To follow up on my prior article, “Could you look him in the eye and deny him?” here’s a couple more points to consider.
First, Kee Whan Ha was prepared. He had his guns before the riots started. He wasn’t paranoid, he was prepared. And rightfully so. No one expected riots to ever break out in L.A., but they did. And his preparation paid off.
Second, you need to let go of the illusion that we’re some highly civilized society. The veneer of civilization is thin and fragile. It doesn’t take much for our primitive monkey brains to kick in, and for things to go south.
Look at the L.A. riots. Look at Hurricane Katrina. Heck, watch various cities after a sports team wins or loses. Heck, Axl Rose caused numerous riots because of his behavior at concerts.
Society breaks down pretty quickly. We get upset, we get scared, we panic, we feed off the energy of others, and shit gets ugly really fast.
I know you like to comment on how everything around you is so peaceful. And true, right now and in your past it may have been. Congratulations on making good and fortunate choices throughout life. Not everyone is as fortunate as you. And remember that past performance doesn’t guarantee future results: your luck may run out.
What are you going to do when that happens?
Be a victim? or be a survivor?
Stuff From Hsoi 
Follow up thoughts on our previous conversations — in the midst of a riot or the aftermath of one, it is very easy to look at someone and not deny them the right to use lethal force in defense of property.
So how many people does it take to make a riot? 200, 50, 5, 2?
Does it matter if there are 200 people trying to break down a door to steal stuff or just 2?
Does it matter if there are 50 people walking out of your house with your stuff or just 1 making 50 trips?
The veneer of civilization is thin and fragile. The veneer is very thin with certain people; for others it is a thick shell they can not crack. Too conditioned to avoid violence they fail to react appropriately; this is why I push for us to support lethal force in defending property….to make sure the veneer is more equal.
That’s another key question to ask: where is your line? A lot of people may not have thought about where their line is, but everyone has one.
I find this frequently with “mothers”, because they understand the maternal “don’t mess with my babies” Momma Bear mentality. They may hold strong anti-violence beliefs, but they find no problem getting their rage on at the notion of someone hurting their children. That’s always a good starting point for discussion.