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Originally Posted by Spexxvet
I thought that was our friend's truck and Noodle was stealing out of it. I would apologise, but Noodle shot me dead.
Taken to its logical conclusion, Noodle *has* to be willing to shoot the thug dead, right? (just ask Maggie) If they didn't run away, what would have happened? Let's see.... Noodle draws his gun. Perhaps one of the thugs has a gun and draws it - after all, he's a bad guy. Noodle shoot, killing him. Sure, it didn't happen that way, but it very well could have, and if you ask around the cellar, it often happens, and to some, it *should* happen.
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You don't shoot people until you know their intentions. Standing around my truck and trying to bracket me in is threatening, but not immediately life-threatening. Yes, I would have shot them if my life had been in danger. Luckily, the presence of a firearm discouraged them from making the decision to continue their plan. I wasn't anything special to them, just a target of opportunity. When the potential cost of robbing me became too great, they moved on. Thieves are lazy.
You ask, what if they had a gun? There's no way to answer that in one sentence. The outcome would differ depending on several tactical and practical (rhyme unintended) considerations: If I see a weapon out already, there's no need to walk into the situation. The cost of replacing my truck and its contents is far less than the cost of exchanging bullets in a parking lot. If I don't know that he's armed, but he pulls a gun from concealment when they approach from 10 feet away, it's too late to extricate myself from the situation. I'd yell "DROP IT NOW" and he would have about .5 second to comply. At that point, a victim should no longer be concerned for the welfare of his or her attacker. He has already demonstrated the willingness to use a gun on you to commit a crime, so any hesitation on your part from that point on constitutes suicide.
If you have been properly trained (and there are many many civilian firearms safety and self-defense courses that do the job marvelously), you have the upper hand in any encounter of that kind. You're not just walking around with a gun, reacting violently to any perceived threat. You should practice situational awareness during every waking moment, whether or not you ever own a gun. Any instructor worth his or her salt will tell you that this awareness is your first line of defense, always. You should hold your head up and look people in the eye when you walk past them (with a smile of course). Victims are often unaware of danger because their eyes are on the ground in front of their feet. They're often selected for that very reason -- they don't give off an aura of confidence and strength, and they are easy to sneak up on. You should briefly catalogue everyone you see: their location, direction, speed, demeanor, what they're wearing, whether they are talking. As soon as you walk into a room, you should note the exits. This isn't paranoia or some kind of pseudo-militaristic behavior. This is the kind of awareness that all animals have, and the kind that humans
used to have, before we started queueing up for Starbucks, avoiding eye contact in the elevator, and basically becoming more like cattle than men and women. Once you've practiced it, it becomes automatic and runs completely in the background. You will defuse many, many situations before they ever become dangerous because your senses will guide you away from things or people that don't look right.
When something like my little encounter occurs, you should already know where cover and concealment is, what is behind the target (your attacker, presumably), and if there are multiple targets, which one presents the greater threat and will thus be the first one to engage. You will have a much better idea of whether to run or to stay and fight. If and when you draw a weapon, it will be for a damn good reason, and you will have a far greater ability to control the outcome. You will know that there is absolutely no justification for any kind of fancy wannabe trick shooting. You are going to get tunnel vision, your heart will be racing, and you will in no way be able to pull off some kind of Hollywood "shoot the gun out of his hand" bullshit. You will be lucky to hold it together enough to put the front sight on the center mass and squeeze off a round without jerking the barrel of the gun off target.
There's more to it than what I've haphazardly described here, but the point is, the general perception of guns and what gun owners represent is totally inaccurate. Most of us are extremely serious about the responsibility that comes with owning a firearm, and are always mindful of the potential consequences of a mistake. I wish more people would take advantage of the training that's available. One of the last classes I took was split about 50/50 genderwise, and the ages ranged from 25 to 70. It was a good feeling to know at the end of the course that 10 more citizens were that much better equipped to keep themselves and those around them safe, whether or not they had a gun.