Man, Had to intervene in a situation to day. I was playing chess with my girlfriend when a we heard a commotion outside. A group of youths had a man and his daughter cornered in the front yard of a house down the road. The man had a truncheon and had grabbed a couple of beer bottles out of a recycling box. His daughter was between him and the mob calling the police on her phone. People came out of their houses but were unsure what to do. So I walked down with my girl friend doing the old calm down calm down routine. Once we made eye contact with one or two of the guys at the back they seemed to calm down a bit. Then when we weren't set upon other people started to get involved and the guys who had calmed down a bit dragged the more excited ones away they piled into a car and drove off just before the police arrived. The police asked for description but amazingly I could only describe one guy who was at the periphery, probably the least involved. I felt pretty calm through out but a found once it was over and I was back inside my stomach hurt because I had clenched my muscles so tight. Anyway total respect to GA for doing this sort of thing regularily. Hopefuly it's the quiet life for me after this.
Well Played! Your local GA chapter could probably use you. :thumbsup: It doesn't take much to do a lot. Many people don't do anything because they don't know what to do. Calm words work better than confrontation. Just walking outside is going to deter criminals. Most crime requires inaction by the righteous. What you did has increased the chances of you living a quiet life by stopping the cycle of violence before it starts. Almost forgot, get the vehicle plate number.
I don't think there are any Guardian Angels in London, also I really can't see myself actively looking for these kind of situations. To many guns and knives arround here. One of my neighbours got the registation number. I was so focused on the victims I didn't even see the car.
Guns? I thought London had really strict laws on that. The most I heart about is stabbings. Please< don't tell me you're falling into the same cess pit pit that we are.
Yes. There's a London Chapter. One of my facebook friends is in it. I've known London and Manchester Guardian Angels since 1993. So the chapters are at least that old. Is King's Cross in London? They've redesigned the website at guardianangels.org, so I don't where anything is, or I'd give you a phone number or something.
There are strict controls on firearms here. There are however plenty of illegal guns. Lots are brought in from Eastern Europe or converted from replica weapons. They are mostly used by gangs but they are often seen as a fashion and status symbol among some of the youth. This leads to shootings and stabbings over nothing by very young people who don't think things through as the young rarely do. Kings Cross is indeed in London. It is a major rail terminus famous for its prostitutes. I don't think we need a GA chapter in our meighbourhood though we may start up our neighbourhood watch again.
In 1993, the London Chapter Leader was a Pakistani lady. I've forgotten her name. King's Cross was one of the areas they patrolled. If there's a prostitution problem out there, then the main problem is there's probably a lot of drug-dealing in the area. A neighborhood watch is nice, but they rarely last more than a few weeks. Go for walks, get to know your neighbors. Chat 'em up. Even the crazy ones. Remember, crime and violence requires inactivity by normal people. You don't have to do anything crazy like intervention.
I do know most of my immediate neighbours and through various community actions lots of people in the local area. It's the east end of London and certainly not an up market area but people are generally very neighbourly. The conflict on Sunday started several streets away it just ended up with us. I remember reading in a newspaper that when an incident likes this occurs people usually want to help but are afraid no one will back them up. There was a certain way to phrase it but I can't remember what it was. If you say come on lets stop this and people will step in but if you say something like we've got to do something they will hesitate? You probably know the psychology better than I do. It can be a bit rough around here but that is usually in larger estates. It did make me appreciate people who do volunteer their time in things like the Guardian Angels.
I know EXACTLY what you're talking about. Guardian Angels patrol in teams, so our backup is just a few feet away. Or if that's not enough, a couple of blocks away. Even then, you have to watch out for what's happening behind you. There's no way for you to know you will be backed up enough, or even if you will be attacked from behind as someone backs up the "other side". And when the police arrive, they won't know what's going on either. That's why I say get out and get to know your neighbors, even the "bad" ones. That way, you will all realize you are all on the "same side". And you'd be amazed at what your neighbors know that you you need to know.
