Clintonville vs. Columbus

When I first moved to Columbus in 2002, I didn't really think twice about the fact that I might be walking into a trap. Like so many 20-something artsy-fartsy types before me, I felt at home somewhere I probably shouldn't have. Remember kids: just because you're surrounded by hipsters doesn't mean you're safe. In fact, I've now found that it's usually a good sign you're living in the wrong neighborhood (unless of course you live in Hipster Disneyland).

One way or another, I somehow missed the fact that Columbus is a pretty scary place. That is until my windshield got smashed in (twice), someone got shot at in front of my house, a girl got kidnapped a few doors down, a confused homeless woman broke into my kitchen, and my apartment got robbed (twice - in the same month). I now live in a little neighborhood of Columbus called Clintonville, which is a welcome oasis from the usual armed robbery and aggravated assault. Observe:

Even so, the overall crime rate of Columbus still affords it a covetted spot on the top 10 most fucked-up major cities in the U.S.:

1. Detroit, MI
2. Baltimore, MD
3. Washington, DC
4. Memphis, TN
5. Dallas, TX
6. Philadelphia, PA
7. Columbus, OH
8. Nashville, TN
9. Houston, TX
10. Charlotte, NC

Sweet. Hell, I'm just excited Ohio is in the top 10 for something!

The scary part is, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and even Dayton are technically more dangerous, but since they have less than 500,000 people, they don't make the final cut. Maybe if one of them annexes a suburb or something we can have a few more cities in the top 10 and therefore be more like Tennessee.