Traffic Not the Only Reason to Stay Out

By John Kuykendall

Some of the members of my Dad’s family lived in the Atlanta area when I was growing up. I hated making the trip there then and I still hate to make a trip there today.
I had cousins that lived in the Atlanta area when I was growing up. To say they were mean spirited and had a way of finding trouble would be an understatement. Every time we would visit and leave to return home, my father would always look at my sister and I and say, “That’s why we live in Harris County.” He would then add, “I’d take a belt to those kids. They need discipline.”
He was right about that.
Once in my life, I was offered a job in Atlanta. The pay was really good, the benefits were good, but the location (in my opinion) not so much. The more I thought about having to deal with the traffic, etc. it was easy to say, “Thanks, but no thanks,” to the job offer.
Traffic is a big issue for me in Atlanta. Mainly because half the folks who live there drive like they are in a NASCAR race and don’t mind cutting you off, etc.
But that is only one reason I want to stay out of Atlanta. The other is that crime there, especially violent crime and thefts, are far too prevalent for my taste.
On Monday, while watching FOX 5 news, the news team reported on five different shooting incidents in the Atlanta area and all of them occurred during the late Sunday, Dec. 28 and early Monday morning, Dec. 29 hours.
These are the shooting incidents reported on during the Monday news cast. I’m sure there were others because these were all Atlanta Police Department cases except for one and it was in DeKalb County, and lots of other crimes were probably not considered important to report. Why would you report a burglary when you can report on five different shooting incidents? As a news person I can tell you, even though people say they don’t want to read or hear bad news, don’t believe it. If our front page has a murder story racks sales go out the roof. If the headline is something that happened in the community that is a good thing. Sales are moderate. That is just the plain truth and the way it is today.
Below is some information about the shootings that occurred.
According to FOX 5, on Sunday afternoon around 4:10 p.m. at an address on Broad Street SW, a 20 year-old man was shot and transported to an area hospital. The case is still under investigation.
Also Fox 5 reported, that on Sunday night, a man was hospitalized at Grady Hospital with a gun shot wound at around 8:49 p.m. The shooting reportedly occurred in the Roy Street SW and McDaniel Street SW area. The case remains under investigation.
On Sunday night around 11:49 p.m., in an apartment complex in DeKalb County, police responded to East Ponce Village Apartments on Wood Bend Drive in Stone Mountain when a 22 year-old man was shot by police after he was determined to have a firearm. According to FOX 5, the man is expected to survive.
On Monday morning around 1 a.m., it was reported that a man was hospitalized and in critical condition after being shot in southwest Atlanta on Pineview Terrace SW. The 39 year-old victim was transported to an area hospital suffering from multiple gun shot wounds. It was determined the shooting occurred at another location. The case remains under investigation.
On Monday around 1:22 a.m., police responded to a shooting on Cologne Drive SE where a 48 year-old man was found deceased after receiving multiple gun shot wounds and a 21 year-old man was found also with a gun shot wound. The report did not indicate the condition of the 21 year-old.
Nothing against Atlanta itself, I feel the same way about every large city in the United States. They have too much traffic, too much crime and too much hate for me. I prefer the rural seating we all enjoy. Simply put, it’s just an easier lifestyle.