Wednesday, June 25, 2008

A Lesson in Lehigh

Three Lehigh teens accused of breaking into a Lehigh garage were taken down, but was not by who you might think. We found out what one homeowner did in this that situation may have you asking some tough questions.
I guess the main question I have is did "Authorized Journalist" Patrick Flanary also write the script for Zero Wing?

Although it is nice to see we have a right to know who the troublemakers are, regardless of age.

It's also nice to see a story about a gun used to deter crime without being fired, and to see the stepfather's and the police reaction.

Not having been there, and relying only on what this story presents, I do have a concern, namely, that you never pull a gun unless you're prepared to use it. It doesn't sound like the homeowner was, and thankfully he was able to defuse the situation and "persuade" the budding young burglars to wait for the police.

So much for guns making people bloodthirsty.

[Via John G]

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

That "news piece" seems to have been written by a 6th grader...in a government school.

Longbow

Anonymous said...

David, one size simply does not fit all.

As a general rule I'd like to say that I'd never draw unless I was immediately prepared to shoot, but I would have no problem drawing on an home intruder who was not armed and allowing him to change his mind and leave - thereby not needing to shoot.

I'm a small, elderly woman and ANY intruder is apt to be a serious threat to me, armed or not.

Depending on the intruder's attitude and actions, I'd have to make up my mind about shooting in a very short time, most likely, so having my .45 drawn and at ready would be a minimum response.

David Codrea said...

Mama Liberty, please note:

What I wrote was "never pull a gun unless you're prepared to use it."

That means if your judgement tells you that you need to shoot to stop an assailant, you are prepared to do so. Whether you end up shooting or not is up to you and circumstances, but the bottom line is you are prepared to make that choice.

The story I linked to, and the part I was focusing on had a troubling passage:

I hate to tell you this; but I never actually cocked the gun. I didn't want to shoot them," said Feldkamp.

That was self-endangering. He had pulled a gun and was not prepared to use it.

No peaceable person wants to shoot anyone. But if we decide we must, we had better be prepared or the ability to choose will be taken from us.