never a dull moment

[JSinMO]

Now that's a sad story, Dave. How does someone get to this point. I'm thinking these days you have to be really careful touching some of the drugs people leave behind, I've heard about cops overdosing from just touching. It's terrible and evil what's happening.

I can imagine it's scary to deal with something like this in the middle of the night. It would probably freak out our small kids and my wife. We got no guns here either, and the cops would not show up very quickly.

I think your exactly right Eugen, it is pure evil.

I won’t pretend to know the laws on self defense in another country or other states down here for that matter, or say what’s right or wrong, that’s for the local people to decide. I can say where I live it would also take some time for the sheriff to arrive. We do have the right to defend ourselves though. We can carry a firearm, and we have the castle doctrine, which means we can defend our lives and property with deadly force. I do have extensive experience with all sorts of firearms. I have literally fired 10s of thousands of rounds in my life. I certainly have the ability and experience to defend my family, BUT I pray regularly that i never find myself in that horrible position. We have had a couple of instances through the years but thank god nothing that ever required that level of response. My sincere hope is none of us ever have to do that.

Geez I got off on a tangent there, that more than enough of that ramble!

[DavidBarkey]

@JSinMO I do not have the hardware ore the expertise . It is available to me and will inharant one day no dought so I need to learn all there is to be safe and all . The other night was frietening , fortunatly he turned out to be harmless , but you never know . I am now thinking on getting some sort of Tazer or stungun for our protection . Last night the Coy-wolves were out back and were making a fuss . So far with the electic wire on the fence we have not had any issues But one day will need greater force no dought .

[RoamingGnome]

That is truly a scary situation, nobody wants to feel at risk from people who are out of control.

Perhaps a large can of Bear (pepper) spray to help defend against wildlife hiding in the shadows late at night. - Of course it only has a range of 20-30 feet, has to be marked "Bear Spray" and is only legal to use it on 4 legged animals - bears, wolves, coyotes etc. (It's actually illegal to use it on humans in Canada)

The laws around self defence in Canada are so different from the United States that we have to be careful about "lethal" force. Less of an issue in the city where you might have a 5 minute response time from the police, out in the boonies it's an entirely different situation.

[JSinMO]

@JSinMO I do not have the hardware ore the expertise . It is available to me and will inharant one day no dought so I need to learn all there is to be safe and all . The other night was frietening , fortunatly he turned out to be harmless , but you never know . I am now thinking on getting some sort of Tazer or stungun for our protection . Last night the Coy-wolves were out back and were making a fuss . So far with the electic wire on the fence we have not had any issues But one day will need greater force no dought .

I feel I should preface this by saying I realize this can be a very contentious subject, and there are strong opinions on all sides of it. Please understand that these are my thoughts and my opinions based on my own experience and should be taken as such. There are volumes and volumes of information out there and I would encourage anyone to do their own homework and form their own opinion.

It is frightening. That would be the normal and correct response to that situation. If your life is in danger then you should do whatever is necessary to survive. At some point law enforcement will arrive. Understand they are arriving at a chaotic scene, they don’t know what has happened, they don’t know you, they don’t know the assailant. They are going to have questions. That brings me to point 1.

Know the law in your area. What is considered acceptable force? What are you allowed to own and use in your defense?

Depending on what you are allowed to own a taser would not be my first choice for defense in my home. There are a couple of reasons why. First, depending on what the attacker is wearing or what drugs they may have ingested, a taser or stun gun may not stop them.
Secondly and more important, in order to use a taser you have to be less than an arms length away from the attacker. This means if they have a gun, knife, baseball bat, or just a big fist you are well within their striking distance.

Fortunately there are several less than lethal systems on the market today. Again it would be a good idea to do some research. One thing that comes to mind that is readily available right now that anyone in your household can use is bear spray. You can stay away from the attacker and still disorient and maybe incapacitate them. The key is to stop the threat at least long enough to get away.

As far as firearms are concerned, if we can cut through all the hype and nonsense out there then we can realize a “gun” is just a tool. No different than a hammer or screwdriver, granted there are higher stakes when using it, but it is still just another tool in the toolbox. And like any tool it takes practice to be proficient. 3AM and you wake up to your door being kicked in is no time to try and figure out how to load the thing!
I give you this experiment anyone can do. Tonight after sundown go into the darkest room in your house. Wait for your eyes to adjust to the low light level. Then simultaneously flash a bright flashlight in your eyes and yell as loud as you can for as long as you can. For those that have never done it, this will give some approximation to not being able to see and not being able hear because of the ringing in your ears after you have fired a rifle in an enclosed space at night, like being in your hallway at 3AM. Very disorienting and difficult to work through. In my opinion there are better options in firearms for that situation. Again I encourage everyone to do there homework.

That brings me to my last point. Training, Training, Training!
I will almost guarantee that wherever you are in North America at this moment there is a gun range or club close enough to you that some form of training can be had. And I would encourage anyone interested to look into it.

Please understand this is barely scratching the surface on the topic. I’m sorry to be so long winded about it. My goal in writing this is only to see everyone safe. My hope is none of this is will ever be needed.

These basic rules apply weather this is your first time firing a weapon or your a seasoned veteran.

Thanks for listening. I hope something useful can be gleaned from it.

[Eugen]

Thank you Jeff! I realize I'm the one that said first the word "gun" and I wasn't careful, not being much of a big deal around here (I mean, the whole contentious subject). There was a robbery in our village, at gun point, in fact a home invasion, just a few streets away - drugs were involved. It's scary for sure. Me and my family are sitting ducks for that sort of thing, I mean, by the time I get a kitchen knife or go to the shed and get my bow and arrows, we're all dead. Not much we can do either, not planning to get a fire arm, so we put our whole faith in God and that's about it. Being poor and having hardly anything worth stealing is something of a blessing, still, bad things can still happen.

[DavidBarkey]

Well said Jeff. Those are many of the reasons I still do not have any . I am not ready and still waying my options .

[Harry]

Yes I don’t have any either, . At least that’s what I tell people if they ask. I am a veteran of combat arms and have no problem in doing what is necessary to stay alive. I hope it never becomes necessary but you do what you have to do. In a war situation doing what you have to do is necessary, especially under attack. Harry

[JSinMO]

@Harry Thank you for your service, I appreciate it.