Don't give them what they want.

Chris over at AnarchAngel has a great post entitled Don't give them what they want that is required reading for anyone who mentally prepares themselves for violent or dangerous situations.

The title is a play on the solution offered by those who would take away your equalizer for when you are confronted with a violent criminal. When confronted by a violent criminal, simply give them what they want. Sadly, this has become the mantra of those who would deny you your right to protect yourself, and those who enforce the laws that might keep you from protecting yourself.

What they don't tell you, is that this course of (in)action can (and in the case of violent criminals, likely will) get you killed.

While some think any threat of violence should be met with a volley of gunfire, I'm not of that opinion. If I were in a situation where I was armed and my life was being threatened by someone, and knew everything about a situation, I might be inclined to shoot first. But since I can't imagine any situation where I might know everything about everything, and be positive of the outcome of a possible action, I'll be happy to comply with a non-violent criminal who is not an (actual) immediate threat to myself, my loved ones, or those around me.

I have no desire to shoot anyone.

I don't want to have to put myself through the physical, mental, emotional, financial, and moral stress of doing so. I'd much rather have to call the bank, and the credit card company and inform them that my cards have been stolen.

This does, however, put me in the awkward position of correctly reading a situation, and the intent of the confronting criminal. In Chris' post, I find 7 warning signs that the criminal you're dealing with is someone who's likely to do more than take your wallet and run. The warning signs indicate the criminal is likely to do great bodily harm to you or those around you.

It's difficult for most people to deal with dangerous situations because most haven't thought about having to deal with them. Most default to fear and compliance as in nature the very basic law exists that if something is stronger than you, you don't challenge it. Coupled with the constant social barrage of falsehoods like "If you give them what they want, they'll leave you alone" it's easy to convince yourself that you're better off just hiding under your desk, or playing dead and praying that Cho doesn't notice that you're not lying in a pool of your own blood.

I'm not asking that you reconfigure your life, and change the way you think (yet) because these things have to happen in small steps, and the step of becoming responsible for the safety of yourself and your loved ones is not an easy one to take.

I only ask that you remember these 7 warning signs, and if you ever see them, have no illusions about your safety.