By: Eva Luo
Many people have measures to protect themselves at home, such as security cameras, or motion sensors, yet still feel vulnerable. One word to describe this is paranoid. Tony Thurman, the owner and lead salesman at Shield Security Systems of Kansas City, has seen this multiple times.
Thurman’s business profits from the paranoia, but Thurman is concerned with the worry of safety. “I understand,” Thurman said. “It’s about peace of mind.”
Customers prioritize their safety very much, which leads them to spend money on security procedures. “I’d be willing to make a $5,000 to $10,000 investment,” Dan O’Dell, a customer of Thurman’s, said.
People fear burglars, gangs, kidnappers, and believe that the crime rate is rising, even though in some places, it has actually dropped. In a 2022 Gallup poll, 56% of Americans believe crime went up in their neighborhood, and nearly 80% of Americans believe crime went up in the U.S. last year. People’s beliefs often are influenced by politics and social media. Depending on which political party people support, they may see things differently. Biased news can change opinions even more.
Thurman doesn’t blame people for being scared. Another customer, Kelli Cox, was planning to build a pool in her backyard. She requested that before the pool would be built, they would install the security cameras. Her reason wasn’t that she disliked the workers, but because they were strangers in a world that reported things such as homicides and crimes almost every day.
“Parents today, we have so much more to be protective about,” said Cox, who is a mother of three. She used to let her daughter wander freely with her friends, but after hearing rumors of human traffickers in the area, she became worried, and the worry remained. Since then, Cox always keeps her children in sight, and bought a security system.
In neighborhoods, especially well-guarded ones, minorities have been suspects of crime. The paranoia has caused people to overreact sometimes. Two cheerleaders were shot in a supermarket parking lot after one got into the wrong car. An African American teenager was shot by an 84-year-old Caucasian man after ringing the wrong doorbell. Sometimes, people are attacked unjustly because of racial stereotypes, so how can people avoid this, while keeping ourselves safe at the same time?
Joe Howard, a referrer and customer of Thurman, is quite prepared, owning six guns, and runs a neighborhood watch page. He stated that if someone was to trespass, he would take aim, but not shoot unless that person tried to hurt him. “But the thing is,” Thurman said to Howard, “you are trained, rational, calm. I don’t know what percentage of the population is. But I know there is a percentage of the population who is …” “Itching to do it,” Howard interrupted.
“Oh my God, yes,” Thurman said. “Just looking for an excuse.”
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