Are public parks safe to walk around in, at least during the daylight hours? Do you notice broken glass/smoking litter on the grounds?
• Do the police take down the information for crimes, but do no more? Do you hear about or get notification of crimes (you can access the police reports/maps for crimes by date in most cities). For smaller communities, the local police blotter/sheriff’s dept. reports are your go-to. But, remember that many crimes are never reported, so this is likely to be underestimating the problem. Sign up for the NextDoor app if you want to keep on top of your neighborhood locally. Or, join a neighborhood association, and attend the meetings. It’s a good way to get to know your neighbors, and make some connections with those who you might want to have beside you should TSHTF.

There’s more at the link, including more warning signs.  Very useful information, IMHO, particularly if you live in cities affected by recent riots, such as Minneapolis, Seattle and elsewhere.  If you do, you might want to consider relocating to someplace safer and more peaceful.

The reality of such situations is one of the main reasons why Miss D. and I left Nashville.  We now live in a part of the country that’s a whole lot less likely to experience such social breakdowns.  Almost everyone here, of all races, is a lot more self-sufficient and self-respecting.  Long may it remain that way!

Peter