BIG DEBATE IN THE DIRTY MYRTLE …
To be clear: We don’t live in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Nor do we have family living in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Nor do we spend our hard-earned vacation money in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The “Dirty Myrtle” is just not part of our lives anymore …
Those who do live/ vacation in the city might be interested in a major debate over crime – one that’s taking place in the run-up to next month’s municipal elections.
According to several previous news reports (here, here and here), crime in Myrtle Beach has grown progressively worse in recent years. According to the city’s mayor, John Rhodes, that’s not true.
In fact Rhodes is now claiming that the city’s crime rate has fallen to its lowest level in twenty years …
Is that true?
One local website – www.Myrtle-Beach.com – certainly doesn’t think so.
“Our team did a Google search for stories ranking Myrtle Beach as the highest in crime in the state and nation,” the website reported. “There are 432 stories from legitimate news sources, from the past four years, currently online stating that Myrtle Beach is highest in crime in the state and the nation.”
The only evidence to the contrary? The report referenced by Rhodes – which was compiled by the Myrtle Beach, S.C. city police department.
And released to the public just two weeks before an election …
Again … we don’t care who runs Myrtle Beach (lately, it’s the Chinese). We lost all faith in that city’s elected officials in the aftermath of the “Coastal Kickback” scam (and apparently others have had enough of the “Myrtle Beach mafia,” too).
There’s seriously something in the water there … (beyond the pollution).
But if you live in the area – or plan to vacation there anytime soon – you might want to consider doing your own research on the crime rate.
RAPID REACTION
@fitsnews do not know. We try to stay out of that area. #Surfside is much better and inviting to guest.
— Daniel S Cochran (@Alderon714) October 22, 2015
@Alderon714 @fitsnews my brother lives in Surfside,even he doesn't go to Myrtle Beach anymore.
— Sailer fantastic (@SailerFantastic) October 22, 2015
50 comments
You realize that underage drinking and misdemeanor crap like that is still a crime, right? Think that might up the numbers in a place like MB?
Interesting point!
I read a statistic the other day that said 1 in 3 kids have been arrested by the time they graduate high school.
The police state is stomping our children. The most inane of activities is codified into criminality.
Have a beef with a kid in your class? Remember when you wait until after school to settle it with fists and maybe a week later you’d end up being friends with that same kid even if you kicked his ass or got your ass kicked?(or you just beat the shit out each other)
Now someone goes to jail almost every time. Big brother has his nose in everything.
Spot on, TB!!!! This is one of the more disturbing aspects (of several), regarding the trend of stationing an SRO in every school.
I think you’re on to something. I’ve lived in other parts of the US and even around the world and the cop to citizen ratio in S.C. (and the old confederacy for that matter) is shocking. Cop cars all over the place. Town cops, county sheriffs, city cops, university cops, state troopers, SLED…
S.C. is very much a police state.
Dude…you should do “the numbers thing” before you spout like that. SC is backwards in *so* many ways (I can says that – I bees from here); our law enforcement situation is but one of them. However, we are not even close to being a police state. No time here to befuddle everyone with a chart of huge numbers, but two primary factors that drive crime are population and pop. density. Others play in too (racial demographics, income, urban / rural mix, etc.), but population and density drive them all at some level.
SC is the 21st largest state in population and the 19th in density; right in the middle tertile. Accordingly, SC is 13th in officers per thousand residents (the standard measurement used to measure “police states”), although we’re in a near dead heat with the rest of the middle of the pack which follows us down to 18th place (AL, CA, CT, FL, and MO, for example, are all within a .05 smidge of our 2.529 officer/thousand rate which, as you probably know is what we call a “statistically insignificant” variance in range of values from 1.6 to 7.5). The highest states are significantly higher – DC is numero uno at 7.5, with LA following at 4.0, NJ at 3.8, VT at 3.5, NY at 3.3, and IL at 2.9.
In other words, we are basically almost identical to our similarly situated neighbors, and right where we should on the national scale. Our CJ system in SC has many issues, but an over abundance of cops is most assuredly NOT one of them. Folks with an anti-LE bent seem to notice cops more, so anecdotal remarks like yours are pretty common. Sorry for the statistical rant…
I was speaking anecdotally. However, that shouldn’t diminish my observation. For all I know…the places where I’ve lived seeing fewer cops may have more cops per citizen than I thought.
My point is that for a state with 4 million some odd residents, we seem to have cops every which way. All over the place. Crawling with cops. My conspiracy is that there are some many cops b/c it’s a racket for politicians and local gov’ts to “create jobs” under the guise of protecting us as well as a money making racket for privatized prisons to keep em stocked with prisoners and those taxpayer dollars rolling in to private sector pockets.
For all the money we spend on LE and all the cops we have, we still have lots of crime and spend mega $$ on prison costs.
Um, I just showed you that we are not even close to “crawling with cops.” It’s one reason our crime rates suck. My guess is (and it’s just a guess, since I only “know” you from your posts here) is that you aren’t that fond of LE. This makes it seem like cops are everywhere, because you are attuned to noticing them. We are all like that in regard to our awareness levels; people see what they are trained / attuned to see. Not at all unusual, but we have an average to below average number of cops in relation to our demographic and geographic place in the world.
Let’s take it to the people…
People….what say you? Do you:
a) Think you see a lot of cops per day.
b) About the right amount of cops per day.
c) Not enough cops per day.
My God, dude…I knew you had some slightly delusional / “shrill angry guy” positions, but I’ve never seen you do the Jedi mind trick to this extent before. In honor of the soon-to-be released “The Force Awakens,” I present to you, Obi-Wan Phatkunt:
Phatkunt: “These aren’t the facts and figures you’re looking for.”
Us: “These aren’t the facts and figures we’re looking for.”
Phatkunt: “You can all go about your business.”
Us: “We can all go about our business.”
Phatkunt: “Move along…move along.”
Us: “Moving along…”
Shrill angry guy positions?
I hardly think that advocating for better prosperity, less police interference in our lives, better health care, better pay, equal rights, more paid time off, legalization of soft drugs, gun control and better education would qualify me as an angry and shrill guy.
OK, deflection dude.
Dude, I would lighten up on the “dude” thing – just saying.
OK, dude. I mean bro…sis. Guy? Amigo? Friend, perhaps. Kind madam? Member of personhood?
Dude I enjoy an intelligent back and forth as much as the next guy,but for the sake of your sanity and fingertips your going to have to acknowledge that some people don’t care to have logic and facts getting in the way of their ideology. You have to recognize it or you risk going into Rocky/Flip mode, filling the the page with “I know you are but what I’m I crap”
Sorry…I make no apology for living a reality-based existence. ;-)
Reality based existence? You??? (LOL)
You left out “other” – LOL
While I think Mike might have a point in terms of raw police/citizens ratios, be aware many times when people disagree with him they suddenly become “shrill” in his mind.
Facts are really annoying sometimes, I know.
You’re coming off as shrill Mike.
:)
Ha! Maybe I’ll try the angry guy approach! Aaaaaaarrrgh…
I don’t know; that just sounded piratey.
I vote for “a”
Especially the Lyman/Duncan/Wellford “metro” area!!!!
Every dirty little town has its own fiefdom and revenue source.
BTW, been driving the area for over 30 years and have not gotten a single ticket because I know how those dirty so-and-so’s operate
Fuck, just look at Wellford……
Ratio has gotta be skewed to more cops per capita…
Not to mention them writing tickets on I-85 5-10 miles out of town limits
ditto for Duncan cops as well
….. another intelligent post // “Forgive your enemy, but only after you have taken your revenge upon him”
Thank you Shifty, you’ve been exceptionally kind to me today.
Just read the posts on this article and they have been polite to each other — very good and reasoned, but I don’t know what is the most accurate representation — it probably varies by jurisdiction.
The numbers are skewed (kinda like those faux numbers Thumper puts out to prop up Haley). The crime statistics by the FBI don’t take into account that MB may have 500,000 to a million visitors on any given day several months a year.They base their statistics on the year round population in MB.
A million visitors? To Red Neck Beach? That’s so funny. A million visitors on a given day. Hosting over 14 million visitors annually that means all the visitors come on just 14 days, or they come and stay for a month. Let’s try some common sense, more like an extra 65,000 a day.
The old bike weeks would have 500,000 a day.
Interesting you bring that up, bike bike weeks also disproportionately affect the motorcycle crash statistics for SC in general.
Those types of offenses aren’t “Part 1” crimes, and do not impact the violent crime index…
There are areas where I am on a higher state of personal alert, such as North Charlrston. Somr places have a well-earned reputation for above normal invidents of violent crime.
That said, always be stapped and don’t take your prrsonal safety or yhat of your fsmily for granted.
Best to just avoid North Charleston all out.
No way.North Charleston is the new Charleston.
http://nigelsgoodfood.com/index.php
Murder Beach
I take the kids to “Pirate Land” once a year and stay for around a week and the kids love it. But then again, I never go “downtown” into that mess and Pirate Land has security guards out front. Their beach is nice too. Pirate Land is getting a little long in the tooth, but it’s like stepping back into the 60’s in my mind anyway, I kinda like it. Sure, it’s a like “Redneck” at times, but fun none the less.
I think Myrtle Beach is all about what you make it to some degree, where you spend your time, etc.
Usually I do charter boats in Murrell’s Inlet, Brookgreen Gardens, & the kids do a lot of Pirate Land activities, that type of stuff. Downtown MB gets on my nerves.
I’m with CiC below, I find N. Charleston to be much more disconcerting in terms of crime potential.
Pirate Land? What a cheap ass bastard.A true (L)ibatard you are.Take the kids down to Street Reach Homeless Mission for dinner around 5:00 P.M. .
Taking your kids to Pinehurst for fun? I suppose in your world camping is “no fun” because it’s cheap eh?
….. intelligent post
I go as far north as the airport only because I have to. Here in lovely, peaceul Pawleys Island we do not even encourage visitors.
The south end is the only “beach” left down here…
Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics.
Who knows the real story, just two sides pushing a narrative. The points about by others about underage drinking, misdemeanors and the huge number of visitors are all valid.
Yeah, we can trust Myrtle-Beach.com, as they have no bias, whatsoever. SMH
Just because unrealistic stats are reported 432 doesn’t make them true, even for Fox News. Everyone with a brain knows the crime stats presented are false and go against FBI statistical methods. There isn’t a city in this county with so few ‘residents’ that gets so many visitors, and that site includes crimes in Horry County towards MB, skewing them even more. The City of Myrtle Beach is by no means perfect, but if you are going to criticize it, at least use relevant statistics.
Myrtle Beach 1978;bad sound, but you get the idea
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOOXdjI5C8g
Just a two-day stay in the Dirty Myrtle would convince even the dullest dullard of the silliness of this claim.
Who cares? Won’t ever live there. Might as well talk about crime in Jerusalem or the West Bank.
What always skews the “statistics” about MB is the per capita or per 100,000 population numbers use the MB population as a denominator, while all the tourist crimes are in the numerator. (Apologies to the innumerate reading this)
I agree with the media. Myrtle Beach has gotten a lot worse since 1992, basically – the year BEFORE they banned public nudity. Crime has been through the roof there for the past 23 years, businesses haven’t been coming there as fast as they were before, people are moving from MB to other beach cities in the Tri-State (think Folly Beach, Saint Simons Island, Ga. and Wilmington).