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I don't mean to imply that homelessness should be swept under the rug. What to do about it would require a whole mega-thread of its own; it's a complex subject. And btw, California's governor just proposed revamping the approach to mental health. He indicated that involuntary commitment should be revived. Because having the severely mentally ill living on the streets isn't working, and isn't humane, even though some of them think they have a right to live in the streets.
You might want to follow those developments as they unfold in the experimental petri dish of California.
Smart Governor to see the light. Thank you and I will follow. Governor Inslee thinks Newsome is a saint and hopefully his probable successor will take note. Our mental health system nationally and statewide has needed revamping for decades ever since the inmates were freed from the asylums. Living on the streets isn’t healthy nor conducive to a healing path. I wish him success. I think he can do it.
So, let me get this straight. You traveled on a hunting trip to some of the most remote, least populated areas in the lower 48, and you didn't see homeless people or drug users? And a busy Safeway in a city of 100,000 has less on their shelves than a city of 2,500 in the middle of nowhere? Wowwwwwww.
I'm sorry, are you actually trying to be serious in this conversation? Clearly you have a preference for rural areas. There's nothing wrong with that, but comparing cities to vast, uninhabited wilderness - and expecting them to feel exactly the same - is absolutely absurd. Sorry, it should be obvious to anyone reading this that you just don't like populated areas.
We aren’t hunters, just rockhounders. You may need to brush up on your reading comp and I expect more from you as an articulate poster. Yes, I prefer less populated and remote areas and, you are right. But, stop the bullying; it doesn’t become the debonair man about town aura you are projecting.
There are areas along the Oregon Coast and inland in the Coast Range of Oregon that do host what we call the blue tarp people. Remote, yes.
In some smaller towns, like Wells, NV; Challis, ID; Burns, OR, yes, they do have drug addicts; it is a national epidemic. But, they are sent to treatment centers by the sheriff or the family intervenes. No one panhandled, did the fentanyl dance in the streets or camped on the sidewalk.
I have been to Bellingham’s Safeway and have seen emptier shelves than in Burns. Btw, the current Base Camp on Cornwall used to be a Safeway. My mom would send me there on my bike to get bread and other items.
Smart Governor to see the light. Thank you and I will follow. Governor Inslee thinks Newsome is a saint and hopefully his probable successor will take note. Our mental health system nationally and statewide has needed revamping for decades ever since the inmates were freed from the asylums. Living on the streets isn’t healthy nor conducive to a healing path. I wish him success. I think he can do it.
If C-D is any measure (I should know better!), he's taking flack for it, but I think people are secretly saying HALLELUJAH! He's taking flack because he's a Dem, so that's just what some sectors do with Dems, even when they're doing the right thing. It comes with the territory. I'm a Jerry Brown fan, myself. I kind of ignore The Gav. But if he manages to pull off a workable solution, he'll get my and a lot of other people's attention.
That report is flawed as it includes only crime reports on the daily police activity sheet. If no officer responds to a call it is not noted. Ditto all the crimes committed but not reported. Very misleading info from the no jails crowd (set them all free).
It's literally from the police department - I could make up numbers for unreported stuff but then I'd be like other people in this thread. The Bellingham police department has more officers than last year, and it's hiring even more over the next year since the council approved it in June. So much for anti-police council members.
So you are saying that there is more crime and even with more officers they are following up on fewer crimes? Are you sure you aren't the "police are lazy" crowd?
And for rkcarguy, the Big 5 armed robbery was in Oak Harbor, not performed by a homeless person at the one next to the Walmart in Bellingham. Don't really want to muddy the waters with crimes from other counties. Maybe "they" who label it the most dangerous place in America should look up stats on other cities and see how absurd a label it is, rather than just using half-truths and anecdotes that turn out to be completely different if you could look them up. Or maybe just do fact checking yourself before repeating anything from them because you have a bad track record in the last few things I bothered to look at and I don't want you to get a reputation.
Sure, I don't live in Bellingham and I don't visit that often, but when I see so much in this thread that doesn't match with my own observations I do like to check them out for myself. It seems unfair to those who have a stake in the community to have these untrue assertions go unchallenged.
I don’t go to Walmart either as I don’t agree with how they treat their employees and just not a fan of megastores
I just saw this. I agree on all of the above. It's not just how they treat their employees; it's the way they take over foreign markets; they use tactics that are illegal in the US to take over successful local and regional chains in Latin America. And when a regional chain studies their tactics and prepares, and succeeds in surviving and out-competing them, they get dirtier, and use proxy companies. And people wonder why Latin America "can't get its act together", and why those countries can't be successful!
But that's a rant for a different forum. I hope the OP doesn't mind the momentary digression.
It's literally from the police department - I could make up numbers for unreported stuff but then I'd be like other people in this thread. The Bellingham police department has more officers than last year, and it's hiring even more over the next year since the council approved it in June. So much for anti-police council members.
So you are saying that there is more crime and even with more officers they are following up on fewer crimes? Are you sure you aren't the "police are lazy" crowd?
And for rkcarguy, the Big 5 armed robbery was in Oak Harbor, not performed by a homeless person at the one next to the Walmart in Bellingham. Don't really want to muddy the waters with crimes from other counties. Maybe "they" who label it the most dangerous place in America should look up stats on other cities and see how absurd a label it is, rather than just using half-truths and anecdotes that turn out to be completely different if you could look them up. Or maybe just do fact checking yourself before repeating anything from them because you have a bad track record in the last few things I bothered to look at and I don't want you to get a reputation.
Sure, I don't live in Bellingham and I don't visit that often, but when I see so much in this thread that doesn't match with my own observations I do like to check them out for myself. It seems unfair to those who have a stake in the community to have these untrue assertions go unchallenged.
It's not making the news and much of it no police show nor are reports made either. The Big 5 in Bellingham is right across from the big camp near Tullwood Apts. They say they call the police and no one comes. Now maybe "robbed again" to the Big 5 employee was having someone grab a bunch of stuff and run out? Same with Home Depot. Watched a guy steal a Ryobi electric yard tool combo and the gal said they don't even call BPD anymore and HD doesn't allow them to intervene for risk of injury/attack. It took a long time, but they did show up to deal with a dead body in the camp. Quite a bit of robbery in the police reports. I've heard this from several sources I trust that wouldn't spread here say. By all means I'd like to know if it's not on the level so I take no offense in being asked, much of the time what I see and hear isn't in the reports either. Some, pretty serious stuff where I hear shots fired over the scanner, chopper and "bearcat" are called in(And I can hear the actual shots and chopper flying around), etc. Maybe due to the nature of the offenses, some/many aren't publicized?
Word was at the latest city council meeting, that yes they are hiring more police but not getting many takers...
I just saw this. I agree on all of the above. It's not just how they treat their employees; it's the way they take over foreign markets; they use tactics that are illegal in the US to take over successful local and regional chains in Latin America. And when a regional chain studies their tactics and prepares, and succeeds in surviving and out-competing them, they get dirtier, and use proxy companies. And people wonder why Latin America "can't get its act together", and why those countries can't be successful!
But that's a rant for a different forum. I hope the OP doesn't mind the momentary digression.
Our whole family had stopped going to Walmart for the same reasons above, of course with all the shortages during Covid sometimes we didn't have a choice. But now, too many car prowls and aggressive pushy drugged up people begging and scoping out cars in the parking lot. We pickup takeout from the Chinese restaurant still, but don't eat-in there anymore. Both my folks SUV's are pretty quick to break into, they pop the window out of the track, flex it outward and reach a hand in to unlock the door.
It's literally from the police department - I could make up numbers for unreported stuff but then I'd be like other people in this thread. The Bellingham police department has more officers than last year, and it's hiring even more over the next year since the council approved it in June. So much for anti-police council members.
So you are saying that there is more crime and even with more officers they are following up on fewer crimes? Are you sure you aren't the "police are lazy" crowd?
And for rkcarguy, the Big 5 armed robbery was in Oak Harbor, not performed by a homeless person at the one next to the Walmart in Bellingham. Don't really want to muddy the waters with crimes from other counties. Maybe "they" who label it the most dangerous place in America should look up stats on other cities and see how absurd a label it is, rather than just using half-truths and anecdotes that turn out to be completely different if you could look them up. Or maybe just do fact checking yourself before repeating anything from them because you have a bad track record in the last few things I bothered to look at and I don't want you to get a reputation.
Sure, I don't live in Bellingham and I don't visit that often, but when I see so much in this thread that doesn't match with my own observations I do like to check them out for myself. It seems unfair to those who have a stake in the community to have these untrue assertions go unchallenged.
Yes, it is from the police department but, as I said, it is only a record of officer response, not the crimes not responded to or called in and definitely not a reflection of actual crime as folks have learned that reporting gets you a shrug and an apology.
No, I am not in the “the police are lazy”camp. Several long time officers are my friends both Bellingham City and sheriff deputies. They say the same thing: Crime is rampant and state and city govt have their hands tied due to reactionary laws. They have trainees which are not the same as seasoned officers and who were hired with less qualifications than the veterans.
No, you haven’t a clue. You don’t live here, don’t visit often so I don’t understand why you are commenting. I do have a stake in this community as I was born here. Our daughter is 6th generation in the Salish Sea area. We have deep roots here and have a profound connection that infrequent visitors and transplants will never have.
If C-D is any measure (I should know better!), he's taking flack for it, but I think people are secretly saying HALLELUJAH! He's taking flack because he's a Dem, so that's just what some sectors do with Dems, even when they're doing the right thing. It comes with the territory. I'm a Jerry Brown fan, myself. I kind of ignore The Gav. But if he manages to pull off a workable solution, he'll get my and a lot of other people's attention.
The public needs someone like Newsome who was elected, iirc, by a large majority, to take a stand and set a different course. We need to have faith in our elected officials because it is their job to ensure public safety, the paramount responsibility of government at all levels. I truly hope he has a plan.
Something does need to be done because these issues only go in one direction once they get started if they get ignored. Then they get too big (like Seattle's homeless problem) and there's no easily workable solution at that point.
I think Bellingham needs to get going on doing something about their homeless camps and not just saying we're a city, so we have these city issues and they're not in wealthy areas (yet) so we can only talk about the positives. And if you stay away from the back of Walmart and don't look, then it's not a problem.
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