Funny, but just as inaccurate as most of your political posts, Bryan. Top crime/population states are Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, South Carolina and Florida.

We're pretty proud here in CA to have several of the safest cities in the nation.

Very sorry to hear of the attempted hijacking, but there are two less perpetrators out there, and one who may be considering other financial strategies.

Hyenas and baboons for guard dogs. WOW!!

I vistied South Africa for a month in '99. I was visiting my ex's family who still lives there. I heard things have improved since then. . . guess not.

During my visit the following occured on different days:

1. Their car was broken into via smashed windows.
2. Her father's company truck was stoled from their garage.
3. Their car where the window was borken was stolen.
4. The next door neighbors car was stolen.
5. Ther next store neighbor was shot and killed for his other car.
6. Their Electronics business was broken into - three times.
7. Her counsin's trained attack dog (German Sheppard) was stolen from their backyard. The backyard had a 10 foot fence with the broken glass cemented on the top.

And the real kicker,
The security gate on the front door was stolen off its hindges.

And that was in a 30 day period of time!

Beauthiful place. The rampid crime is a real shame. Although racial segregation is bad, I actually think the South African governement under the apartheid era was a better place. I actually wrote a term paper on my experiences and received a "F" because my liberal teacher thought I was making things up. After all once apartheid was over everything would be great, right?

Wow, your story makes me feel real good to be living in a backwater! I routinely forget to lock my door, and it makes no difference. Heck, my parents (who live a bit farther from civilization than I do) haven't locked their door in so long, they've lost the key. The UPS guy delivers packages to the kitchen table when they're not home. I can't imagine what SA must be like.

If people dont wake up in this country, Fast Forward TO South Africa..............

Two things that Hurt.........PAIN and the TRUTH

Willem,

Years ago I looked at possibly living in SA and it was just too "sporty" for me and has done nothing but get worse in the last few years. Getting out of that area and leaving it to the blacks would be the only recourse IMHO.

Sorry to hear about the problems but at least everyone is ok now. Time to start packing and find a better future.

JoeA

This happens rarely...but Super & I are in complete agreement on this one. Also, Willem, there are some pretty clever financial minds who lurk here. Perhaps some of them can aid you in preserving most of what you have worked for.

Hi guys,

Thanx for the messsages of support and understanding. As you can imagine my family is still having a rather hard time dealing with all this, but I guess things will start looking up again soon. We are trying to convince my brother to go for councilling, but as he is still in "invincible mode" it's rather difficult - one can see that he is stressed out completely though.

Well, as you guys then now know, Africa isn't really all you see on Discovery or National Geographic - and we have some serious issues here. As for myself, I've given up on it, and taken the decision to abandon this ship. Finding somewhere to go will most definitely be my project for the days and weeks to come. Will keep you posted!

We have LOTS of South African Ex-pats here. Many of them work for Chevron. It's a nice place to live.

Moses,

And I bet you find them a strange bunch don't you!

Yeah, a lot of guys, especially IT specialists and SAP consultants left these shores a number of years ago when the IT boom was really happening. At the time I found myself working in the UK as a consultant, earning good money in a secure environment, but my fiancee wouldn't join me there. I came back to get married, and ended splitting from her within weeks of my arrival - something about discovering underwear in my wardrobe that wasn't mine, and she couldn't explain...

Unfortunately 9/11 had just happened, and the whole IT market went South, so opportunities for us foreigners became few and far apart. Now however push has come to shove, and I am renewing my efforts to find an international placement, as this is obviously the easiest way of getting into another country.

If anyone out there needs an Industrial Engineer or Process Architect, now is the time to chip in...

As both an engineer and IT specialist who has had to endure some recent hard times here in the land of opportunity all I can do is wish you a lot of luck.

Willem

I am sorry to hear of your recent experience. However, you could have been on a London bus this morning..........

Pulling up roots and leaving, especially where family bonds and social responsibilities are concerned, is not easy. What is much easier to do, is to make glib recommendations from the comfort of a "safe" environment, like some here have done.

I guess I am staying for better or worse. And it has nothing to do with the financial impact or lack thereof.

As you mentioned, the criminals were illegal immigrants. Those leading violent lifestyles usually have them ended violently, too.

Other countries facing times of turmoil during political change have ended up quite differently after passage of time. Personally, I consider 11 years after 1994 a relatively short time.

BTW, that picture with baboons and hyenas was taken quite clearly nowhere in South Africa. Anybody who knows something about the skin hue of locals would know that. I'm guessing DRC, Rwanda or Burundi. Very different places than SA.

Good luck to anybody who thinks they live in a "safe" part of the world.

LeRoux

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."
- Autobiography of Mark Twain

It makes sense to me that urban areas have higher violent crime and rural areas have higher property crime. I know here in AZ we have a huge problem with property crime partly because a million or so homes are left vacant by snow birds going back to thier frozen wasteland. Makes for and easy target. attached you will see a comparison violent vs propety. Ca jumps back up there in the violent area. Opps

http://www.ocjc.state.or.us/IndexCrimeRates01.htm

So an armed citizen prevented a murder? GET OUT!

Guns only cause crime! They never save people!

/sarcasm

(good going to the armed passer by! Good shooting! )

Willem, Do you have SAP experience?

No offense, but that almost makes me want to laugh.

You live in L.A. I'd wager a fat amount of money that there are areas of L.A. you wouldn't DARE drive through or visit. Or did South Central and Compton just get a bad rap on TV and in the movies?

Where I live, Austin, TX, I am not afraid to drive in ANY part of the city. Yeah, we have ghetto areas, low income areas, and there is a little gang activity. I think the worst murder rate here for a year was about 9 homicides. How is it in L.A.?

Don't get me wrong, I bet there are some cities in Kalifornia that are pretty safe. I'm sure there are AREAS of L.A. that are pretty safe.

And I think you're also referring to crime per capita. L.A. is such a populated area, that 365 murders (1 a day) when looked at PER CAPITA, might still be lower than 9 murders (less than 1 per month) here in Austin PER CAPITA.

Just remember about statistics: Statistics are like a bikini - what they show can be enticing, but what they hide can be critical.

ariane is correct. Add the "snowbirds" to the illegals and this skews the crime rate significantly here in AZ. When is the administration and congress going to do something about the southern border for the benefit of all? Over 125 bodies have been found in the desert since the beginning of the year.

Sorry, tech....California ain't no paradise either. None of you Californians will ever have to worry about me moving there. (bet that makes you all smile)

Willem: Think you might be able to find a "sponsor" that has a position waiting for you somewhere else?

Thanx for all your great feedback guys!

LeRoux,

I was in London when war was declared against Afganistan, and at the time commented that, even despite this, and the imminent threat of terror, London is still a safer place than Johannesburg. The recent bombings hasn't changed my mind!

RickM,

Yes I do have some SAP experience. I worked as a MM/PP consultant for some time, and then later was part of an implementation project management team at a defence industry company here in SA. The downside is that we are talking about 5 years ago! At present my fields of specialization is Business Process Architecture and MIS, focussed mainly in the financial services sector.

Moneyguy,

Obviously the only way to go is to get a sponsor, as work permits are generaly very difficult to come by without this. As I mentioned before, the easiest options available right now is either Australia or the UK. In the case of the former I have come across a agency that manages the whole application procedure, and it seems a simple enough, if slightly drawn out process. In the case of the latter, I still have some very usefull business contacts in and around London, and am in discussions as we speak to see if something isn't available ito sponsorship. Unfortunately the bombings isn't exactly going to help my cause!

350,

Sorry to hear about your situation! If anything, I have learnt that success isn't brought about by merely being surrounded by opportunity, but rather by grasping it! I hope things start looking up for you real soon!