a CHL does not mean you're Clint Eastwood

[ShootDontTalk]

With all due respect, I don't read much here criticizing what you DID, so much as what you SAID. Your actions, while some might disagree, were not really out of line. Your words though, could have been misrepresented by your assailants and/or any witnesses. Both are notoriously inaccurate, either on purpose, or by sheer bad luck. You were lucky no one chose to pursue that. You were lucky you didn't have to tell the first story to responding officers.

Not everyone here is an armchair warrior. Some have been in much worse situations than what you describe. Some have spent years dealing with the law and criminals. Some know how things might have gone south were you not lucky.

So you came here posting your experiences telling us not to act like Clint Eastwood. I think most of us know the difference between Hollywood and the real world when it comes to self defense. Just my opinion, but if you didn't want any negative comments, why did you risk posting something that sounded so much like a Hollywood movie?

Nothing personal. Welcome to the forum.

[mojo84]

I've said my piece. All the armchair warriors can say what they want, but until they are in the exact situation, then they really are only guessing what they would do.
God Bless you all, and I sincerely hope that none of you ever find yourself in a bad situation.

Don't go away mad. What may be unknown or overlooked is that some of us have been in a bad situation and most of us try to learn from those situations. It may be the tone of the original post that rubbed some wrong. In spite of the title of the thread, you tell us how you used a line that Clint Eastwood aka Harry Callaghan would have used. Whether or not you did the right thing in your situation can always be debated as there are different ways to handle situations. The important thing is that it worked for you that time.

It's the ironic lecture that caught my attention. Preaching to the choir by a newby is seldom well received on forums.

[The Annoyed Man]

With all due respect, I don't read much here criticizing what you DID, so much as what you SAID. Your actions, while some might disagree, were not really out of line. Your words though, could have been misrepresented by your assailants and/or any witnesses.

...........

Nothing personal. Welcome to the forum.

To the OP, this is exactly what I was getting at, and trying to be welcoming is why I tried to blend in a little humor in my initial response. So please don't think that you or your opinions are not welcome here. They are.

I am mindful of ShootDontTalk's screen name, and I was actually thinking of it when I wrote that first response.

[Javier730]

"what if I pull out the biggest gun you've ever seen and shoot you?"

Reminds of the road rage incidents where people with guns pull them on someone because of silly arguments or incidents on the road.

[Abraham]

"It's the ironic lecture that caught my attention. Preaching to the choir by a newby is seldom well received on forums."

Very well said.

[LSUTiger]

This bursts my bubble.

Not mine. I'm okay not being Clint Eastwood. Not being Dirty Harry...entirely different concern.

Can I be "The Man with No Name"?

[Jim Beaux]

This bursts my bubble.

Not mine. I'm okay not being Clint Eastwood. Not being Dirty Harry...entirely different concern.

Can I be "The Man with No Name"?

NO.....get off my lawn....

[The Annoyed Man]

"what if I pull out the biggest gun you've ever seen and shoot you?"

Reminds of the road rage incidents where people with guns pull them on someone because of silly arguments or incidents on the road.

This actually happened to me once. I was on my way home from work back in SoCal. I got caught in the right hand lane on a major surface street behind a slow moving bus, and another guy was caught behind me. We had to let the traffic in the left lane zoom by before either of us could pull into the left lane to pass the bus.....which we both did at the same time, so the guy in the other car was still behind me. I accelerated and passed the bus, and this other guy on my tail and honking the whole time. As I approached the next light and began to slow down, he pulled into the right lane and ended up right next to me at the light on my right. He began flashing gang signs and shouting obscenities at me. The next thing I know, he's waving a large framed semiauto handgun at me. Praise God, the light changed right then, and I simply outdrove him and lost him in traffic going up a canyon road. But I have to say that I watched my six very closely all the way home. Of course, it being in Commiefornia and me being law-abiding and all, I wasn't armed at the time, so the only defense I had was good driving skills. And by the way, I'm not an old grannie driver, so it's not like I actually impeded that fool's progress. At the time this happened, we were already in the planning stages of moving the business I worked for at the time to Texas, and I resolved then and there to get my CHL once I moved here........exactly for reasons like this.

[Javier730]

"what if I pull out the biggest gun you've ever seen and shoot you?"

[MechAg94]

I would agree that threatening to pull out a gun is not the best plan. They might just pull out their own gun and claim you threatened to shoot them.

I neither case did you mention calling the cops. I think it would be appropriate in the first case at the least.

[VoiceofReason]

I consider myself extremely fortunate that in 14 years of carry in Texas that I never once pulled my weapon.
There were a couple of times where I could have and once where I should have, but I was able to solve the problem without pulling my handgun.
Isn't that the ultimate goal of all of us?
I was confronted by 3 drunks at a service station on I-10 east one morning at 5:30 and punched for no reason breaking my nose. My initial reaction was to punch him back, which knocked him to the ground. I was wearing a dress shirt, not tucked in, and a belt-slide with a 92f. As he went down, I immediately put my hand on my weapon. I knew, in that instant, that I was not going to be killed by 3 drunks. I knew in that instant that if they came at me I would shoot. I told the two men trying to help the guy I hit get up "do not let him get up. If he gets up I will hurt him very badly". I said it in a very strong voice. I knew I had a free pass on this one. There were several witnesses standing there that saw the whole thing. There was a video camera pointed right at us. I repeated it twice more, each time raising my voice. I said "it's over, he hit me and I hit him. Now I'm going to walk to my car and leave, which I did but never turning my back to them. I drove off thinking "well, I guess "dispute resolution" really works.
The other time was less severe. I was riding my Harley down Almeda-Genoa and a drunk ran a stop sign and pulled out in front of me. Just to let him know I was there, I gave him a short toot with my horn. At the light at Monroe he pulls up next to me and rolls down his window and yells "what if I get out and just whip your butt?" I very casually looked over at him and unbuttoned my vest and said in a calm voice "what if I pull out the biggest gun you've ever seen and shoot you?" at which point, he turned right and sped off...again, problem solved.
It is not always about just throwing rounds down range.
Think before you act.
Just my opinion folks.

Thankfully both of those situations turned out okay for you. Opposed to three drunks swearing out an assault complaint against you only to find out the the gas station camera wasn't actually working, but the other witnesses DID hear you threaten the guy but didn't see him punch you and did see you punch him. Or opposed to the the drunk running the stop sign not actually being drunk, then calling in a BWAG (biker with a gun, which is probably one rung up from MWAG) who threatened him for no reason. I'm simply suggesting that I myself wanting to ensure that I didn't put myself in the position where someone could make claims that I initiated the situation then only to pull my weapon when I felt like I wasn't "winning." Just saying.

A person can “what if” and twist any situation around so the CHL (victim) can end up on the wrong end of the stick. The bottom line is one must use the best judgment he or she can at the time and hope for the best. If a CHL is that worried about using his gun when he/she is justified and being attacked, maybe he/she should leave the gun at home and carry pepper spray.

Personally I believe that was a very lucky drunk. Had it been me, when he punched me I would have put as many 45s in his chest as I could before he hit the ground and that is not being “Batman”. I am not going to trust my assessment of whether I could beat him and his buddies in a fistfight or if any of them have weapons themselves. He attacked me, I feared for my life or grave bodily injury, I stopped the threat period.

I am glad it turned out well for the OP but a similar reaction in the next situation could get you killed.

[NotRPB]

I learned on this Forum ...
Batman has used a gun
Numerous frames with him armed with guns
https://www.google.com/search?q=Batman+ ... 17&dpr=0.9

Article
(At Least) 7 Times Batman has bent his 'no guns' rule
http://toybox.io9.com/7-times-batman-ha ... 1634040693

[Javier730]

I consider myself extremely fortunate that in 14 years of carry in Texas that I never once pulled my weapon.
There were a couple of times where I could have and once where I should have, but I was able to solve the problem without pulling my handgun.
Isn't that the ultimate goal of all of us?
I was confronted by 3 drunks at a service station on I-10 east one morning at 5:30 and punched for no reason breaking my nose. My initial reaction was to punch him back, which knocked him to the ground. I was wearing a dress shirt, not tucked in, and a belt-slide with a 92f. As he went down, I immediately put my hand on my weapon. I knew, in that instant, that I was not going to be killed by 3 drunks. I knew in that instant that if they came at me I would shoot. I told the two men trying to help the guy I hit get up "do not let him get up. If he gets up I will hurt him very badly". I said it in a very strong voice. I knew I had a free pass on this one. There were several witnesses standing there that saw the whole thing. There was a video camera pointed right at us. I repeated it twice more, each time raising my voice. I said "it's over, he hit me and I hit him. Now I'm going to walk to my car and leave, which I did but never turning my back to them. I drove off thinking "well, I guess "dispute resolution" really works.
The other time was less severe. I was riding my Harley down Almeda-Genoa and a drunk ran a stop sign and pulled out in front of me. Just to let him know I was there, I gave him a short toot with my horn. At the light at Monroe he pulls up next to me and rolls down his window and yells "what if I get out and just whip your butt?" I very casually looked over at him and unbuttoned my vest and said in a calm voice "what if I pull out the biggest gun you've ever seen and shoot you?" at which point, he turned right and sped off...again, problem solved.
It is not always about just throwing rounds down range.
Think before you act.
Just my opinion folks.

Thankfully both of those situations turned out okay for you. Opposed to three drunks swearing out an assault complaint against you only to find out the the gas station camera wasn't actually working, but the other witnesses DID hear you threaten the guy but didn't see him punch you and did see you punch him. Or opposed to the the drunk running the stop sign not actually being drunk, then calling in a BWAG (biker with a gun, which is probably one rung up from MWAG) who threatened him for no reason. I'm simply suggesting that I myself wanting to ensure that I didn't put myself in the position where someone could make claims that I initiated the situation then only to pull my weapon when I felt like I wasn't "winning." Just saying.

A person can “what if” and twist any situation around so the CHL (victim) can end up on the wrong end of the stick. The bottom line is one must use the best judgment he or she can at the time and hope for the best. If a CHL is that worried about using his gun when he/she is justified and being attacked, maybe he/she should leave the gun at home and carry pepper spray.

Personally I believe that was a very lucky drunk. Had it been me, when he punched me I would have put as many 45s in his chest as I could before he hit the ground and that is not being “Batman”. I am not going to trust my assessment of whether I could beat him and his buddies in a fistfight or if any of them have weapons themselves. He attacked me, I feared for my life or grave bodily injury, I stopped the threat period.

I am glad it turned out well for the OP but a similar reaction in the next situation could get you killed.

[The Annoyed Man]

I learned on this Forum ...
Batman has used a gun
Numerous frames with him armed with guns
https://www.google.com/search?q=Batman+ ... 17&dpr=0.9

Article
(At Least) 7 Times Batman has bent his 'no guns' rule
http://toybox.io9.com/7-times-batman-ha ... 1634040693

And I note that his predilection for Browning-designed firearms makes him a connoisseur of the finer things in life.