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Let the RCMP do its job

Rural crime rates are rising and the public is losing faith in the RCMP’s ability to do its job.

Rural crime rates are rising and the public is losing faith in the RCMP’s ability to do its job.

That’s the gist of the message that Barrhead RCMP detachment commander Bob Dodds delivered to county councillors during the detachment’s annual performance plan meeting with the municipality Feb. 16 and it is similar to the grumbling being heard throughout the area by members of our editorial staff.

Indeed, one councillor in particular asked Dodds point-blank why residents aren’t allowed to shoot to maim in the event of a robbery or theft-in-progress.

The notion is both scary and mystifying to us here at the Barrhead Leader.

On the one hand, we all share the frustrations and concerns that our readers do.

We worry just as much about our own properties and possessions and we all wonder when the time will come when it is us who are the victims.

We understand the fear that crime inspires when the perpetrators actually shoot at people investigating strange noises on their properties, that feeling of helplessness in the face of a justice system that helps the criminal more often than it helps the victim.

On the other hand, resorting to vigilante justice is not the way to handle this situation.

Have we learned nothing from the gun violence that is visited daily elsewhere?

Is it really the solution to arm ourselves and add more death and violence to an already stressful situation?

The point is, instead of arming ourselves and shooting first, maybe it is time to take a long hard look at organizations like the Neighbourhood Watch program or the Rural Crime Watch Association.

These two initiatives were borne out of concerns for residential welfare and general safety and if they function properly, can actually be useful in helping the RCMP do its job.

We have to remember that we aren’t the police.

There is a reason officers are authorized to carry firearms, to arrest people and fulfill the duties that they are mandated to perform.

Yes, we all have the right to self-defence but as Dodds says in the story on Page A6, it is a fine line between that and murder.

That being said, the frustration is real and people have begun to think proactively.

It’s a good start but let’s nudge ourselves in the right direction.

If you’ve been victimized, it stands to reason you have an incentive to want to be a part of the solution and not another statistic.

Let the RCMP do its job.

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