ORANGE COUNTY VOICES : Society Loses When Citizens Opt to Look the Other Way : Crime: Witnesses need to overcome the ‘don’t get involved’ attitude so prevalent in communities today.

Who cares about crime? Recently, this question came into sharp focus for me. I witnessed a robbery getaway.

The screeching of tires was the first indication of what was unfolding right before my eyes. I looked up to see the getaway car positioning itself in front of the victimized store. Two “wanna-be” crooks with armloads of clothing freshly scooped from the merchant’s store were jumping into the car. With the rear license plate concealed, there was little doubt as to what was happening.

The issue here, however, is not who was robbed. Or who did the robbing. Crime is increasing all around us every day. There is not an hour of the day or night that someone is not victimized.

The issue is who cares enough to get involved? We, you and I, need to get involved. Why? For several reasons.

There are the financial implications. Are you having a hard time making ends meet? Noticed prices rising? What do you think happens when a merchant is robbed (this includes but is not limited to burglary, shoplifting and employees lifting from the office or store for their home usage)? You say the merchant is insured? OK. He collects and his insurance rates go up. Now guess who’s paying for the increase in his costs. Yep! We lose. The cost eventually catches up with us.

Now, you say you don’t buy from the company you work for. But there are still financial costs from taking things home from work. All the merchants you buy from are directly affected by your company. How? You buy from them and your company’s financial situation could have an impact on your employment status. Your company’s losses must be passed on to its customers or taken out of paychecks.

Getting involved also has its social implications. As crime increases, so does the chance that one day you will come face to face with it. You may think the odds of that happening are one in a billion. Well, 999,999,999 is fast approaching. Will you be prepared mentally?

It’s time we thought about what we will do when faced with either being a victim of a crime or witnessing one. If you don’t set your mind to getting involved before the moment of confrontation, you won’t be able to jump into that frame of mind when the time arrives.

God help us if we hold onto this “don’t get involved” attitude. During this nation’s pioneer period, people faced a much harsher environment. They survived by sticking together. If something threatened one, they all pulled together and faced the threat.

That’s community. Their community was like ours, except they knew the real meaning of the word. It’s that connectedness that breeds an inner strength that unites neighbors. And that merchant is our neighbor.

If we don’t start getting into the mind-set that we will get involved, then no one will be there to get involved when the odds catch up to us.

So think about witnessing. What will you look for and what will you do when you see a crime being committed? Look for details that might help authorities. How many suspects were there? Were they short or tall? Male or female? What was their age? Hair color? What kind of car did they use, and what was the license number? Write everything down as soon as possible so you won’t forget. Report the crime! Be as cooperative as you can.

And if you become a victim--be careful. Remember that nothing you own is worth a life. Material things can be replaced. We can’t.

So you want to know what I did when I witnessed the two criminals making their escape from the store? I got involved! However, that’s not as important as what you will do. I faced this moment in my life head-on. Will you?