Options for Back-Up

Just a quick entry today... 

Occasionally people will ask me why they need SOS LINK if they could just call 911.  Let me be clear - there is absolutely a role for 911 - but just not in every situation. 

Recently, a friend was involved in an altercation with a driver with road rage. He followed her, was swearing at her, threatening her.... so she called 911. This gentleman lived on her street and she was fearful. What did they say at 911? Nothing. They told her this was not an emergency. He actually had to cause some harm first. 

This really got me thinking about our idea of "emergency response" and what "help" looks like. 

 

Now, not to put down those who man the phones at our 911 response centers, but here are a few questions...When was the last time you called them? If you can remember - let me ask you this:

1. How many questions did you need to answer before you were connected to the help you were looking for?
2. Have you ever been told that the reason you were calling was not an emergency?

Well, I have called before, and told that my situation was not emergent enough. I have called and been told that police would be right over - when it took over 8 hours to respond. But sometimes I just feel like I need a little extra help - like, my Dad, for example. Hence, the need for SOS LINK.

My 31 year old friend claimed that she just wanted a little back up with that driver with road rage - maybe not police - but she felt she needed someone.  Would that driver have backed down if he knew that his picture was being taken? Possibly. Deterrents are powerful tools....

All I am saying is that it is nice to have options - even in an uncomfortable situation. Police? Friends? Family? Both? Well, you can have both. Yay for that.

90 seconds... is all the time you need to LEARN about SOS LINK!

Hello Friends,

I apologize - it has been awhile since my last post. We've been busy here at SOS LINK, getting ready to launch new products and working on all sorts of new things to show you. It has been a really exciting spring!

Our mission here at SOS LINK is to promote personal safety. We believe in our products and know that our apps will have an incredible impact in the community. We are confident that our range of SOS LINK apps will not only be able to identify perpetrators, but will ultimately work to PREVENT acts of violence or aggression. So, of course, we want to spread the news!

And thus a BIG update for you... 

We've got some new videos about our product up on YouTube! Actually, we have our own channel now! Check out www.youtube.com/soslinkcom to see our videos and learn a little more about us. In 90 seconds, you will learn more about how you, and your loved ones, can use SOS LINK to stay safe. 

When you have watched our videos, I hope that you will send the link to the videos to all of your friends, your friends' parents, your colleagues, your family, the parents of your children's friends, your child's school teacher... you get the drift. We want to do what we can to let people know about these smart, simple and safe apps that people can use to help keep themselves safe.

As always, be sure to keep checking www.soslink.com for product updates and for information about how to get our apps.

Our "Spidey Senses" & The Seattle Tunnel Beating

We were all shocked and disgusted by the “tunnel beating” that happened in Seattle on January 28, 2010. Video released showed a 15 year old girl being beaten in a subway station while others stood by and watched.  

The girl reported that there had been a confrontation earlier, and that she felt that she was in danger prior to the beating. The victim stated that she had approached police officers and transit officers prior to the attack, but that her reports of feeling threatened were not taken seriously. What might have happened to the 15 year old, if she had been able to alert her family that she was in trouble? How might the outcome have changed? We can't say with any certainty that the violence would have stopped, but she would have been able to immediately alert her family and summon support. In her case, this might have made quite a difference. This is the kind of information that parents want to have - they want to know when their kids are in trouble... 


Preventable?

Unfortunately, the situation described above is not an isolated incident. A few recent stats:

• In 2005, 7.4% of youths ages 12-17 reported that, in at least one instance, they had attacked others with intent to seriously hurt them. (2005 SAMHSA National Survey on Drug Use and Health)
• Nationwide, 18.5% of high school students had carried a weapon (gun, knife, or club) one or more days in the last 30 days. The prevalence of having carried a weapon was higher among male (29.8%) than female (7.1%) students. (2005 CDC Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance)

Implications
So, youth violence is a real issue and, as we've seen above, not all youth are able to effectively advocate for themselves and they are not always taken seriously. Technology won't change social stigmas, nor will it prevent all violence. But it is clearly another tool to have in the toolbox - for both youth and their parents - to help keep kids safe.