Quote:
Originally Posted by clementine  ... But only if you'd noticed him get his gun out straight away and only if the first innocent victim hadn't been you!... To do that you would have to be on your guard all the time, checking out everyone that walked into any place you were in, anytime, night and day... |
I am hardy innocent, in any case the man walked into the restaurant with his .357 in his hand and shot the first two people of ethnic origin he saw. Of course I would not have known that. I'm sure I would have assumed that it was a robbery, something I would have been willing to sit quite still for.
But once he fired the weapon I would have drawn and fired. It wouldn't have been the first time I've had to do that, I was trained well and have been literally "Expert" rated with a .45 caliber handgun with either left or right hands. My 9mm S&W is much lighter and more accurate than what I used to qualify as expert.
But all that is informed speculation on my part, and a gunfight has no guarantees of success for any of the participants. I do know for sure that while I'd be willing to watch him rob, I would not be willing to watch him kill, my wife and I could be next.
And yes, it is difficult to be on constant vigil in day to mundane tasks, but I can assure you that I make every effort to do that. In restaurants I always pick a table where I can watch the door and the room. My wife by now knows that I do this from seeing me do it thousands of times.
Call me paranoid if you wish, but it's quite natural for me, even 40 years after leaving the Corps. Seeing friends die due to lapses in judgement and training will do that for you.
Aerial