I honestly do support peace, communication and compromise.
But I do so not from a position of virtue singling or that these ideas are morally superior. It’s because I truly understand how much violence and hatred suck. I’m talking screaming, blood spatter and bodies ‘suck.’
Unfortunately, we have two contributing problems to the third. One is that ‘peace’ has become a not just a moral issue, but a moral superiority one. “I’m better than you because I believe in peace.’ Two is that this position has expanded into cowardice and inaction. That is someone who uses the excuse of “I believe in peace” so they don’t have to step up or confront something that is spinning out into extremes and heading towards violence.
The third problem is bullies. See in a peaceful, non violent world, the bully is king. He can be as pushy, demanding, vicious and violent as he wants and nobody can stop him. Or to be more precise, nobody will stop him. It’s a win for the violent bully.
That’s what happens when people think that peace is a morally superior position. First, they forget that the negotiating table is the option that sucks less. Second they’re at a loss when someone realizes the inherent weakness of their unpreparedness and exploits it. Third, they’ve lost sight of negotiation without the ability to back it up is begging. Fourth, way too often they start crossing the lines too. (Different tactics, but very much the same strategy and goals.) That last leads to the fifth problem, which is they see no reason not to become bullies themselves.
That works until the shooting starts.
I’d kind of like to get back to the negotiating table with the understanding that peace is not a virtue, it’s survival. Because the alternative is really really ugly.
– Marc MacYoung
crime
What happens when you don’t have anything to protect yourself?
People fucking die.
– Tom Araya, Slayer
During a June 27, 2016 concert in Pratteln, Switzerland, Tom Araya – singer and bassist for the band Slayer – had this to say during his stage rap:
Is it true that every household has to own a rifle or a gun? No? I thought everybody was supposed to have a rifle or a gun in their home. It’s not right? How else are you gonna defend your country?
Where you are in the world, you need to protect yourselves. Not from each other, but from invaders. And you know what I’m talking about, right? You should be aware of your invaders — people that come here to do you harm. It’s not right. You should be able to protect and defend your country. That’s the way it should be everywhere. ‘Cause when you don’t have anything to protect yourself or your fellow countrymen, what happens? People fucking die. They do! Don’t they? Yeah. You can see it going on.
I’m not gonna name names, but you can see what’s going on in other countries. ‘Cause they can’t protect themselves. And that’s what I’m talking about: being able to protect yourself and your fellow countrymen and your fucking country. I’m being serious, man. This isn’t a fucking joke. You know, it really sucks to know that other people die, because you can’t protect them. That fucking sucks.
Video here:
(h/t Blabbermouth)
How to make progress
We will make better progress if we start from where we agree and work with open minds and open hearts, than to start from where we disagree and drive the wedge even further.
I don’t know what to think
I’m on Nextdoor and yesterday afternoon I get an urgent alert that some kid tried to break into a neighbor’s home around 4:00 PM — she was home, and kid just walked up to the back door and tried to come in. He ran off because he was discovered. Description seemed familiar to other neighbors, so he’s probably been the one responsible for some stuff lately — hopefully he’ll get caught.
And yes, it’s a good argument for putting padlocks on your fence gates.
We’ve had a rash of mailbox break-ins.
Cars have been rummaged through.
Now I read that a Walgreens was robbed at gunpoint about 10:30 last night. Apparently a dude matching the same description went to the Walgreens near my house, demanded drugs at the pharmacy; didn’t get the full information on what happened there tho.
There’s been other shit going on too, all around Austin. Just open your eyes a little bit, because your neighborhood is getting nailed too.
And not all of it is getting reported on the news. Check out Krimelabb, Austin Police Department CrimeViewer, SpotCrime, and even NextDoor is quite useful.
Shit’s bad, folks.
If nothing else, get your head out of the sand about the reality of the world we live in. That’s the first step towards keeping yourself safe and being able to do something about it.
Car break-ins up in Austin
A neighbor posted some data regarding vehicle break-ins in Austin.
APD has what’s called COMSTATS, that give information about what kinds of crimes are happening in an area. I’m going on focus Property Crimes and specifically Burglary of Vehicles (BOV’s.) These stats (MTD and YTD) are thru March 2016 and will cover Region 4 Frank and David Sectors. These numbers do not cover any TCSO stats for those unincorporated areas, Sorry
March 2016 #’s YTD #’s
BOV’s- Burglary Of VehiclesDAVID- Down 1% this year from last to date
MTD-113 Cars
YTD-350 CarsFRANK- Up 5% this year from last to date
MTD-125 Cars
YTD- 305 CarsTOTAL Region 4- So far the # of BOV’s is up 2% for the year over last to date
MTD-382 Cars
YTD- 655 Cars broken into this year so far! 655!!! Crazy numbers
655, in just Region 4, in the first 3 months of 2016.
You know what could have prevented a vast majority of these?
Locking your damn doors.
Seriously, that’s it. It’s that damn simple.
Most thieves want a quick score and do not want to attract attention. This car locked? Move on to the next because it probably won’t be. Why waste time trying to break in when people just leave the doors open?
In addition, keep stuff out of your car (or at least out of sight). A fish doesn’t bite on an empty hook.
While you’re at it, lock the doors and windows on your home as well. I’ve been hearing too many stories recently of people finding unknowns in their home, and yes they left their doors unlocked and the dudes just waltzed right in.
Greg Ellifritz has an excellent article on the same topic. Please read.
In fact, don’t bother reading. Just lock your damn doors.
Why do USA cops shoot so many people?
Greg Ellifritz posted this on Facebook:
My friends from outside the USA often ask me “Why do cops in the USA shoot so many people?” The answer is that we deal with violent crazy people who are trying to kill us or someone else. Take a look at this National Review study on all the police shootings across America last month. Read the short narrative on each case. Sure, there are a couple of shootings that look unjustified, but in almost all of the others, the cops were being attacked by an armed criminal at the time of the shooting.
Here’s the study Greg references.
Throughout time there have always been people that don’t like the police/law-enforcement, but it’s become rather a popular topic as of late. The narrative/spin that tends to be promoted/hyped is that cops just like to kill people, or something along those lines.
But when you really look at the facts behind most OIS (Officer-Involved-Shooting), you find most are quite justified and there’s really no other way to solve the problem.
Facts are pesky things, especially when you don’t ignore them.
So like so many things in the world, if you’re upset about the symptoms, stop trying to just address the symptoms. Look deeper. What’s causing these people to commit their crimes in the first place? Can we solve those deeper problems? Solve those root causes and you’ll solve both their base problem and the issue of cops having to shoot people.
I know. It’s easier to get angry and outraged and Tweet about it, than to actually work to solve the tough problems. But solving the tough problems is the only way to make things better.
Making Good Decisions
Recently, there have been stories in the news about private citizens using guns to stop petty crime (e.g. shoplifting, theft of goods).
A Michigan woman trying to stop shoplifters at a Home Depot.
A man in Indiana trying to stop shoplifters at a farm supply store.
A woman in Bellmead, Texas trying to hold a purse-snatcher at gunpoint until the police arrive.
In all of these cases, the people had good intentions. They saw something bad happening and – given the popular outcry to “do something” when bad things happen – they did something.
Unfortunately, their choice of something to do wound up doing themselves more harm than good.
On Wednesday, a Michigan judge sentenced Duva-Rodriguez to 18 months of probation and stripped the 46-year-old of her concealed gun permit.
If convicted – Reynolds is charged with criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and pointing a firearm – Reynolds could face up to five years in jail and up to $10,000 in fines.
A McLennan County grand jury indicted Emma Cotten, 28, on a deadly conduct charge in a Nov. 20 incident in the parking lot of a Bellmead Wal-Mart, sources familiar with the case said Wednesday.
[…]
Deadly conduct can be a Class A misdemeanor or a third-degree felony, depending on how it is alleged. That was unclear Wednesday, because the indictment remains sealed.
Is this right?
Certainly some people would say it isn’t, because they were just trying to help.
Others would say it is right, because they broke the law.
Let’s consider the actions themselves.
Maximize Enjoyment of Beer & TV
What was the context of the crime? Generally petty: theft, shoplifting, purse snatching. Certainly things society deems unacceptable, but it’s small property crimes.
Was anyone’s life in danger? Nothing in the news reports indicate the crimes put lives in danger.
Was deadly force – because that’s what these people all used – justified in these cases? I cannot speak to Michigan or Indiana law, but in Texas there are situations where yes you can use force or deadly force to protect property (see Texas Penal Code, Title 2, Chapter 9, Subchapter D, §9.41 – §9.44). But just because you can, does that mean you should?
Let’s get back to the maxim of “making choices that maximize your enjoyment of beer & TV“.
Did the choices these 3 people make enable them to maximize their enjoyment of beer & TV? I would say no. The fact they are now facing criminal charges means lawyers, court appearances, lots of money spent, perhaps loss of job and/or wages, not to mention the mental and emotional anguish and pain this will cause them, not just for the months it will take to resolve the situation but likely it will loom over them for the rest of their lives. To me, that doesn’t enable maximum enjoyment of beer & TV.
Yes I know it’s terrible to see crimes unfold around you, but your response needs to be in accordance. Could you have gotten pictures of the car? Maybe a good description, the license plate number? These are responses that can help abate the crime, but don’t put your life or other lives in danger. And then, you can proceed to beer & TV.
C.Y.A. – Can You Articulate?
What was troubling to me as well is the interviews with the first two citizens and what they said about their choices and actions:
“I made a decision in a split second,” she told judge Julie Nicholson on Wednesday, according to WJBK. “Maybe it was not the right one, but I was trying to help.”
[…]
“She’s there to help; saw something happening; thought it was serious; pulled her gun,” added Schwartz, her attorney. “She didn’t want to hurt anybody. We didn’t know that there were any people in the parking lot, other than this person that was driving away this vehicle. She didn’t shoot it in the air; she didn’t shoot it at the window, at the windshield. She fired at the tires.”
She made a choice. She needs to be able to articulate why she made that choice.
What did she understand about the situation? about it that made it serious enough to warrant the use of deadly force? That if she didn’t want to hurt anyone, why would she resort to an option that has the potential to cause hurt?
As two shoplifting suspects got into a truck in the parking lot of the Big R in October, Reynolds said he fired one shot in an attempt to stop the suspects from getting away.
“I wanted them to stay there [in the parking lot] until the police arrived,” Reynolds said.
[…]
Reynolds said he fired one shot at the truck just behind the passenger seat because he felt threatened.
“I figured if [the suspect] had a weapon, he wasn’t gonna use it then,” Reynolds said.
[…]
Reynolds said he never intended to shoot anyone; he just wanted to scare the suspects into waiting for the police, which is why he placed his shot where he did on the truck.
So which is it? Did you shoot to have them stay in the parking lot? Did you shoot to scare them? Did you shoot because you thought the guy had a gun and going to hurt you? But if you thought he wasn’t going to hurt you, how did you feel threatened? Or did you never intend to shoot anyone?
There’s a lot going on here, and his intentions don’t seem to be well-articulated.
(I also wonder if it was wise for him to try to articulate to a news reporter, before first articulating to the judge and jury).
As for the Bellmead case, I wrote about that last month under the same notion: Can you articulate?
It’s not just the ability to articulate your choices after the fact, to the police, to the judge, to the jury. It’s important to be able to articulate your choices to yourself BEFOREHAND.
Training – More than Marksmanship
If you choose to carry a gun, you take on a great responsibility. There are clear times to use it, and clear times not to use it. But there are a lot of times that aren’t so clear. Thus it is important for you to clearly articulate to yourself – before you find yourself in a situation – to know where your lines are drawn.
Will you insert yourself into a crime unfolding between two strangers? Maybe you are in the 7-11 when the place gets robbed. Will you try to stop it? Should you? Maybe you see a man atop another giving him the ground & pound. Do you know what’s going on? Just because the guy on top is punching, does that mean he’s the criminal (maybe he’s the Good Samaritan beating some dude that just attempted to kidnap a child). Should you insert yourself?
What if you get involved, and then you get injured. Will those people pay your medical bills?
What if you get involved, and you injure someone else? Will you pay those medical bills? Will you pay for the property damage? Will you be prepared for potential lawsuits that could drag on for years and throw you into bankruptcy?
I’m not saying these things will happen, but they could happen. It is important for you to consider these things, and how they pertain to your situation and how you should react. The answers are different for everyone, and even the same person might change their answers when their life changes (e.g. you might respond different if you are single with no kids vs. married with small children).
Know your lines, where they are drawn, and what responsiblity and consequences you are willing to accept. Figure this out beforehand. I’m not sure any of these three people did:
“I thought, ‘Really? A felony charge?’” Reynolds said. “I’m very well trained.”
Maybe in marksmanship, but there’s a lot more to self-defense than marksmanship.
He still supports people arming themselves for protection, but urges people to get some kind of training.
Indeed. Learn from their mistakes. Get training – before you need to put it into practice.
The woman in Bellmead? Seems she didn’t have a handgun license. In Texas, the handgun license program really is about learning the law. I wonder if she had taken the class and learned something about the law, if she might have made different (better) choices that day.
And realize: training is more than marksmanship. There’s learning the law. There’s learning how to handle pressure situations (e.g. scenario training, force-on-force training). These sorts of classes aren’t as fun as burning through 1000 rounds of ammo in a weekend, but I’d say they’re a lot more fun and educational than being charged with a felony and being dragged through the court system.
So…
There’s a great deal to be learned from these 3 cases.
First, we must work to make good decisions. While “maximize enjoyment of beer & TV” sounds silly, it really works towards helping you determine what is a good decision (at least in this context).
Second, making good decisions comes from prior thought. To know ahead of time where your capabilities lie, where your lines are drawn. The ability to articulate those lines will be important in your decision making, and in your post-action explanations.
Third, making good decisions is empowered by knowledge. Ignorance rarely leads to good outcomes. The more you know, the better off you’ll be.
Finally, we have good people in this world. People that still care. People that are tired of seeing bad things happening and want to try to help. Really, we cannot lose sight of that, and we ought to encourage more of it. In encouraging it, we must direct and enable people to make wise decisions, and we ourselves must endeavor to ensure our decisions and actions will be the best they can be.
Signs, signs, everywhere there’s (ineffective) signs
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin police are looking for a man who robbed a South Austin jewelry store on Thursday afternoon. Police say the suspect came into Jared’s Jewelry store, located at 4301 W. William Cannon Dr., with a gun, and demanded property from the employees. The suspect was able to get away with an undisclosed amount of property.
Full story (emphasis added)
Jared’s Jewelry is well-established as being anti-gun. Here in Texas, every Jared’s store posts “30.06 signs” outside their entrances. People post “30.06” and other “no-guns” signs expecting those signs will keep guns (and crime/violence) out of their facility. The point of a “30.06 sign” is to prohibit lawful concealed carry inside the store; and that it does. The law-abiding citizens of Texas that are background-checked, fingerprinted, have passed other stringent tests and requirements, and been vetted by both the Texas and Federal government as demonstrably law-abiding, obey that sign.
You know who doesn’t obey that sign?
That guy that just robbed the Jared’s Jewelry store.
I have an earnest question
CINCINNATI — A Colerain Township man is accused of ambushing a woman outside of her home, slashing her with a knife and threatening to set her on fire.
[…]
According to court records, Ingram waited outside the woman’s Mount Auburn home Thursday. Once she came out, Ingram grabbed her, cut her face, cheek and chest, choked her, and said he’d pour gasoline on her and set her ablaze, court records state.
[…]
The woman had a temporary protection order against Ingram, according to court records.
Full story (h/t TDI)
My earnest question.
What could have been done to keep this woman safe?
I’m not trying to fish for or lead towards the answer of “guns!”. Honestly, while the article is very short on details, it appears the woman was ambushed and simply “having a gun” may not have been sufficient.
So I’m earnestly curious.
She had a restraining order. That didn’t keep her safe; in fact, I’d say it was pretty useless.
That restraining order effectively created a portable “gun/weapon/criminal/killer free zone” around her. Obviously ineffective.
I’m not sure “teaching men not to knife, choke, and burn women” would have been all that effective at keeping her safe. I mean, you’re taught not to exceed the speed limit while driving, yet you do it. “Teaching” isn’t sufficient to keep people from doing (or to get people to do) things; so it certainly isn’t sufficient to keep you safe from other people. That also puts your well-being in the hands of other people, and if a barista can’t get your Starbucks order correct, if that jackass texting while driving runs you off the road, what makes you think some sicko is going to give a damn about your life and dignity?
Good luck trying to pee or vomit on someone while under such an attack.
While I have my thoughts on what could have been done (and please don’t assume you know what I’m thinking; but if you can read minds, I’d like to talk with you about taking a trip to Las Vegas), I’m earnestly asking:
What could have been done to keep this woman safe?
Corollary question: if these other, oft-suggested solutions, are ineffective, why do they continue to be pushed as viable solutions?
Austin women, and self-defense
Local TV station KEYE did a good report in response to a couple sexual assaults that happened on the south side of town.
In the report, they interviewed Tina Maldonado, part of A Girl and A Gun woman’s shooting league, and graduate of numerous KR Training courses (disclosure: I’m an instructor at KR Training)
“We’re all responsible for our own self-defense,” said Maldonado. AGAG Club helps teach women safe and accurate shooting but also support, self-reliance and friendship. You can find a local chapter or learn more at www.agirlandagun.org.
Maldonado says they may be ready to use a gun, but are taught to stay alert and avoid danger first. “You’re your best protection,” said Maldonado.
Another good snippet from the article:
Moy Yat Kung Fu Academy teaches free self-defense. It is different than martial arts. It is a class based on intelligent movement and intelligent choices. “Once you have to attack, once you feel you have to attack, there are no good options. You have to attack with as much aggression as you can in order to survive,” said Vyvial.
Indeed. People view the word “aggression” as a bad thing, but when you’re in a fight for your life (and sexual assault is just that), you want as much aggression as possible.
APD also shares these tips on protecting yourself:
- Carry items that you can use if you need to call attention to your situation (examples: whistles and personal alarms)
- Consider taking a self-defense class.
- If someone tries to assault you, scream loudly or blow a whistle.
- If you are walking or jogging, stay out of secluded or isolated areas. Arrange to do the activity with at least one other friend, rather than alone. It is best to do these kinds of activities during daylight hours.
- Do not cover both of your ears with music headphones.
- Avoid getting isolated with people you do not know or do not trust.
- Be aware of where you are and what is around you.
- Keep your cell phone charged and with you.
- Stay away from deserted areas.
- Try to appear strong, confident, aware and secure in your surroundings.
A good list of personal protection tips, for women and men. But I’d change a few things about it.
Don’t consider taking a self-defense class. Take one. “Considering” isn’t going to do you any good; you have to actually take classes and get knowledge, training, and skill.
Don’t try to appear strong, confident, aware, and secure, be strong, confident, aware, and secure. If you lack these, work on improving yourself and acquiring strength, confidence, awareness, and security. If you’re not sure where to start, drop me a line, or check out groups like A Girl and A Gun. This is your life; it’s not a time to “feel-good” and lie to yourself, it’s a time to take action and “be good”.
Stuff From Hsoi 