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KD5NRH wrote:At the time I couldn't afford an 870 Marine Magnum, but I defiinitely realized the bathroom is the worst place to be when something goes wrong.

And he still keeps the battle axe hanging over the shower head, just in case. It's tough keeping the rust under control, though.

kw5kw wrote:The flashlight in my hand is to blind the assaliant upon inital contact, not to light the house while I'm searching.

+1, Russ. I live in a subdivision that has very good street lighting, and I have low-voltage landscape lighting around the house. The interior is navigable just about anywhere, upstairs or down, at night. But to do so, your eyes have to be dark-adjusted. A quick blast of 60 lumens or better under those conditions and you won't be able to see a darned thing for a minute, no matter how keen your eyes are. A good tactical light is ordnance, not just a flashlight.

jbirds1210 wrote:Sir-
I have met you and can't imagine anyone....except someone fitting your above description would pick you to assault. The theory about picking out the sheep seems to go out the window with this failed attempt at your life. Wow......it does not take a genius to become a criminal.
Jason

Worrisomely, there's also the "machismo syndrome" that comes into play with even (marginally) sane people. There can be a fine line between not looking like a target and looking like a trophy. That happened to me only when I was a teenager and lived in a country where I was, on average, a head taller than the local teenagers. Never happened to me after I got back to the U.S., but it happened a couple of times over the years to friends.

It sometimes happens to guys G.C.'s size, and to guys of conspicuous muscularity or attested fighting skill. It's why actors (I am liberal with the term) like Jean-Claude VanDamme and Steven Seagal have bodyguards. There's always the young gunslinger--figuratively speaking--who wants to prove himself by taking on the established gunfighter. In my limited experience, this typically plays out in two scenarios: either the challenger has one or more friends with him and is either goaded into action or draws courage from his posse; or the bubba has had a few too many, and his thinking is now more firmly connected to his testosterone level than to the neurons in his frontal lobe.

In a pure "machismo" form, not gang-related, these kinds of encounters are seldom life-threatening, but they can be difficult to diffuse. If words and simply leaving won't work, the advent of OC helps. A squirt in the face is as effective as an elbow to the nose, and a lot more defensible.

But for someone to try to swing a brick at G.C. on the street...yeah, clear sign of institutionalizable insanity.