Iamwhomiam wrote:So, have you ever been suddenly confronted by an individual pointing a firearm at you or needed to defend yourself while under fire?
If you haven't, don't count on your firearm safety training or target practice shooting abilities to keep your panties clean when and if you do.
Wielding a weapon and confronting an armed intruder certainly raises the ante that you will be shot by someone who meant you no physical harm, but only wanted your stuff. Losing your stuff is way better than losing your life. Especially with this new invention called insurance. You should look into that. Very comforting stuff.
Ask your little girl which she would rather lose, her new tv or her dad.
An armed intruder, perhaps a kid who's reasoning abilities you know are screwed up - after all, he's broken into your home - and seeing you armed also puts fear into them and may unnecessarily force a violent exchange in which you may be shot dead or horribly maimed, right in front of your horrified wife and kid, who could now identify him, furthering the risk to them, whom your actions were meant to protect. Why take those odds when you could handle the situation differently?
Imagine the aftermath. Imagine your kid coping with that horror, a fatality, yours or theirs, the gunshots, the blood. That spot they will have to walk past everyday until doing so becomes so unbearable they'll need to move away.
You know, what you're willing to die for, defending your turf just so he can't get yer stuff, is pretty odd reasoning. Most criminals breaking into someone's home intends to do no personal harm, but is doing so because they feel they can somehow profit from it, perhaps by fencing your goods to get money to support their drug addiction or whatever. You want to kill them for that, well, that's your prerogative. You will make a forgettable experience unforgettable.
It is rare that an individual, a criminal, a burglar, kills a stranger while unprovoked.
It does happen on most rare occasions.
To answer your question, been there, done that. In a high crime area. And yes, I've had a gun stuck in my face and have been threatened with knives and clubs. All events ended without anyone being hurt or wounded. It's all in the approach.
You seem determined to miss the point of my post. Fear inserts unpredictability into any situation. You seem to think you are immune to fear, and that's sad and dangerous not only to yourself, but to the family you are so intent on protecting from some future imagined potential intruder.
I believe it's your right to own a firearm. I don't need one. I'm capable of defending myself from an armed individual without the use of a deadly weapon. I'm not at war with anyone, nor would I ever be.
I did answer your question when I said that I am a proponent of mandatory training and ongoing practice as part of responsible gun ownership. That component addresses the fear factor significantly. You will react according to how you are trained and practice, not in response to fear.
I have minimal concerns re. a well-trained and practiced gun owner reacting from fear, because I've seen how effective training is in gun ownership. You will react according to your training, not from the impulse of fear.
And yes, I've had guns pointed at my general direction several times. But that's only because I was once employed in a capacity where I had to carry a gun.
Speaking of unanswered questions.. do you have a family at home that you are responsible for protecting?
How you prefer to respond to an armed intruder, in your home, to protect your own life is one thing. But how you respond to protect the lives of innocent children is quite another.
You can only be willing to be a martyr with your own life. You have no right to chose that path for your children.
