At Peril, At Home - Part One

AT PERIL AT HOME (PART One)
By Laura Quarantiello
® Tiare Publications Group
470 words

The rape of a woman in her own home in Pittsburgh by a criminal who
claimed to be a meter reader has forced many of us to take a good
look at the unthinkable and acknowledge that home isn't the safe and
secure place we believe it to be. This last bastion of safety and
comfort can be breached. No matter how many locks and alarms are
used, in the end it is the simple things that undo us. The case of
the Pittsburgh woman can help us learn what and what not to do when
faced with a stranger on our property.

Contrary to widespread belief you are automatically at a safety
disadvantage when we're at home. This stems from the mistaken
impression that because we are on familiar grounds nothing bad can
happen to us. And so, lulled by this belief, we lower our guard and
open ourselves to attack. And when the attack comes it is seldom from
a masked stranger springing at us from the darkness but more often
from an unseen quarter or from someone we'd not expect to pose a
threat.

Anytime someone approaches your home, whether he is at the front
door, on the lawn or sidewalk or street he should be considered cause
for concern. If you are a woman alone, your concern level should be
elevated. Unless you can identify the person as someone you know,
someone who is not a threat, you should watch the individual
carefully. There are any number of people who could approach you in
your yard or at your door: mail carriers, delivery persons, gas and
electric service people, maintenance people, salesmen and any number
of passersby. Many will carry out their business û delivering the
mail, reading your electric meter û and leave without your ever
coming into direct contact with them. Still, you should be aware of
their presence and take a few minutes to discreetly watch them and
make sure they do what they came to do and then move on. Never close
yourself off from the world outside your door; always be aware of
anyone on or near your property. If they loiter or seem to have no
reason for hanging around or if they do anything that causes you
concern, don't hesitate to call the police and report a suspicious
person

Although the threat you perceive, assess and react against may turn
out to be no threat at all, you usually don't get much warning. The
person who is a threat is most often in close proximity, perhaps even
talking to you. What about the salesmen that come to your door, the
teenager who asks to use your telephone, the survey taker, or the
repairman who needs your signature? Are these potential threats?
Definitely! And I'll have more on this in Part Two.

(End)

Laura Quarantiello is the author of "On Guard û How to Win the War
Against the Bad Guys" û your personal safety and home defense
manual. More information is at: http://www.tiare.com/onguard.htm