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Burglary, home invasion and Self-Defense

The minute a would-be burglar enters a home and discovers that a person or persons are in that home,

that burglary becomes a home invasion type of offense. Being mindful of all the risks involved with

home invasion robberies could mean the difference between life and death or bodily assault. No onelikes to think about it, but there exists a general risk of harm from a small but significant portion of the

male population under certain circumstances, according to national college surveys1

and reported in the

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. According to the reports:

33 percent of males surveyed said they would commit rape if they could escape detection2. 25 percent of males surveyed believed that rape was acceptable if the woman asks the man out,

the man pays for the date or the woman goes back to the man's room after the date3.

Its not bad enough that one or more powerful males may be involved in some robbery or home

invasionif any of those also belonged to the above referenced statistical persuasion, then anyinnocent victim caught in the home could be in more trouble than they realize. Rape is an act of

physical violence and domination that is not motivated by sexual gratification.

Defense Strategies

One shouldnt make the mistake of neglecting to have a plan of defense already worked out. If

the time should come that a burglar does make their way into your home, a slow reaction

versus a quick one could make all the difference.

Quicklywhat can you do?

1. Install a home alarm security systemavailable types of security alarms vary greatly,and there is an option for any type of living situation, with varying degrees of service.

2. RUN the absolute best defense strategy you can have against a home invasionaggressor is to recognize an opportunity to run. As in a fire, know your exits.

3. Grab a gunthis ones not for everyone. Many people dont have guns nor want to dealwith the extra responsibilities around obtaining and keeping firearms.

4. Stun guna somewhat safer alternative to keeping firearms in the home.5. Pepper spraycan be a useful tool but, as with any weapon, only if it happens to be

effectively held at ready when a surprise attack occurswhich statistically isnt verylikely.

6. Physical self-defensewhen things go terribly wrong, you will need to have invested ina training course of self-defense designed to address your initial reaction to physical

threat, and even your options in regard to subsequent dealings with the authorities and

possible civil actions pursuant to any events that occur.

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Essentially, as with any emergency situation, preparedness is key to survival. Alarm systems, pepper

spray, guns, bat behind the doorwhen all that fails, youre down to brass tacks and soon to be one-on-

one with your home invader or aggressors. If this happens, you want to have already done your

homework regarding self-defense, thereby improving your automatic reaction technique and hence

quick, solid reaction to threat. Analytics of your tactics of self-defense, such as physical response time

(combat response) is not a risk but a benefitifyou conduct your training prior to the threating event.

The would-be victim benefits from having already analyzed (practiced) their reactionary characteristics

in relation to an automatic response combat mentality.

Automatic Response Combat Systems (ARCS) is your primary defense

against physical aggressors.

REFERENCES

1

Roger Williams University, Health and Counseling. Rape Myths and Facts http://rwu.edu/campus-life/health-counseling/counseling-center/sexual-assault/rape-myths-and-fac , 10 November 2012.

2Malamuth, N.M. (1986). Predictors of Natural Sexual Aggression. Journal of Personality and Social

Psychology, 50, 953-962.

3 Muehlenhard, C.L., Friedman, D.E. & Thomas, C.M. (1985). Is Date Rape Justifiable? Psychology of

Women Quarterly, 9, 297-310

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