Where are the armed pilots?

Hi Tom,
Your point is well taken, but in many ways does little to support an
argument for carrying a weapon. If a drugged-up assailant will not hesitate
to shoot an innocent person even in front of a police officer, what makes
you think the victim would have been in any better position had he had a
gun in his pocket?

I believe there are an inordinate number of variables, and it is difficult
to predict with any accuracy whether, for example, the bicyclist would have
been able to save himself from the robber if he had been carrying a weapon.
Just as the robber clearly didn't hesitate to shoot him dead, I suspect the
victim would have hesitated - whether to retrieve the weapon to defend
himself, or because of his own conscience and sober position.

Furthermore, your example of the Doctor who was able to kill his attacker
only because the attacker's gun misfired could be construed as evidence
that without this bit of luck, the Doctor would be dead instead of the
attacker - .22 pistol or not.

It is not a clear issue, and I still feel slightly safer without a gun in
my home. I would feel safer yet if the gun control laws in my state allowed
anyone but convicted criminals to own and carry concealed weapons, so long
as they were properly registered and properly secured.

Oh, and my point about sleeping with a gun was a bit of a dig at the OP who
indicated that without his wife's objection, he would take his gun to bed
with him...

Tom Pappano wrote in
.com:

Judah wrote:
Tom Pappano wrote in
:


Judah wrote:

snip
From my understanding, most 2-bit muggers are equally as afraid to
take a life as I am, unless faced with a barrel aimed back in their
direction...

Well, these days armed robbers frequently seem to be addicts seeking
quick cash. Drug use tends to affect judgement, so don't assume that
your mugger is standing there pondering the risks vs. benefits of
his actions. Just recently here, a young female robbed a bicyclist
in the middle of the afternoon in the presence of assorted bystanders.
After relieving him of his billfold she immediately shoots him dead.
She did this with a police officer just accross the street. The cop
runs over to arrest her, she draws on him and he shoots and kills her.
Not a lot deep thought processes occuring on her part.
In another recent case, a convenience store clerk was coldly murdered
after compliantly handing over what was in the till. The value of
his life apparently was less than $40. Also near here recently, a
young asshole with some "lingering issues" about his ex-wife murdered a
couple so that he could use their home as a base to stalk his ex.
After nearly killing her son and beating her mother, he goes into
hiding and a huge, costly and drawn out manhunt ensues. He eventually
gets away, and kidnaps an Arkansas doctor and his wife, forcing them
to drive him to Texas. The doctor eventually retrieves a small .22
pistol he kept in his van, and shoots the fugitive, wounding him.
The fugitive flees and is arrested after seeking medical treatment.
A tiny pistol carried by a "regular guy" going about his business
brought this whole mess to a close. The fugitive had tried to
kill the doctor and his wife, but amazingly, a defect prevented
the weapon from discharging. My point in all this? I guess
my point is that these days "fear" (other than fear of being killed
themselves) no longer seems to constrain the actions of many
criminals, and that the life of a victim essentially has a value of
zero.



But to me, going to sleep with a loaded gun under your pillow seems
extreme, and quite possibly more dangerous than beneficial...

I think this practice is is reserved for movies and television. Most
people realize this is not a safe thing to do.

Tom Pappano, PP-ASEL-IA

p.s. The City of Depew, OK presented the heroic doctor and his wife a
modest cash reward, and two new *larger calibre* pistols 8-)