----- Original Message -----
From: "J. van Baardwijk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Saturday, March 17, 2001 4:37 AM
Subject: Re: gun safety L3
> At 03:15 15-3-01 -0600, Ronn Blankenship wrote:
>
> >Then what method do you recommend that the safety-conscious, law-abiding
> >homeowner have ready to defend his home and the lives of his family
> >members from an intruder armed with a potentially lethal weapon (gun,
> >knife, crowbar, etc.)?
>
> Let me start by kicking in an open door:
>
> The best defence is making it too difficult for a burglar to get into your
> house in the first place. There are a few things burglars don't like: good
> locks, sound and lights.
All good ideas!
>You can make your house quite safe when you put
> good locks on your doors and windows, and install an alarm system that
lets
> lights go on inside and outside your house (think "floodlights") and
> produces a lot of noise (think "siren"). The local police can usually give
> you advice on which locks and alarm systems to install.
Most people cannot afford alarms, those that can often find they can afford
firearms for those just in case situations.
>
> Having a large dog in the house may be quite useful, too.
If you can afford or are allowed to own a large dog. But many poor folk do
this.
>
> What if you keep a gun in the house anyway? A safety-conscious gun owner
> will store his gun unloaded, and keep the ammo in an other room. When
> someone breaks in, do you really think you can get out of bed, get your
> gun, then get your ammo and load the gun without the burglar noticing
> someone woke up?
A safety concious gun owner will educate everyone in the house about the
safety, dangers, and resposibilities of gun ownership.
>
> What if you're less safety-conscious and keep a loaded gun in the house?
> There's a good chance the burglar finds it before you can get to it. You
> wouldn't be the first person to be shot with his own gun in his own house.
You've been reading too many anecdotes. The burglar knows the location of
your weapons better than you do? Most often they are kept in the owners
bedroom.
>
> Now, let's say you're not safety-conscious and keep a loaded gun in your
> bedroom. If you're a good sleeper, chances are you won't wake up till that
> burglar is standing beside your bed -- in which case you won't have time
to
> reach for your gun. Worse yet, there's a good chance the burglar already
> found your gun and you find yourself on the wrong end of it.
LOL
>
> OK, so you're a non-safety-conscious gun owner and a light sleeper. You
> wake up from a sound in the kitchen, grab your gun and go downstairs. Then
> what? Burglars don't like much light so it's probably dark in the kitchen.
> Do you first turn on the lights to see who's in there, or do you play
> "Miami Vice", yell "FREEZE!" and fire your gun? Both scenarios can go
> horribly wrong.
Absolutely!
>
> In the first scenario, the burglar may act on instinct and shoot you first
> (provided he has a gun). In the second scenario, you don't know who you're
> shooting at. Maybe it is a burglar. Or maybe it is your son who woke up
> hungry at 2 a.m. and went downstairs to get a snack. It wouldn't be the
> first time a family member gets killed because he's mistaken for a
burglar.
Also true.
>
> Assume it actually is a burglar. The only time you can get away with
> shooting him (at least, in the US) is when it is obvious it is a burglar,
> the guy points a gun at you, and you shoot first. However, if you shoot
> first without knowing if the intruder is armed, chances are *YOU* are the
> one going to jail, for manslaughter or perhaps even murder -- especially
if
> it turns out the intruder wasn't armed.
I'm in Texas, I dont worry about this too much. If his body is in the house,
he is guilty, I am innocent.
>
> As other people pointed out, if you catch the burglar when you're not
> armed, you aren't a threat to his life.
But you are absolutely subject to his will.
> If you *are* armed, the burglar may
> not take the risk and shoot you.
Usually they run. Most burglars like unoccupied houses.
>
> The question remains, will a burglar want to shoot you? Probably not; it's
> safer for him to run away. If he gets caught when breaking in, he'll get a
> few years in prison for burglary. If he gets arrested for shooting you,
> he'll spend most (if not all) of his life in prison for (attempted)
murder.
> If it's murder, he may even end up on Death Row. I doubt many burglars
will
> want to take that risk.
And burglars are well known as experts in the ethics of such situations.
<G>
>
> My advice: don't buy a gun, but get good locks and an alarm system. Store
> your valuables in a safe; that way the burglar can only take consumer
goods
> like your TV and your stereo (he won't get any money for your family photo
> album so he won't take it). Your TV can always be replaced; YOU can't be
> replaced when you're killed.
Aww man......I love my TV and my VCR!!!!!!!!!<G>
>
> Leave the burglar-catching and the use of fire arms to the police -- they
> are the ones with the proper training, not you.
>
People who can attest to the expertise and efficacy of our police:
Rodney King
Elmer Wayne Henley
The Zodiac Killer (heck....name just about any serial killer)
Anyone who has been robbed in the last few years.
Mostly Jeroen, I'm just yanking your chain a bit. But it does serve to
highlight the cultural differences between our enviroments. And we are each
products of our own.
But I will admit that I hope to never be forced to disarm as Europeans have.
I do not own a weapon of any kind, nor have I ever owned a firearm. But I
would like to have the freedom to do so if I decide I want to.
xponent
rob
