Posted by Scott on November 28th, 2007 — Posted in Other Posts
I signed up with PayPerPost. That is a service that specializes in blog ads, which means that they pay me to make posts on this blog. This income can be used to promote this blog and to otherwise improve it.
Basically, it works like this. Now that this blog has been approved, I can go to PayPerPost and look through the opportunities open to me based on this blog’s category and the advertisers’ specifications. I can choose to accept any of the offers to make a blog post about a certain product or website. Once the post is reviewed and approved, I get paid. I will classify these paid posts by putting them in the new “Sponsored Post” blog category.
A great part about this process is that I get to choose what offers to accept. I am not forced to blog about anything. If I do not see any offers that I like, I do not have to accept any. That way I will be able to choose to only bring you posts that are of interest. I can accept as few as I want, and I can wait as long as I want in between sponsored posts.
The sponsored posts are still written by me, and are my own thoughts and views.
It’s also important to note that the sponsored posts will only make up a small fraction of all the posts on the blog. I will still be making my regular posts about recent news stories and topics of interest.
I find that the sponsored posts are really great too. Anyone who is willing to pay to advertise their product or website probably has a good product or website, and I look through the offers to find the ones that I think this blog’s readers would like most.
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Posted by Scott on November 26th, 2007 — Posted in Politics & Commentary
Have you noticed how little attention violent crime has received in national political campaigns?
Presidential candidates seem to only give attention to one very specific type of violent crime: terrorism. However, more people in the United States die from regular old murder than from terrorist attacks.
If these politicians truly want to protect us, then they also need to protect us from domestic murder, rape, assault, vandalism, and theft.
Personally, I think we can only put a stop to violence and victimization by doing it ourselves. The government will not solve this problem. Politicians talk about headline stories to get elected, but they never bother to actually solve the problems that plague the general population on a day-to-day basis.
Nonetheless, you can consider writing your representatives to tell them that you want them to spend more time working on reducing violent crime. Do not rely on them, but encourage them to address these issues.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 25th, 2007 — Posted in Other Posts
Today I found out about All ID Systems, which is a company that sells products for security badging and identification card printing. You can consider getting a Card Printer for business or personal use. All ID Systems has all name-brand printers for cards and badges.
For businesses especially, identification cards or badges are a very useful security tool. I assume most of us can remember having a job where we needed a work-issued ID to get in the building. Identification cards can be used for many purposes, namely for authorizing personnel at buildings and events.
Having an identification system in place can not only help prevent security problems, but it can come in handy after a security breach. For example, you can use the identification cards to keep records of who comes into a building and for how long. If a crime or other bad act occurs, you will have a record of who was in the building at the time.
The cards can be used for more than direct security. For example, they could be used for warranties, certificates, or vouchers. The added durability will definitely come in handy for those purposes.
On the All ID Systems website you can buy all sorts of different printers as well as other accessories. They offer custom card solutions, customer service, and guaranteed low prices. Their website says that shipping is free.
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Posted by Scott on November 20th, 2007 — Posted in Guns
I just read an interesting article about a student group pushing for concealed weapons on college campuses. This group along with others wants colleges to allow students and other people to be allowed to carry concealed weapons on the campuses, because they believe it will make the campuses safer and protect the right to self-defense.
Currently, Utah is the only state that expressly allows students to carry concealed weapons on campus.
Personally, I want each university to be able to choose what it wants to allow and disallow. Prospective students can choose which university they want to go to based on each university’s policies. The students who want to be in a place where people can have concealed guns can go to university where this is allowed. The students who want to be in a place where the people are not allowed to have concealed guns can go to a university where guns are disallowed.
What I do not want is for a government to make every school follow a certain rule. Freedom is better for everyone, because each person gets what they want.
Of course, I hope a university gives good warning before making drastic changes to its policies regarding such important policies, so that students do not go to a school under false pretenses. The students need to know the policies before enrolling so that they can make an informed decision.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 19th, 2007 — Posted in Other Posts
Today I have the pleasure of telling you about 5.11 tactical, which is a good website selling police gear. They have a useful product line, especially their pants. For police gear, uniforms and clothing, it is not just a matter of fashion, but also a matter of safety. The website to which I linked understands that. That is needed for law enforcement, military persons, and other people with aggressive or rough jobs, such as firefighters. The online store sells more than just tactical pants. It also has boots, shirts, gloves, headgear, and equipment such as watches and weapons.
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Posted by Scott on November 18th, 2007 — Posted in Property Crime
I just read an article about a man who left his wallet and some other stuff in his car while at dinner. Thieves stole his stuff and used his credit cards to charge $2,500 before he even knew.
The main lesson is to not leave valuables in the car.
I would hope that the credit card company did not charge the man with the $2,500 of fraudulent purchases, but the article seems to imply that he had to pay it.
I would recommend being very careful about taking out credit cards with high limits unless the company has policies to not charge you for fraudulent use. Check the paperwork carefully, and do not trust credit card company slogans that say you are generally protected from fraudulent charges. With credit cards, thieves can steal more money than you have. They will not just leave you with nothing; they will leave you in debt.
I do not own any credit cards, so that neither I nor thieves can spend more money than I have.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 16th, 2007 — Posted in Rape & Sexual Assault
I recently posted about an anti-rape female condom, which is basically a latex tube with shafts of sharp, inward-facing plastic barbs. Women can wear it in their vagina like a tampon, and it would hook onto the penis of any attackers. Ideally, the pain would give the victim a chance to escape and would help police catch the rapist who would have to go to a hospital to get the anti-rape condom removed.
One of this blog’s readers posted a YouTube video with her thoughts about the anti-rape female condom. Check it out.
Many people seem to worry that women could purposely misuse the device to hurt and frame innocent men with rape. While that could happen and would probably happen, I don’t think it gives us a reason to ban the device. If a woman wants to hurt a man, she can do it with or without the device. If she wants to hurt him while having consensual sex, as to frame him with rape, she could also do that with or without the condom.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 14th, 2007 — Posted in School Safety
I do not remember ever having any self-defense conferences or events while in grade school. We had a lot of conferences, some memorable ones about fire safety or not dropping out, but none about self-defense.
I would like to see self-defense conferences at schools. From elementary school all the way through high-school, I think such conferences would help protect children and reduce the staggering rates of teen violence. Young females especially need to learn how to defend themselves from sexual assault and rape.
Many children do not think about violence and victimization until it is too late. They do not realize that the best defense is avoidance and prevention.
Self-defense conferences could teach the children how to stay safe and avoid getting in violent conflicts. They could teach the children how to prevent attacks. They could teach children how to resolve conflicts and other problems before the conflicts or problems escalate and result in the child getting hurt. For example, in many cases children have an opportunity to seek help from an adult before a situation turns into violent victimization. For another example, simply choosing to not go to the wrong party alone could be the difference between safety and victimization.
Of course, the conferences could also give kids some physical self-defense tips for when all else fails. These can include ways to incapacitate an attacker and get away, for example.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 13th, 2007 — Posted in Politics & Commentary
The Associated Press reported today about the hidden costs of war. I include an excerpt:
The economic costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are estimated to total $1.6 trillion — roughly double the amount the White House has requested thus far, according to a new report by Democrats on Congress’ Joint Economic Committee.
The report, released Tuesday, attempted to put a price tag on the two conflicts, including “hidden” costs such as interest payments on the money borrowed to pay for the wars, lost investment, the expense of long-term health care for injured veterans and the cost of oil market disruptions.
The $1.6 trillion figure, for the period from 2002 to 2008, translates into a cost of $20,900 for a family of four, the report said. The Bush administration has requested $804 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars combined, the report stated.
For the Iraq war only, total economic costs were estimated at $1.3 trillion for the period from 2002 to 2008. That would cost a family of four $16,500, the report said.
The war in Iraq has cost the United States $1.3 trillion! I cannot believe the United States people let this happen. Of course, with so much money involved, it is no surprise that the interests of the people have been disregarded. When the tax-payers lose $1.3 trillion, that means a lot of corporations, lobbyists, and politicians make a lot of money.
The war in Iraq has made the people in the United States less safe by increasing anti-Americanism and over-stretching the military.
All that money could have been put towards actually protecting the people of the United States. Imagine if the government had instead put the $1.3 trillion towards preventing rape, murder, theft, and other forms of violence and victimization. Better yet, the money could have been refunded to the taxpayers. The taxpayers could have then used their own money to spend it on what they think they need most–be it personal security or something else. Imagine if each family had $16,500 more to spend on personal security.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 12th, 2007 — Posted in Self-Defense Advice
If you decide to take a self-defense class, you will need to find one. Let me suggest some places to find local self-defense classes.
A local YMCA or YWCA may offer self-defense classes. Give your local one a call.
Colleges often have self-defense classes. They may offer some only to students, though. Community colleges often host many different classes for the public.
You probably have many martial arts schools in your area. Even if you do not want to learn a martial art, many of these places also have generic self-defense classes or sessions.
You can look on craigslist.com. You can read and post local classified ads and listings for free on craigslist.
Do you have any suggestions of ways to find local self-defense classes? If so, please use the comment function to post them here.
What do you think?
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Posted by Scott on November 11th, 2007 — Posted in Politics & Commentary
Most of us want to live in a society without rape, murder, theft, vandalism and other forms of victimization and violent crime. Why don’t we do more to stop the violence and victimization? A lack of funding may explain a large part of it.
I suggest the following to increase funding for the prevention of victimization and violent crime:
1. Legalize drugs and other victimless crimes! The United States spends over $50 billion per year on the war on drugs. This accounts for millions of expensive arrests of non-violent druggies. It accounts for hundreds of thousands of inmates, who it takes a lot of money to jail–let alone the limited space in the overcrowded jails that would be better used for victimizers and violent criminals. Legalizing drugs would not only save the money spent chasing down, arresting, trying, and jailing non-violent druggies, but it would also allow us to heavily tax drugs. We could use the hundreds of billions of dollars gained from taxing drugs per year to prevent victimization and violent crime.
2. Make convicts pay the bill! Why do we make tax-payers pay for all of the costs associated with fighting crime? I suggest we make the convicts pay for the costs associated with the crime they have been convicted of committing. A court of law has determined that there is sufficient proof that they are guilty. That makes them liable. After being convicted of a crime, let’s give the convict a bill for all the costs of their crime, including the costs of investigating the crime, arresting the convict, trying the convict, jailing the convict and rehabilitating the convict. Seize all the convicts assets to pay the bill, and garnish his future wages until it has been paid.
3. End the war! The occupation in Iraq is an extremely expensive endeavor. It’s making the U.S. people less safe by over-stretching the military and increasing anti-Americanism. Estimates say the war will end up costing over $1 trillion. That’s a lot of money! That’s a lot of money that could be put towards actually protecting U.S. people. That’s a lot of money that could be put towards preventing murder, rape, theft, and other forms of victimization and violent crime.
What do you think? What ways do you suggest we fund security?
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Posted by Scott on November 10th, 2007 — Posted in News
I want to make sure that you all know that this blog has an RSS feed. Here is the URL of this blog’s RSS feed:
http://scottsafetyshop.com/blog/nfblog/wp-rss2.php
If you do not know what an RSS feed is, let me tell you. It is a form of internet syndication. Users can subscribe to RSS feeds, and then they can see the newest posts from these feeds through an RSS feed reader. This allows them to conveniently keep up with new posts from many different websites.
I personally use Google Reader to read RSS subscriptions. For those of you new to RSS, I found a simple service that will allow you to read an RSS feed as an email newsletter. Simply go to Rssfwd.com and enter the RSS URL into the form. (That is the URL from above.) Then, you can put in your email address and choose how often to receive updates.
Please subscribe to this blog’s RSS feed. Thank you!
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