If you live in Akron and haven't heard of the above story then your name must be Rip Van Winkle. Friends of mine from Cleveland to Atlanta GA have been emailing me about it. The story, which is getting a lot of air time can be read at here. What prompted me to delve into this story is when I heard someone talking about it and they remarked "what was going through those kids heads?" ...kind of in your older generational tone.Well I know what was going through their heads, but before i get into that let me back things up a few years. Awhile back I did some consulting in business continuity for a firm that anticipated a significant rise in crime if there was a major disruption in the surrounding metropolitan infrastructure (utilities, law enforcement, food supply, etc). One of the concerns with this was the possibility of a rioting mob. Things I had to consider were how to securing the buildings, target hardening, and area denial. When I start thinking about how to defuse or dissolve a hostile situation I instantly try to get into the mind of my opponent by studying their OODA Loop - this is the decision making process that everybody goes through in milliseconds. If you get into a persons decision making process you are then essentially running circles around them. From there you could look into Sun Tzu maxim on "knowing yourself and knowing your enemy" for starting to understand what drives and motivates your enemies. This lead me to do some more research into mob psychology just so I could get a baseline for understanding how to diffuse or dissolve a mob. I had to think like them first!
Some of the things I discovered about mobs is that when people begin to associate collectively (gang up) they undergo a transformation in that they view themselves as powerful, they are not responsible individually, and that their actions are right irregardless of their individual beliefs. Often people will display a temporary psychosis and do things that they would otherwise never do on their own. As a friend of mine who did some considerable amount of Urban Warfare training courtesy of Uncle Sam's Misguided Children would often say (without the colorful expletives) "when the head count goes up, the overall IQ of the group goes down". While that may not be correct at a chess match it does ring true with a street mob; who will allow a sort of group think to run the show. The insidious part of a mob's psychology is that it can also be directed (dare i say aimed) by only a small number of ringleaders. In the case of the Marshall family they were in serious trouble and they are lucky to be alive.
So how do you diffuse a mob? Let's just say that's CLASSIFIED. But what you might want to really know how to do is how do you survive a mob/ riot. Fortunately that information is readily available. At wikihow they have some pretty good ideas to keep you safe:
- Be prepared. If you know an area is ripe for a riot but you can't avoid traveling there, take some simple precautions to help protect yourself. Wear clothes that minimize the amount of exposed skin--long pants and long-sleeve shirts, for instance--when going out, and think about your possible escape routes and safe havens before anything actually happens. Carry some cash with you in case you need to quickly arrange transportation, pay off looters, or bribe police at a checkpoint. If you're traveling abroad, register with your country's consulate and carry your passport and/or visa with you at all times.
- 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.
- Get inside and stay inside. Typically riots occur in the streets or elsewhere outside. Being inside, especially in a large, sturdy structure, can be your best protection to weather the storm. Keep doors and windows locked, avoid watching the riot from windows or balconies, and try to move to inside rooms, where the danger of being hit by stones or bullets is minimized. Try to find at least two possible exits in case you need to evacuate the building in a hurry. Try to contact police or your country's consulate to let them know where you are, and be on the lookout for signs of fire. If the building is set on fire get out quickly. If rioters are targeting the building and gain entry, try to sneak out or hide.
- 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. Stay close to walls or other protective barriers if possible.
- Avoid being hit by riot control chemicals. Police may deploy riot control agents (tear gas, for example) to disperse a crowd. These chemicals can cause severe pain, respiratory distress, and blindness. Try to stay away from the front lines of a riot, and learn to recognize the signs that a riot control agent has been used and how to handle exposure.
- Move away from the riot. 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.
- Think of crowd movement like currents in the ocean. In a large riot, the crowd in the middle will be moving faster than the people on the perimeters. As such, if you find yourself in the middle, you should not try to move in a different direction, but follow the flow and slowly make your way to the outside. This requires patience in order to work properly.
- Avoid major roads. Major roads, squares, and other high traffic areas are likely to be crowded with rioters. If possible, stick to less-traveled side streets to avoid the mobs.
- Avoid public transportation. Buses, subways, and trains will likely be out of service, and stations and depots will probably be packed with people. Even if you succeed in getting on a train or bus, rioters may stop it. Subway stations are particularly bad places to be, both because they are generally difficult to escape and because riot control agents are generally heavier than air and may drift down into subway stations and accumulate there.
- Don't stop your car. If you're lucky enough to have a car that you can drive away from the riot, drive quickly and try not to stop for anything until you've reached someplace you know is safe. If people seem to block your escape route; honk your horn, and carefully drive through or around them at a moderate speed, and they should get out of the way.
- Driving towards Police lines can be interpreted by the Police as a preparation to use the car as a weapon against them. Police are trained and prepared to protect themselves against deadly threats meaning that you may be shot at if they think you are going to run them down with a car.
- Activist fear of cars can be a reality as there have been numerous cases of irate non-participants running down protesters. Any pushing though the crowd should be done with the demeanor of patience, aggression may lead to an attempt to disable your car before it is used as a weapon.
- Get to a safe place, and stay put. Choose a safe haven carefully. Sometimes it can be as close as your hotel room, but other times you'll need to get out of the country entirely. If you're abroad, you will generally want to head to your country's embassy or the airport. Try to contact the embassy before going there, however, to let them know you're coming and to find out if it is safe to go there. If a mob is gathered outside, embassy staff may be able to direct you to a safer place. In any case, just try to put as much distance as possible between yourself and the riot.
Stay Safe!
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