(02-15-2018, 08:03 PM)HandsomeRob86 Wrote:

(02-15-2018, 07:42 PM)DarloJAG84 Wrote: Believe me, I totally understand your argument. I'm grateful of the fact that break ins of this nature are few and far between where I live. Maybe I'm sheltered, maybe I'm boring but I hope that never changes.

Edit:

Further to that, a scary fact: Over here, if we have a firearms incident, we have to wait for a special unit from the police to attend as our regular officers do not carry firearms. This is a scenario in which your police have an upper hand on ours.

Unfortunately, as and when these incidents DO occur, the firearms unit may only be there for damage limitation. Especially if the incident is in a particularly rural patch. Incidents of this nature would require our regular police officers to hang back as they do not have the facility to intervene without disastrous consequences.

Hopefully that last paragraph will show people that I DO understand the argument for firearms, but it doesn't change my stance on it, again because this is an irregular occurrence.

Is it worth it to those who are murdered or raped in that 'irregular occurrence'? In the US, we get to make up our minds on whether we are sitting ducks or not. Some may still choose to be, cause the thought of planning for something like this is unpleasant, or for whatever reasons. People don't like planning for bad things, but that doesn't stop bad things from happening. You can go on youtube and listen to 911 calls from people whose house was broken into and they had no weapon. Its not pleasant, and it still happens.

But for your own sake, if someone ever breaks in, just run, without a gun, your chances of something really bad happening are very high. I hope it never does, but a baseball bat or a knife is not good protection.

I guess I'm lucky that a baseball bat or a knife.. or in my case a 5 iron (having said that, if I tried to hit someone with a golf club, I'd only shank it), would be up against a baseball bat or a knife and not a gun.

I work for the Ambulance Service, I know these things do happen and yes I agree that saying "at least it's an irregular occurrence" is not in any way comforting to a victim and or their families. In fact, saying that literally just tells those people that they are merely a statistic, and not a good one.

We have intelligence and tactics to try and combat these incidents without force, but would I attempt to be a hero without force? No way! Why? I have a wife, a 7 year old son and a baby girl on the way (due April).

I totally understand that my last sentence opens me up for you to say about the need for protection - young family etc etc.. I know my water pistol would do very little damage, unless the assailant is concerned for their appearance.. I've enjoyed this debate very much. It's weird to say that given the subject at hand, but it's really important, I think, to understand peoples reasons for things.. even if they don't change your own, at least they educate you (me) on where other people are coming from so thank you for engaging in this. People become very defensive over this subject and it's refreshing to have a clean discussion over it.

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