14 JAN 05: SAFETY ZONE?

An e-mail came our way the other day from someone using the name, "Is Our City Safe." It was a bit surprising to find it was NOT a spam offer for a high-priced home security system.

The e-mail name actually was a clue to the message - and here it is, the way we received it:

Dear Sir or Ma'am, I have lived in Columbus for most of my life, and for the most part, have never considered Columbus to have a problem with crime. However, recently I have seen a tremendous increase in violent crimes such as murders, armed robbery, and hijacking of motorvehicles. Not to mention the rise in nonviolent crimes such as motorvehicle thefts, car break-ins, prostitution, and drugs. I cant help but wonder if this increase in crime is directly linked to the problem of recruiting and retaining qualified Public Safety personnel. For example, I can remember when the Columbus Police Department had a waiting list to be hired. The officers who were hired were the best qualified, most trustworthy, and honorable men and women. More recently, several officers have been arrested for theft, peeping tom, dui, and drug use. This trend concerns me greatly. I was watching the council meeting on television the other night when I saw that some citizens were concerned about officers properly completing reports, violating civil rights, and basically not doing their job at all. Case in point, the mentally retarded man that was missing a few weeks ago. I can usually see both sides of a story when people don't agree with what the Police have done in a certain situation, but I cannot see how telling the family of the missing retarded man that we are short handed and just filling out a report is doing a thorough job. This is completely unacceptable in my eyes. What if that were your mother that disappeared? I don't think "we are short handed" would have cut it. I also have personal knowledge that there are Police officers on the street, carrying guns and driving city owned vehicles, that have training officer's recommendations in their files that the trainee should be fired and not released from the training program. Despite this fact, those officers are out there patrolling our neighborhoods, issuing citations, investigating crimes, and in certain circumstances, committing crimes. I think it is great the city council wants to beautify and clean up Columbus, but I think that the clean up should start at the bottom. I think we should only be hiring the most qualified, trustworthy people to protect us. Without a solid foundation under the city, it doesn't make a difference how beautiful it is, the city will eventually crumble. I can honestly say that the situation is going to get worse before it gets better. I just hate to see this city hit rock bottom before the city council decides to fix the problem. Thank you for your time

We thank the anonymous author for writing - and this citizen certainly seems concerned. Have you noticed the TV newscasts never show someone's name with the title "UNconcerned citizen"?

The final official numbers aren't out yet, but Columbus did have more homicides in 2004 than the year before -- a total of 25. But look on the bright side. At least the number of shootings by Muscogee County Sheriff's officers dropped 100 percent.

(I'm honestly not sure if prostitution is up in Columbus or not. Maybe Fort Benning will take care of some of that over the next few days -- by shipping the Third Brigade back to Iraq.)

Can anyone else remember when there was a waiting list to be a Columbus Police officer? It would be nice to have a date - to see if that changed when Aflac became big enough to hire security guards.

That's not a very nice list of offenses connected with Columbus Police - "theft, peeping tom, DUI and drug use." From some pro football teams, this might be expected....

The "missing man" mentioned by the e-mailer is Billy Hardin, who disappeared and was found alive Thanksgiving weekend [29 Nov 04]. Police may have been shorthanded then not because of overall staffing, but the holiday - with police off Thursday, resting to handle weird drivers in the parking lots on Friday.

So some police officers are working in Columbus with negative training reports?! It would be interesting to know who these officers are. But then again, only one such possible person has written me - and former Marshal Ken Suddeth embarrassed him here royally....

The e-mailer makes a thought-provoking point that the cleanup of Columbus should "start at the bottom." And in one way, this is happening. The new Infantry Museum is about as far toward the bottom of the city map as you can get.

It's a worthy goal to hire only "the most qualified, trustworthy people" to protect Columbus. And to be honest, some of those people aren't far from here right now -- except they're on Secret Service duty for former President Carter in Plains.

I saw one thing needing cleanup in Columbus Thursday - one of the racquetball/handball courts at Benning Park. In the last two weeks, someone tried to cover the walls on the west court with dirty words. At least the words were spelled correctly, so the vandals learned SOMETHING in school....

I say "tried to cover" the walls with dirty words because the racquetball court walls are forest-green. The black spray-paint the vandals apparently tried to use didn't show up very well. Next time, try some chalk - because at least that can be erased.

The warm January weather has allowed me to head for Benning Park and racquetball workouts in shorts. The other day, I actually found two people playing on the other court - and they invited me to join them. Across the street at Baker Village, I fear a "threesome" means something quite different....

Rod and Allison offered to take me on in "three-way cutthroat" racquetball. Cutthroat - at Benning Park?! If I had been an undercover police officer, this might have been grounds for a criminal background check.

It had been 20 years and several states since I'd played three-sided racquetball. We played with the server taking on the other two players in the backcourt - which I think is how 0-21 Savannah State University is playing basketball this winter.

Rod may have called this form of racquetball "cutthroat," but there was NO trash-talk among the three of us. In fact, it was good clean fun.-- except for the one ball I got dirty by hitting it over the fence, and seemingly halfway to Harris County.

Just reporting the facts: I won the three-way cutthroat game by getting to ten points first. Rod had nine, Allison had six - but she went home with him, anyway. Maybe next time, I should play with my T-shirt off.

Now let's see what else came spinning off the sidewall in our direction Thursday:

+ Columbus NAACP President Bill Madison challenged people from Alabama and Fort Benning to join in Saturday's civil rights march. C'mon now - Fort Benning?! Soldiers don't even go across the fence line on post, to join S.O.A. Watch.

+ Mayor Bob Poydasheff received an award at the "One Columbus" dinner, for his efforts to promote "Columbus South." But some of us are wondering why he couldn't persuade someone to build this year's "St. Jude Dream Home" there.

+ Marion County Middle School had low water pressure, after having no water at all Wednesday. One angry parent complained to WRBL the school should have been closed for a lack of water - proving someone needs to give her free tickets to Westville.

+ Instant Message to the Columbus Cottonmouths: I finally figured it out Thursday night. That "WCJM" radio station you're advertising along the boards is in Troup County, isn't it?! Do that many more hockey fans live in West Point, as opposed to Columbus?

COMING THIS WEEKEND: Classic Blog, remembering times with our late next-door neighbor....

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