During tough economic times, the only thing worth investing in is your safety.
Studies have always consistently shown that violent crimes are often associated with socioeconomic status. Most people would say that that is a pretty obvious. Desperation can make people do crazy things to survive. Just take a second and consider (God forbid) what lengths you would go to in order to provide for your family and yourself if you lost everything tomorrow. I know what I would do, and it's not pretty. Poor neighborhoods have higher crime, hungry countries have more conflicts. It all comes from fear. People become afraid for their health and their safety, so they start to take things into their own hands to try to establish order from chaos.
Confront the possibility
In unstable economic times it's important to consider the idea that some people might compromise your sense of safety. I'm not saying everyone has to be as paranoid as I am, but don't be blind to the chance of something happening. A lot of the time, victims are assaulted (or worse) somewhere that they're familiar with. So if you're taking that shortcut home everyday, avoid falling into a false sense of security and stay alert. Just because you park your car in the same spot every day doesn't mean you should stand there fumbling with your keys for a few minutes, oblivious to your surroundings. Have your keys in your hand well before getting to your car or front door. When there are hurricane warnings, people don't hesitate to stock up on emergency supplies, but muggings and violent crimes, much like flash floods, often come with little to no warning. Also the simple act of considering certain scenarios and doing little things to avoid them will give you a some confidence and maybe even a little peace of mind. A 2007 study had declared Vancouver the break-in capital, which leads to the question: what would you do if someone broke into your house? Not a fun thing to think about, but if it leads to one small precautionary action that could save your life, then it's worth it.
You're worth it
My sensei Kevin Secours has a terrific guided meditation (or solo) concept that he calls "Putting the Self in Self-Defense". This is a great reminder that we're worth fighting for. Think of all the things you would do to protect someone you love. You have to feel that way about your own well-being, otherwise you're not really going to be there to help anyone else either. Investing in things like self defense classes and some first aid training will instantly make you feel better. It's taking whatever steps you can to not be a victim. The training instantly makes you more aware, more confident, more capable and, if nothing else, it will identify and replace bad habits (most of the time, depending on the training) with better and safer ones. Through fighting, bouncing and body guarding I've seen a lot of ugly things. The more saw, the more I wanted to invest in myself. It wasn't just for the physical ability, but more for the awareness. The more I experienced, the more I noticed that in a violent crisis you're pretty much almost always caught off-guard. By dedicating some thought and training, avoidance and awareness became my main tools of survival. If you're using some combat techniques, you acted a little too late. If you're applying your first aid to yourself or a loved one, you're in the best-case scenario of acting MUCH too late. The crazier the economy gets, the higher the crime rate. Leading crimes in North America during the recession were Assaults (levels 1 to 3), rape and homicide. Attempted murder was also not far down the list. No matter how crazy the economy is, you're always a safe investment.
Storms will pass
Of course people get a little crazier when the economy crashes and jobs are taken away. Riots, protests, muggings and home invasions are acts of desperate people who are afraid. This can make people do crazy things. We pay attention to crime rates like we do hurricane warnings. The emergency supplies are what training and steps you're prepared to take to feel safe. Like any potential disaster, we educate ourselves on what we need, we prepare and then we happily resume living our lives. Control what you can and accept that you'll react accordingly to the things you can't. I chose to confront the idea of things that scare me and try to figure how much or how little I can do to prepare for these things. By not ignoring our fears, they don't consume us. We respect the possibilities, devote a certain amount of time to them and move on. Stay sharp, stay happy and stay smart. It's better to be prepared for a storm that never comes.
Jordan Bill
Fight or Die
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