Barbara, 76, had fallen to the ground, and John, 75, would soon follow. The masked attacker had her purse.

The attacker could have simply left the scene, his prize in hand. Instead, police say, the attacker fired a bullet into Barbara Preidt.

She was dead when emergency crews arrived.

“He could have overpowered them with one arm tied behind his back,” Jamie Preidt said of the attack on his parents. “Why he shot her was completely senseless. He already had the purse, and he was going.

Full story. (h/t TTAG)

We’re always instructed to “just give them what they want”.

The mugger got what he wanted — the purse.

Then he took a little more.

They say to not fight back. This usually comes from Police Chief’s (i.e. the political wing of the PD, not the boots on the ground) and other people that believe they understand violent crime.

What about…

Rape.

Are women to give their rapist what they want?

Are women to not fight back?

Who are you to tell me what’s worth fighting for, and what’s worth dying for.  That’s a decision only I can make for myself.

Sure it might just be a couple bucks, but it might also be my life.

The problem is imparting our own standards and morals upon the attacker. WE would never hurt someone, or even if we did something ugly like stole from someone we’d never hurt them. We’d just take what we wanted and move on.

Isn’t it evident the attacker doesn’t share your standards and morals, because they are mugging, attacking, raping you in the first place? How then can they be expected to stop once they’ve gotten what they wanted?

Yes, it’s generally good mindset to know ahead of time where your lines are drawn. Yes, it’s good to ask yourself “is this worth dying for?”. Yes “beer & tv time” is important to consider.

Blanket statements like “don’t fight back” and “just give them what they want” don’t consider the realities of life and context.