Saturday, October 19, 2013
Keep Children Safe This Halloween
11:08 AM | 
Posted by
szorn
Halloween Safety Tips
Halloween is just around the corner and it can one of the most festive and entertaining holidays of the year for the entire family. Trick-or-treating, costume parties and haunted houses all add to the fun of the Halloween weekend. However, the fun can quickly turn to disaster if parents and children choose to ignore dangerous people, places, and situations. Before sending your children out to enjoy the holiday activities take the time to talk with them about possible scenarios they may be forced to face and how to successfully resolve them. Below is a list of general safety tips to help keep children safe this Halloween.
-Young children should always go trick-or-treating with a parent or trusted adult.
-Older children / teens should never trick-or-treat alone. They should have at least 2 buddies go with
them, if not a parent or trusted adult.
-Plan your child's entire route and make sure they stick to it.
-Make sure that children are wearing flame retardant costumes.
-Make sure the costumes do not obstruct your child's vision.
-Avoid costumes or bags that display your child's name on them.
-Provide your children with snacks before they go out so they will be less tempted to eat candy before it's checked. Make sure to check out all candy before your children eat it.
-Children should be very cautious of people they don’t know or people displaying strange behavior.
-Children should be taught how to respond to potentially dangerous people or situations. They should run, shout, and get help when they can.
-Teach children to yell "Fire!" rather than help if they find themselves in an unsafe situation and need to draw attention.
-They should be taught Kid Escape or other similar abduction prevention skills.
-They should be taught to check first before going anywhere with anyone, especially with people they
don’t know or don’t know very well.
-Children should accept treats only in the doorway. Never go inside a house, an apartment, or car.
-Teach your children to be polite, make sure they say thank you for their treats.
-Children shouldn't play near lit jack-o-lanterns.
-Children should visit only those houses where the lights are on and only in neighborhoods familiar to you.
-They should walk, not run.
-Children should walk only on sidewalks and driveways, and avoid short-cuts or secluded areas.
-They should cross the street at the corner or in a crosswalk and obey traffic signals.
-They should carry a flashlight and other reflective items such as treat bags or glowing bracelets.
Personal Safety Unlimited
Halloween is just around the corner and it can one of the most festive and entertaining holidays of the year for the entire family. Trick-or-treating, costume parties and haunted houses all add to the fun of the Halloween weekend. However, the fun can quickly turn to disaster if parents and children choose to ignore dangerous people, places, and situations. Before sending your children out to enjoy the holiday activities take the time to talk with them about possible scenarios they may be forced to face and how to successfully resolve them. Below is a list of general safety tips to help keep children safe this Halloween.
-Young children should always go trick-or-treating with a parent or trusted adult.
-Older children / teens should never trick-or-treat alone. They should have at least 2 buddies go with
them, if not a parent or trusted adult.
-Plan your child's entire route and make sure they stick to it.
-Make sure that children are wearing flame retardant costumes.
-Make sure the costumes do not obstruct your child's vision.
-Avoid costumes or bags that display your child's name on them.
-Provide your children with snacks before they go out so they will be less tempted to eat candy before it's checked. Make sure to check out all candy before your children eat it.
-Children should be very cautious of people they don’t know or people displaying strange behavior.
-Children should be taught how to respond to potentially dangerous people or situations. They should run, shout, and get help when they can.
-Teach children to yell "Fire!" rather than help if they find themselves in an unsafe situation and need to draw attention.
-They should be taught Kid Escape or other similar abduction prevention skills.
-They should be taught to check first before going anywhere with anyone, especially with people they
don’t know or don’t know very well.
-Children should accept treats only in the doorway. Never go inside a house, an apartment, or car.
-Teach your children to be polite, make sure they say thank you for their treats.
-Children shouldn't play near lit jack-o-lanterns.
-Children should visit only those houses where the lights are on and only in neighborhoods familiar to you.
-They should walk, not run.
-Children should walk only on sidewalks and driveways, and avoid short-cuts or secluded areas.
-They should cross the street at the corner or in a crosswalk and obey traffic signals.
-They should carry a flashlight and other reflective items such as treat bags or glowing bracelets.
Personal Safety Unlimited
Sunday, October 06, 2013
Bill Kipp of FAST Defense to return to Warsaw, Indiana March 2014
Bill Kipp of FAST Defense will be returning to Warsaw, Indiana in March 2014. He will be bringing his unique Stress Shooting defensive handgun program back to town along with his effective approach to dealing with ground assaults.
Keep an eye on the website for updates and registration information as March gets closer. The last time Bill did his Stress Shooting program here we sold out. Don't miss this chance to learn how to effectively use a handgun to save your life or the life of a loved-one through scenario-based firearms training. Also, learn how to successfully escape an attacker that has taken you to the ground through simple and effective skills during the adrenal state.
COMING SOON!
http://personalsafetyunlimited.net/seminars.html
Keep an eye on the website for updates and registration information as March gets closer. The last time Bill did his Stress Shooting program here we sold out. Don't miss this chance to learn how to effectively use a handgun to save your life or the life of a loved-one through scenario-based firearms training. Also, learn how to successfully escape an attacker that has taken you to the ground through simple and effective skills during the adrenal state.
COMING SOON!
http://personalsafetyunlimited.net/seminars.html
I Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Self-Defense!
I don’t need self-defense…I have a ______ (gun, pepper spray, knife, baton, or some
other personal protective device).
Many people would be surprised at how many times I have
heard this statement (or something similar) over the past 24 years. Some people
often have this delusion that as long as they own some kind of personal
protective tool or device that they will be safe from crime and violence. They
think that just because they own a gun that it will miraculously appear in
their hand the very moment they find themselves facing a lethal threat.
Unfortunately reality is another story. When I hear such statements my initial
knee-jerk response is to blurt out “So, where is the tool at this very
moment?”. While not necessarily the most courteous response, it often serves to
prove the point rather well. The three most common responses to this question-
1) It’s in my purse, 2) It’s in my car, and 3) It’s at home. Upon answers like
this I obviously feel the need to further prove my point by asking “So, how is
this life-saving tool going to protect you right here and right now when you
don’t have immediate access to it?” Generally, people don’t know what to say in
response. Why not? Because they have never seriously considered such a
scenario. Apparently, for some people just the fact of owning some kind of
protective tool or device provides them with some fulfilling sense of security,
even if the tool in question is not within their immediate reach. Obviously
this kind of false sense of security is extremely dangerous and actually
increases the probability that a person will become a victim of crime or
assault.
The tool must be
easily accessible-
To be clear, for any protective tool or device to be
effective, it must be within immediate reach of the intended victim. So, what exactly do I mean by “immediate”?
Ideally, this would mean having the tool in the hand and ready to go. However,
if that is a little impractical then the next best solution would be for the
tool to be accessible within a single second. In other words, it must be
positioned on the person or within reach so that the intended victim can grab
it, draw it, and use it in less than a second. While I agree that there may be
some situations that provide more time to deploy a protective tool, it’s those
worst-case scenarios we need to worry about.
If you can’t get the tool out quickly when needed, it does absolutely no
good to have it.
You must be
properly trained-
So, you have gone to all of the trouble to make sure the
tool is within immediate reach. As an attacker bears down on you with fists or
weapons, you are now able to successfully grab the tool and bring it in play. Now
what? Do you know how to properly use the tool? Do you understand the legal,
moral, and ethical ramifications of using this tool? Are you prepared to face
criminal charges should this person be injured or killed during your defense?
Do you know how to prevent the attacker from disarming you and then turning
that tool against you?
The reality is that just owning the tool and having
immediate access to it, is not enough. You must be properly trained to use the
tool in defense of your life or that of your loved-ones. You must fully
understand the physical, emotional, and legal ramifications of being forced to
physically protect yourself. Most importantly, you need to make sure you understand
how to avoid having your tool taken from you and then turned against you.
You must have
other skills-
Unfortunately, even if you are properly trained with the
tool in question and you have immediate access to it during a violent
situation, there are not guarantees that you will prevail. This is especially
true if you have no back-up skills to support the use of the tool. In other
words, what happens if the tool fails to work or if it get’s knocked from your
grasp during a chaotic struggle? Do you have immediate access to another
back-up tool? Will you have the time or opportunity to deploy it? Will you be
required to resort to empty-hand defensive skills in order access the back-up
tool or to simply escape the altercation? Have you been properly training in
empty-hand skills?
Unfortunately real-world violence involves many
unpredictable variables. Even if you successfully deploy your protective tool
of choice, there is no guarantee it will slow or stop the attacker. Real
attackers have been known to endure multiple gunshot wounds while they
continued their attack, some fatally wounding their intended victim. This being
the case, it’s always a good idea to have a back-up plan and even a back-up
tool in place for when things don’t go as you envisioned.
You need mental
preparation-
While there are many percentages thrown around regarding the
physical and mental aspects of self-defense, the majority of instructors agree
that the ability to survive violence is more dependent on mental preparation
than physical skills. In order to successfully escape a violent altercation you
must be willing to use the tools and tactics at your disposal. Just having the
tool and the knowledge to use it is of little help if you are not mentally
prepared to deal with the ramifications that may follow.
Don’t be lured into the false sense of security that often
comes with the ownership of a gun or some other protective tool. Personal
protection and self-defense is more than just owning a gun or learning a few
physical skills. It’s about understanding proper and effective responses to
violent situations with and without weapons. It’s about learning to avoid bad
situations and having a plan for those worst-case scenarios just in case, and also
having a back-up for when that initial plan fails. It’s about empowering you
with real knowledge and skills to effectively keep yourself and your loved-ones
safe from crime and assault.
Take care and stay safe,
Steve Zorn, ICPS
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About Me
- szorn
- -27 years training in personal safety -Multiple martial arts black belts -Multiple instructor certifications -Certified law enforcement trainer -Crime Prevention Specialist -Previous self-defense trainer for one of the country's largest airlines -Child safety specialist -Certified Fitness Trainer -TACTIX Fitness Trainer -High Intensity Training Specialist -FAST Defense Instructor -Kid Escape Instructor