I may just be naive (yeah probably am) but Ive never really felt threatened in any part of atlanta or any other city for that matter, I grew up in NJ so I was in NYC somewhat often, even during the 80s when the city was bad going as a kid i never was concerned nor did my parents seem to be. I'm not for violence I'd lose probably any fight I got in with someone under the age of 50 and probably many over the age of 50. From experience though even in normal confrontation, say a bar fight, all I have to do is step forward as if i would challenge someone and it ends. Most likely because everyone things I look angry all the time and probably a little crazy. That has happened many many times, my friends get a good laugh later because they know I'd have been handed my butt. But I rarely am ever concerned for my well being when just out and about, maybe i just come across as someone not to mess with so my idea of the risk is skewed??
I carry now more because I can then because I need to but I have actually found that since I started I do at times now notice that maybe I'm not getting a good vibe from an area. Maybe prior to carrying it was a "sheep" mentality of oh well nothing bad can happen to me but I have little to actually show me that something would have gone bad. Can't really argue statistics though such as in this case, assuming they are accurate and not sensationalized. There was a news report that something like 25% of Rutgers students have STDs years ago, this was all over the news everyone was going crazy yet they left out the critical part that it was 25% of students who went to health services because they thought they had an STD ended up having an STD. What is this 1 in 6 chances of being a victim of a crime really based on? When I lived in atlanta nothing happened to me, I move to Buford and my trailer gets stolen from my office and my jeep is broken into for my sirius at home. A car was stolen from my work parking lot (friend of landlord storing it there while she was in jail..) and a stolen van was left and stripped in the lot shortly after. My GF still lives in atlanta and she doesn't even lock her door. Based on my personal crime statistics I stand a better chance in ATL.