Politics and Personal Safety
The 2024 race for the White House has been nothing short of bizarre. A dreaded 2020 rematch, a fumbled debate, an attempted assassination, and a last minute substitution. As of today, the election in November will be Donald Trump vs. Kamala Harris, and the nation could not be more divided. No matter where you get your news, one candidate is touted as the savior and the other as the destroyer of the nation. One candidate says crime is on the decrease, the other says crime is getting worse. They both vow to do something about it, but can they? Neither one of the candidates is going to be there to prevent you from an armed robbery, a car jacking or home invasion. If you are able to call 911 before you are injured or killed, the police will arrive just in time to take a statement or outline your body with chalk. The truth is you are ON YOUR OWN, and crime is still a huge issue.
Statistically violent crime is still be below the all time high of the 1990’s, and during the years immediately following the pandemic, but crime is much worse than current numbers show. This is because some cities are opting to not send crime stats to the FBI. So while city leaders and news outlets try to paint a rosier picture, citizens know the reality. Sure you may hear of high crime numbers in Chicago, but did you know that Jackson, MS has the highest murder rate in the country?
Today’s violent criminals live in a different world, they have a different set of morals and beliefs, and this is hard for average law abiding citizen to grasp. Recently I came across the documentary called “Welcome To The Most Dangerous City In Mississippi, America” It is an eye opening look at the issues facing our society. If you come face to face with a harden violent criminal, the most dangerous thing you can do is project your ideals and beliefs onto them and assume you know how they will react. They don’t think like you, they don’t act like you and they don’t share your same respect for life. Unfortunately, the results of the November election will have little to no impact on your personal safety. The issues facing the communities are deep seated economical, social and culture issues that will take decades or generations to reverse. In the meantime, your safest option is to try and avoid putting yourself in a dangerous situation. You should avoid confronting criminals over property crime, or getting involved in third party disputes if you don’t know all the details. I encourage you to seek the training necessary to be physically and mentally prepared to confront violence if necessary.
