WHAT actual stats? Gathered by whom?
--Constance Warner
On Aug 11, 2009, at 12:47 PM, Mike wrote:
All the very logical sounding arguments fall away when measured
against actual stats. But the sure sound good.
Sent from my iPod
On Aug 11, 2009, at 9:39 AM, Constance Warner <cawar...@his.com>
wrote:
Well, yes. But what are you going to do when you're caught in the
crossfire when Biker Dude, Bus Driver Dude, and Grandma get in a
shootout with Armed Robbery Dude, when he tries to relieve them of
their wallets? Which is a stupid thing to do; all the advice I've
ever heard [from safety and law-enforcement sources] is to just
hand over your wallet to your attacker, on the theory that it's
better to lose your money than your life. [They also recommend
that you carry a dummy wallet for just such occasions, when
visiting questionable neighborhoods.]
I don't buy the whole intimidation via citizens-carrying-guns
thing. Street criminals are not noted for intelligence, sobriety,
and forethought. Will the mugger check you out all that
carefully--to see whether or not you have got a gun in a shoulder
holster, or in your waistband under your jacket, for example--
before demanding your wallet at gun-point? Once he jumps out from
behind the dumpster and points a gun at you, it's too late for
your firearm to do you any good. If you try to draw it, you're
dead. If Stupid Street Criminal discovers that you are armed, and
he's got a gun pointed at you, do you think he's just going to
take your money and leave you standing there, to shoot HIM as he
walks away? He's probably just smart enough to imagine what could
happen if he did THAT. Of course, you, as Mr. Lawful Citizen,
would then be on the hook for second-degree murder, which would
have decidedly unpleasant consequences; but I wouldn't count on
Stupid Street Criminal to think of that if he's got a gun pointed
at you.
And you'd better hope that gun-carrying Biker Dude, Bus Driver
Dude, and Grandma are sane, sober, anger-controlled, and at the
top of their psychological game 100% of the time. Likewise all
the other citizens who are going about their daily business armed,
as though they were living on the western frontier in 1880, or in
many places in the world today [such as Somalia] that do not have
the rule of law. [BTW, in such places, a firearm is not a
guarantee of safety. If Armed Robbery Dude, Evil Guerilla Dude,
or Army Death Squad Dude even SUSPECT that you are armed, they
will shoot first and ask questions later.]
--Constance Warner
On Aug 11, 2009, at 2:55 AM, Jeff Miles wrote:
I've known and feel safer around biker dudes then I ever do
around 14 year olds. So Tom's example was an apt one. However, if
I had a gun, grandma sitting next to me had a gun and the bus
driver had a gun, I'd feel more safe.
On Aug 9, 2009, at 1:57 PM, b_s-wilk wrote:
About a week ago I was in a quicktrip getting gas and a drink
before
work..it was probably 11.30 at night. In front of me was a guy
who clearly
was a biker, had the whole outfit on including what looked like
a nice 9mm
at his side. I felt decidedly safer with him there...who is
going to rob
the quickie mart while he's around?
He will. And then he'll rob you. Biker dude still makes you feel
safe?
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