Lately, I've been thinking a lot about violence. Almost every day, someone is warning me not to do something because it's unsafe...I could put myself into a bad situation....II could get kidnapped, raped, or murdered. I, personally, have never been a victim in any way.
Here are a few rules that my daddy and male friends have told me:
"Let a security guard escort you to your car at night."
"Walk on the opposite side of the road as a man who is alone."
"Take backroads to get rid of someone."
Are they familiar to you?
You know, I may be completely off-base here, but I know absolutely no one who has been a victim of physical harm (other than school fights). Maybe it's just my living in a small town in Indiana, but I've only known 3 people to die prematurely: 2 in car accidents, 1 had a clot. So I guess I don't understand how these shows, Bones, CSI, NCIS, Monk, even Charmed..Angel...all of these shows where they are constantly investigating someone's death, can seem realistic. Do people actually believe the world is that dangerous?....IS IT?
Currently, I'm watching the Bones Marathon, I absolutely love these shows, but they make me paranoid. Despite my paranoia, I never follow those "rules" people give women to "protect" them. One of the most extensive attempts at protecting of women that I have ever seen comes from a group on Facebook.com. Here is a link to "tips for all women... please join... and pass on" which will probably fail, but it's worth a shot:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=2437497388
I guess I just don't see all of the violence that these sites and shows are trying to portray. What do you see? Do you see that much violence in the world? Are you, if you're a girl, afraid to walk to your car alone at night? Are you afraid to stop and help someone with a flat tire because daddy told you that you could get raped? Do you take the elevator instead of getting your exercise on the stairs, because you feel it's not safe for you to be alone? Are these things that women really have to worry about or are people just exxagerating and feeding off of our fears?
Peace and Love,
Dani
I suppose a lack of preventative measures is what probably puts many women who have experienced such violence at risk - being unaware of these little "tips." Conversely, though, I cannot say that I know personally anyone who has been raped or kidnapped. The idea has always been a proactive approach for me, though, a small-framed girl from a growing suburb of Columbus. You can't just write off the risk completely, because you know that it happens, but the statistics say that (at least) rape is typically by someone the victim knows. I might be an overly-trusting individual (I never take the stereo face out of my car) but I also believe in being prepared.
I realize that this is sort of a wishy-washy response but my advice (if you were looking for it) is this: know how to respond to these "extreme" situations, but also know you're probably never going to need them.