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Website design By BotEap.comBeware: myths and nonsense
Website design By BotEap.comKitty Genovese syndrome and yelling “Fire!”
Website design By BotEap.comUnmasking a flawed criminal escape plan
Website design By BotEap.comWinston Moseley attacked and stabbed Kitty Genovese, 24, at 3 am on the street near her Kew Gardens home in Queens NY on March 11, 1964. Her screams caused a neighbor to yell, prompting Moseley He fled, but soon returned to rape the helpless and bleeding woman and stab her to death. His subsequent screams during the 30-minute test fell on the deaf ears of 38 of his neighbors. Other than the neighbor who had yelled only once, none of them raised a finger to help her or even call the police.
Website design By BotEap.comA furor in the national media was sparked by the astonishing apathy of the neighbors, but they refused to explain their disconcerting behavior.
Website design By BotEap.comEmerging from this swamp, some commentator devised a plan to counter such apathy in the future: all outdoor crime victims should scream, “Fire!” instead of “Help! Police!” Supposedly, listless neighbors would fear that a fire would spread to their homes and would call the Fire Department, and then fire trucks would drive away the attacker.
Website design By BotEap.comNOT TESTED
Website design By BotEap.comAlthough the viability was never tested, and despite the rarity Out of such apathy, this silly notion somehow became “popular wisdom” still taught by many so-called crime experts today. This supposed emergency maneuver has escaped any serious scrutiny for its logic, or lack thereof, for 44 years. Up to now.
Website design By BotEap.comNot surprisingly, even yelling “Fire” has been reported to be successful from time to time. Not because it’s a smart strategy, but because any help he summoned would have been met with some plea – regardless of wording. Most of the passersby are not listless and will at least start yelling, turning on the porch lights, honking cars, etc., and of course calling the policeman. Predators almost always prefer secrecy, so some the attention of passersby tends to scare them away.
Website design By BotEap.comBesides that, most of the houses are not built closely side by side, so not vulnerable to a spreading fire. So most of the time, he yells “Fire!” it does not make any sense.
Website design By BotEap.comFinally, bluffing is always risky in some situation, but trying to trick viewers into saving his life is beyond foolish. Trying to manipulate them with a dummy fire when you really want to be rescued from a crime adds dangerous confusion to a crisis. Bystanders have often reported that when they cannot see a fire anywhere, they assume the woman is screaming “Fire!” she is joking or fighting drunk with her “boyfriend”, and after all, they ignore her.
Website design By BotEap.comWhy risk confusing your potential rescuers when you are in deep trouble? A life-threatening emergency is not Time to bet on some silly trick. Instead, you simply need to pinpoint your plight by shouting “Help! Police!”
Website design By BotEap.comLOOKING CLOSER AT THE “GENOVE SYNDROME”
Website design By BotEap.comAlone, a single bystander may or may not step in to rescue a stranger, depending on many factors, such as the degree of risk involved, individual capacity, etc. objective the majority people will at least call the police.
Website design By BotEap.comWith multiple viewers, additional factors come into play, such as how well they know each other and how embarrassed they would feel if they didn’t act, at least by calling the police and / or creating a scandal (perhaps from a safe distance). to deter the criminal.
Website design By BotEap.comFurthermore, in “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference,” Malcolm Gladwell wrote that psychologists Bibb Latane of Columbia and John Darley of NYU studied bystander apathy in the Genovese case (also known as the “Genovese Syndrome “) and found that what most affected” helping behavior “was the number of people who witnessed an event.
Website design By BotEap.comThe larger the group, the more the responsibility of each person spreads. Everyone thinks that the others will help, or if no one is helping, there is really no problem. They are not soulless or indifferent, they just feel less responsible to act. Ironically, Latane and Darley say, if Kitty Genovese had been attacked with a single bystander nearby, she might as well have been rescued.
Website design By BotEap.comCONNECT NOW WHAT TO THIS
Website design By BotEap.comYears later, an investigation found the ultimate reason for the neighbors’ shameful apathy: Genovese had a reputation for promiscuity in the neighborhood. In 2004, on the 40th anniversary of Genovese’s death, Dr. Tina Trent wrote in the Atlanta Journal Constitution: “Although the ’38 Witnesses’ were at home, not in a courtroom, they tried the victim, not her attacker, and sentenced her to death. “
Website design By BotEap.comSo while the justification for the Yell “Fire!” The advice was silly from the beginning, we can add the spreading of the psychological group and moralistic moral disdain to bury that nonsense forever.
Website design By BotEap.comLEARNED LESSONS
Website design By BotEap.comDo not call the dog hunter to put out a fire, do not call an ambulance to tow your car, and do not yell “Fire!” when they attack you. Instead, scream “Help! Police!”
Website design By BotEap.com[However, sounding a false fire alarm to deter a criminal might be effective in certain instances – such as being chased through a hotel hallway. Yell “Help! Police!” while pounding on suite doors as you pass, and pull a fire alarm lever – make as much noise as possible. Then hope people don’t treat you like Kitty Genovese.]
Website design By BotEap.comRESCUE YOURSELF
Website design By BotEap.comUltimately, though, your first line of defense shouldn’t be the wildly unpredictable availability of helpful passersby, police, or firefighters to rescue you. You must rescue yourself! Because when seconds count – the cops are minutes outside!
Website design By BotEap.comNow, if Kitty Genovese had the chance to read the tips you’re about to learn, she might as well have escaped virtually unscathed. But unfortunately, Crime-Safety-Security.com didn’t exist back then. Modern “ratchets” didn’t exist yet either (although old-fashioned whistles are quite effective, if they are attached by a fairly weak beaded metal chain rather than a cord that can be used to strangle), nor was spray. pepper back then. Today, however, you has the following strategy, and modern tools, to escape Kitty’s fate.
Website design By BotEap.comSET YOUR LIMITS
Website design By BotEap.comNever turn your back on anyone you don’t trust. what invites an attack that you won’t see coming. If he starts to approach you, take an aggressive stance, put one hand in your pocket like you have a gun at the ready, raise the other hand in a “STOP!” gesture, and fiercely order him to “STAY AWAY FROM MY!” (Add dirty curses and as much threat as possible.)
Website design By BotEap.comBetter yet, also hold the pepper spray and a noisemaker in plain sight and voila. Its visible presence alone may well deter an attack.
Website design By BotEap.comIf it keeps moving towards you … that is your early warning sign that it’s probably a predator, so you can run away and / or activate your rattle and use your pepper spray.
Website design By BotEap.com“Fight or fly” they are the two best known options. Martial arts theory generally adds Surrender To the mix. I added two more options: outwit Y position, and he aligned them all with the FBI guidelines (and cleared up the FBI’s clumsy terminology).
Website design By BotEap.comA VICTIM’S FIVE CHOICES: (See Resource Box for more details):
Website design By BotEap.com1. Position: present as a difficult target (predators prefer easy prey). If that doesn’t work:
Website design By BotEap.comtwo. Running away the most obvious choice, it may not be possible. But:
Website design By BotEap.com3. Be smarter: verbally defusing a confrontation and maneuvering to escape. If that doesn’t work:
Website design By BotEap.comFour. Give up and hoping for the best; or preferably as a prelude to a fugue, perhaps with the help of:
Website design By BotEap.com5. Struggle like a mad dog to allow him to escape. Stun and run.
Website design By BotEap.comIt is impossible to fully anticipate the panic chaos of a sudden threat that forces you to make life and death decisions in a split second. However, understanding your options now will help your intuition to choose an option soon.
Website design By BotEap.comIMPROVING YOUR OPTIONS
Website design By BotEap.comPepper spray and a visibly clever noisemaker will greatly improve your first choice – Postulate yourself as a tough target – and probably deter a predator right away. Your fifth option, fighting, has also been improved.
Website design By BotEap.comHowever, in the end, Kitty Genovese’s tragic fate helped lead you to a greater understanding of the dynamics and options within an all too common nightmare: a lonely woman versus a monster. Now you know how to rescue yourself.
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