An interesting and thought provoking piece written by John Robb over on Global Guerilla's discussing the decline of Suburbia that asks the question, Are suburban communities viable post crunch?

"Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." ~Albert Einstein

As I am sitting early Saturday morning sipping on a bold cup of coffee, reading this piece, the question posed brings to mind another important question for those of us who protect and serve, what effect will this decline have on security and law enforcement efforts within small communities with small budgets? What new problems will we face and will we have the resources to handle what lies ahead? Federal and State financial assistance is drying up, so how to we small communities become more self-sufficient and resilient to deal with the changing times and the problems that come with this change? John Robb believes there is a solution:

“I start with the view that a suburban town is a community and not just type of architecture.  People/families live their lives in these towns.  So, as a community, it's ability to survive/thrive is a function of its adaptability.   If the future is going to be as tough as we think it is, then the question of suburbia really becomes:  are suburban communities adaptable enough to thrive in the future (as in:  becoming resilient communities).   Given the advantages of the suburban landscape (land, surface area, security, etc.) has over rural/urban in many revival scenarios (post crunch), the only existential threat to these communities appears to be from the global financial system -- aka a foreclosure tsunami that decimates communities faster than they can reconfigure/change. I think that problem is solvable.”

Is the answer found in more resources, or is it found in “PEOPLE” the way we work, collaboratively to solve the different problems that come from a declining community? I agree with John Robb’s sentiment the problems is solvable. The problems law enforcement and security will face are solvable as well, if we band together with the community, making us adaptable to the changing world. It will mean doing more with less and working harder. The alternative of failing to do so will mean bigger problems and the true meaning of being ill-equipped and short staffed to light!

Stay Oriented!

Fred

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