Octavia E. Butler - Earthseed, Book 1 -… [429]

Now we have a regular neighborhood watch—a roster of people from every household who are over eighteen, good with guns—their own and others—and considered responsible by my father and by the people who have already been patrolling the neighborhood. Since none of the watchers have ever been cops or security guards, they’ll go on working in pairs, watching out for each other as well as for the neighborhood. — , Octavia E. Butler - Earthseed, Book 1 -…, 429

Note

The em-dash aside “their own and others” quietly does the work of an entire clause about what these people own and why it matters; the sentence then pivots on “Since none of the watchers have ever been cops or security guards” to justify the buddy system as mutual protection rather than strategy. Lauren’s flat civic register — roster, pairs, once a week — makes the militarization of a cul-de-sac read as bureaucracy, which is the horror.