Do you feel safer in a crowd, or away from a crowd?

Aside from the pandemic, before the deadly virus, did you feel safer in a crowd or outside of the crowd?

As a child, I thought being surrounded by people was safer. I'd be safer from whatever dangers lurked around.

I think I slowly learned better. I should have learned faster. 

By age 40, I think most men feel much safer alone than in a crowd. Not sure about women. They are supposed to be protected, but aren't always protected.

I thought of this when my older brother, recently retired, and even more concerned about the virus than I am, and that's a lot, looked to buy a home in Louisville.

I look to buy one in God's country, and I am not telling you heathens where that is. I don't need your all poison around my relatives. I want them to have the life I could not have, away from all you creatures and your evil angels.

But my older brother insisted on getting a condo in Louisville. It was his dream. When he finally got one, it was "tucked away" between other units, and had a "safe in the crowd" look to it. It's nice, don't get me wrong, but it's totally the opposite of what I would want.

He is in a quandary. No, not a quarry. There aren't rocks around him. He's in a quandary. He naturally feels safe in crowds, but the pandemic makes him want to veer away from crowds. Like me, he orders stuff delivered. We both wear masks, we both social distance.

But for him, social distance is a new animal. It's almost totally the same life style for me. I never liked crowds. I find dirt trails in distant parks to jog and hike on, and rarely see people. True, if a grizzly ever came to southern Indiana, I'd be on the hot seat, and that does happen, and will happen more often. 

But I have had poor History with crowds. Being healthy looking, lean, and Caucasian, I'm the most "expendable" phenotype in crowd mores. Also, being an "outsider", with no relatives in Kentucky (only three other relatives of mine were born in Kentucky), and not being in a mob family, I am usually the "only" expendable person to vilify for no reason, and that does happen. Crowds in the U.S. are mobs, as well I have learned. You get blamed for incredibly insane stuff, none of which you did, almost none of which you could possibly have done, because Western culture trains us to hate. These people in crowds look for someone to form a lynch mob against, someone to blame for everything.

I could go on. Point is, I feel much safer away from crowds. I have no idea why my brother feels safe in a crowd. I know he suffered the same persecution, but seemed to find better pals to hang with. Also, being the oldest, he was given a "pass" in social situations that younger siblings could never be afforded.


As a rule, people who feel safer in crowds are either:
1. Too young and naive to know better 
or 
2. Insiders, such as members of local mob families or protected groups. That isn't always something to aspire to. If you have an obvious physical handicap, you get some protection, though not in emergency situations, but it isn't worth it. If you're a member of a local clique family, you are spoiled, though, and think a crowd is great.


If not for the virus, would you feel safer in a crowd? Or outside a crowd?