Friday, November 13, 2009

Avoiding Untimely Death

Body By Science has provided 12 steps to avoiding dying from unpredictable events which seem random but are actually quite recurrent to the emergency physician who cares for such events. (via the Lone Gunman via Kottke)

They're all worthy of discussion, but I thought these two were of particular interest.

5. If you are walking down a sidewalk and are approaching a group of loud and apparently intoxicated males, cross to the other side of the street immediately. If anyone tries to start a fight with you, the first step should be “choke them with heel dust”.

10. If anyone tries to force you into your car or car trunk at gun point, don’t cooperate. Fight and scream all you can even if you risk getting shot in the parking lot. If you get in the car, you will most likely die (or worse).

What's your opinion? Do some of them seem overly cautious? Is it difficult to reconcile number 5 with number 10?

Please leave a comment.

5 comments:

  1. A couple of these may seem overly cautious while still others like the first one just make sense. Have you ever seen a Tahoe run into a Prius? I have and it wasn't very pretty for the hippy in the Prius.

    I have no trouble reconciling number 5 and 10. In number 5 you are just trying to avoid getting into a bad situation. That group of guys may just be some friends that are out for the night and may just nod as they pass. Or, maybe they feel froggy in a pack and will do something stupid to impress their friends. In number 10, the criminal has already made the victim selection process and statistically, those that get into the car end up with yellow tape around them.

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  2. "5. If you are walking down a sidewalk and are approaching a group of loud and apparently intoxicated males, cross to the other side of the street immediately. If anyone tries to start a fight with you, the first step should be “choke them with heel dust”."

    That should work really well for our friends Kurt Hoffman and MikeW, for more dramatic cases.

    just so simple as my wife or Mother-in-Law, or anybody who's not a trained sprinter.

    Running from an attacker who is faster than you is essentially just turning your back on a known violent treat.

    Good work!

    Can you give this shit up?

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  3. +1 to what Weer'd said. How's Kurt supposed to run? or my dad who has a heart condition, or my 87 year old grandpa?

    Oh, and what happens when you run and they catch up to you? Obviously your 1st (and best) choice is to try and remove yourself from the situation.

    Thankfully I can run just fine, but there are plenty of folks with disabilities who cannot just "run away."

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  4. Oh, MikeW, sorry, I could of sworn you said you condition had you walking with a limp.

    Glad to hear you can be quick.

    I must say I'm in the best shape of my life, and I don't think I could outrun a 17 year old kid who's been running from the cops since he was 9.

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  5. Mike W., I was wondering what Weer'd meant too. I'm glad you can run, but would you? Wouldn't running violate your self image of what it's all about to be a man?

    Do guys who carry guns run from fights? I just can't picture it.

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