Like, I don’t really enjoy airing all of my dirty laundry on here, but when I heard the idling diesel of a pickup parked against me at 9 p.m. for 10 minutes, I sort of knew what was coming.

It’s an industrial zone, so tractors at that hour are unremarkable. Pickups, on the other hand …

They finally headed north and clearly made a U-turn, because next thing I knew, I was hit. Now, you don’t want to confront people in Texas. If they’re willing to drive into you, guessing at their armaments is folly.

Something needs to be accelerated here. I’ve now been attacked. I didn’t have that on my bingo card for the week, but that’s pretty much everything. Musk killing the administrative state sucks, but this is not currently my main concern.

  • Zoop@beehaw.org
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    24 hours ago

    I am so sorry. You deserve so much fucking better, dammit!! Fuck that jackass. I hope they get what they deserve somehow. I hope you do, too. 🫂💖

    • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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      1 day ago

      I could see that being annoying. The lock on my van broke several months ago, so I don’t really like to leave it, since I can only lock the deadbolt from the inside. I can lock the door in the bulkhead, but everything next to that is built such that someone could easily get into the cargo area with a screwdriver. The illusion of safety.

  • cabbage@piefed.social
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    2 days ago

    I’m sorry you experienced this, OP. As a European who has never been to the States it’s hard to imagine just how fast the US is going down the drain. It seems to me it is accelerating, bit entirely on the wrong direftion.

    What are your options for leaving Texas? And would it realistically be better elsewhere?

    • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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      2 days ago

      I mean, I’m a Swiss citizen, but my Pass is expired, and getting to Atlanta when I just lost my job covering federal grants for green energy for obvious reasons is … let’s just say this is a Schweinerei.

      • jarfil@beehaw.org
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        1 day ago

        If you have your biometric data registered, chances are you might still have access to Swiss consular services. May want to contact them and at least stay updated, before someone decides to, for example, preemptively deport you to El Salvador. Stay safe.

        • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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          1 day ago

          Sadly, I don’t. Pass expired before biometrics became part of the process, necessitating the trip to Atlanta to get that squared away. That’s the only consulate that allows you to register that information in the states.

          My U.S. passport is also expired, since I’ve not made enough money to take a vacation, let alone an international one, since 2007. I’m not too worried about deportation, as I’ve got the rest of my papers in order given what we’re facing. Police have tolerated me thus far in my spot, but I can’t rely on that being a constant.

  • melp@beehaw.org
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    2 days ago

    As someone who grew up in Missouri and has had countless guns pulled on me for defending my property, I guess I would have still gotten out and dealt with the situation there. No sense in being scared and abused. At least that’s kind of how I feel about life on this planet. Maybe just get out of Texas? Or get a gun. I don’t really have any helpful suggestions I guess. I am sorry that you had to deal with that though. That’s fucked up.

  • viking@infosec.pub
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    2 days ago

    I don’t get it, how can someone drive into your home without breaking their car? And even if you’re non-confrontational, did you get the plate and call the cops?

      • viking@infosec.pub
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        2 days ago

        Ah, that’s kind of important info that should probably be in the post.

        So that means someone deliberately crashed into your van? Should be straightforward to investigate, plenty of cameras in industrial areas, plus paint residue on your van as evidence and such.

        What did the cops say?

        • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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          2 days ago

          The state of my living situation is somewhat widely known, so I didn’t care to be redundant.

          Cops have been useless for property crime in Austin for several years. There was no point in calling.

          I also wasn’t getting out of the van while they were still around. What good is getting a license plate if it comes with a bullet? This is Texas, and they were already happy to risk damage to their vehicle by ramming into a stationary Class 5 commercial vehicle.

          • subignition@fedia.io
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            2 days ago

            If you were in the vehicle it’s not just property crime mate. I wish you had hung them out to dry for hit and run.

            • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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              2 days ago

              Oh, I was absolutely in the vehicle. I just didn’t want to die by doing anything about it. This is the state of Austin policing: No chance of justice, and you really don’t want to roll the dice with whoever has already chosen to attack you.

              • stinky@redlemmy.com
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                2 days ago

                Please consider calling the cops. If they ask why it took you so long, tell them it was because you were afraid that the attackers would retaliate.

                You’re looking to get CCTV or other camera footage of the incident. It’s possible someone else reported it. If you can get proof, you may be able to get restitution.

              • subignition@fedia.io
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                2 days ago

                It’s just a suggestion, but I would still report it after the fact and see if there were any traffic cameras or nearby businesses that might have caught it on CCTV.

  • Gloomy
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    2 days ago

    Sry this happend to you. How bad is the damage to your car?

      • Gloomy
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        2 days ago

        Be thankful for small favours, I guess. Still sucks that this happened, but at least the car and you are OK.

    • apotheotic (she/her)@beehaw.org
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      2 days ago

      I believe OP is homeless for quite some time now, so I’m inclined to assume that they are perhaps living in their car or something of the like. Which makes this pretty cut and dry - the pickup 100% did it on purpose and its baffling and disgusting.

      Edit: I should refresh the page before replying, OP already elaborated whoops

    • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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      2 days ago

      I have no fucking clue what this was all about. I was sitting in my van when I was suddenly hit. I wasn’t going to find out if asking would get me shot.

  • RobotToaster
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    2 days ago

    Are you okay? How bad is the damage? Are the police doing anything?

    If you’ve pissed someone off that much all I can suggest is bollards and/or a ditch around your property. You shouldn’t need fortifications like that but it seems you do.

    • Pete Hahnloser@beehaw.orgOP
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      2 days ago

      I own no property. They drove into my van roadside. And the road has extensive shoulders, so it’s about as good as I can get. I mean, being able to afford housing would have prevented this, but …