In this TIME essay, Elliot Ackerman reflects on the 2015 Ankara bombing and the uneasy truth that safety is never absolute, but shaped by perception, circumstance, and the risks people learn to accept.

The Ankara Bombing

After two bombs struck a peace rally in Ankara, killing and injuring hundreds, Ackerman considers whether living with his young children in Turkey remains safe. Yet when he compares the attack with violence and disaster elsewhere, Turkey does not seem uniquely dangerous.

The Meaning of Relative Safety

Drawing on his military service in Iraq and Afghanistan, Ackerman recalls the idea of “relative safety,” the invisible boundary between danger and protection. In combat, staying low might mean survival. In civilian life, the same uncertainty persists, even when the risks are less visible.

Why Some Violence Feels More Threatening

The essay asks why terrorism can transform public perceptions of safety while familiar forms of violence, including mass shootings, war, and veteran suicide, often fade into the background. Predictable danger can create an illusion of control, while unfamiliar threats provoke fear.

Living With Uncertainty

Ackerman closes with an ordinary family moment in Istanbul, where his focus on distant security threats causes him to overlook a more immediate risk. The scene reinforces the essay’s central point: danger is often closest when attention is fixed elsewhere.

Read the Original Essay

Read “The Ankara Bombing Is a Reminder That Safety Is Relative” at TIME →