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Monkette and I both want to get handguns (after learning proper shooting and maintenance etc) not so much to go on a crime spree (lol) as for self defense. We live in a very rough area and if something major happens there's no doubt in my mind that it would be thug central around here.
This is Jim's main rationale for his current arsenal. Breakdown of society, looting, yadda yadda yadda. I wouldn't ever want to live in a post-apocalyptic society. I've often said that if the bomb is coming, for instance, I'm headed to stand under it. Although, on the other hand, perhaps the breakdown of society would be stress relieving in many ways. No mortgage, no bills – just day to day survival stuff.
I just can't worry about what's coming. I used to. Talk like this used to scare the living $hit out of me, and I'd lay awake nights just worrying about everything. If I have no control over it, worrying about it is just crazy making. Somehow the anxious, worried all of the time young woman I used to be has turned into a live in the now, laid back kind of gal. I'm good with that, although Jim tells me that when the breakdown of society comes, I'll wish I'd worried a little more and be thankful that he did, so we have water, food, warm stuff, and guns. Oh – and ammo. Jim tells me guns are useless without ammo, but I beg to differ. No one will know if I don't have ammo – pointing a gun at someone's face is intimidating (I think), and worse comes to worst, I could throw it at them. I don't know if I could shoot someone anyway – but I sure as $hit could taser them.
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This is Jim's main rationale for his current arsenal. Breakdown of society, looting, yadda yadda yadda. I wouldn't ever want to live in a post-apocalyptic society. I've often said that if the bomb is coming, for instance, I'm headed to stand under it. Although, on the other hand, perhaps the breakdown of society would be stress relieving in many ways. No mortgage, no bills – just day to day survival stuff.
I just can't worry about what's coming. I used to. Talk like this used to scare the living $hit out of me, and I'd lay awake nights just worrying about everything. If I have no control over it, worrying about it is just crazy making. Somehow the anxious, worried all of the time young woman I used to be has turned into a live in the now, laid back kind of gal. I'm good with that, although Jim tells me that when the breakdown of society comes, I'll wish I'd worried a little more and be thankful that he did, so we have water, food, warm stuff, and guns. Oh – and ammo. Jim tells me guns are useless without ammo, but I beg to differ. No one will know if I don't have ammo – pointing a gun at someone's face is intimidating (I think), and worse comes to worst, I could throw it at them. I don't know if I could shoot someone anyway – but I sure as $hit could taser them.
A good old pistol whipping could do a wonderful job as well as building b00by traps! I'm with you, though, in regards to heading towards the bomb. Just obliterate me and leave this world to those with enough energy to fend off the savages.
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I'm fairly good w/knives so we have PLENTY of those, not to mention living in an Nicaraguan household we have plenty of very sharp machetes around. But he's right about the ammo.
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I'm fairly good w/knives so we have PLENTY of those, not to mention living in an Nicaraguan household we have plenty of very sharp machetes around. But he's right about the ammo.
Jim is inordinately proud of his navy seal knife and his machete. I just can't get excited about weapons particularly (although I do like plinking at cans with my .22). Now shoes – THOSE are exciting! Men are such guys.
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Milo, don't let those movies scare you too much.
Remember. they are just movies and dark sells better than light, if you know what I mean. 90% of people are good law-abiding citizens and if they all take a stand against the bad 10% instead of cowering and letting them run amok then all will (eventually) be well.
Monk, I know getting a gun is a big (and scary) decision. It's a big step. Personally, I feel much better knowing that my shotgun is nearby. Having the means to protect myself feels a lot more empowering than being helpless. I was afraid of guns myself until my house alarm went off one night. Fortunately, the alarm scared the burglar off but being alone and helpless in my bedroom was terrifying. Now I know that any burglar who breaks into my house is in more danger than I am and that feels good.
You are very smart to learn how to use them safely. The NRA has many courses that are very good. My only advice is to not get a gun if you are not sure that you could use it when the chips are down. A lot of people, especially women, end up having the gun taken away and used against them because they hesitate to shoot. Also, as the gun salesman pointed out to me when I went shopping for a handgun, the sound of pumping a shotgun is loud and warns a burglar that you are armed and dangerous. Everyone in America recognizes that sound and usually just that sound is enough to send most bad guys running. The salesman had personally scared off a burglar that way.
If the burglar doesn't run, another advantage of a shotgun is that you don't have to be a good shot to hit your target. The shot spreads widely, so even if you are shaking like a leaf (I'm sure I would be) you can always hit your target. Also, if you shoot through a door, the shrapnel alone will do some damage. Sounds nasty I know, but the goal is to take them out before they can hurt you, right? Knives, tasers, etc are fine but you have to get WAY to close to the bad guy to use them. I prefer to stay out of hand's reach because I could easily be overpowered.
One final piece of advice: if you have kids in your house, be sure to buy a trigger lock. Just get one that is childproof but easy to remove if you need to get to your gun in a hurry. You can bet that your kids will find the gun, so make sure it's safe. It can also be good to take kids who are old enough for gun safety training. We had a case here recently where a 12 year old shot and killed a burglar who had already overpowered the mother. She couldn't get to the gun in time because it was in a gun safe but the boy got to it and luckily knew how to use it. Things could have turned out very differently if he hadn't.
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Now shoes – THOSE are exciting!
Yes but sadly unless you're Eddie Murphy's mom shoes are kinda useless when it comes to self defense….
Also, as the gun salesman pointed out to me when I went shopping for a handgun, the sound of pumping a shotgun is loud and warns a burglar that you are armed and dangerous. Everyone in America recognizes that sound and usually just that sound is enough to send most bad guys running. The salesman had personally scared off a burglar that way.
All very good points and duly noted. Back when I used to do trade shows we'd get one of the old fashioned (eek) credit card swiper to run the credit card like contact card they gave attendees so you could get their info on triplicate form (similar to the old credit card slips) to take w/you to send catalogs and follow up etc…When I was bored I would take it by it's edge and lift it straight up by it's frame causing the weighted arm to slide the length of the machine and it sounded just like the pump action on a shot gun. You talk about getting people's attention.
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Milo, don't let those movies scare you too much.
Remember. they are just movies and dark sells better than light, if you know what I mean. 90% of people are good law-abiding citizens and if they all take a stand against the bad 10% instead of cowering and letting them run amok then all will (eventually) be well.
Monk, I know getting a gun is a big (and scary) decision. It's a big step. Personally, I feel much better knowing that my shotgun is nearby. Having the means to protect myself feels a lot more empowering than being helpless. I was afraid of guns myself until my house alarm went off one night. Fortunately, the alarm scared the burglar off but being alone and helpless in my bedroom was terrifying. Now I know that any burglar who breaks into my house is in more danger than I am and that feels good.
You are very smart to learn how to use them safely. The NRA has many courses that are very good. My only advice is to not get a gun if you are not sure that you could use it when the chips are down. A lot of people, especially women, end up having the gun taken away and used against them because they hesitate to shoot. Also, as the gun salesman pointed out to me when I went shopping for a handgun, the sound of pumping a shotgun is loud and warns a burglar that you are armed and dangerous. Everyone in America recognizes that sound and usually just that sound is enough to send most bad guys running. The salesman had personally scared off a burglar that way.
If the burglar doesn't run, another advantage of a shotgun is that you don't have to be a good shot to hit your target. The shot spreads widely, so even if you are shaking like a leaf (I'm sure I would be) you can always hit your target. Also, if you shoot through a door, the shrapnel alone will do some damage. Sounds nasty I know, but the goal is to take them out before they can hurt you, right? Knives, tasers, etc are fine but you have to get WAY to close to the bad guy to use them. I prefer to stay out of hand's reach because I could easily be overpowered.
One final piece of advice: if you have kids in your house, be sure to buy a trigger lock. Just get one that is childproof but easy to remove if you need to get to your gun in a hurry. You can bet that your kids will find the gun, so make sure it's safe. It can also be good to take kids who are old enough for gun safety training. We had a case here recently where a 12 year old shot and killed a burglar who had already overpowered the mother. She couldn't get to the gun in time because it was in a gun safe but the boy got to it and luckily knew how to use it. Things could have turned out very differently if he hadn't.
I agree KK that most people are good but in a disater scenario I don't believe it will be 90% good and only 10% bad. Unfortunately, there are thugs just waiting for an opportunity to do harm.
I do know how to shoot (thanks to Women on Target, a great NRA program) and have used handguns, rifles and shotguns. Alot of folks that I know carry a handgun as a concealed weapon and that is their personal choice. Gotta love the sound of a pumping shotgun, it definitely sends the right message.
When our kids were small my husband used to come home from work (cop in Boston) and would lock his gun up. I was always so worried about the kids getting into it, so it was locked up like Fort Knox. We would never have been able to get to it in time, luckily never had to.
Also, don't understimate the power of pepper spray, it can be very effective.
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If it happens….it happens. I happen to live right along the area of the New Madrid Fault Line in Northeast Arkansas. And yes, we have had a few minor rumbles here and there. Nothing really bad happened. It just keeps you on your toes!
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If it happens….it happens. I happen to live right along the area of the New Madrid Fault Line in Northeast Arkansas. And yes, we have had a few minor rumbles here and there. Nothing really bad happened. It just keeps you on your toes!
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I know I sound like a loser and a wimp but to be completely honest, I just wish I would be one of the first to go if a horrible disaster like this destroyed everything. Maybe if I knew people wouldn't be looting and killing for water and gasoline, I would be willing to make more of an effort to survive. Interesting that the Japanese have been very disciplined and fair when distributing supplies and helping out their neighbors. I think I read somewhere that there isn't even a word in their language comparable to "looting" because their culture just doesn't behave that way. Hope it continues to be civilized like that as time passes. I know too many people that just stockpile guns and ammo instead of water and food which tells me that they are only interested on taking control thru violence. I don't want to live in that world. I wouldn't do a hari- kari bit but for me, I just hope I am gone in an instant, no pain or fear, just poof!
Its not a bad idea to "stockpile" weapons ALONG WITH other supplies. If you want to protect yourself it may be necessary to have arms. The most value they serve in my opinion is in obtaining FOOD. The Big Wolf and I watch Survivorman all the danged time but I don't kid myself by thinking I could survive any length of time trying to catch rabbits with a peanut. I'd stand a better chance of landing something small with my .22 or even a .357, with a 12 gauge we can take down enough food to feed us, and our neighbors. (who by the way I am in love with now because they are helping us out daily by cutting up that tree in the Randomness thread)
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We need a "like" button on this forum…lol
Lots of good points made in this thread about preparedness, even if we have strayed a bit from the topic of earthquakes.
Whammies…first lesson of handling a gun and I KNOW The Jyb will agree here:
You WILL BE KILLED if you pull an unloaded weapon on a perpetrator and believe it will scare them off!
We have some pretty brazen characters out there these days that are pretty crafty when out to do harm. I wouldn't count on one of the kids from The World's Stupidest Robbers to show up and run at the sight of a gun.
The sound of a pump shotgun is a heavy deterrent and I used to run the scenario through my head when we lived on the mountain a couple of years ago. Lock myself in the bedroom with purse and keys (always in the room). Take down 12 guage. Brace myself against the headboard of my bed, PUMP! and aim at whichever door they were trying to enter…one was wood and one was glass. Listen to them squeal as I head out whichever door I didn't blow a BIGA$$ hole in! Jump in car which was always headed OUT of the drive, and get to the neighbors' house as fast as possible. I certainly wasn't gonna stay in the house and watch 'em bleed while I was waiting for cops to get to that house.
We do the best we can. We were heading under the house last week when that monster storm came through. Blessedly, it stopped before we actually had to go down there. The good thing in my direct vicinity (certainly not my whole county, though) is that our power was only out for about 30 minutes. There is power in my basement (clay mud ick) and the water heater is there so there would have been a water supply for a while if we had been trapped.
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The Big Wolf and I watch Survivorman all the danged time but I don't kid myself by thinking I could survive any length of time trying to catch rabbits with a peanut.
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My sides hurt! Thanks for that!
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My sides hurt! Thanks for that!
Anytime!
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We need a "like" button on this forum…lol
The sound of a pump shotgun is a heavy deterrent and I used to run the scenario through my head when we lived on the mountain a couple of years ago. Lock myself in the bedroom with purse and keys (always in the room). Take down 12 guage. Brace myself against the headboard of my bed, PUMP! and aim at whichever door they were trying to enter…one was wood and one was glass. Listen to them squeal as I head out whichever door I didn't blow a BIGA$$ hole in! Jump in car which was always headed OUT of the drive, and get to the neighbors' house as fast as possible. I certainly wasn't gonna stay in the house and watch 'em bleed while I was waiting for cops to get to that house.
We are two of a kind, AH. The only difference is that I would do my level best to make sure they were dead before I left the premises.
First rule of tort law: It's cheaper to kill them than to injure them. I'm not kidding. If you leave them injured but alive, they'll sue your butt off. Juries award way more to an injured felon than they do to the surviving members of a felon's family. True fact. Gee, the stuff I learned at school. /laugh.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='
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Plus, I've seen enough horror movies to know better than to let them live. The girls in those movies ALWAYS make that mistake. /tongue.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='
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You have a point there…Okay so add another step to the process:
Throw another slug to the mug before I flee!
ETA: Sorta like the survivalist version of: One More for the Road.
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You have a point there…Okay so add another step to the process:
Throw another slug to the mug before I flee!
ETA: Sorta like the survivalist version of: One More for the Road.
Or as they say in zombieland….the "double tap….don't get stingy w/your ammo"
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Or as they say in zombieland….the "double tap….don't get stingy w/your ammo"
Now I'm gonna have to watch that movie again! Rule number 2!
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Now I'm gonna have to watch that movie again! Rule number 2!
That it is….beware of bathrooms lol, I have a gif image that has all his rules, haven't watched that in a while. It was on stars or something the other day…the cameo makes that movie!
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