Talking about young Eli Dicken in yesterday’s post, Reader Butch offers these words of wisdom:
“Everybody wants to be an operator until it’s time to do operator shit.”
New Wife, when seeing me strap on the 1911 for the first time when we went out shopping, once said, “You just can’t wait to shoot someone, can you?”
I repeat now what I said to her then:
“I hope like hell that I never have to shoot another human being — it is the worst thing in the world, you feel like total shit afterwards, and the memory of it can never be forgotten. So no: I pray that I never have to pull my gun on someone, unless it’s to protect myself (or you). But I always carry it, just in case I do.”
The worst thing, however, would be to be caught in a situation where you desperately need a gun, but it’s sitting at home in a safe. I would be enraged — at myself — for such stupidity.
I don’t think I’m alone in this.
When it comes right down to it, self preservation is the most important thing. Without that, nothing else matters.
Hear, hear!
It took a while, but my wife understands that now too. I came very close but never had to pull the trigger on anyone while working for Uncle Sam. I’m grateful for that and hope that lucky streak continues. But now that I live in a free state, I’m armed when we go out.
Many people assume that those of us who carry guns do so because we want to shoot people. My response has always been some variation of “Do people who have car insurance and wear seatbelts want to get in car accidents? No? Then why does being prepared for something terrible mean that I am hoping it will happen?”
Divemedic,
Well said
JQ
I’ve pulled my gun on someone (actually on one pair of crackheads) exactly once. Fortunately, they both split & no one was hurt. I remember the immense relief that washed over me & my heart pounding afterwards. Fingers crossed I never have to do that again. But if I have to I will.
I’ve been asked “you really think you are going to need a gun at ?”
My answer is
1. If I thought I was going to actually need a gun, I wouldn’t go
2. If I had to go anyway, I’ve be carrying a long gun.
A pistol is what you carry when you don’t expect to need a gun.
I know two men here in Texas who had to shoot and kill a bad guy in self defense, both were charged at first and then no billed. The second one about three years ago was in Dallas and a nutty woman police detective arrested him, he was out of jail fast and then the grand jury did the no bill thing his was easy once it was over, the other person was about 15 years ago in a smaller county where the deceased bad guy with a criminal record was a relative of the D.A. and that screwed stuff up for him, it cost a lot of lawyer fees for him to eventually avoid a trial. Both men said they were sorry they were in the situation that required the use of their gun and both said they would do it again if necessary.
I usually have a pistol close by and the last time I practiced was two hours ago, an hour of .308 rifle M1-A1 and an hour of pistol with my Browning Hi-Power. It has been awhile since I did center fire shooting and I try to do .22LR which is closer two or three times each month. When I don’t practice it takes some time for me to settle down and make each shot count and I know if I ever have to use my gun for self defense the first shot will be the one that counts with a follow up to make sure.
I have not shot Steel Challenge as much the past two years as I used to so I will practice a couple more times next week before competition on Aug 8 with pistol and rifle, when I do that once each month my skills improve from not very good to reasonable and that’s where we all need to be.
Can you imagine being in a position where your only choices were to watch children or loved ones being murdered, or throw yourself in front of the killer, knowing that it would only spare you the agony of watching?
Look up the Cheshire home invasion where two ex convicts broke into Dr William Petit’s home and brutalized his daughters and wife.
JQ
“Everybody wants to be an operator until it’s time to do operator shit.”
Not me. My father was one, and I knew a few while in the Navy. Way too fucking brutal.