By now you may have heard of the latest deadly workplace shootings - this time in Florida. So - we acknowledge that the world is not safe - and not getting any safer. Small towns like Littleton and others are increasingly making national news this way. And just going to work is getting pretty dangerous. OSHA statistics report that <blockquote>Workplace violence['s]... most extreme form, homicide, is the second leading cause of fatal occupational injury in the United States. Nearly 1,000 workers are murdered, and 1.5 million are assaulted in the workplace each year.</blockquote>
Disgruntled employees, for whatever reason - even that mild-mannered mailman could turn into a very dangerous adversary on what would otherwise be a normal workday. How to prepare? What to watch for? Did the employees at the Radisson in Tampa have a clue that anything was going down? Not according to initial interviews. So how can you be prepared?
Start with deBecker's book Gift of Fear and here's a URL to have your superiors take a look at: http://www.osha-slc.gov/SLTC/workplaceviolence/index.html
Timely subject perhaps - January tends to be a tough month - all those Christmas bills coming due - end of the fiscal year downsizing - trying to get back into routine after the long holiday - tensions running high - not to mention the "new millenium" hype that has everyone watching over their shoulder. Look around at work - see what you can do to make things safer for you and those around you. It's not as serene as you might think!
Carpe diem!
Peace,
Lori
[This message has been edited by Lori (edited 12-31-99).]
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
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RACastanet
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Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
Good post. However, the US is getting safer. Violent crime is on the decrease in all categories everywhere by double digit numbers (over 10% annually). Do not despair as it is not getting worse in this country. Deaths of law enforcement officers are at the lowest point since the mid 60s (I believe about 180 this year). Despite the widely publicized school shootings the safest place for children is in school, not at home. And school violence is also down!
What we are seeing is media sensationalism to sell product and increase ratings. Some of which I am convinced creates copy cat actions.
Yes, bad people are out there but fewer of them. Workplace violence will continue as well as other random violence. Be alert and be prepared, but do not be paranoid.
An irrationally exuberant Rich
What we are seeing is media sensationalism to sell product and increase ratings. Some of which I am convinced creates copy cat actions.
Yes, bad people are out there but fewer of them. Workplace violence will continue as well as other random violence. Be alert and be prepared, but do not be paranoid.
An irrationally exuberant Rich
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
Rich-san,
Thanks for your reply - but I have to be a bit cynical here... the statistics may show those rates as falling - but is that in direct proportion to the population increase? And the higher student count in classrooms? I don't doubt you - but I am very wary of numbers that say rates are "down" - I need comparisons. "In a city with a population of 100,000 - and an elementary school enrollment of 15,000 - the violent crime rate was 1 incident for every 10 people in the 1970's vs. 1 for every 20 people today."
If rates are down, why are incidents like Littleton happening? Did events like that happen with more frequency in the past? And this is just more media attention on a declining event?
Why is workplace violence the 2nd leading cause of death on the job? Is this also a declining statistic? That would be frightening to think of!
DeBecker also cites some statistics in his books:
- One in three girls and one in six boys will have sexual contact with an adult
- The U.S. Dept. of Justice estimates that on average there is one child molester per square mile.
- A woman is killed by a spouse or boyfriend every two hours in America.
- One in four women will be raped.
There are many more - and I'm not saying that the situation is worse now - but if it is better than some of the above, then the media sure did miss a lot a few years ago!
I don't mean to be contradictory, Rich-san. I am all for optimism and looking at the silver lining - but I can't feel as confident as you based on statistics where I don't have reference points!
Peace,
Lori
Thanks for your reply - but I have to be a bit cynical here... the statistics may show those rates as falling - but is that in direct proportion to the population increase? And the higher student count in classrooms? I don't doubt you - but I am very wary of numbers that say rates are "down" - I need comparisons. "In a city with a population of 100,000 - and an elementary school enrollment of 15,000 - the violent crime rate was 1 incident for every 10 people in the 1970's vs. 1 for every 20 people today."
If rates are down, why are incidents like Littleton happening? Did events like that happen with more frequency in the past? And this is just more media attention on a declining event?
Why is workplace violence the 2nd leading cause of death on the job? Is this also a declining statistic? That would be frightening to think of!
DeBecker also cites some statistics in his books:
- One in three girls and one in six boys will have sexual contact with an adult
- The U.S. Dept. of Justice estimates that on average there is one child molester per square mile.
- A woman is killed by a spouse or boyfriend every two hours in America.
- One in four women will be raped.
There are many more - and I'm not saying that the situation is worse now - but if it is better than some of the above, then the media sure did miss a lot a few years ago!
I don't mean to be contradictory, Rich-san. I am all for optimism and looking at the silver lining - but I can't feel as confident as you based on statistics where I don't have reference points!
Peace,
Lori
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
Stats can be truthful without telling the truth - it's all in how you define the criteria. All Cdn provinces but one have similar stats about the number of arsons and the one exception reports a thousand times greater incidence of arson in one city alone...why? Because it reports 'every' fire, no matter how small, as an arson whereas the other cities report small, non-damaging garbage bin fires as vandalism, not arson.
I don't trust stats and I don't trust the media perceptions - one report says that after Florida allowed the concealed carry of a firearm in 1987 that the murder rate dropped 20% while the national rate rose 14% but the attack rate on out-of-state and therefore unarmed visitors rose dramatically.
What am I to do with such stuff?
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Ted T.
The Fighting Old Man
[This message has been edited by Sochin (edited 12-31-99).]
I don't trust stats and I don't trust the media perceptions - one report says that after Florida allowed the concealed carry of a firearm in 1987 that the murder rate dropped 20% while the national rate rose 14% but the attack rate on out-of-state and therefore unarmed visitors rose dramatically.
What am I to do with such stuff?
------------------
Ted T.
The Fighting Old Man
[This message has been edited by Sochin (edited 12-31-99).]
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
Stay out of Florida, Ted?
(Except for Bram's seminars, of course!
)
Happy New Year, One and All!
Student
(Except for Bram's seminars, of course!
)Happy New Year, One and All!
Student
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RACastanet
- Posts: 3744
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
Well, a murder is a murder, and reporting murders per 100,000 (per the US Dept. of Justice) is sound. It is especially valid when the results in all 50 states are consistant - violent crime is down, down, down.
What happenned in Florida was one of the unintended consequences of the carry law. Other states, including Virginia, have experienced increases in propery crime even as the violent crime rate went down. The bad guys have switched to car theft and burgluries to avoid being confronted by armed citizens. However, the incidence of 'hot' burgleries (breaking in when someone is at home or likely to be home) has decreased.
This data comes from the very left leaning Clinton administration and it is a double edged sword for them. Yes, they take credit for it, but the results undermine many other socialist policies they pursue such as gun control, more entitlement programs such as 'Midnight Basketball'....
It is real! Bet on it. The US is a safer place than it was ten years ago.
Rich in Richmond
[This message has been edited by RACastanet (edited 12-31-99).]
What happenned in Florida was one of the unintended consequences of the carry law. Other states, including Virginia, have experienced increases in propery crime even as the violent crime rate went down. The bad guys have switched to car theft and burgluries to avoid being confronted by armed citizens. However, the incidence of 'hot' burgleries (breaking in when someone is at home or likely to be home) has decreased.
This data comes from the very left leaning Clinton administration and it is a double edged sword for them. Yes, they take credit for it, but the results undermine many other socialist policies they pursue such as gun control, more entitlement programs such as 'Midnight Basketball'....
It is real! Bet on it. The US is a safer place than it was ten years ago.
Rich in Richmond
[This message has been edited by RACastanet (edited 12-31-99).]
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RACastanet
- Posts: 3744
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
Hi Lori. Yes, statistically (events per 100,000 population) violent crime is down from 1990 everywhere in the US and even 99 vs 98 is down about 10% across the board and in only 5 major cities is it up. In fact, even though muders in NYC and LA are up about 5% this year the 10 year drop I have for NYC is on the order of 2200 to 650!!!! This is real.
Yes, the Columbine type events represent sad events but are statistical abberations. Schools have never been safer. I cannot comment on rape, sexual crime and workplace violence as I do not follow those areas closely. However, if you would like to see the details of reported crime, I can give you the website for these Justice dept. stats. I believe reported sex crimes are up but that does not mean in total they are growing, just that more people are willing to report them now.
So yes, the future is going to be a pretty nice place to be.
Rich
Yes, the Columbine type events represent sad events but are statistical abberations. Schools have never been safer. I cannot comment on rape, sexual crime and workplace violence as I do not follow those areas closely. However, if you would like to see the details of reported crime, I can give you the website for these Justice dept. stats. I believe reported sex crimes are up but that does not mean in total they are growing, just that more people are willing to report them now.
So yes, the future is going to be a pretty nice place to be.
Rich
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Moe Mensale
- Posts: 148
- Joined: Thu Sep 17, 1998 6:01 am
- Location: Boca Raton, FL
Tampa Shootings and Workplace Violence
All,
...one report says that after Florida allowed the concealed carry of a firearm in 1987 that the murder rate dropped 20% while the national rate rose 14% but the attack rate on out-of-state and therefore unarmed visitors rose dramatically.
When most visitors come to Florida, they usually pick up a rental car unless they drive in their own vehicle. Florida rental cars were notorious as being easy marks because the damn rental companies would plaster their logos very conspicuously all over the vehicle!!
If you were a malcontent on the prowl, who would you target? The newly empowered CCW holder or the hapless non-CCW visitor? Even these assholes could figure that out.
After the unfortunate rash of deadly visitor shootings and muggings that occured, the rental companies removed all telltale markings from their vehicles.
Life is a bit harder for the piss ants now.
Moe Mensale
...one report says that after Florida allowed the concealed carry of a firearm in 1987 that the murder rate dropped 20% while the national rate rose 14% but the attack rate on out-of-state and therefore unarmed visitors rose dramatically.
When most visitors come to Florida, they usually pick up a rental car unless they drive in their own vehicle. Florida rental cars were notorious as being easy marks because the damn rental companies would plaster their logos very conspicuously all over the vehicle!!
If you were a malcontent on the prowl, who would you target? The newly empowered CCW holder or the hapless non-CCW visitor? Even these assholes could figure that out.
After the unfortunate rash of deadly visitor shootings and muggings that occured, the rental companies removed all telltale markings from their vehicles.
Life is a bit harder for the piss ants now.
Moe Mensale
