Definitions of Success

[Excaliber]

"Excaliber" wrote:

I'm not suggesting that everything has to be learned through personal experience - that's certainly not true.

No, I knew you weren't....I was just taking the opportunity to make a point.

You're certainly right that there's plenty of information about the true nature of criminals and the viciousness they're capable of available for anyone who bothers to so much as read the papers.

Yup.

My point is that many people who have never come across a cold blooded psychopath cannot get their heads around the fact that these people exist and that they may very well encounter one in a life and death situation some day, regardless of how many crime blotter reports they read.

Its an amazing thing, but true!

It doesn't make logical sense to be that naive - but it does make emotional sense, which tends to overwhelm logic, and I've seen the phenomenon many times.

Exactly! "If I refuse to accept the facts...then I don't have to deal with them (emotionally)"

Another form of intellectual dishonesty IMO.

It is indeed a form of intellectual dishonesty and escapism - adjusting one's understanding of fact to accommodate one's feelings.

Like most infantile thinking, it only seems to work until its apparent success is demolished by an encounter with reality.

[chasfm11]

I believe that the "failure to acknowledge" problem goes beyond just violence. I worked around burglar alarm installation for a time and the statistic was that 90% of the people who installed alarms did so AFTER they had experienced a burglary. When I put system in, everyone asked when our break-in had occurred and when I said never, they all questioned why I was doing it. Many could not get past the logic of having have one's home violated and property taken before acting to try to prevent it. Alarm systems are thankfully used more today but it is amazing how many people have them and don't set them. Of course, the alarm industry has done a lot to help spread the myths that the sound a a wailing siren with drive off BGs. In truth, most systems have entry delays and a true smash and grab burglar can be in, grab readily available items and be out before the alarm sounds - if it ever does.

I taught in a Friend's School (Quaker) outside of Philadelphia. Those in that part of the faith are truly pacifists and most would react in much the same way that the victim did in the video. For others, many churches teach that the translation of the word in the 10 commandments is "kill" and not "murder" which is more accurate. Many feel hampered from responding to violent situations as a result.

Religious backgrounds aside, there is a segment of our US society that follows the UK approach that one should never resist evil. It appears that this is more about controlling the population than having any direct bearing on resisting crime. I'm always amazed at the UK court cases where those who do resist are punished while the BGs are relased to do more damage.

So, when you combine those driven by religion, those who have been indoctrinated by the control freaks and those who are in condition white about just about everything, horrific situations like this one don't come as that much of a surprise. It is truly unfortunate when that thinking meets up with the evil in the world that does exist. As one who has personally been struck by lightning, I've learned that the unexpected can happen.

[texanron]

Like most infantile thinking, it only seems to work until its apparent success is demolished by an encounter with reality.

That is a great statement!