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Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

shazow.posterous.com

21–30 of 45 posts

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#21
post #20
post #2

I have heard of this specific scam happening in Buenos Aires as well. It's a particularly nasty one. It's unfortunate, but I would say that on my world trip about 50-60% of English-speaking locals in non-English-speaking countries were trying to get my money somehow. I feel bad for the ones who weren't, because I had to treat them with such suspicion. But, the rule is, if somebody doesn't have anything better to do t…

Like this kind of stuff would never happen in NYC, LA, Detroit, Baltimore...

[deleted]

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#22

A couple of years ago, a couple of prescription drug addicts stole some lawn tools and GPSes from our unfortunately unlocked garage. The local police (we live in a relatively affluent suburb) ended up coordinating with other local police departments and eventually caught the thieves. The police office I worked with thought that these same two guys were likely responsible for over a hundred similar property crimes. On…

This service is well known in car theft investigations except the cameras are supplemented with the ability to remotely cut the engine. Follow the car until it's safe to storm it. Boom goes the dynamite. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bait_car

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#23

When I was in Rome, a couple of youths tried the old trap-the-target-in-the-ticket-barriers trick on a friend of mine. Luckily another guy I was with realised what was happening, shouted "watched out" and the two guys scarpered after giving us a cheeky shrug.

Care to elaborate on this trick? Google doesn't seem to find anything.

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#24
post #22

A couple of years ago, a couple of prescription drug addicts stole some lawn tools and GPSes from our unfortunately unlocked garage. The local police (we live in a relatively affluent suburb) ended up coordinating with other local police departments and eventually caught the thieves. The police office I worked with thought that these same two guys were likely responsible for over a hundred similar property crimes. On…

This service is well known in car theft investigations except the cameras are supplemented with the ability to remotely cut the engine. Follow the car until it's safe to storm it. Boom goes the dynamite. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bait_car

I've watched a few episodes of the "Bait Car" show on cable and should have mentioned it above. The Wikipedia article suggests that my proposed scheme would not constitute entrapment. I wonder how much time would pass, on average, before a criminal would take a laptop from an unlocked vehicle in a "nice" part of town?

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#25
post #19

Grrr...I hate to be this person, but why, oh why, is this on Hacker News? This isn't a "hack" or anything new...they've been doing this to tourists for as long as there have been tourists.

From the post, I'm assuming one of the victims is limedaring who just a week ago launched her site http://www.weddinginvitelove.com/ , which was covered in this item with almost 500 points: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2227770

you're right, that reminds me to sign up for that sex change operation. With the +400 vagina modifier, I should be able to stay at the top of hackernews all day. amirite? This is aimed squarely at the reparation voters btw. Tech is a meritocracy with exception to half the population. And I'm not even sexist, just kinda peeved at the hypocritical double standard. Women have it hard in startups. BULLSHIT. Everyone has it hard in startups. Women get all the attention in an attention economy, which is worth more than money.

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#26

That's not a mugging. I think you mean robbed: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mugged to assault or menace, especially with the intention of robbery. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/rob to take something from (someone) by unlawful force or threat of violence; steal from. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/burglarize to break into and steal from: Thieves burglarized the warehouse.

Is there a version of Poe's Law for pedantry?

Word definitions matter, significantly more than grammar and spelling.

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#27
post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From the post, I'm assuming one of the victims is limedaring who just a week ago launched her site http://www.weddinginvitelove.com/ , which was covered in this item with almost 500 points: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2227770

you're right, that reminds me to sign up for that sex change operation. With the +400 vagina modifier, I should be able to stay at the top of hackernews all day. amirite? This is aimed squarely at the reparation voters btw. Tech is a meritocracy with exception to half the population. And I'm not even sexist, just kinda peeved at the hypocritical double standard. Women have it hard in startups. BULLSHIT. Everyone has…

>I'm not even sexist

... and yet in reply to a completely neutral comment proposing that the article might be relevant because one of the two people in it was just featured in a very highly rated article last week, you create a one-off account and go on a full paragraph gender rant ...

Edit: I agree with the top poster, I was expecting more in-depth analysis when I hit the link. But voting up a follow-up story to someone who was just highly featured in the community is not exactly an inexplicable response.

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#28
Cargo pants with buttoned or zipped pockets, bag locks, and never letting go of your bags will go a long way in preventing theft while traveling. Also, the ol' money belt may make your butt sweat, but it's the place for passports, cash cache, and backup credit cards.

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#29
Ever wonder why you read stories in the foreign press about France, Germany, Italy or some other European country deporting its Roma (Gypsy) population? Well, now you understand why they do it. And before anyone says, "He never said they were Gyspies," he's from the U.S., doesn't speak Italian and obviously isn't savvy enough to pick them out, at least when they aren't trying to be noticed. Gypsies do stuff like this to tourists through out Europe. They are a menace, and resist any attempt to assimilate them into modern society, preferring to live in their camps and beg, cheat, and steal to sustain themselves. Yes, downvote away, but it is true, as any European can and will attest.

Re: Find yourself covered in slime? You're being mugged.

#30
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you're right, that reminds me to sign up for that sex change operation. With the +400 vagina modifier, I should be able to stay at the top of hackernews all day. amirite? This is aimed squarely at the reparation voters btw. Tech is a meritocracy with exception to half the population. And I'm not even sexist, just kinda peeved at the hypocritical double standard. Women have it hard in startups. BULLSHIT. Everyone has…

>I'm not even sexist ... and yet in reply to a completely neutral comment proposing that the article might be relevant because one of the two people in it was just featured in a very highly rated article last week, you create a one-off account and go on a full paragraph gender rant ... Edit: I agree with the top poster, I was expecting more in-depth analysis when I hit the link. But voting up a follow-up story to som…

nah, it's the first and probably last someone relevent context available where people will still have this fresh in their minds. The fact is you proved the point. Instead of addressing any points you called me a sexist and downvoted. In formal argument this is called ad hominem.
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