Why, is personal or group defense and security often a "responsibility" ignored or neglected?
For anyone reading this, a question worthy of thought! There is no
single answer but more than one may apply. Your defense and security
is your personal responsibility that cannot be delegated to anyone
else. Even the police do not have a legal responsibility for defending
you! Most often they simply cannot be there to do that!
1. EDUCATION - Personal defense and security is something usually
neglected as a formal education experience. Therefore, "effective"
knowledge, preparation and options to confront threat or violence is
inadequate or absent. A little education and training can go a long
way to provide protection and security.
2. PRIORITIES - People are busy with their lives, responsibilities
and priorities, so even if thought about, it is not acted upon.
3. NOT ME - Many people have not (yet) experienced significant
personal threat in their lives, where they live, work and travel.
Therefore, they tend to think they are exempt, or that it will never
happen to them, only to others. Well, unfortunately over 2 million
people every year have been wrong about that! With today's culture,
conditions, National and international circumstances, that will only
become worse it the foreseeable future. That is not a guess, but a
"certainty". Corruption, crime, instability, division, hardship and
mental illness of one type or another produces threat and violence all
around us.
4. THREAT SOURCES - We all know that crime and violence is not only
prominent, but out of control in and around major cities and larger
towns. Ironically, when threat comes to any town or neighborhood,
people always say: "Nothing like this has ever happened before"! But
it did! Factors of life pressures, failure, immaturity, stress, lack
of discipline, bad temperament, alcohol and drug abuse or just mean
people who do not care, are sources of threat. An obvious but often
ignored threat is the prominence of illegal drugs in "EVERY" town in
America. People are selling drugs for money everywhere, supported by
crime cartels, that are literally killing people. What kind of people
are they?
5. ROLL THE DICE - Forty plus years ago, Marine Colonel Jeff Cooper
wrote a classic book on defense stating that, one out of a hundred
people, who cross your path would do you harm for their own reason or
opportunity. That has not changed but has only become much worse. We
are rolling the dice to assume that threat will never come to our feet
or doorstep.
6. VICTIMIZATION - Most people become needless victims of threat or
violence because they are not prepared for it. Additionally, they have
not been prepared to deal with threat nor educated with effective
options to avoid, escape or respond to it.
7. NOT CAPABLE OF DEFENSE - Many people think they are not capable of
defending themselves. That is a great misconception for lack of
knowledge, and a lie! Often a great mistake with unfortunate
consequences. "Anyone" can be trained and prepared with effective
options to significantly impact their own protection and security -
ANYONE!!!