Do ostensible crime experts jeopardize your safety? Urban Myths debunks urban stories and folklore that are harmful to your health.
Law enforcement, media reporters and columnists, crime prevention teachers, and authors frequently repeat these illogical crime prevention ideas without evaluating their logic – or lack thereof.
Though urban myths take a long time to die out, you will know better after looking at them more deeply.
If a claimed “expert” offers even one of the following suggestions, you should seriously question his/her knowledge in general. Be wary of their faulty thinking, despite their good intentions. The path to hell is frequently paved with good intentions.
Top 10 Dumb Crime Safety Tips
1. During a crime, yell “Fire!” to summon help.
NO! Instead, shout out loud, “Help! Police! A newspaper writer created the irrational approach of shrieking “Fire!” in 1963, and it grew into “folk wisdom” that is still taught today by uncritical “experts.” See Kitty Genovese Syndrome and Yelling “Fire!” to learn much more.
2. To get aid, throw a shoe through a window.
DOH! One night, a man attacked a woman on the street, and during the battle, she flung a shoe and destroyed a window in a nearby home. The attacker fled as the homeowner rushed to investigate the crash. Some experts now endorse this ostensibly wise method, despite the fact that it is extremely reliant on luck.
Can you rapidly remove a shoe? Is there a window close by? Is your shoe so weighty that it will break? Can you toss accurately, especially when under attack? Is there anyone at home? This technique is rendered ineffective with only one “No” answer to any of these five questions.
Instead, refer to “Set Your Boundaries” at Facing Danger and dissuade a predator by keeping Pepper Spray and a Personal Security Alarm (noisemaker or screamer) visible.
3. Perform a rapist psychoanalysis during an attack.
Don’t even think about it! Instead of self-defense lessons, an FBI “expert” informed me that all females should take a college-level rape-prevention psychology course so they can try to talk to an attacking rapist to establish which psychological profile he fits into. She could then, presumably, more effectively argue him out of raping her. Sheesh!
First, most victims are raped in their teens, before they have the opportunity to attend college. Second, many women never attend college in the first place. Third, even the most skilled psychiatrist is unlikely to be able to correctly diagnose – and verbally discourage – a rapist during a violent attack. A layperson has much less of a chance.
Sure, attempt to talk your way out of a rape, but instead of psychoanalyzing the perpetrator, master the tactics under Victim’s Options – Outsmarting and Verbal Self Defense (as well as Self Defense Techniques).
4. Stranger kidnappings of children are uncommon.
FALSE! In 2002, a half-dozen high-profile child kidnappings and killings in affluent areas rocked the American public. Law enforcement officials tried to reassure frightened parents that “kidnappings of children by strangers are rare.”
But that is not the case. Among the roughly one million children reported missing in the United States each year, 50-100 murders and 50-100 ransoms or permanent disappearances are quite infrequent (the vast majority are kidnapped by a parent in a custodial dispute, followed by runaways).
Be aware that the 58,000 youngsters abducted by acquaintances or strangers (primarily for short-term sexual exploitation) are far from “unusual.” Add additional 150,000 failed kidnapping attempts by strangers to the FBI’s estimate. That means that almost 200,000 children are targeted each year! This provides parents with 200,000 reasons to stay hypervigilant – not “paranoid,” but constantly prioritizing kid safety over lax parental oversight.
Free-Range Kids vs Myth Busters and “Bottom Line: Safety Tips for Kids” can be found at Child Safety – Outdoors.
5. When you’re home alone, yell out loudly, “Max, hold the dog while I get the door,” before answering the doorbell. A predator is said to flee if he suspects you have both a man and a dog nearby.
Too dangerous! Bluffs are always dangerous, and if they fail, you’re in big trouble. When answering the doorbell, it is best to follow the Home Security – Push-In instructions. After all, a predator with a rifle doesn’t have to worry about a man and a dog because he can simply shoot them. Keep bluffs like Victim’s Options – Outsmarting as last resorts for crisis situations.
Using peepholes before answering doors is a far better solution. A Home Intercom System can be used to supplement them.
6. Walk in the middle of a dangerous neighborhood walkway to make it tougher for someone to grab you from doorways, shrubs, or cars parked at the curb.
DOH! Please, please! The majority of walkways are only approximately five feet wide. Are predators’ arms too short to reach the middle of the sidewalk, or are they unable to take a stride toward you? There’s no reason to clog people’s heads with this nonsense – things that people would do instinctively regardless for whatever marginal benefit it brings.
Set your boundaries as described in “Set Your Boundaries” at Facing Danger, and keep pepper spray and a personal security alarm (noisemaker or screamer) in plain sight.
7. Purchase a purse with steel wire in the shoulder strap so that a purse thief cannot cut it with a knife!
This is as stupid as mud. Do you really want to antagonize a desperate criminal while he’s already hacking away with a knife near you? This nonsense might kill you! Instead, simply hand up your bag and hope he goes, leaving you unharmed.
Better better, keep only non-valuables in your purse, along with a dummy wallet containing expired credit cards and a wad of dollar cash. Keep your real wallet hidden in a money belt or “stash” clothing with hidden pockets. Give a phony wallet packed with little money to a mugger, then flee to safety.
8. Check under your car before getting in. An assailant could be lurking nearby and grabbing you as you enter!
Why? Once upon a time, a tiny mugger crawled beneath a car, waited for the owner to return, sliced her ankle, then crawled out and further wounded her. Hmm… does that sound a little far-fetched? Perhaps it was once a thug’s strategy, but it’s far too time-consuming to be prevalent.
Criminals seek out simple crimes. Crawling on dirty ground beneath a dirty automobile (if he can fit) with a hot exhaust pipe and waiting for you to return so he may attack your ankles is not an easy crime. Crouching down and sneaking through parked cars toward you would be considerably easier – and lot more likely. That is where your focus should be, not bending around to look under your car.
Before you enter the parking lot, have your keys ready in one hand, pepper spray held high and ready in the other, and keep a wary eye on everything around you. Get in your car, promptly lock the doors, and drive away. If your automobile breaks down, do not accept aid from anyone (he may have disabled it), and instead proceed to an active place where you can securely call for assistance. Not seeking for ankle-biting trolls, but for parking lot safety.
9. Before you go, inform your family of your desired path.
Why, so they know where to look for your body if you go missing? It’s a big thing! When a serial predator is on the loose, the police usually give this advise. Wouldn’t it be better to avoid disappearing in the first place? See also Outdoor Safety – Predator Prey.
10. If your child goes missing at a family picnic in a park, go downwind, close your eyes, and sniff the air for the child’s scent!
This is completely ridiculous! This nonsense was put in a book by a crime prevention “expert,” published by some moron, and featured on numerous TV news/talk shows. Let’s join the dots:
a. Does your child have a strong stench, or do you have the nose of a bloodhound?
c. What if there isn’t any wind?
c. Even if there is a breeze, how can you determine where “downwind” is in reference to your missing child if you don’t know where your child is? Hello?
The Wind-Sniffer has an audio theory as well. He tells you to stoop down to the height of your missing child so you can hear each other’s voices. Otherwise, the difference in height makes your calls inaudible. HUH? So, how come I can hear a dog barking in the distance? I’m pretty sure I tower over the dog. Nonetheless, this individual is meant to be a “authority.”
Be wary of any crime prevention advice provided by law enforcement, media reporters and columnists, crime prevention teachers, and authors.
