Dear Editor: According to FBI statistics for 2009 (found at http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2009/data/table_10_ga.html), among all 159 Georgia counties in 2009, Rockdale is ranked 15th worst in Murder, 22nd in Rape, 9th in Robbery, 10th in Assault, 13th in Property Crime, 12th in Burglary, 13th in Larceny, 13th in Auto Theft, and 15th in Arson. For overall Violent Crime we're 11th worst, with nearly one every day.

Rockdale County is still a safe place according to top public safety officials, or so said a January 12 press release. Maybe we should ask the 20 monthly victims of assault how they feel about local crime trends.

I've been told by one of the County Commissioners that I should embrace Rockdale's change from "sleepy bedroom community" to whatever it is today. Maybe we should ask the four folks that are robbed every month what they think.

Let's not forget the four autos stolen each week, or the nearly 2 burglaries per day.

It's important that I'm not misunderstood with this letter. I have complete respect for both Sheriff Wigington and Chief Wilson, and I believe their departments are doing all they can.

But I also believe this county is undergoing a fundamental change to both her residents and her visitors. What parts of DeKalb went through in the 1980s, Rockdale is going through today.

Thursday, January 27, at 7:00pm at the Nancy Guinn Memorial Library, the Sheriff's Office will have a presentation on the laws that surround self-defense, the process for obtaining a Georgia Weapons License (GWL), the laws that regulate the GWL, and general self defense practices. This presentation is free and open to all.
Hopefully there will be more of these type presentations in the near future.

Freedom in this country was never designed to be protected solely by agents of the government. People used to look out for one another and look out for themselves. The 'Kum Ba Yah Crowd' used to sneer at me for daily carrying a firearm; now they're asking how to legally obtain one for themselves.

You owe it to yourself, and your loved ones, to stand against crime in our community. Standing on the sidelines and excusing/rationalizing it are no longer acceptable. Your choices are to either be prepared and pro-active and aware, or be a victim and a statistic surrounded by yellow crime tape.

Mark McCullough
Conyers