You can be a victim of crime anywhere, at home or abroad. You can reduce your chances of being a victim of theft by knowing your surroundings and being familiar with the tricks would-be criminals play. For example, when a stranger in Italy tries to shove a baby into your arms, don’t take it. You are about to have your purse stolen. If you are on a crowded train in Rome, watch the locals. They know who the pickpockets are, and they will warn you and point them out.
One thing you cannot protect yourself against is a mass shooting. They happen in places where you should feel safe: schools, stores, festivals that have good security like metal detectors and chain link fences. And how much damage a shooter can inflict with an automatic weapon. What chance does a citizen carrying a handgun have against an AK-47? Mass casualties.
Mass shootings seldom happen in Europe. Yes, terrorists have shot up Christmas markets in Germany, or a theater in Paris, or they have driven trucks into crowds in Nice or London, but those events are rare.
Mass shootings are now commonplace in the United States. I am so sick of flags at half staff, empty “thoughts and prayers”, Congressional and state lawmakers in committees who block even a discussion about common sense gun safety measures, citizens and lobbyists wrapping themselves around the cloak of the Second Amendment, twisting the words and intent of that amendment for their own purposes.
I am very happy to be in Europe right now. There are no Walmarts here, no garlic festivals. I am not afraid to walk into a large department store, wondering if I am going to be able to walk out again.
How long?
ITALY, GERMANY, AND MORE! 
A newscast showed people running for their lives in Times Square when a vehicle backfired and doing the same in a mall somewhere in the U.S. when a sign fell with a big bang. Yes, people here are on edge. Surely, this time, something will get done. Oh wait, too soon.
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