Thread: How would you react if...

Great read and great thread first of all...yes, I'm a fellow gun nut and accuracy advocate. Sounds like an awesome experiment to test your "true grit". I'm sure it would be eye opening. I always try to stay mentally prepared, but the mind goes lax if you don't keep sharp intentionally. I have noticed in the past 3-5 years that it has become more and more dangerous to travel in the U.S. I've now come to the point that I will NOT travel to a State that is not firearm friendly due to several situations that I have been in with my wife in these past couple years. One vacation situation in particular I had left my CCW at the hotel due to the salty air/heat/sweat causing it to rust within hours (Taurus 1911, great shooter, but needs some sort of coating before returning to my CCW). We were on the beach in southern Texas and was confronted by a person who was obviously "speeding" at about 2am. I bluffed my way out of the situation, but if he had decided to call my bluff... I have "what-if'ed" that situation many times and simply will not go unarmed. I have since purchased a "baby glock" in 9mm for my CCW and now understand why so many swear by them. It is the most accurate small pistol that I own. I want the same pistol in .357 sig.

I agree with your "moral of the story", more people should run drills on how to handle car jackings & home invasions. I can't remember the exact movie, but it had John Trivolta in it: Chance favors the prepared mind.

I would like to be able to say that I would do everything right. But I have just enough training (very little) to realise that when the sh!t hit the fan I would freeze. It's just a question of for how long. After that I know I would have to cope with things like massive adrenilin rush, tunnel vision and other sensory depravation. On top of all that is my god awful aim. All this tells me that a weapon for my self defence is not going to do much good.

Originally Posted by JMS

No one can answer this question with any certainty unless they have been under fire before.

Gospel truth right here. I find it funny how many people talk a good game and have never been in this situation. 1 trip to Afghanistan and 1 trip to Iraq taught me that.

ndw76, honesty is a virtue. Practice is the only way to etch into your brain how to react in such a situation. In most instances, getting out is the best situation anyway. Most all training is to get to cover first if at all possible, you'll then have time (hopefully) to assess what the heck is going on & how do i get out of it. Having and knowing how to use a firearm just increases your odds on getting out of the situation.

Before the grandson reached the curious stage, stashing firearms around the house in different rooms wasn't a problem, but now it is. We have all been educating him the difference in real and play guns, and I have taken him out with me to see how "dangerous" a real gun is & to respect them. Still, he's a curious boy & I can't just stash one in each room within easy reach of say the sofa in the living room. Anyone have suggestions? Locked boxes aren't the answer IMO, I have safes for that...

In the second scenario, if the rest of the house was dark, the first thing I would have done is turn the light off, you don't want to go silhouetting yourself for the assailant. And my house is confined enough that I would be reaching for my knife, not a gun.

I wish it was easier to get a firearms licence here in Australia, I envy you US shooters.

Funny you mentioning reaching for a knife...I have a sword rack over my computer, just wasn't going to mention it. The one one the top has no "war" meaning...it's a polishing project. Time allowing, I do have two safes of goodies that are very shooter friendly in this room as well.

I taught this back in the early 80's in Denver for some of the DPD....
Stats say that we have started to grow lax in our instinctual Fight/Flight reflexes...
About 80% of Americans will freeze given an unexpected stimulus, about 17% will run and 3% will react to the threat... Training improves those numbers...
We were only trying at that time to get the officers to at least try for cover and reach for their weapon. Even if that meant they tucked down into a crouch and they covered their weapon with their hand we considered that a pass...

Honestly until you have been shot at in an unexpected situation you just don't know how you will react, you can try and train for it, and hope to God your body takes over when your brain freezes...

Also those of you that are Military and LEO's, how you are while in uniform is different then how you are in your down time...In uniform you are more ready, you are in at least Condition Yellow at all times... Sometimes, it can actually be harder for you to go from Condition Green to Condition Red then it can for a true civilian... Remember Condition Red just means react that could just be to RUN !!!!

One of the biggest things I teach in Rape/Street Defense classes is DO NOT be afraid to RUN AWAY!!!! To many times our brain talks our instincts out of reacting, trust those neck hairs, if it feels like a threat it probably is...

Interesting reading guys.I just have a question, is the situation in the US really as bad as you guys describe? I meen a lot of you being somewhat gun nuts and all..Its just hard to imagine for an innocent norwegian what its like to live a place where you need firearms to keep your family safe..

BTW if you shot a criminal scumbag that entered your home in my country, even if he was armed, you would get several years in prison.
Hmmm, maby my country isn't so much better after all




Kristoffer

Perspective is key Kristoffer. From my point of view of course.

I've lived in the US shortly before (bay area) and visited many times (a lot to upstate NY as well) and will be moving there again in a few weeks. I get the feeling some people view the right to bear arms as the duty to bear arms.

The place in general is not unsafe, it's as good or bad as you'd feel in many European destinations. Of course you wouldn't want to go to specific areas, but that's the same in some bad neighbourhoods here too.

All that said, I do have an interest in firearms and would like to take the opportunity of living in the US to properly learn firing guns, get good instruction and the whole deal. I will need to read into gun law though, from what I saw CA laws won't allow non-immigrant aliens to own a gun. So that means waiting for the greencard to come through I guess, if that happens.

Things are maybe different in a big world than we have here in Scandinavia.

I have to handle and practise various kinds of weapons, guns and ammo stuff at my work. Have also my own personal Glock 17 stored in my work area. However i wouldn't ever even dream of taking guns at home.

We have bad places to go here also, but i've never felt that i needed a gun or any kind of weapon to get out of the situation.

Or maybe this is just sort of the bird's nest.