Drove up to Lowe’s the other day but they were closed for the Easter holiday. Ok, no big deal. What was terribly interesting though was that the closing up process including getting on a forklift and stacking pallets of heavy materials about nine feet high in front of the doors and loading entrances. Clearly, they are not taking chances on crash-n-snatch robberies. I understand this sort of thing is SOP in more urban locations, but its the first time I’ve seen that sort of thing out here.
Interestingly, the CostCo across the street from Lowe’s also appears to be…hardening…itself. Their remodel included moving the main entrance to the facility and that main entrance is now ‘picket fenced’ with concrete bollards every six feet or so to, presumably, prevent someone from crashing the place in a vehicle, looting, and scooting.
Once, when the Hells Angels were in town many years ago, I actually recall CostCo having a shotgun-toting guard at the front entrance. Never saw that again until about a year or so ago in the panic phase of the Wuhan Flu epidemic.
Heinlein said that one of the signs of a sick society, one that was on the decline, was the breakdown of civility and manners. I look around at the balkanization, increasing crime rates, the apologists trying to justify it, the social zeitgeist, and I am certain that I am not “better off than I was four years ago”, to borrow from Reagan…at least not socially.
I can’t say if it will ever get better but I can feel fairly certain that it will continue, if not get worse. All I can do is take measures to protect myself and my interests. I can’t change the course we are on, and I probably don’t want to. Sometimes to make an omelette, you’ve gotta break a few legs. Perhaps if this decline hits enough people hard enough they’ll shake off their indifference and step up to the plate….change laws, change politicians, change direction. Not holding my breath, but you never know.
I’ve seen Security Guards posted at the doors of Kroger now.
I had wonder what cause the Home Depot fire in San Jose,
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/authorities-san-jose-home-depot-arson-suspect-shoplifted-minutes-earlier-was-on-probation/ar-AAWqYyC?ocid=BingNewsSearch
In the cities I am familiar with the hardening of big stores (eg cement posts to block vehicles from smashing into the doors) was a post 9/11 thing. Serves multiple purposes. Prudent to do and not that expensive.
We’ve noticed a few of our standard grocery stores having 2×4 plywood door coverings adjacent to the store automatic sliding doors. Perhaps a new ‘Seige Prevention’ preps are underway. No moats with piranhas (yet) found.
I haven’t heard of any news casts mentioning any break-ins – could be they don’t want anyone to panic or get similar copycat thoughts.
Signs of the times indeed.
Once somethings were kept behind the counter to prevent kids stealing them, then medications of street value turned into cardboard tickets you presented to the pharmacist to buy them like epinephrine (Sudafed). And so on.
I notice in all the Ukrainian houses damaged photos the rather stout brick and concrete construction AND small windows. Can you ponder what OUR Wood Framed, lots of window’s homes would look like after some small arms fire and flammables tossed about?
They have recent war experience in Europe and is reflected in older designs (not the flashy Skyscrapers) We have not.
Going to be an eye-opening experience as the Gimme Dats march like Sherman through our countryside.
Got trusted friends to defend your AO? Got plenty of food, safe water and hopefully trained your children how to be Grey Man in the land of crazies, thugs and robbers?
How do you think successful gangs get targeting data? Loose lips and shiny stuff out to be seen (how proud we are of that new Telsa, eh?)
Last year I lived near a Lowe’s (there are none in 200 miles here). Every night they parked their delivery trucks in front of the 2 main doors. They had enough grills, mowers, etc chained together across the front to slow down anyone trying for the front wall.
Real estate brokers often cited phrase: “Location, Location, Location”. If you live in a hive area that is large enough to support the existence of corporate box stores, well, you’ll have those problems, now or really soon. If you are astute enough to notice those tactical changes made by tightwad penny pinching corporations, then consider that your writing on the wall messaging. It may be comfy and familiar where your are at now, but one must break that sensory distraction and be thinking of “Strategic Relocation”. (hat tip to Joel skoussen) FWIW I decamped from a comfy 30+ year locale, to 600 miles elsewhere, in a different state, because. I drive 90 mile trips for rare or infrequent box store shopping errands in “those cities” just to take many problems out of the equation. Stay Frosty in the interim.
Moscow Rules:
Never go against your gut.
One of the blessings of small-town life is that, it’s too small to be anonymous.
Ferals pull this crap in their urban shitdumps because no one will recognize them.
I noticed that with our Lowes as well and if we are both seeing it across the country it is probably a corporate policy. Our Costco has an entrance area with steel shutters both to the outside and to the rest of the building.
Have you heard anything on the relatively large number of food processing and distribution centers burning down?
During the 2020 riots the Home Depot I work at did that. But we also had riots hitting similar stores within our state. Haven’t seen it since here.
On an amusing note, a few months ago a teenage kid approached me at work, and explained he was doing a LARP setup, and wanted to know how we’d setup a HD to defend against zombies. I informed him that “you don’t, to much glass”. What I didn’t tell him is that with enough plywood and concrete anything is possible. Since RL zombies would be rioters that wasn’t info I felt needed to be spread.
One of your most insightful and potentially prophetic postings. You , Rawles, and Reamus were the best. Now, you
and Rawles hold the title.
Might be a good time to look at starting an armed security business. I remember back in the late seventies when crime was high. Police bugits were cut. My area had no police from midnight to 8am. We were on pur own. We relied on folks with carry permits and experience in law enforcement. Private security is a crap shoot in many states. But if dealing with recently retired officers or military police then the level of competency is a good deal higher. And being a sign of the times it might be a good investment to start a business providing a high level of protection.
Walked into local Wallymart in Findlay, Ohio and saw they recently had contractors hole bore the existing concrete approach pads for new bollards directly in front of doors. They had other bollards along frontage before but have now core hole saw drilled for NEW large ones to go in shortly directly in front of the doors. A new Turkey Hill gas station has bollards every few feet along 100 ft entire building frontage of the store.