I used to carry mace when I worked in NYC. Luckily I never needed to use it.

I've never carried a gun. Probably never will God willing.

Mace is a bad idea. Chances are you will not aim it correctly, and even if you do manage to hit the target, you will still get some no matter what. It may work fine in a more crowded area, but if you are alone and being attacked it will just make your attacker angry. pepper spray sold to civilians isn't as strong as the stuff the police uses. The police stuff will temporarily disable most people, but there is no guarantee with the stuff we can all buy.

If you would had used it you better run and not call the police. Cause if you called the Police on your cellphone and when they came the officers will arrest the guy who attacked you and theyre turn around an cited you for $75 cause mace and pepper spray is illegal in New York City.

I don't own or carry a gun, although there are virtually no gun laws where I live these days. One can have a concealed weapon without a permit in the Green Mountain State, believe it or not. I feel that carrying a gun is a bad idea, because the crooks I know have had guns pulled on them before and they have simply taken them away and proceeded to rob the people who pulled it on them. Furthermore, there are very few instances where a gun is necessary to defend oneself because the criminals acting upon the victim have no intention of acting violently, they just want money or something.

__________________
"The only crime in America is not having any money."
-Berthold Brecht

"This interview...is not about me..."
-

This makes no sense to me. If the crooks have no intention of committing violence, why would anyone ever give them anything?

Crook: "Give me all your money"
Victim: "No, fuck off."
Crook: "Oh, well, OK then" (shambles off looking dejected)...

Doesn't seem likely to me....

Matt

__________________
De duobus malis, minus est semper eligendum

While I have some sympathy with the ccw approach perhaps the crook will just assume the victim/target is armed and shoot them anyway.

Just waiting now for the rebuttals.

__________________
"There were no D-Day Heroes in 1973" - Cold Chisel Khe Sanh

We've certainly seen many instances here of criminals shooting unarmed, compliant victims.

We need to stop focusing on inanimate objects, and focus on the actual problem - the criminals.

If you are going to ban something, ban predatory felons. End the lenient, revolving door justice system and keep the violent offenders out of society.

Matt

__________________
De duobus malis, minus est semper eligendum

Used to carry at night. Never needed it. Let my permit lapse. Plan to renew at some point.

Have two friends who did need to pull their guns during the Rodney King riots. Another two friends escaped trouble by running like hell. I stayed in that night.

I was sitting in a bar at LAX drinking beer and completely oblivious and took a flight home that night. I was shocked when I got home and saw what had been happening.

Thread-drift I know, I just remember it so well. I was driving the rental car through South Central LA and wondering why people were gathered at the intersections and why it seemed so quiet.

__________________
"There were no D-Day Heroes in 1973" - Cold Chisel Khe Sanh

My one friend was in a very bad situation. Even after pulling his gun these two guys kept following him, trying to get at him. Afterwards one cop told him he should have shot them.

Well way to oversimplify the entire situation. Perhaps the crook will shove someone to the ground, or act violently per se, but my point was that there are very few instances where someone is a victim of crime where their life is in danger, hence the use of a firearm is total and complete overkill. Furthermore there are many instances where crooks had no intention of acting violently and some schmuck who they are robbing pulls out a gun, and voila, the crook acts violently solely because the poor dumbass carrying a gun escalated the situation, and what was once a simple robbery turns into a homicide. You are going to say that I proved your point, while I didn't. My main point is that carrying a weapon is really fucking dangerous especially when you have to deal with folks that have no reservations about getting a gun waved in their face.

I had a roommate who slept with a loaded 9mm next to his bed, and when I asked him why he was sleeping with a loaded gun next to his bed in Vermont, that's right practically the safest place in this entire country, he always replied to me: "Well how else are you going to protect yourself?" Hmmm.... How about not introducing a gun into the situation for starters? The logic that says take out a gun to diffuse a criminal situation is the same logic that says bomb the shit out of Canada, twisted, and nonsensical.

A friend of mine, who is probably one of the more gangsta people I've ever met had guns pulled on him several times, and all he did was grab the gun, twist, and take it away rendering the armed person looking down the barrel of a gun. My point is that people who carry guns don't realize that taking out a gun can complicate a situation by raising the potential for violence incredibly where the safest course of action would be to run or comply with a criminal's demands.

Perhaps I'm just approaching the question from a perspective most interested in saving one's own ass.

__________________
"The only crime in America is not having any money."
-Berthold Brecht

"This interview...is not about me..."
-

Gotta take issue with you here - the proximate cause of whatever happens is the robber. No robbery = no issue.

As far as the danger posed by the criminal, the idea that it is your fault if a criminal is "forced" to kill you because you defended yourself is, well, a complete load of shit.

You're assuming that everyone carrying a firearm is completely untrained in how to use it. Having attended several practical pistol courses, I am here to tell you that your friend's grab-the-gun technique might work against an untrained potential victim, but against someone who has trained to draw to a retention position (and shoot from retention), that technique is just going to get him shot.

You're also talking about people who pull guns out inappropriately. As someone who frequently carries a firearm, my position is that I would not draw unless there is a clear, imminent threat of death or great bodily harm to myself or another. Coincidentally, that's also the legal standard for threatening (or using) deadly force.

Matt

__________________
De duobus malis, minus est semper eligendum

And just what is your "gansta" friend doing that gets people to draw guns on him?

Then your gangsta punk buddy is coming across people who don't know what the fuck they're doing.

When I draw my weapon, I've already come to terms with the fact that there are two rounds, at a minimum, leaving that gun not long after I draw it. Period. If that wasn't the case, it would remain holstered...

You should amend that to read "idiots who carry guns". Many of us happen to be well trained in the use of firearms and personal protection. I can't think of too many situations where I would draw my weapon and hold it within arms reach of another person.

That's just fuckin' stupid...

The question becomes how you elect to save your ass. Following the demands of the assailant is generally accepted as the best way to ensure that you remain unhurt.

Following the demands of the assailant and then shooting him often garners the same result...

__________________
Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":

You're busted Sammy!

__________________
Are you a spineless slave to political correctness?