# Americans: on a scale of 0 to 12, how much do you worry about becoming a victim of violent crime? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 22, 2014, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268 "2014-09-22T19:59:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2014, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/101 "2014-09-23T23:08:07Z")
Well, it can also be a matter of situation. When I lived in Uganda, we felt reasonably safe while in Kampala, as we had a fenced property and slept in a safe-room. On the couple of trips we made into outlying areas, where road agent bands were known to block a vehicle and extort cash and commodities from passengers at gunpoint, the worry-o-meter was definitely around eight or so. When we traveled to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest to try to trek for gorillas, we were on the Congo border in a camp where some previous trekkers had been murdered and some abducted by Congolese rebels. I’d say the meter was pegged in that situation. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2014, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/102 "2014-09-23T23:20:44Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > Hmm. It claims taking the Subway to work is putting me in mortal danger. I’m not convinced. I wouldn’t be, either. The items they offer their breakfast menu are known for their healthful qualities (as well as for convenience). ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/103 "2014-09-24T03:42:06Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > Even though I rate my worry level at zero, that doesn’t mean I’m not vigilant, I make sure I’m situationally aware at all times, constantly analyzing my environment for possible threats, and ready to respond appropriately > > I keep a bugout bag in the car, and have at least one blade capable of being used defensively (currently a Buck 110) in addition to my normal carry gear > > I also avoid risky areas in the first place, easy as I HATE cities, first rule of avoiding danger? Don’t be there in the first place. > > I normally have on me the following; > Fisher space pen > Case Peanut pocketknife > Victorinox Alox Farmer > Zippo Armor series lighter > A couple pocket flashlights > Buck 110 pocketknife Zero? Dude, you’re an 8. Or, let me put it this way: you think about it and prepare way more than I do, so how could we both be zero? I’m actually pretty damn close to 0. We don’t lock our apartment door, for instance, even when no one is home (we’ve lived in safe buildings), and I usually walk around with over $500, even though I don’t need to. If I’m walking in a sketchy neighborhood \*and \*it’s late \*and \*the streets are deserted \*and \*I’m alone, I’ll keep pretty alert. Otherwise, it’s just not something that ever crosses my mind. New York has changed a lot in the last 20 years; I couldn’t have afforded to be so blasé in a different era. It would also likely be somewhat different if I was not a robust-looking adult male, slightly larger than average. ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/104 "2014-09-24T12:00:21Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > Incidentally, [this](http://www.rateyourrisk.org/#serious_assault_test) is a fun quiz on the subject. I took the test using answers that would reflect a trip to the US and got a +29 which indicated that I am either highly cautious or a poor target. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/105 "2014-09-24T12:30:40Z")
About a 1, I’d say. I know it _could_ possibly happen, but I don’t stress about it. I also live in a very rural area, don’t go to bars or big sports events, and avoid cities because I’m essentially a curmudgeon and antisocial. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/106 "2014-09-24T12:37:49Z")
I took the assault quiz and got a 27 - I’m a poor target because I’m certainly noy highly cautios. The box that popped up had this statement in it though: **Carrying some cash will keep you from getting killed on the street - have $20 - $50 on you in the US** What, someone pulls a gun on me and I hand them $20 not to shoot me? Seems… improbable. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/107 "2014-09-24T13:04:11Z")
> [@saje](#): > > I took the assault quiz and got a 27 - I’m a poor target because I’m certainly noy highly cautios. > > The box that popped up had this statement in it though: > > **Carrying some cash will keep you from getting killed on the street - have $20 - $50 on you in the US** > > What, someone pulls a gun on me and I hand them $20 not to shoot me? Seems… improbable. It has happened to me. I threw the money on the ground and ran the other way while he picked it up. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/108 "2014-09-24T13:08:21Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > 1: Not out of the realm of possibility, but nothing I really think about on a daily basis at all, beyond locking my doors and checking the back seat of my car when I get in at night. This. If I do ever worry about violent crime I’m worried that my wife will be a victim, not me. I probably [should](http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/the-list/os-orlando-dangerous-city-florida-20140916-post.html) worry about it, though. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/109 "2014-09-24T13:14:31Z")
> [@saje](#): > > What, someone pulls a gun on me and I hand them $20 not to shoot me? Seems… improbable. The idea is that you roll it or crumple it up so it’s not immediately clear how much is there, and you throw it as far away as you can. Hopefully the mugger turns and reaches for it, or at least turns away and lowers the gun/knife, and you run like hell in the other direction. I’ve never had to test the theory. I do keep a modest amount (between 10-50) on me, and I stack them in order of denomination. They’re then folded so the ones are on the outside and the twenties on the inside, so if I have to take the bills out in public, it looks like I’ve got a not-worth-it stack of ones, instead of a maybe-worth-it stack of 20s. Also never had to test that theory - or maybe it’s been perfectly effective, as I’ve never been mugged. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/110 "2014-09-24T17:20:36Z")
I said earlier that, in my current Austin TX neighborhood, my concern level is a 1. But if you asked my wife, her score would be a LOT higher- maybe a 5 or 6. She tends to perceive crime as being a lot worse than it is, and she thinks our neighborhood is a lot more dangerous than it is. I know that a 5’1" woman can’t be as blase about crime as her 6’4" husband, but still… she wouldn’t feel safe taking the dog for a walk after dark within a few blocks of our house, while I’d do so without a second’s hesitation. ---
**Author:** ![zoog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7ea924/32.png) [@zoog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoog)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/111 "2014-09-24T17:51:18Z")
On a day to day basis, 0. I do lock my doors, but that’s more as a deterrent against property crime than anything. A couple of years ago I worked in an area that probably had me at around a 3 or 4 but that’s no longer a concern where I work now. Sometimes if I’m on the road my awareness level goes up, but unless I’m somewhere pretty dicey (which almost never happens) it probably never gets much above a 4. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/112 "2014-09-24T18:21:36Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > I’ve never had to test the theory. I was mugged in St. Petersburg (Russia) as a kid. I threw my whole wallet and ran the other way. ---
**Author:** ![Lowdown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Lowdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lowdown)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/113 "2014-09-24T18:57:36Z")
Zero, and even if it happens I like my chances. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/114 "2014-09-25T01:09:52Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I am surprised by the number of people that say they have no personal familiarity with violent crime. I come from a small town with an usually high crime rate. We tend to know everyone from the richest to the most criminally degenerate personally. It would take me a while to count the number of people that I have personally known that have been murdered and I know an almost equal number of people that have done the deed themselves including one of my childhood friends who is doing life in Angola for it. > > Another one of my friends is now in a permanent vegetative state because someone broke into his house and beat almost completely to death but not quite. They broke his skull, back and lots of other things but he is still technically alive and in the hospital permanently until he dies from it but nobody knows how long that will be. I also know three people that have killed their spouses including a recent one that ended in a murder-suicide when the father kidnapped the mother while she was picking up their daughter from day-care. The child was saved but the parents were both found dead on a rural road a few miles away. My first babysitter when I was little, one of the sweetest women that I ever knew, was stabbed to death over a few dollars in the middle of the night when a crackhead broke into her house. > > The most horrifying one that I know of personally sounds like an urban legend but it isn’t. A 12 year old boy went to a slumber party with his friends and started chatting with a ‘girl’ in a nearby city. He was enthusiastic about meeting her so she offered to send a cab to come get him so that they could meet up. I doubt he ever expected the cab to show up but it did and he got in. The cab driver was the ‘girl’ all along and known child predator. He had his way with him, killed him and then dumped his body beside a rural road. > > [http://www.topix.com/forum/nyc/TI44G4I55RQ1S6GP1](http://www.topix.com/forum/nyc/TI44G4I55RQ1S6GP1) > > Again, I worry about other dangers like car accidents much more but I am surprised that most people don’t have at least some direct association with at least one violent crime. Snagnasty, I understand you lived up in N. Louisiana, but even up there your early life has to be unusual. I have lived on the Northshore outside N.O. For 30 years. Certainly there have been crimes in my town, but nothing like what you describe. As you point out things in NO are much better post-Karina. Not only did many bad people head for Houston and not return-in many cases they remained unwilling guests of the state of Texas-but after Katrina the police force was overhauled and for the first time ever actually started to improve. In this suburb of NO it is a bad year when there are 3-4 murders. It may just be that where you lived, you knew everyone and knew all the goings on. Most folks don’t have that level of detailed knowledge-fortunately. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/115 "2014-09-25T03:29:17Z")
> [@rbroome](#): > > Snagnasty, I understand you lived up in N. Louisiana, but even up there your early life has to be unusual. I have lived on the Northshore outside N.O. For 30 years. Certainly there have been crimes in my town, but nothing like what you describe. As you point out things in NO are much better post-Karina. Not only did many bad people head for Houston and not return-in many cases they remained unwilling guests of the state of Texas-but after Katrina the police force was overhauled and for the first time ever actually started to improve. In this suburb of NO it is a bad year when there are 3-4 murders. It may just be that where you lived, you knew everyone and knew all the goings on. Most folks don’t have that level of detailed knowledge-fortunately. That is absolutely true. New Orleans is much safer today than when lived there in the early 1990’s. Katrina dispersed a huge number of criminal types to nearby cities, especially Houston. New Orleans is still one of the best and most fun cities in the world and I would not hesitate to recommend it as a tourist destination to anyone. However, you do have to be careful even today. Crimes of opportunity are still much more common there than they are in most major U.S. cities. Stay on Bourbon Street and you are fine because security is high. However, you still can’t wander the backwaters of the French Quarter alone at 3 am drunk and expect perfect safety. Street smarts and common sense take care of most of the problem but some people still don’t listen and fall prey to it. My tiny hometown (1500 people) and the general area I grew up in was in Northwestern Louisiana. It was like a mutant cross of Mayberry and Twin Peaks. Most of the time, things were fine and idyllic until they weren’t. A few times a year, there would be some horrific crime or accident and the area was so isolated that everyone knew everyone involved. Both of my parents were school teachers. My father and grandmother even taught at the closest reform school where they sent underage felons including murderers. The students were always really good to me when we went swimming together and got to go on field trips to the state fair when I was about 4 years old. I have pictures of it around somewhere. Most of them are dead or doing life in prison today. I would have to ask my parents how many of their former students were murdered, got murdered or were sent to prison for a violent felony. The number has to be in the dozens because I know at least a dozen former friends, coworkers and schoolmates that were either killed or killed someone and that doesn’t even include lesser crimes. They keep rolling in every year. One of my schoolmates just had a Louisiana law passed in her name. She was the one that went to pick her daughter up at day care, got kidnapped by her former spouse and was executed in a murder-suicide less than two hours later. The daughter was protected and unharmed. [Gwen’s Law](http://www.ksla.com/story/25625682/gwens-law-jindal-signs-bill-into-law-named-for-domestic-violence-victim) That said, I never had a violent crime committed against me personally in Louisiana. The only violent crime I have ever had committed against me was two younger black men that attacked me outside of my apartment building in Boston out of nowhere. I won and they went to prison for it but only after attacking several other people within the subsequent hour. They had just gotten out of prison for debilitating a pizza delivery man by luring him into a false address and hitting him over the head with a pipe causing permanent brain damage. I was the only one that would work with the DA to put them away for an additional 3 -5 years maximum security and it worked. They are out now probably about to do the same thing to someone else. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/116 "2014-09-25T14:47:34Z")
Two. Yes, I could be attacked. The one time it happened, my self-defense training came into good play. I ended up on top of my attacker, pounding his face into the sidewalk! ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/117 "2014-09-25T16:58:44Z")
Worry about it? Maybe a 3? I know it can happen to me because its happened to me in the past. So, basically, why worry? I’m armed, trained and generally ready so I’ve done what I can. The rest is up to fate. ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2014, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/118 "2014-09-27T02:07:46Z")
Zero is an impossible state for me in nearly every circumstance. That’s like being in [condition white](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Cooper#Combat_Mindset_and_the_Cooper_Color_Code). The only time I’m that unaware or unprepared is probably in the middle of sex or asleep. **Where I live now:** Japan. About 1–3. Even in Japan I’ve had a few incidents. Being a foreigner tends to make things escalate, similar to problems like “driving while black” in the US. Stuff that would be a mutual apology with another Japanese gets jumped up to attempted shoving and a “fakku yuu” with me. Shitty, but true. I certainly don’t try to start fights, but I’ve still had some very occasional confrontations. I’ve been in close proximity with a few _yakuza_ in my time here. We ping our mutual preparedness radars, so usually I get some kind of acknowledging body language. Believe me, when that happens I spike right up to a 6 or so. I knew intellectually I was never going to be attacked by pros like them, but my lizard brain was like, “Uh, dude, you never know, and those guys are obviously dangerous, so you get a mandatory adrenaline dump. Enjoy.” The [_bôsôzoku_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C5%8Ds%C5%8Dzoku) that used to give me hairy eyeballs when I lived in a smaller city over a decade ago only pinged about a 4. They front like tough guys, but have the body language of high school bullies. Little tactical awareness and predatory focus. **Where I used to live:** San Diego. I was a college student, so between 4–6, depending on where I was or what I was doing. Young people in bars tend to be foci of violence, so usually a good idea to pay more attention than normal. School is also a good place for problems to happen. Ironically, I nearly got into a completely unexpected fight at a pizza parlor with only one other guy in the place, besides his crony behind the counter. He said something insulting about my friend, who had a crippled arm from a motorcycle accident, and then tried to hit me with a chair when I told him to mind his own business and stop trying to bully people who obviously couldn’t even try to fight him. I worked in a shitty part of town, so again, paying attention was a Very Good Idea. **Where I spent my childhood to young adult years:** Stockton. Daily 10 minimum to fucking 12+ depending on where you were. When I lived there, Stockton had a higher per-capita crime rate than Compton. The only crime rate in that notorious gang city that was worse than Stockton was murder, and they were only running about double ours. I lived there from about age 9 to 22, and I learned really fucking quick that city boys have to be way more alert than country boys. The first actual fight I ever saw, beyond the usual push or two and exchange of insults nearly every kid is exposed to, was at my second day at school there when a kid pushed another kid down, sat on his shoulders, and pummeled his face before trying to shove sand down his throat. We occasionally heard gunshots and speeding cars even in my “nice” neighborhood just because Stockton was (and by all accounts still is) such a cesspit that nowhere was free of contagion. When I was in my teens was pretty much the peak of violence in the US. Even in the “white” parts of town there was constant low-level danger. You didn’t go to places like Oakieville (the informal term for poor white trash/tweeker central over by 99) **EVER** unless you were looking for trouble. Cops patrolled the bad neighborhoods in patrol car pairs separated by no more than a few blocks (as related to me by a police officer who trained at my dojo.) There were two drive-by shootings at the mall when I was working there. Our house was broken into twice. I was almost mugged twice. In protecting someone else, I was threatened with a pistol once, and almost stabbed on a different occasion. That doesn’t count at least a dozen random encounters with various scroatbags, gangbangers, and generally fucked up dangerous individuals that never escalated to open or directed violence. So yeah, I never felt relaxed and safe even at home there. I carried a knife everywhere, and would probably have applied for a gun if I could have. My father got a permit to carry because when we briefly owned a laundromat he had to make large cash deposits. As formative experiences go, it could have been worse, I had very little exposure to real violence (i.e. resulting in injury or death) but the environment was such that I’m always aware that other people are potentially dangerous and unpredictable, even in “safe” places. **Where I spent my early childhood:** Foothills of California. Crime was not something I really thought about. I had the usual parental indoctrination of not going anywhere with someone I didn’t know, along with Vietnam vet tinged advice from dad about not being silhouetted in a window and hitting the ground if you hear gunshots, but thoughts about being a victim of crime were virtually absent. Probably about a 1. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2014, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268/119 "2014-09-27T03:42:50Z")
Probably a 3. I don’t exactly _worry_, but it has happened before and I expect it will happen again. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-on-a-scale-of-0-to-12-how-much-do-you-worry-about-becoming-a-victim-of-violent-crime/699268.md?page=5)