Living in fear can be a terrible thing. In Palm Bay where I live a serial rapist has been on the loose. He entered homes through unlocked windows in the very early am hours. He raped a six year old girl, a 54 year old woman, and attacked three others in their 20's without being able to complete the crime. We have been unable to open our windows at night because of the fear of letting the a-hole have access. I have a wife and kids at home and believe me, it is a scary thing to have that kind of worry on your mind. They finally announced yesterday that they have the jerk in custody. A young man driven by some aberration to commit these attacks. I am sure that if he hadn't been caught, he eventually would have killed some unfortunate victim. As it is, how do you help a six year old girl recover from a rape, and expect her to ever be able to live a normal life? I got mugged once in Washington, D. C. and it took me months to feel halfway normal again. That isn't even in the same universe as what happened to that little girl. Some crimes need to be punished severely, in a timely manner, and without the rediculously costly delays caused by a legal system out of control. I know my family's safety at home is mostly an illusion, but maybe if crimes like these were more decisively punished, there would be fewer people willing to attempt them.
Ok. I'm off my soapbox now!
