I know that in certain countries like Japan or South Korea: it’s normal to leave the front door unlocked since the probaility of someone breaking in is low since their crime rate isn’t high. I knew a friend of mine who resides in Korea where they even left the car unlocked with the keys inside, can you do either of those things in America?

  • JPSound@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    2 hours ago

    When I lived in LA and Atlanta, motherfuckers would steal the milk out of your coffee. I kept everything completely locked up, put away and hidden. I now live in northern Wisconsin and I dont lock anything. I dont think anyone around here does. This is the safest community I’ve ever been a part of and I love it.

  • BoxOfFeet@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    6
    ·
    3 hours ago

    In my parent’s area, where it’s like 40 people per square mile, yeah it’s perfectly safe. It’s a hard mindset to get out of for me, I live in metro Detroit now. My neighborhood is nice, low crime. Good school district. We leave our house unlocked for short periods, like going g to pick up our kid from daycare or taking a walk to the park. Sometimes it gets left unlocked accidentally overnight. Nothing has ever happened.

    I also am in the habit of never locking my car. There’s nothing in it, except my daughter’s carseat and some quarters for the Aldi carts. Only once has anything been taken, and that was in a mall parking lot. They stole two throw pillows, and a warm coat. I can only assume it was a homeless person, so I’m not even mad. At least with unlocked doors I don’t worry about my windows being broken.

  • gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    9
    ·
    5 hours ago

    It is highly dependent on where you live. And it’s not density-specific, either. Some cities are sketchier than others. Some rural areas are sketchier than others.

  • mrnobody@reddthat.com
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    7
    ·
    5 hours ago

    Living in a top 25 murder per 100k capita area, windows are locked, doors locked, cars locked, bright outdoor lights, backyard fence padlocked, cameras recording and on battery backup lol.

  • Zahille7@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    4 hours ago

    Couldn’t tell you. It’s just a habit for me to lock my shit up when I leave/not using it (car, house, etc.).

    I don’t know how people are fine with leaving their house/car unlocked just because. I also don’t trust people because I’ve had way, way too many experiences with complete and total dumbass idiots who don’t know what they’re doing with themselves to be able to leave anything to chance.

  • DagwoodIII@piefed.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    45
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    9 hours ago

    First, the USA is a giant country. It takes about four hours to drive from New York to Philadelphia and two weeks to drive from New York to Los Angeles.

    Second, crime can vary wildly in the same city.

    • tko@tkohhh.social
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      5
      ·
      4 hours ago

      Two weeks is an exaggeration… it’s roughly a 40 hour drive. I find 10 hour driving days to be quite reasonable, so 4 days.

      But, your point is valid… big country, different places will have different danger levels. Within my own city, there are areas I would feel OK leaving the front door unlocked, and other areas where I absolutely would not.

      • WolfLink@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        50 minutes ago

        Two weeks is about how long I took when I made that trip, but I did some sightseeing on the way. Also even on the longest day I don’t think I drove for 10 hours in one day.

      • Captain Aggravated@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        1 hour ago

        Reminds me of a joke, A Texan and a Carolinian rancher meet in a bar. The Texan says “Yessir, it takes me two days to drive my pickup truck across my ranch.” The Carolinian says “Yeah I had a truck like that, but I got it fixed.”

    • makingStuffForFun@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      12
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      9 hours ago

      I believe Trumptopia is about the same size physically as Australia.

      Same thing.

      Big city. Lock.

      Small town. Maybe lock.

      Rural area. Never lock.

      • DagwoodIII@piefed.social
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        7
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        9 hours ago

        I believe Trumptopia is about the same size physically as Australia.

        You know, you could get a ‘search engine’ like AskJeeves or Bing and then you’d know for sure.

        USA 9.83 square km

        Aus 7.69 square km.

        • Mantzy81@aussie.zone
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          7
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          8 hours ago

          Yeah nah cunt. You don’t include Alaska in that as it’s pulling a lot of weight.

          Contiguous US is 8.08. Still slightly larger than Australia but only byy a dick hair.

          • Soulphite@reddthat.com
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            3
            ·
            7 hours ago

            This is the most Australian argument I’ve read, I even read it in my best Australian accent.

            Some of my inspiration for my internal Australian accent include:

            “Fosters, Australian for beer!”

            “That’s not a knife, THIS is knife!”

            “I’m dry as a dead dingo’s donger”

        • leoj@piefed.social
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          7
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          9 hours ago

          wow both under 10 square km, I have been navigating way wrong my whole life apparently.

            • harmbugler@piefed.social
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              8 hours ago

              We’re kind of getting away from the point that how long it takes to drive somewhere has zero to do with whether you lock your door.

              • INeedANewUserName@piefed.social
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                ·
                8 hours ago

                oh I might disagree believe leaving doors unlocked is more common when the nearest neighbor is a mile and a half away but maybe I’m wrong

              • leoj@piefed.social
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                ·
                8 hours ago

                Kind of? Its a discussion about the size of the United States, and how it is impossible to speak for the entirety. I won’t give you a play by play on the posts you just read, but it is all relevant to the discussion at hand.

              • funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                2
                ·
                8 hours ago

                the drive time was to illustrate scale.

                While it doesn’t matter how big a whale is vs a microbe, you can’t put a whale under a normal microscope, thus the distinction is relevant.

  • RebekahWSD@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    10
    ·
    8 hours ago

    That really depends on where. My mother grew up in Montana and they never locked their doors. Whereas my ass in NJ has never not locked the doors.

  • HubertManne@piefed.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    1
    ·
    4 hours ago

    cctv is not as much of a thing in the us. Largely dependent on bussinesses and not much so far with public cameras. Few places are going to have rates that low but they exist and ones with higher rates still have people that by and large keep the door unlocked. Its mostly a perceived thing really though. Im not sure I would call it safe just because its uncommon. I always thought it was foolish to not utilze something like it but I do tend to use the bolt as its easier to not lock myself out because I have to use a key to lock the door.

  • procapra@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    3
    ·
    6 hours ago

    As I move into bigger and bigger cities the people around me insist the answer is no, but I regularly leave the doors unlocked. I also have no issue hitchhiking either so, maybe i’m a bit of an outlier. I’ve got infinite levels of trust in people.

  • CrocodilloBombardino@piefed.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    13
    ·
    9 hours ago

    the US is a gigantic country, so there are different practices in different places. I have never left my door unlocked, but maybe others have.

  • BassTurd@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    7 hours ago

    Growing up on a small town in Iowa, I would leave my car unlocked and windows down during the day. I lived rural and we never locked our door. Now there’s been more development near my mother’s house and she locks the door at night and when she’s not home. Someone down the street about a mile away had someone break into their house. Unfortunately for the perp, the home owner heard, grabbed a golf club and gave the dude a shiner and a titlists face tattoo.

    Now I live in a larger metro area and keep my doors locked all day. I truly wouldn’t need to because we have a pretty safe community, but my wife grew up in a worse place so it’s more habit than anything. We also have dogs they could potentially pop a door open and get out, so extra piece of mind.

  • AnchoriteMagus@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    7
    ·
    9 hours ago

    I personally have never lived somewhere where I don’t lock the doors, even if I’m home. It just makes me feel safer.

    Conversely, my dad, who lives about 15 minutes from me, has never locked the front door of the house in the 45 years I’ve been alive. When he goes away somewhere, he leaves the garage door unlocked so neighbors can borrow tools and the kids in the neighborhood can grab a ball if they need one. Nothing has ever gone missing.

  • The Velour Fog @lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    6
    ·
    9 hours ago

    Like others have said, it depends on where you are in the US. I live in a suburban area and we always lock our doors, whereas my cousins live in a rural region of the state and rarely lock their doors.

    It’s up to you, but I’d always err on the side of caution and lock the door.