Guns- do I need one?

[Synopsis]

Originally Posted by TheComputerGuy

It's more likely that you mean hollow-point ammo...
Armor piercing ammo is not a good choice for a defensive round...
Too likely to penetrate your target and hurt an innocent bystander.

It is also less likely to produce the desired 1-shot stop
because it creates a smaller wound channel.

Very, very true. Armor piercing ammo would do the least damage to a human target. Don't mess with CG.

[TU 'cane]

Originally Posted by TheComputerGuy

Not at all...
That's very common where I came from in NH.

Ah, well then. It's more common than I thought.

[DogLover99]

Hello everyone, DogLover's Hubby here.. I was asked to clarify some some "techie stuff" about her "friend Mack".

Let me preface by saying I grew up on a farm in NC and was given my first weapon at 6 (a Revelation .410 single-shot, which I still have). I spent 3 years in the US army as a military policeman (airborne), then 6 years in civilian law enforcement. I'm familiar with guns.

I used to be a "gun snob", meaning if it wasn't a Sig, a Glock, or *maybe* a S&W xxx06 series, I'd treat it like a date with a ugly chick.. probably fun to mess around with, but you didn't want your friends to see you doing it.

I wouldn't call myself a "gun nut". I own a few, but most of them haven't been fired in so long I'd be afraid to. I own a .410 I mentioned earlier than needs re-blueing in a bad way, I own a 12 ga Winchester Defender with a pistol grip that I carried in my patrol car in 1990. I own a S&W model 66 .357 revolver that was my dad's service revolver. I own a Remmington 12 ga automatic that I gave my dad as a gift a few years before he died, and there are about other POS 6 guns in the house that belong to my brother. I am holding those as collateral until he repays me about $4K he owes me, which means until the end of time.

My "toting" gun is a Taurus Millenium PT Pro .45 with a 10+1 capacity in a frame the size of my palm. It's small but heavy and if I can't get myself out of a situation with 10 rounds of .45 hydrostatic shock hollowpoints, it's my time to go.

I'm also not a guy you'd want to just walk up and grab, because I can probably break at least 2 bones before you bounce.... the first time. I spend a lot of time in the gym and have a pretty decent mastery of some Chinese styles we'll just lump under the generic heading of kung-fu (which is a total misnomer, but not relevant to the topic).

But I absolutely hate the idea of having to hurt someone, it's part of the reason I ultimately left law enforcement (and went into IT security). I am apparently what is known as a "jacka$$ magnet"... they flock to me for some odd reason..so if I stayed in it I was going to wind up having to kill someone.

Since courts have repeatedly ruled that the police have no responsibility to prevent a crime from happening to you, you'd better be physically prepared to defend yourself, or mentally prepared to be a victim. I am nobody's victim, nor will my wife be one.. so she's armed. If I am murdered it will be "with my boots on" so to speak, and the odds are pretty decent I won't be dying alone.

Having been the one to teach her to shoot (I use point shooting techniques and can consistantly hit a pie pan at 30 yards as long as you want to pay for ammo.. but my .45 is about $2 per pull.. sheesh) I know what will work for her (and she complains about the weight of my pistol, which does not have a name).

She's carrying a Taurus .38 snub-nosed revolver with a 5-shot cylinder. It's loaded with Winchester hydroshock hollowpoints because if she is ever in a gunfight it will be at a range of less than 15' and she'll put 2 in his chest and one in his forehead. If she doesn't like him she'll follow-up with a crotch shot, but that's a different debate.

I've been in a couple of firefights and more than my share of physical brawls, especially making arrests. It comes down to this: If you go looking for trouble you are going to find it. If you walk around using "Or else" language you'd better have some "or else" to back it up. The state maintains that it has a monoply on violence and anytime you violate that monoply they are going to see if it was under their licensing agreement and "terms and conditions". If not, you will lose your freedom, or maybe even your life. At the least, you'll go broke paying a lawyer.

Pulling a gun on most people does not scare them, it p*sses them off. If you grab me I am going to kick your butt. If you put me in fear for my life I am going to try to back away and let you live (unless the circumstances require me to double-tap your center-mass), but if you mistake that for cowardice and keep coming, you're going to die.

Anytime you let your testosterone start raging, always have an idea where the deadly force threshold is and stay away from it if you are the aggressor. Your widow might sue me, but that'll do your dead a$$ very little good.

Here are a few rules for a long, happy life that should serve you well:

Do not close both eyes where you are not the top of the food chain.
Don't bet your life against the laws of physics.
Don't humiliate someone you have to sleep in the same house with.
Don't gamble with someone who has the same name as a place (i.e. Detroit Dan)
Never start a sentence with, "Hey guys, hold my beer and watch this".
Don't let your mouth write bad checks on your a$$.

[Les Pharis]

Good one!