Survival Options
Recap

Your survival options in an attempted kidnapping are two basic choices – with no guarantee either way: Risk escalating the violence right away by fighting or fleeing and get better odds, versus cooperating with a (deceitful) kidnapper and worse odds. Trust your Intuition to guide you.

Although life-and-death crises allow no guarantees, possibly the best response to a hostage crime – following your intuition – is to refuse to be bound, and instead surprise him with a sudden, furious attack. The sooner you act the better. If one of you does act, the others had better immediately join in, or create chaos – such as fleeing while yelling, “I’m getting our neighbor the cop." Destroy his control and spur him to flee!

The panic-button/siren – described in Simple Home Electronics – and/or the Safe Room would be absolutely ideal in this survival situation. Any victim pressing a nearby panic-button and setting off a loud alarm and strobe light – and/or escaping to a Safe Room to call police on a cell-phone – would destroy the criminal’s secrecy.

A weapon was present in 26 percent of violent crimes: 55 percent of all robberies, and 7 percent of all rapes/sexual assaults – according to the U.S. Department of Justice report, “Trends in Violent Victimizations 1973-2001.”

If the assailant is armed and you’re in an isolated area, you may try to Flee, Outsmart him, Surrender, or use Fighting Strategies.

Whether a worst-case survival scenario is a shooting rampage, hostage-taking, abduction, multiple attackers, or facing a weapon, the key to your survival is to snap out of fear paralysis and act as soon as possible, biding your time only if you absolutely must. A worst-case scenario isn’t hopeless unless you give up hope. Many victims escape as long as they never give up. See Courage.

S.A.F.E. is being:
Skeptical of anyone trying to get near you or trying to isolate you,
Aware of danger zones and escape strategies,
Flexible: being tricky, changing strategies as needed – and if worse comes to worst:
Exploding like a mad dog to fight for your life. Stun & run. See Fighting Options.

Recommended reading (sources that influenced these pages):
• The Anatomy of Motive: The FBI's Legendary Mindhunter Explores the Key to Understanding and Catching Violent Criminals by John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker. Scribner 1999.
• The Evil That Men Do: FBI Profiler Roy Hazelwood's Journey into the Minds of Sexual Predators by Stephen G. Michaud. St. Martins Press 1999.
• The 48 Laws of Power by Joost Elffers and Robert Greene. Viking Press 1998.
• How to Protect Yourself from Crime by Ira A. Lipman. Reader’s Digest Association 1997.
• On Killing by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. Back Bay Books 1995.
• Malicious Intent by Sean Mactire. Writer’s Digest Books 1995.
• Overkill: Mass Murder and Serial Killing Exposed by James Alan Fox and Jack Levin. Dell 1996.
• Protecting Your Life, Home, and Property by Captain Robert L. Snow. Plenum Press 1995.
• Strong on Defense by Sanford Strong. Pocket Books 1996.
• Tough Target by J.J. Bittenbinder. Running Press 1997.
• What Cops Know by Connie Fletcher. Simon & Schuster Pocket Books 1990.

See all worst-case scenarios:
• Survival Options - Overview of the do-or-die realities of worst-case crises.
• Shooting Rampage: seven options for surviving.
• Hostage Taking: the slightest edge makes all the difference in survival.
• Hostage Escape: optimizing hostage survival options and escape.
• Kidnapping avoidance and prevention.
• Kidnap Escape: optimizing kidnap survival options and escape.
• SOS Distress Signals for summoning help in all situations.
• Surviving the Worst: options for the worst of the worst-case scenarios.
• Recap of Survival Options (YOU’RE NOW ON THIS PAGE).
• Pepper Spray & Devices.

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