Scram

Thanks to Ed Price and Boondocking USA.

NOT ALL THIEVES ARE STUPID

Below is the content of an email I received from Boondocking USA published by Bruce. That's all the information I have but this is so eye opening it struck me as something I should preserve and make available to others. Thanks Bruce, whoever you are and wherever you are boondocking.

THINGS TO CONSIDER--NOT ALL THIEVES ARE STUPID

1. LONG-TERM PARKING:
Some people left their car in the long-term parking at San Jose while away, and someone broke into the car. Using the information on the car's registration in the glove compartment, they drove the car to the people's home in Pebble Beach and robbed it. So I guess if we are going to leave the car in long-term parking, we should NOT leave the registration/insurance cards in it, nor your remote garage door opener. This gives us something to think about with all our new electronic technology.

2. GPS:
Someone had their car broken into while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and specially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard. When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen. The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house. They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents. Something to consider if you have a GPS - don't put your home address in it... Put a nearby address (like a store or gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no one else would know where you live if your GPS were stolen.

3. CELL PHONES:
I never thought of this....... This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her cell phone after her handbag was stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet, etc., was stolen. Twenty minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says, "I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago." When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text "hubby" in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.
Moral of the lesson:
a. Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc....
b. And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.
C. Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet "family and friends" who text you.

4. PURSE IN THE GROCERY CART SCAM:
A lady went grocery-shopping at a local mall and left her purse sitting in the children's seat of the cart while she reached something off a shelf... Wait till you read the WHOLE story! Her wallet was stolen, and she reported it to the store personnel. After returning home, she received a phone call from the Mall Security to say that they had her wallet and that although there was no money in it, it did still hold her personal papers. She immediately went to pick up her wallet, only to be told by Mall Security that they had not called her. By the time she returned home again, her house had been broken into and burglarized. The thieves knew that by calling and saying they were Mall Security, they could lure her out of her house long enough for them to burglarize it.

Guns in RVs

My wife and I are new "almost full time RVers". Last year when we were preparing for our change in lifestyle, I thought seriously about personal protection. I am not a gun person; nor am I anti–gun. I feel sorry for those who live in such fear they have to have a gun at the ready all the time; however I am aware that this is still a dangerous world and any reasonable person must pay some attention to personal safety.

I love the wilderness and what I fear most out there are the possible results of my own stupidity. I try to be constantly aware that I am intruding in the living space of other creatures. When not in the wilderness, my chief concern is the crazies within my own species, and there are a lot of them. RVers do not just encounter other RVers. There are non–RVers who see the RV and its occupants as a juicy target.

I carefully investigated the pros and cons of owning and carrying a gun. I read two books on gun laws in Ohio—written by lawyers (imagine that). I read another book about carrying a gun in an RV titled Gun laws in 50 States. My wife and I took an introductory course called First Shot at a local shooting range.

Here's where I came down:

Legally carrying a gun is an investment of about $1,000 and a lot of time. Consider gun, ammunition, carry permits for two people in multiple states, and safety training for two.

Surveying the gun laws of several states convinced me that I could not drive any distance across state lines without violating someone's law, regulation, or prohibition. Fifty–one different sets of laws, overzealous cops, criminal–justice systems that don't work very well, and a host of lawyers anxious to take my money to prosecute me and defend me in case of a Catch-22 violation that is sure to happen; is a greater risk to time and treasure than a mugger or a bear.

I opted for two cans of wasp spray: one in the Cougar and one in the truck. Wasp spray because it shoots a stream to a range of 25 feet, rather than a fog which is easily dispersed by the wind and is only effective at short ranges.

Like my fire extinguishers, I hope I never have to use them, but I feel a little safer having them nearby. Safety lies somewhere between paranoia and carelessness.