If I recall correctly, I’m the bike owner who had just come out to retrieve her bicycle, and you (or some other very nice couple) approached me about how a group of kids had almost stolen my bike. Indeed, once I got home I noticed that my lock was mostly (but not completely) hacked through, and I’ve since gotten myself a new, sufficiently bad-ass U-lock.

I want to thank you for doing something (even a small something) to dissuade them from taking my bike, since at the time I was particularly confused and worried when you approached me and didn’t adequately thank you. In the future, I for one will try and be brave about taking action if I ever see anyone trying to steal bikes. Even if it’s not a direct confrontation, any sort of loud distraction or drawing of attention to the situation certainly can’t hurt.

Thanks again – I’m glad I have people like you as neighbors!

-Eryn, the girl from CH who happily still has her blue and silver bike

By the way you write it’s clear that you have no experience dealing with this. Really, some of us have direct experience confronting kids. Leave it to us to comment. They’ve run from me or slinked away calling me the f-word every time. I don’t go out of my way to do this, but I’ve told a kid to his face that “he lost his [street name] privileges and the next time I see him on this street he’s going to have to deal with “my family” which I hoped sounded enough like Italian Mafia for him never to come back. He has come back, but he has never hung out on the sidewalk again AFAIK.

Throw off your chains and call the police on the gangstas oppressing you. grow a pair.

———-
you should get new friends who aren’t as stupid.

Though the worst of them are tragically quick to shoot each other, they are not likely to mow you down in the street for scolding them.

I’ve live in CH for 22 years and have always – ALWAYS – confronted crimes in progress (except the couple of times there were actual shoot-outs or knife-weilding delusional people in my hallway.)

This includes everything from kids throwing rocks, setting fires, torturing cats, disrupting the bus, breaking into cars, harassing women, fist-fights and a 30+ gang rumble in which guns were pulled. (OK – I was just yelling out my 4th floor window for that one.)

My approach has always been to confront directly, calmly, with authority but without threat. “What are you doing? Why are you doing that? What do you think is going to happen if you do that? Would you want someone to hit your little brother in the head with a rock? Do you think someone should say that, do that, to your mother, sister, grandma? Would this make your mother proud?”

I can wear their little gangsta asses down and have actually made some cry. Yeah – I hear a lot of you scoffing – but until you all get over your “marauding visagoth” mentality there is no hope of real community or peace.

And as for the bike stealing video – it’s just stupid. Here is a long-legged guy who looks like he owns this long-legged bike and is cutting it free with tools in broad daylight. I might talk to him – “Do you need some help with that?” and call police if I then felt suspicious, but really – how many of you could prove you owned your bike and just lost the key to the lock?

What if it was a black guy?

it’s totally one’s own call whether or not to say something or do something because some criminals will be armed. if you feel comfortable doing it, I say take ‘em on.