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Victims Wanted
Err Travel · October 3, 2000

Here's the key to safe travel: victims.

For you and I to travel safely, we need victims.

We need victims? "Wait a minute, Riley," you may be saying to yourself. "Maybe you need victims so that you can peddle your books and workshops, but why in the world would I need victims?"

Well, you're right about the books and workshops. Half of my business is generated by people who have been victimized or have had close calls while traveling. (There's nothing like a gun barrel pressed into one's ribs to provide motivation.)

But you need victims too. A condition of safe travel is this: you are safe to the extent that more suitable victims can be found in your vicinity. A criminal who preys on travelers looks for two things when selecting his targets. He looks for people who are carrying lots of cash or property that can easily be fenced for cash, and he looks for people who pose little risk to him in pulling off his crime. If a felon can't find somebody who has more goodies and/or is more vulnerable to rob or steal from, then that increases your chances of falling into his sights.

The "best" victim for a criminal who targets travelers is a well-heeled mark who is paying scant attention to his surroundings. The good news for you is that there is an abundance of these yokels around. Better yet, many of them often advertise their wealth and their inattention.

Airports and hotel lobbies are filled with these victims-in-waiting. (Consequently these venues are also magnets for criminals-in-stalking.) The next time you are in an airport or hotel lobby, take a look around. You'll see people there who are displaying rolls of cash, decks of credit cards, and briefcases - often expensive briefcases - full of pricey electronic gizmos. And lots of these folks don't have a clue that low-lifes may be prowling.

If you exercise even a minimal amount of precaution in a busy airport or hotel, you are unlikely to be victimized. There are simply too many better targets from which criminals can choose. The risk to you rises when more suitable victims cannot be found - when you are one of the affluent, one of the few, but not one of the Marines. Now you're looking a whole lot more inviting to those with robbery or thievery on their agendas.

The cold fact of safe travel is this: Until there are no more criminals, there will be victims. And better that the next guy be a victim than you. You need victims.

Dr. Terry Riley is a psychologist and travel security authority. His column appears on Wednesdays. He is author of the popular book Travel Can Be Murder. Visit his site at http://www.appliedpsychology.com or e-mail him at terry@ticked.com.