> even on a contrarian forum like this one you wouldn't see much opposition to the cameras.

You think the commenters on HN would sacrifice liberty in return for safety? I get the opposite impression.

> has stronger social harmony

Man unless you have different definition of so called social harmony, you can't be more wrong. Literally everyone is talking about 社会戾气 on Chinese social media and there are a big bunch of people seeking extreme means.

> Meanwhile, in China vandals and other disruptive people do get traced back to where they live and apprehended.

Nope. You think Chinese police force have unlimited amount manpower? We say the first lesson young people learn upon entering society is calling the police, 报警是社会第一课.

Yes, the problems are trust and consistency of enforcement. We have neither in the US and I’m not sure how we would ever get there.

Many East Asian countries try to write their laws so that niche cases are covered, and enforcement is tighter. In the West we leave endless loopholes in overbroad laws so that (a) everyone is probably breaking some law frequently and (b) the only people who frequently face consequences are politically disfavored groups, “troublemakers”, or those who harm elites. It’s all very Soviet.

What the actual fuck is this opinion? We wouldn't be so up in arms if the grip were tighter?

China is still under a communist regime, and we know how it makes society harmonious: by chopping everyone's fingers to equal length.

> I wouldn’t mind a patrol car circling the area, like a damn police state.

Very strange that Americans now view a patrolling policeman as a "police state". After all, a strolling constabulary (which would drive in the US since no one walks) was part of even the 19th-century progressive "policing by consent" model that is still well regarded today.

This is much easier fixed by judges actually locking up career criminals but they're so "empathetic" they let lunatics run freely and terrorize communities.

> What else would you suggest proper support when they are harassed by crime this much?

How would a flock camera deter a thief from breaking into your garage? It's a false sense of security. I had a guy break into two tenant spaces with a screwdriver with cameras pointed all over the place. He just wore a surgical mask and hood while keeping his head down. Nothing could ID him. I had all the locks upgraded and one tenant installed an alarm system. That's all we can do.

A better question to ask is why is there so much blatant and rampant crime? Have you attended any community meetings with local representatives and voiced concerns? Have you spoke to your neighbors about these incidents (do you know your neighbors?) Maybe you live in an area who's government takes some silly light handed approach to policing, justice and reform. You either deal with it or move.

This whole story you tell is the same for lots of places. It's the tell of a failing state who cannot provide for their people.

Hard/bad/no jobs? People will steal. And the thefts may cost $3000 to replace, but $300 in theft goods.

And even if you have a good job, inflation and US citizens getting fucked over by trump tariffs and inflation makes every year that much harder.

And when you KNOW the folks at the top (either party) are cheating, have always cheated, and will continue to do so - why the hell should I follow the law? It can be tax cheating, or copyright infringement, cutting down Flock (YC17) scameras, or more.

And when you KNOW you don't have any upward mobility and are stuck socioeconomically, well, it leads to what you see.

If we look at China, they have a whole different set of problems. The simpletons here will just bemoan 'Communist China' and are stuck in a McCarthyism mindset.