Does possible terrorism or violence these days (shopping, public events, concerts, theaters, et al) inhibit you?

[UsAll]

QUESTION: Does the real possibility of terrorism or violence occurring in public spaces and places these days (e.g., whether at shopping malls, public events or celebrations, concerts, movie or performing arts theatres, certain stores or other retail venues, et al) inhibit you from going to such venues or pubic events (out of fear of becoming a living victim or a dead statistic)?

This can include:

1. all the Islamic-originated terroristic acts (whether carried out by groups sympathetic to or operating on behalf of ISIS/ISIL/Daesh or Al Qaeda or whether carried out by lone-wolf attackers: e.g.,the San Bernardino, CA, USA terror attacks at an office party in December 2015; the Paris, France terror attacks at public concerts and other venues in December 2015; and a host of others in the USA and outside the USA)
2. any other types of political/nationality/ethnic or religious extremist elements (beyond Islamic jihadists) perpetuating violence
3. crazed or deranged indivduals carrying out mass violence attacks such as those carried out by Adam Lanza (Newton, Connecticut, USA school shootings) or James Holmes (Aurora, Colorado, USA movie theatre shootings) or Sylvia Seegrist (Springfield, Pennsylvania mall shootings) and a whole host of OTHER attacks on so-called "soft targets" by crazy or deranged individuals over the years in public venues in the USA and outside the USA
4. mobs of unruly teens or youths carrying out mayhem and violence at shopping malls (such as just yesterday [December 26, 2015], where an estimated 2000 teens in Louisville, Kentucky USA carried out mayhem, violence and intimidation throughout a large shopping mall) or at eating venues (such as a number of months ago, with a McDonalds restaurant in Brooklyn, NY, USA having a large mob of mostly-female teens fighting it out with one another and attacking others there).

In summary, has your awareness of all these particular types of venues (i.e., select malls and/or shopping centers; public events like the Boston Marathon or Independence Day [USA] public celebrations or New Year's Eve public celebration and the like; outdoor or indoor concerts, festivals, or theatre performances) that are seemingly targeted by either organized or lone wolf political or religious terroristic elements or else by crazed or deranged armed individuals had the effect of inhibiting you from patronizing such venues or events? For instance, in the USA-based major metro area that I live in, I've been inclined lately to want to go to a Microsoft Store for weeks now and yet the store is located at a major high-end indoor shopping mall and on ground level and is wide-open (i.e., not a multi-roomed or multi-level store but just a small-ish modest-sized single-room store on ground level). And my intuition (whereby I try to think like a terrorist would) suggests to me that this type of mall would be just the kid of "soft target" that terroristic elements (particularly the Islamic jihadist elements such as the San Bernardino, CA, USA attackers in December 2015) would be inclined to attack . . . as it is a so-called "soft target" and is also representative of American wealth and prosperity. And it has inhibited me from going there. Although, in contrast, I went to a local four- or five-floor Apple Store to go to the 3rd Floor Support area and deemed that it was less likely for terrorist attackers to come in, go up multple floors, carry out an attack, and then go slowly down multiple floors to make it out the front entrance to escape. Look at the things we have to realistically think about these days (!!!): trying to plan our lives around avoiding or greatly minimizing our patronizing or visiting what are called "soft targets" so that we don't become a possible victim!!



So how about YOU? That is, have such thoughts or concerns to protect yourself affected your own partronizing or visiting of such public venues (most particularly shopping malls and perhaps some select shopping venues outside of malls) out of concern for your personal safety and your life? I mean, we can't avoid eating out altogether or going to a school or university (if we attend one) or going to a hospital or food shopping at a supermarket and other such necessities . . . but what about such concerns having affected you going to select shopping malls and other select shopping locations and venues? or to public concerts? or to public celebratory events or fairs and the like? Be honest now and speak honestly and plainly (and aim to refrain from uncalled-for sarcasm and belittlement in any verbiage you choose to submit, for I have never been known to be a person who is consumed with irrational fears and imaginary threats but am rather a normal, well-functioning and level-headed male).

[maf763]

No.

[xray731]

I've for the most part stopped shopping at a particular mall after a rash of teenage fights and problems occurred there. The couple of times I've gone there in the past year - I make sure that I go during school hours and leave before school let's out.

I don't think I'd be comfortable going to NY City for New Years Eve or Washington DC right now with all that's going on - but that's just me.

[UsAll]

Originally Posted by xray731

I've for the most part stopped shopping at a particular mall after a rash of teenage fights and problems occurred there. The couple of times I've gone there in the past year - I make sure that I go during school hours and leave before school let's out.

I don't think I'd be comfortable going to NY City for New Years Eve or Washington DC right now with all that's going on - but that's just me.

And yet how can it reasonably be taken care of these days (i.e., to make the population-at-large feel reasonably secure from acts of violence or terrorism)? Just thoughts put out here by myself (however viable or less-than-viable and however desirable or less-than-desirable and however sane or less-than-sane):

1. Need we become a virtual police state (with a massive police and military presence ever-present and ever-prevalent through society-at-large . . . though that much more concentrated throughout major population centers)?
2. Shall we have ever-pervasive live video and audio monitoring and surveillance of public places and spaces (much more than we have now and much more pervasive) to keep an ever-watchful eye and ear?
3. Shall we allow the NSA and the rest of the intelligence community to have ALL the surveillance approaches at their avail (i.e., full monitoring of our voice, email, and text communications, backdoors into our encryption methods so that the terroristic and criminal elements can’t hide and secretely plot amongst us, et al)? Not an ideallly desired state of affairs but, sometimes, radical situations call for radical approaches.
4. Shall there be body scanners prevalent for ALL persons entering indoor or outdoor enclosed events (e.g., concerts, performances, festivals, et al), malls and shopping centers, large retail outlets like large variety and department store chains, and so on? And, if need be per-instance, to carry out body searches (even full body searches)?
5. Should there be much more prevalent "stop-and-frisk" of suspicious individuals or groups of individuals (like was prevalent in New York City, for instance, during the Giuliani and Bloomberg years)?
6. Should there be a "zero tolerance" policy toward committers of violence and mayhem (including teenagers and youths) with very harsh sentences . . . like ruling the land with an iron fist? Like Singapore is and has been with criminal offenders, vandals, et al (for example)? So therefore we "make an example" of them for all of them and others of like mindset to behold and hopefully have it shape their thinking?
7. Many persons and parties propose strict gun controls (i.e., as to whom guns are made available to and through what channels they are made available through). Is that a real lasting solution? That is a debatable issue with pros and cons on both sides of the debate (for it shold be recognized that, if criminally-minded persons want to get firearms or other weapons, they don’t care at all what the law says about it and will find a way to get them . . . whether traveling elsewhere to get them or having others get them for them or by stealing them or by concocting their own firearms using 3D printers and so on). Maybe it is just as much a viable approach to have much of the sane and law-abiding population to be allowed to be armed (like varied U.S. states and metro areas which presently and historically allow concealed carrying of handguns within their jurisdictions) so that the criminal elements are inhibited and very much outnumbered/out-armed. For the police can't be everywhere and at all times to protect the populace in all situations. This idea, too, is a debatable issue with pros and cons on both sides of the debate.
8. Must we do something(s) analogous to the radical ideas that Donald Trump has proposed such as building a wall across our entire land border with Mexico and rooting the U.S. of as much of its illegal immigrant population as can be accomplished? (but then what about Canada?) and instituting much stricter oversight and controls over anyone getting into the U.S. by land or sea or air? Or Trump's most radical idea (i.e., banning all Muslims for-the-time-being just until we can figure out how to best address and handle this situation of extremist Islamic elements residing and moving amongst us who have it in themselves to foment acts of terrorism and violence)? That idea can be innately offensive to even myself (I do personally happen to know and have known a whole host of good-hearted and moral Muslims over the years) and yet we are in a RADICAL situation in the USA and hence it may be or may come to be the case that we feel forced to consider such radical approaches, however otherwise distasteful to us). Radical situations sometimes call for radical approaches. As an analogy, look at how Israel feels compelled to take the radical approaches they take in dealing with their own quite-radical national security situation.

As another analogy: Neither the USA nor any other Allied nations during World War II likely would have had it in themselves to use atomic weapons on another nation or people and yet Imperial Japan wouldn’t give up and were intent on continuing their war of conquest and aggression (along with their Axis allies) and they started the war to begin with. So the USA, in the end, felt compelled (twice) to carry out the unfortunate use of atomic weapons on a fanatically-driven enemy (in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan) to get them to end their war effort once and for all. A sad event in human affairs but, sometimes, radical situations call for radical approaches.

I’m not saying that I like many of these ideas in an ideal sense but life can’t always play by our ideals. As I stated multiple times above: Sometimes, radical situations may call for radical approaches. For if the population-at-large becomes more and more fearful of engaging in everyday life outside their homes because of ever-prevalent security threats, our civilization can become greatly hindered and hampered.

[dpm1]

nope.

[TigerLily24]

No.

[bigpaul]

yes, I stay out of cities and large "urban centres" because of the migrant problem, not that I have any need to go to such places, I buy everything, except food, online these days, mostly Ebay and Amazon, and get it delivered straight to my door, it saves time, money and a lot of frustration and it keeps our postie(mail man....well, woman actually) in work.

[Mightyqueen801]

I do not worry. I am a person who was in the World Trade Center in NYC on both 2.26.93 and 9.11.01. It may just be psychological self-defense, but because of those experiences, I truly believe that you're gonna die when you're gonna die. I used to be a nervous flyer before 9/11, but not any more. It is nice to just enjoy the plane ride. I again work at the World Trade Center.

People I know who survived the attacks have since died of cancer, heart attacks, and a couple of accidents. If I die today, guess what--the sun will rise tomorrow without me.

The security and cameras and monitoring and national guardsmen in train and bus stations doesn't make me feel much safer. They put all sorts of security equipment, procedures, and processes into the WTC after 9/11, and someone just figured out a way to get around it.

My advice is be aware of who and what is around you, make note of the locations of the exits wherever you are, and wear shoes you can run in. Other than that, stop worrying and just live.

[Pruzhany]

No.

[no1brownsfan]

Honestly, I haven't been to a mall in years. But, as for going shopping or going to other public places, no terrorism or violence doesn't inhibit me. At any rate, it doesn't hurt to be aware of your surroundings.