If ever there was a good time to have a CCW...

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Playboypenguin

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...it would be now in Portland.

We are pretty much in the middle of a gang war these days. It seems a gang decided to kill a prominent member of another gang at a funeral about a month ago and all hell has broken loose since then. Gang violence/shootings has increased dramatically in the past month.

Going to the Lloyd Center was always a dubious task but lately the gang presence there has exploded. Shootings have also skyrocketed there as well. There has been two shooting this month in the parking garage already.

I will not even go to some parts of town anymore. It will be awhile before I feel the need to go to Gresham. I do not even go to the big gunshop (Keith's) out there anymore.

Driving down MLK in N. Portland really is getting scary too. It is like the east side is lined with groups from one gang and the west side by groups from another. When driving down the middle you can really feel the stare down going on and it makes you wonder when the stares and shouts of insults will turn into something worse and you will be caught in the middle.

I have also noticed a lot more suspicious activities downtown at night. We used to go out and see almost no one on the street after 11pm but now the corners are filled with groups of young people standing around for hours.

A good friend of ours lives in N. Portland in some new luxury condos. When she bought them the area was undergoing a revival, but now the gangs have taken back over according to her. She is even afraid to walk her dog or go to the bus stop. I have had to go over twice now and escort her to work and back while her car was in the shop because she is afraid to ride the bus like she used to do.

I just cannot believe some people will live in these circumstances and still be against average citizens having a means of defense. The friend I have been escorting to work is very anti-gun, but it is funny how quickly her attitude changed when she thought she was in danger. She wanted me and my gun there all of the sudden.
 
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Its a shame that things have taken a turn for the worse, there. It's too bad that things can get so bad at all, let alone that people are willing to put up with it and still be against personal protection rights to carry. Even when up to their neck in potential trouble themselves, they think more guns in the city will just make things worse.

I hope everything goes well for you and things get straightened out soon. In the mean time, stay calm, stay armed, stay safe.
 
I have been reading about this in a lot of urban areas. Does it seem that the Mayor, City Council or LE are being proactive when dealing with the gang problem? Or are they just turning a blind eye to it? I don't know how the city government is set up in Portland but you should be able to attend a city council metting and voice your concerns. Atleast you can be proactive concerning the problem, when others aren't.

Other than that, I would say that you are right about having a CCW. If the City government won't protect it's law abiding citizens...well it is left upon the citizen him/herself.
 
That's a good story with the escorting. Next time you need to escort here, why not bring along the paperwork and a postage-paid envelope for CCW permit? :cool: Maybe a hand-done coupon for a couple shooting lessons from PBP?
 
Does it seem that the Mayor, City Council or LE are being proactive when dealing with the gang problem?
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They are trying but the bad economy is making it really hard. How do you pay more officers and liaisons when the budget is being slashed. Then add on that there are just being more and more poor teens on the streets and it snowballs. Money really is the root of the problem.
 
that sux, my sister lives in portland and i love it out there. I always felt safer there than visiting detroit or chicago.
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We are still not in the same league as places like Birmingham, AL or anything...but things have gotten a lot worse than normal.
 
Is it just a coincidence that a few MLK ways that I have seen seem to be located around lower class, gang ridden, areas?
 
i was just in portland for a week

i did allot of walking and picture taking, almost exclusively at night till 3 or 4 am, in the "shady" areas.... problem free

honestly, i havent noticed anything out of the ordinary in portland nor do i feel any less safe
 
honestly, i havent noticed anything out of the ordinary in portland nor do i feel any less safe
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Try living here for awhile.
i did allot of walking and picture taking, almost exclusively at night till 3 or 4 am, in the "shady" areas.... problem free
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What "shady areas" would these have been? What would you be taking pics of in these "shady areas?"

That pic you posted is nice, but definitely not taken from any place shady. That is right downtown on the east side of the river.
 
Time to bring our troops home from Iraq and send them downtown.
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Portland is one of those weird cities where the downtown is actually pretty safe. It is the surrounding areas and suburbs that are bad. Not all the suburbs. Most are nice. It is pretty much a few select areas.
 
Money really is the root of the problem.
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NO!, money is not the root of the problem----that's a knee jerk reaction and an easy out.
The "problem" goes much deeper than money and involves how our society has changed in the last 50 years or so.
Sorry PBP but I couldn't resist.....MANY people complain about lack of money when the problem COULD be addressed right in our own homes for next to nothing.
I could go on but I won't.....we all need just to be honest and take a good hard look at what we are doing to our society and what we a LETTING others do to us.
 
Unfortunatley,right where one of your good friends has moved to.

The bad thing is,even if she gets a weapon,she will need training and a complete overhaul of her gun use mindset to be able to defend herself.

And,if she is an attractive,young woman,she is a prime target for the very criminals that do this "life sucks,let me kill/rape someone to feel better about it." garbage.

I once worked with a stunning young girl named Heather that one night coming back from a nightclub in D.C. was attacked by several thugs.

Classic carjack deal.

Her boyfriend was killed and she was shot as well.

And when she was on the ground,they shot her several more times just for good measure.

She survived.

I only saw her once after that,about a year later.

I could only look at her and smile that she was alive standing there.

All that for a 'blanking' car.
 
What "shady areas" would these have been? What would you be taking pics of in these "shady areas?"
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northeast portland mostly, trying to find images that most suburbanites rarely see or atleast try to caputre every day sights in a new light

That pic you posted is nice, but definitely not taken from any place shady. That is right downtown on the east side of the river.
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naw, that's the token portland shot
every weekend photographer to go through there has practically the same shot
it's back behind omzi, go under the bridge next to the homeless camp where they're doing all of the construction.
even at 3am, the homeless camp was still hoppin :D
 
money is not the root of the problem
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I have to agree. I've know stone broke people living in squalor that are some of the most giving, honest, compassionate people I've met in my life.

Morals. You either have them or you don't. Good people don't and won't do bad things, bad people will. It really is that simple.
 
northeast portland mostly, trying to find images that most suburbanites rarely see or atleast try to caputre every day sights in a new light
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NE is not dangerous. You need to get a lot further from downtown for it to get bad. The homeless stay close to the city for that very reason. They do not feel safe in NoPo, Gresham, or Aloha. I am at those camps all the time. I used to work for Streetlight and I still do outreach to homeless youths. :)
 
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