Violence on Our Streets

don't you just walk away when they say things?...remember that.

After recent rapes, eve teasing, some incidents of racial teasing(not sure what else to call it) have brought back the discussion on "what would you do if.." you are witnessing a crime like this. And now there are YouTube videos faking scenes in which a girl is getting raped in a closed van with tinted windows which is just recorded voices, a north easterner being called "chinki", "chini" and gauging the response of the passers-by. As expected very few actually stand up to the criminals and the video tells us in bold letters "Indians are cowards" or at least that's the implicit conclusion. One of the film makers also enlightens us that "people are scared of getting in trouble with the police" which is the main reason for no one standing up to help their fellow men.

Try putting yourself in one such scenario and see if the "fear of the police" is the only thing keeping you from standing up to criminals. There are some more fears at work here - the fear of a broken jaw or of get your guts ripped out. And these seems lost to these "social experiments". There is this huge context-dropping as Ayn Rand would probably put it at play in these short films.

#1

Take the scene of a north easterner being bullied by a man. They want you to believe that it's going to be a nice dude in jeans and glasses softly defending and even trying to convince you (in english) of his right to call someone "chinki". The Nido incident in Delhi, it were four or more men at a pan stall who beat him with sticks rods till the end for "standing up" to them. All they want is you to stand up to the man. Now—is the man is armed? What's his physical strength? What's yours? How many are they? How many are you? What if he breaks your jaw at the first slightest provocation or stabs you? No answer. You must stand up or you are a coward is the judgement they want to pass.


In fact it's so weird that the girl being called names would stand there and try to debate with a moron who-calls-people-chinki-on-the-street—on racism!! Probably that is what most of the passers-by were confused about - who gives a fuck what some moron ever calls you, just walk away. A lady even later said "no point talking to a fool" just GO. Take your cell out and dial the police but don't ever engage them for fuck's sake. The rules is simple: stay away from fools in general and far away from possibly armed street fools (the kind you will most likely face).

But no, the trouble seeker team wants you take the bully to a side and explain to him how all humans evolved from apes, originated from the African savannah and how we really all are the same and shouldn't discriminate. To quote from Robert Baratheon of Game of Thrones — "Seven Fucking Hells".

#2

Next is the yesnomaybe team. They took some time out of aping American and Australian "picking up girls with crazy pick up lines", "free hugs" videos to give us a crash course on how to stand up to rapes. Watch it here and pay attention to voice of the man in the van. Again the expectation is that normal non-violent citizens must engage a psychotic brute in physical violence. Agreed that given the nature of the emergency one may have to act but their guidelines is again the same: stand up to it, stand up to it, stand up to it and get your bones broken or your guts ripped out probably. Just spur of the moment animal response. Call the police immediately, get yourself armed, gather some people in support—none.

India's most wanted on SonyTV a decade back had the sense to tell its viewers to never ever engage a criminal in physical combat but when scoring cheap hits on YouTube by getting people's emotions worked up thus getting them to share your videos is the whole motive you do not give much of a fuck.     

#3

The last is some actor Varun Pruthi who puts all blood make up and acts like he's dying on the road and no car or person stops to him etc. This is a tricky one. He plays the whole act during the day, imagine it to be night time, would you just take him into your car with your wife/kid/gf? The answer has to be no or else in the next 5 mins there could be a knife on your throat and you driving to a secluded location. And this video like the all others instead of taking a rational well planned approach wants to guilt you by playing a sad background music and a speech on coward Indians.

As paranoid as it sounds I just don't see what else is there to it. So stay in your car, call the ambulance, the police and wait.

In the end what does it tell you about Times of India giving these stupid hits grabbing attempts passed of as "social experiments", national plugging. The bar has come so low that we are going to let such poor film making set standards on how we respond to emergencies.

But there are real intellectuals out there. Here is Truth About Violence by Sam Harris. Very thorough and highly recommended, a basic mental preparation because unfortunately, there is violence on our streets.

Advice

This is one of the most common incidents young people face:

A male female pair walking down the street and the male's ego will be challenged usually by using the girl as a leverage. The most common trick is to comment on the girl's body, attire etc. This will be done by a group of up to 3-4 thugs. 

Sadly all the conversation I have on this scenario, people are of the opinion that the guy should give them a fitting reply - verbal or physical. Apparently not doing so would be cowardice and a compromise on one's self-respect. I am confused whether that argument is more ridiculous or more funny.

Thugs on the street — more than you in numbers, probably high on something, probably armed, maybe got out of jail just last week, throw you a challenge using your female companion as a leverage and you are expected to accept it just to prove the existence of your balls/non-cowardice/self respect. Certainly the narrative of "being a man" is at play here but moving ahead.

A little thinking is all that is required here. Let's replay the whole scene and decide the best course of action.

The couple is walking, the approaching group of savages on the other side of the road look at them and start with the comments about the girl her looks, body etc. And it'll always be restricted to comments, like mentioned before the girl is just the leverage, their entire motive is too get some savagery psychological satisfaction from putting a male down. From the fact that they do this, it's safe to assume it will always be on a much much less crowded area. Less people, less vehicles.

Now the moment the first words register in the guy's temporal lobe he is mad with rage and fear. It suddenly feels back to the 14k year old African savannah — an opposite group of apes has throw him a challenge and he must respond, to keep the respect of the female, his tribe and himself. 

This is the moment when Sam Harris says "you must keep your inner ape on a very short leash". In our modern world we have now evolved enough to understand that such social dominance contests mean absolutely nothing. 

Hold the girl's hand and dialing the police with the other start walking faster to safety, towards more people for a start. If you decide to respond on your own and get into a physical combat you are not going to win those who think they can I have nothing to say to. If they decide to follow then you probably better run, just assume beasts are after you there is nothing to reason or think. Enter a building, yell for help, anything.

The goal is to ESCAPE. Teaching them a lesson, calling the cops everything comes next. The most unfortunate part of this is most men can't and won't think all this through in the heat of the moment and hence one must be mentally prepared with this course of action if need be. May you never need it.