The one and only time in my life that I have been mugged was on the Athens subway, in 1999, when I got "swarmed" by a gang of about 5 pickpockets. They were so good at what they did, that I wasn't even aware of what was happening until after it happened.
To be mugged is to be "attacked and robbbed in a public place."
Since you weren't aware of it until afterwards, you were not attacked or robbed, therefore you were not mugged. Someone stole from you. Theft is very different from robbery/mugging in this context because...
Even if I had been carrying a gun (which of course wasn't possible under the circumstances), it wouldn't have done me any good.
...it is not generally legal to use deadly force to prevent theft while it can be legal to use deadly force to prevent an attack or robbery depending on the circumstances.
...some are going to be used unjustifiably. The odds of unjustifiable use rise in tandem with the number being carried. That's why the trend of more carrying is worrisome.
Because not everyone is wise and not everyone is good, freedoms are sometimes misused. That doesn't make them worrisome, it's just a fact of life. The benefits of freedom generally outweigh their misuse, but in some cases, certain freedoms are considered so important that the law says that even if a simple balancing between the benefits of the freedom vs the negatives of the misuse is unfavorable, that still isn't justification for infringing on the freedom.
Anyway virtually anything can be misused.
- People misuse cellphones to distract themselves while driving. The more ubiquitous this technology is, the more likely it is that there will be accidents.
- People misuse the freedom of speech to spread misinformation, either intentionally or otherwise.
- People misuse alcohol and do ill-advised, dangerous, or criminal things.
- People misuse electronic devices to hack. The more widespread/inexpensive/easy to use this technology is, the more likely some people will use it for hacking.
- People misuse video technology to create child pornography. The more widespread/inexpensive/easy to use this technology is, the more likely it is that some will use it for child porn.
- People misuse cars by driving carelessly or recklessly.
- People misuse their right to privacy and their right to not be searched without a warrant to facilitate breaking the law in various ways.
- People misuse their right to move around in society generally unfettered to commit various crimes.
The list goes on.
We tolerate these things in spite of the fact that they can be misused because the perception is that the benefits outweigh the negatives. Maybe even because the freedom itself is considered so important that its existence and protection is sufficient reason, in and of itself, to justify accepting the negative results of its misuse.
But, there are certainly countries, states and societies where people who think that society is justified in proactively severely restricting rights that other societies consider to be important, basic human rights for one reason or another. It is to be hoped that people are able to match up their views on human rights with a governmental system that fits their view. There's certainly a broad range to choose from.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who, rather than choosing a government/country/state that fits their views, instead try to modify the system of government they find themselves in to restrict the rights of others to match their view of the ideal.
That is worrisome.