Candle light vigil for....nope, sorry, thanks for playing.

Historical Fact T.R Doesn't Want to Address =/= "strawman."

And that's why no kid's ever picked up a gun and shot him/herself or anyone else.

There's a difference between acting in self-defense and shooting a fleeing woman. But I think people have pointed that out already.

I think for the most part you are confusing self-justice with self-defense. The 80 year old back-shooting is an anomoly. Most violent intruders are shot very much in the act of committing their crimes, not fleeing.
Hitting moving targets is diffcult and dangerous, because you aren't sure of what's behind the target if you miss.
Most shooters won't take them unless it's absolutely neccessary.
As far as "trained professionals" the gun owner who practices a lot (most do) can shoot just as fast effectively as the average policeman. And we already said police cannot be everywhere.

Being a "trained professional" isn't just about knowing how to use your gun. It's about knowing how to de-escalate dangerous situations, it's about knowing the law, it's about knowing how to deal with the stress of a dangerous situation... and so on.

See the problem?

Not to mention, one of Wordforge's responsible gun owners (and I believe that he is) specifically mentioned having a night table gun in another thread. But nobody does that.

Not to some people here...

A lot of us old timers grew up with guns, as did every generation before us. When we were taught firearms safety and we took it to heart and didn't fuck around with them. We had respect for guns because many of us saw up close and personal (versus TV/movies) what they can do. It's when guns are mysterious, unknown and taboo that kids tend to get stupid with them. So as our population becomes more urbanized the average law-abiding sane kid won't get exposed to guns. Wide open spaces aren't as common as they used to be, so shooting a gun safely can be a real ordeal. Getting kids out off the house at all can be a real ordeal. I honestly don't know any males over the age of 14 or so who haven't shot guns, and I don't even live in the country, so Georgia is ahead of the game on that.
Oh, you're laughing because kids are shooting kids everyday in Georgia? Those are for the most part in urban centers in fatherless homes - that kind of skews the data.

No.When it comes to protection in my own home I'd rather keep government out of it.

And why do you keep bringing up batman? I'm not advocating citizens putting on a costume and chasing down criminals across the city. I'm talking protection in your own home.

Also your knowledge of superheroes is amost as bad as your understanding of gun owners.Batman doesn't use guns and doesn't take human life. If you're going to use superheroes as a straw man at least use one that fits.

And also doesn't have super powers, and yet somehow manages to survive in Gotham. How about that?

This goes back to the militarization of the police force. It's actually one thing I see as a good result of that, the potential for police to realize that reaching out to the community rather than holding them at arm's length might yield better results.

I'm sure someone with recent overseas military experience could comment more eloquently on the subject.

Yeah it would be great if we were all filthy rich millionaires who could afford the latest high tech equipment and be experts in the martial arts. But since we are not and have to deal in realities I guess we have to leave that fantasy in Gotham city.

Geez..its almost like dealing with the trek nerds who always ask "why can't humanity be like Star Trek."

And cops do? Don't Liberals shit kittens everytime a cop harms someone?

Welcome to several posts ago. I'm sorry the conversation is developing too fast for you.

A lot of cops do their job badly. Hell, maybe even most do. Something should be done about that. Still, that doesn't change the fact that the average cop does his job a hell of a lot better than the average or even exceptional random schmuck with a gun could.

I think Anc left "the sandbox" after I did, plus he interacted very much with at least some of the people there.
My job was different, I rarely had that chance.

Anyway reaching out to the community is tough in a place like Newark for example, where a large percentage of the population are constant "kill all pigs" mode. The best thing that happened to Augusta is getting a black sherriff. No "Blazing Saddles" jokes please. If most of the crime is committed by blacks, it makes sense to get someone who just might be able to interact easier with them. The guy is doing a good job so far. He's a corrupt womanizer but so was Bill Clinton, and IMO Bill was okay.

I will admit that for the most part the cop faces a lot more danger than the random schmuck!
I know a couple of cops - and both are in a strong "kill all pigs" county. They get assaulted a lot on and off the job. They get robbed a lot, police cars vandalized, etc.
They basically might as well paint a bullseye on their backs unless they police the middle of Wyoming or something these days.

So cops get a pass but home owners don't? Gotcha.

Much better to entertain the fantasy that your dependence on guns makes you stronger than people who don't own guns.

And I agree it was a bad shoot in this case. But you seem to be suggesting people wait for the police to show up in all cases, which just ain't practical.

If it was me, I was probably speaking figuratively. It ain't "right there on the nightstand" as Tandalou said.

Have you ever heard the term "pussy foot?" Do you think this is referring in some way to genitalia? I'm genuinely curious.

And yet none of that precludes defending one's self from an attack.

Defending yourself from getting your ass kicked has nothing to do with justice. Justice is what happens after the fact, as in, the authorities must suss out who did what and who is liable. But as in the example given, a kid defending themselves from a bully who is physically assaulting them in order to steal from them has nothing to do with justice or being a vigilante. Honestly, I don't see how anyone could think that. It isn't about justice - it's about not getting your ass kicked and/or your money stolen.

Guess that rules the vast majority of cops out then.

Have you ever heard the term "pussy foot?" Do you think this is referring in some way to genitalia? I'm genuinely curious. Captain X

Hey! Birth defects are no joking matter you know.
Seriously cats sure can get around using SERIOUS stealth, even when kittens. Puppies are in that clumsy, loud, knocking shit over phase for a long time compared to kittens. One of my hunting bows is a Tigercat model.
What a kickass name for a bow! I'm deeply in love with it - fast, quiet and accurate, just like a cat and/or tiger.

Nah, wasn't you, but I agree the guy who said it may have been speaking figuratively.

I'd rather we trained cops to do these sorts of things.

So the NYPD didnt kill that guy, they "de-escalated" him!

Are you ever going to figure out how to use the quote function?

"He's calm now, ain't he?"