Staying safe in the Bay Area.

 There are parts of the Bay Area that are renown for being kind of lawless. There are upsides to this for the cultures that have always existed in these spots, underground music shows, motorcycle clubs, street art; it's all flourished here for decades. San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley have all been famous for this.

As the disparity of wealth, in many ways, but hugely in housing, grew undeniable here, we have grown to accept that people who cannot afford the crazy high cost of living might take to other means, often desperate measures. This has been compounded by complicated city politics, often leading to a police force that (for various reasons) isn't always very present.

A big factor in this shift of cost of life here, has been that the tech industry boomed like crazy as life has been so changed by the presence of our smart phones. The industry brought wildly high housing prices as a result of the big ole income boosts, the tech gold rush changed the game for how much it cost to live here. We see a huge amount of very wealthy people living behind the gates, while very poor people live in tents on the sidewalk. The juxtaposition is gross. But we as the people who live here, have subconsciously taken the position that it is what it is.

The Bay Area has a huge homeless, drug addicted, and mentally ill population. Not all 3 of those categories of people are mutually exclusive, one category might have nothing to do with the other, they aren't always wrapped up in one. But we’re talking reality here, people who live in the Bay Area cannot deny this is true. The confusion and the muddled views and approaches on solutions to remedy this situation are tragic.

People are sick, people are addicted to drugs, people are suffering and desperate. We know this is why there is a lot of crime around here. It will not be solved overnight. So we have to think about basic ways to try and stay safe while living here.

We want to remind folks of things to think about these days, in order to avoid trouble out there; Don’t keep any good stuff in your car- like not even a candy bar, nothing. Do not leave your bag on the chair, not while you're driving, not while you're pumping gas, never not ever. If you are in a situation where someone has gotten ahold of your computer, purse, cell phone, do not pursue them. You don’t know their mental state, their level of desperation, what they could do. Your stuff is valuable to you, but you need to stay alive. Let the stuff go.

Don’t walk looking down at your phone, stay aware of where you are and who might be around. Basics being reviewed here, for sure, but the community can play a part in its own safety by bringing these safety concepts back to the forefront of our minds.

If you want to get even more proactive, and a little bit bad ass, consider investing in some local self-defense classes. There is a myriad of really cool martial arts schools around. Take a moment to check out some places and find one that you like. Having the ability to toss an attacker over your shoulder or simply deflect a strike or grab, and run, is priceless in an assault situation.

Look out for one another, when we live in a scene where people have each other’s backs, it’s a less attractive area for robberies.