Problem with proportionate response is these things happen quickly. You have adrenaline pumping, you don’t know if your attacker has a weapon, you can’t wait for a cop to show up, and often a punch isn’t going to do much. Unless you’re a boxer or something like that, fighting is hard and ineffective.
Proportionate response is basically saying “Yeah, you can defend yourself, but you’re rolling the dice if you do”
Also, for the record, non lethal weapons don’t work reliably. Tasers can get caught in clothes, druggies ignore pepper spray. Only a lethal weapon is reliable. If you want to carry something for self defense, you want reliability.
I mean… Maybe? How often does that ever happen? Most of the scenarios I’m thinking of are like someone is yelling at you about a parking spot. If someone shoves me because they’re mad I took their spot, pulling out a gun is not justified.
People have these fantasies about someone breaking into their house and they heroically use their gun to save their stuff. What’s more likely is you shoot your kid sneaking in drunk, or a guy who went to the wrong address.
You should avoid irrevocable decisions when you’re hepped up on adrenaline. You called it a roll of the dice. Escalating your response is also a roll of the dice.
Also you said only a lethal weapon is reliable. That’s not really true. People miss. Guns misfire. People forget how to work the safety. Or they accidentally hit someone behind their target.
But my table was just called for dinner so I’m going to go and leave you with this half baked reply. Have a good and hopefully violence free night!
If someone shoves me because they’re mad I took their spot, pulling out a gun is not justified.
In that example, you have no idea if they have a gun in their pocket. All you know is you have a crazy person angry at you.
Escalating your response is also a roll of the dice.
True, but not escalating is also a roll of the dice. If you don’t shoot, and you guessed wrong, you’re dead. If you shoot and you guessed wrong, you aren’t dead. It’s a roll of the dice, but you get to decide which dice you roll.
Problem with proportionate response is these things happen quickly. You have adrenaline pumping, you don’t know if your attacker has a weapon, you can’t wait for a cop to show up, and often a punch isn’t going to do much. Unless you’re a boxer or something like that, fighting is hard and ineffective.
Proportionate response is basically saying “Yeah, you can defend yourself, but you’re rolling the dice if you do”
Also, for the record, non lethal weapons don’t work reliably. Tasers can get caught in clothes, druggies ignore pepper spray. Only a lethal weapon is reliable. If you want to carry something for self defense, you want reliability.
I mean… Maybe? How often does that ever happen? Most of the scenarios I’m thinking of are like someone is yelling at you about a parking spot. If someone shoves me because they’re mad I took their spot, pulling out a gun is not justified.
People have these fantasies about someone breaking into their house and they heroically use their gun to save their stuff. What’s more likely is you shoot your kid sneaking in drunk, or a guy who went to the wrong address.
You should avoid irrevocable decisions when you’re hepped up on adrenaline. You called it a roll of the dice. Escalating your response is also a roll of the dice.
Also you said only a lethal weapon is reliable. That’s not really true. People miss. Guns misfire. People forget how to work the safety. Or they accidentally hit someone behind their target.
But my table was just called for dinner so I’m going to go and leave you with this half baked reply. Have a good and hopefully violence free night!
In that example, you have no idea if they have a gun in their pocket. All you know is you have a crazy person angry at you.
True, but not escalating is also a roll of the dice. If you don’t shoot, and you guessed wrong, you’re dead. If you shoot and you guessed wrong, you aren’t dead. It’s a roll of the dice, but you get to decide which dice you roll.
You too! Stay safe.