Here are some of the big stories in recent days:

In Norfolk, police are trying to crack down on gangs who have been seen carrying knives and who have marred the landscape with graffiti. In Attleborough, police have launched a crackdown on teen drinking.

Kirby must be cracking up, you must be saying. Gangs in leafy, bucolic Norfolk? And teen drinking, you must be saying, has been everywhere, not just in Attleboro, which, by the way, dropped the "ugh" from its name 95 years ago.

Well, those are the big stories in Norfolk and Attleborough - old England, not New England.

In case you don't know, Attleborough is on the east coast of England and was already hundreds of years old in the late 1600s when settlers landed in Massachusetts to found what is now Attleboro and North Attleboro. A 2001 census lists Attleborough with a population of 9,702, less than a quarter of Attleboro's more than 40,000. Attleborough is in the county of Norfolk, which has no less than four daily newspapers. Internet news searches of those papers reveal that Attleborough and Norfolk are, well, dealing with the same type of stuff that we deal with here. For instance, here's an excerpt on Attleborough's teen drinking crackdown:

"Officers have already confiscated a large quantity of alcohol from youngsters in the town and from those drinking in the town's Designated Public Place (DPP) in recent days, and they intend to continue with the zero tolerance campaign.

"Sgt. Jon Papworth, of the local police safer neighbourhood team, said: 'We will be taking action over the Christmas period to reduce anti-social drinking especially within the DPP. Anyone caught drinking within the DPP zone can have their alcohol seized and if they do not comply with an officer's request the individual can also face a fine.

" 'We would like the residents in Attleborough and the surrounding area to go out and enjoy Christmas but drink in a responsible manner and consider others.'

"The DPP is a non-drinking zone which encompasses Attleborough town centre where alcohol cannot be consumed on the streets. If police officers believe someone is consuming alcohol or intends to consume alcohol this will be confiscated."

And gangs are quite a problem in Norfolk, judging by this colorful (or colourful?) account:

"The full extent of Norfolk's gang culture is exposed for the first time today as police revealed an intelligence dossier monitoring the activities of the county's most dangerous youths.

"Chief constable Ian McPherson said the force's comprehensive file would shock any parent. Evidence shows innocent youths are being groomed by more hardened peers - risking injury or even death.

"School children are recruited via social networking websites such as Bebo and Facebook believing it is a way to gain street cred but not realising they could be sucked into a culture of violence.

"The problem is at its worst in Norwich where three rival gangs vie for street supremacy. Each has its own colour-coded uniform, members communicate in distinct languages and there is evidence of weapons, including knives, being carried. "Mr. McPherson pledged his officers will do 'whatever is necessary' to stop the city becoming the next urban crime zone, saying: 'Gang culture is not welcome in Norfolk.' "

Get the impression this is a no-nonsense area? A DPP? No drinking at Christmas?

I'll stick to Attleboro.

MIKE KIRBY is editor of The Sun Chronicle. He can be reached

at 508-236-0344 or at

mkirby@thesunchronicle.com.