What would you do if while out enjoying yourself around a lot of people - suddenly everything goes to hell in a handbasket?

Crowds that turn into mobs, especially when fueled by alcohol, can quickly become ugly and unsafe. We live in troubled times and I think it is very wise for us to educate each other about safety.

Something to be mindful of during a riot is to not blindly follow whoever in the crowd yells the loudest. At best the person might not be thinking clearly, at worst they might purposefully want the adrenaline rush of stirring shit up.

Remain calm. Riots bring intense emotions boiling to the surface, but if you want to survive one you'd be better off keeping yours in check. Your adrenaline and survival instincts will kick in, but try to think rationally and pursue safety methodically.

Stay on the sidelines. If you're caught up in a riot, don't take sides. Try to look as inconspicuous as possible, and slowly and carefully move to the outside of the mob.

The more time you spend in the midst of a riot, the greater your chance of being injured or killed. That said, in most circumstances it's better to move out of a riot slowly. If you run, you will draw attention to yourself, so it's usually best to walk. It can also be dangerous to move against a crowd, so go with the flow until you are able to escape into a doorway or up a side street or alley. It may also be advantageous to stay with the crowd until you are certain you can safely escape because it will help you remain inconspicuous and improve your odds of survival if shots are fired.

More ideas from How to Survive a Riot

also helpful: How to avoid being shot by a Police Officer

In my own opinion, eventually everything comes down to the fact that we are all human beings, deserving of basic rights. Even if I disagree with what someone is doing, when they are injured, they are injured, and reducing harm is ideal.

I don't revel in anyone's pain. For instance, if anti-abortion folks who are doing a public protest are pepper sprayed and batoned - I don't get a thrill, I don't say they deserved it and more. They are human beings, we are all humans, and there is something beyond the "they asked for it" and "they had it coming to them" and all that.......and I say this as a pro-choice woman.

I personally don't call cops "pigs". I don't want to be dehumanized so I won't dehumanize others. Nor will I call anti-war activists names. Nor will I assume what the motivation is of anyone. Or their income, or class, or anything else.

I don't know. I don't know who you are and why you are doing what you are doing, why you believe what you do. I do know that I'm into harm reduction and that it is apolitical. You don't have to agree with me about anything to also be into this.

Harm reduction. So, how to deal with pepper spray? Wally for instance writes that he is going through some breathing difficulties. He is taking care of himself and taking a break.

You might be directly sprayed, you might have caught a strong whiff by being downtown, what can you do? How can you prepare for next time? Black Cross has some ideas on this and on after care and more, follow those links given at bottom of pages.

• More people in treatment
• no increase in drug related crime in area, less vehicle break ins
• less public injections and less injection related litter
• less syringe sharing
• no deaths

Regulated legalization of all drugs -- with stiffened penalties for driving impaired or furnishing to kids -- would bring an immediate halt to the violence. How? By (1) dramatically reducing the cost of these drugs, (2) shifting massive enforcement resources to prevention and treatment and (3) driving drug dealers out of business: no product, no profit, no incentive.

In this ambitious follow-up to "Achilles in Vietnam," Dr. Jonathan Shay uses the "Odyssey," the story of a soldier's homecoming, to illuminate the pitfalls that trap many veterans on the road back to civilian life. Seamlessly combining important psycho- logical work and brilliant literary interpretation with an impassioned plea to renovate American military institutions, Shay deepens our understanding of both the combat veteran's experience and one of the world's greatest classics.

Keep people together through training, into a fight, and home again.

Wed, 11/16/2005 - 10:29pm

First understand that harm reduction is typically aimed towards criminal and illicit behaviors that a person often has little or no control over. The lack of control can be a physical or emotional addiction. Being that tobacco is only illegal for those under the age of 18, it seems warranted that harm reduction activities are thus then aimed at those for whom it is an illegal activity.

Another premise of harm reduction is interceding at the lowest level possible. An effective reduction strategy ensures that individuals, families, schools, and communities work together to effect change to work towards the desired norms.

More on the flip...