On the 4th of July my nephew went to a party in DC, where he’s working for the summer. He was walking with his girlfriend after the party when someone grabbed her phone and ran off. My nephew chased him, and got into a fight with him when he caught him.
Unfortunately, there were some friends of the robber’s nearby who jumped into the fight. Fortunately, someone driving by called the cops and helped break up the fight. My nephew received a beating that required fairly extensive dental and other medical attention. But he was back at work after a couple of weeks and back to his normal good-humored self. Two ideas came to mind after I heard about what happened.
One is the irony of how dangerous life in the US can be sometimes. The trumpeting by the US media about violence in Mexico seems to take some of the focus away from the potential for violence that’s in the States. While generally safe, the US can be like Mexico if you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The other thing I’m reminded of is the importance of letting go of a cell phone or wallet if you’re robbed, things aren’t worth your health. Here’re a few more possibly useful tips. Obscurity is your best security; try not to stand out. Pay attention and listen to your intuition; if a situation feels wrong it could be, our unconscious awareness has been around for millennia protecting us from predators. If confronted, always run away, you can never know who or how many you’re up against. But if it comes down to a confrontation you can’t avoid, you need to attack the attacker as violently as you can and run off. Stun and run.