The Sydney Daily Telegraph had an interesting story (page 10, Tuesday January 29, 2007 entitled "Canberra out of control") about 40 people rampaging through a shopping centre smashing things here and there.
I often wondered about Canberra and its amazing youth suburban crime and what appears to me to be absolutely dumb design.
Did its suburb designs, from day one, contribute to a future high crime rate? Id say yes.
Everywhere the eye looks, out in the burbs, its houses. Mile after mile.
Just houses.
No post boxes in the streets (wasnt the last time I looked). No telephones and these pokie little shopping centres. Where could the teenagers go but other peoples houses. They would be forced to mill or flock in bored out of their brain mobs.
Could anything be done about this design flaw...or is it too late for the next generation of kids?

Dear Gibo,

We must be talking about two different cities... The Canberra I know and love has much to offer. To me it's a city in a park, a landscaped capital carefully designed to transform with the four distinct seasons. There's a hot, dry summer, a temperate spring, a very crisp winter, and an autumn that is considered to be the state's main event.

To me its a special place famous for its attractions - places like the Australian War Memorial, Old Parliament House, and the National Museum of Australia - symbolising who we are, where we came from, and where we are going. Its a journey everyone should make, and not just once, because like the nation, Canberra's attractions are evolving.

Then there's the Australian Institute of Sport, visit Parliament House
and the National Gallery of Australia. Experience the Australian character through sound and film, books and exhibitions at the National Library of Australia, the National Archives, ScreenSound Australia and the National Sound and Film Archive.

There are other features - take a ride on the lake, visit Namadgi National Park, which covers 40 per cent of the area. There are many
trails to ride a bike on - have a picnic, local swimming pools.
Many dozy country towns and the peaks and rivers of nearby parks.

Being bored is a state of mind. It's up to you to do something about it!

Yeah. Why would teenagers go on a rampage when they could be visiting a war memorial or parliament house? If only they could learn to appreciate art museums and long walks in the park.

Dear Freediver,

The problems lies with the type of upbringing and family orientation they've received. We ensured that our kids were kept busy - through sports (basketball, cricket, tennis, martial arts) youth clubs and organisations (scouts et cetera), as well as family get togethers -
holidays, barbeques, movies, theatre and so on... They didn't have the time to "get bored." They were too busy. They made life-long friends through these activities - and we made sure that they knew we were there for them if they needed us. We were involved in their lives.

If by the time they are teenagers - they don't know how to amuse themselves - then something is very wrong. All I was trying to point out was that Canberra, like any place - has enough on offer - if you bother to look. There are enough sporting clubs and youth organisations around... it doesn't have to be visits to museums, or walks in the park. But the attitude "I need to be entertained because
I'm bored" won't solve their problem.

Join a club or get on a bike ...

They could always start by getting a haircut I suppose.

You seem to be contradicting yourself. You say you structured your children's entertainment for them, but that they should have learnt to entertain themselves? You don't teach a person how to do something for themselves by doing it for them.

Canberra is a very pretty place mostly so. The town center is quite attractive and I like all of the important museums etc.
I gringe when I go out in the burbs though (my sister-in-law has had property there). My heart sees it very similar to Sydneys far west. Houses upon houses and wandering youth.
Actually Canberra has been regarded as a mission area by some christian churches in Sydney, as a place in need. One of my old christian churches in Sydney trained up a young couple on "word" from The Lord to go there specifically to establish a new church and to preach because there was so much youth unrest. I got the impression the burbs were going third world. Ive been watching Canberra with interest since 1995, or so, ever since I heard a prophecy from a group of pentecostal pastors. It was back around about then that a group of pastors and prophets from the Sydney christian churches got a "Word" from The Lord to pray over the city and subsequently they went down to Black Mountain tower and prayed as The Lord had asked. One of the major pastors in the group got a further "Word" saying that if Canberra did not turn back to christian revival that the City would become a "dark place of very high crime and with wild animals in the streets". Ive seen the crime creeping up all these years to current levels. All of these years Ive kept an interest in the city. What was prophesied all of those years ago seems to be happening...as far as the media presents it. Poor suburb design burdening youth with isolation, no christian revival and little prayer could mean a bleak future. Its the same out Mt Druitt way in Sydney.

Dear freediver,

We guided our children - until they learned to do it for themselves...
That's what parents are supposed to do.

And Gibo, I grew up in the western suburbs of Sydney - where there wasn't that much on offer in those days - as far as entertainment was concerned. Yet we never complained of boredom or expected to be entertained...

Different culture, different times, I suppose.

canberra has an atmospheric problem, which drives residents crazy in various ways. it's caused by the effluvium drifting out of parliament when in session, like mustard gas, but more insidious.

the cure is simple. put a new parliament house alone out in the sticks, with a high speed rail link to a pier in wollongong. canberra will become a pleasant innocuous city of artists, and parliamentarians can be kept on a live sheep ship when not 'working'.

Canberra,Australia's sleese capital.
When you first arrive down Northbourne Avenue,the drug industry advisers clean your windscreen.
Then the drunks in the centre of Civic start ranting Hitlers praises and the beggers swarm around you.
Having had a car stolen within days .
Dont sing the prasises of canberra.their start

I don't know what it is with Canberra but it has been going this way for a long time, before 1995. There are people I know who did well in University and decided to move there for fast promotions and higher incomes.

They got snug quickly, and rather smug to me as I didn't get the lucky breaks living where I wanted to live. So for years, they didn't bother to call me, they were living the high life. A few years later, they visited and when they arrived, what a shock!

They were covered in blemishes, their hair was unkempt and they were high and wired. I could barely have a comprehensive concersation with them. Then the powders kept snorting and snorting, the beer gurgling down like there was no tomorrow. Next day, back to work, running the country. When I visited, "the high life", most of the Government employees I met were doing the same thing. The trick was to look coherent at work. Now they pitty themselves because they are addicted, their money just goes into drugs, and they are trapped in Canberra. I live modestly, but I live where I want to live and end up balancing my budget.

Look at the statistics and find a high absentee rate in Canberra. The sickies are really detox days. They must have big suppliers in the big end of town, as from what I see, there are more drugs there than Kings Cross. I live in Kings Cross, so I should know. I don't do drugs but I know when people are off their dials and slipping down the highway to hell.

The one and only time I went to Canberra I had been driving all all night. I found what resembled a mall, and because we were there 'so' early we had to wait for awhile before there was signs of life. OBVIOUSLY this wasn't the main mall (center of the city thing) because there were no homeless, or drunks (friday morn), or tourists venturing out of backpackers hostels and such. Brisbane CBD has all those people 24/7. We waited patiently, and finally at about 0730!! a chick appeared dressed in a cafe uniform of sorts. I asked her where we could go for a feed as this appeared to be a suburban mall and where was the main city mall...

"This is it" she replied. Sure enough, at about 0800, immaculately dressed drones in immaculately cultured haircuts poured into the mall looking like an advert for armani. They sipped their 'boutique' coffee and nibbled on raison toast. When they were finished they all disappeared into the buildings like ants avoiding rain. Fascinating.

saintfletcher
I wonder if thats the reason Defence is so third world?
Theres almost no respect for a growing China and they buy such big items like ships and planes all the time and leave the Defence gun cupboard empty of guns for a citizens home guard defence force.
I wonder if snorting could be a major problem in prime Defence planning and purchase areas?
Chinas going to gobble this country right up one day because of third world attitudes.
Better to let the gun clubbers do a citizens army.

I think freediver had some very good points regarding youth living in the suburbs.. and foxy it's true that we face a different culture and different times.

Young people feel bored and isolated in the suburbs for a number of factors.

1. Streets are no longer safe to play on, in the good old days you could play cricket with neighbourhood kids on the street. Today there are many more cars on the road. It's too risky to play there.

2. Households are larger but with fewer people inside. With fewer people inside that means the average distance travelled to find a house of a friend or peer is further. And with a larger house that means the young people are more likely to spend time inside than outdoors, so kids never see their friends playing outdoors.
3. Kids get so used to having their leisure planned and structured by adults they do not know how to create fun for themselves.
4. Kids cannot get to exciting places due to lack of public transport services. Public transport is often only viable in areas of high density where more people are likely to come aboard and pay a fare at each stop. People are too dispersed in suburbs and it is too expensive to drive around and collect them.
5. Very little is within walking or biking distance. Kids and teens must rely on their parents for lifts to go any place interesting.

I believe boredom leads to deviant behaviour like vandalism, violence and drug abuse. with nothing to do, those kids who do find each other have the best fun by forming a gang and thrilling in destruction, violence and the high of drugs.

The monotony of suburbs creates this problem.. by breaking up the endless lots of houses with more shops and businesses and leisure activities (not just with grassy parks, fields and toddlers playgrounds), kids would be able to find stimulation and meeting places with their peers.

The main selling feature of suburbs to adults, (of quiet spaciousness) is the hell of boredom that their children must endure.