Keeping a rifle over a door.

[oldred]

I mentioned the paint ball gun in case someone didn't feel comfortable in taking a life.

I can certainly understand that and fully respect those who feel that way, in my case (and my wife even more so) lethal force would be used only as a very last resort and both of us are level headed enough not to panic and make a regrettable mistake. All too often in discussions such as this the "macho" takes over for some and a lot of tough guy over-the-top comments are made, some from those that would act very differently in an actual situation and from others who would do just as they say but this discussion has been quite civil so far. On one hand if someone is breaking into my home then their health and well being is going to be really low on my list of concerns but on the other hand I would deeply regret taking the life of someone who turned out to simply be, for instance, a drunk coming to the wrong house (it happened a few years back). Some can argue "well good enough for him" and I, in some cases anyway, would find that hard to disagree with but still I would have a hard time accepting the taking of anyone's life if they truly meant no harm. The trick of course is to keep cool and analyze the situation, while hesitation could be a fatal mistake the "shoot first and ask questions later" method could also be the mistake of a lifetime so being level headed enough to SERIOUSLY analyze the situation is imperative. Talking tough to our buddies or on an internet forum is one thing but reality is quite another with consequences from our actions that can last forever, the point is to think SERIOUSLY about what we are about to do when we pull that trigger!

[shdwlkr]

oldred
I am in an area that in more recent times some think it is ok to break in and take what you want. They even do it during daylight hours. If you are just at the wrong house I can see that, but if you think I am an easy mark then you should really rethink that thought really well. I follow rules taught to me many decades ago by my dad and later the US Army, make sure you don't start something that you can't finish and make sure what you start is the action to have taken. I am no internet Rambo, but I sure hope I never have to find out if I still can react to a really negative situation and be the last one standing. have a great day

[Blammer]

you put 30 paint balls on someone at 10 ft or less in 3 seconds at full power, and they don't run?

You got big problems....and start aiming for the face.

[Ozark mike]

I wish I got to play with scatter guns in the military handguns and rifles yes but no shotties. I was barely old enough to hold one my first time shooting one though knocked me off my perch though

[JBinMN]

I wish I got to play with scatter guns in the military handguns and rifles yes but no shotties. I was barely old enough to hold one my first time shooting one though knocked me off my perch though

If you ever had guard duty on a military air base flight line around aircraft(A/C), you would have had "hours" of holding one & carrying it around. { BTW, I wouldn't call it, "playing", I think it was more of a PITA.}

[Ozark mike]

I was a aircraft crew chief had some guard duty in Korea all I ever got was a m16

[JBinMN]

I was a aircraft crew chief had some guard duty in Korea all I ever got was a m16

Interesting. When I was on guard duty at MCAS(H) New River a couple of times & it was only shotguns for the squadron we were guarding. IIRC, it was because of the A/C, since if a rifle was fired it could damage more than one & they used jacketed rounds, while the shotguns had 00 buck & were lead projectiles, so less likely to cause damage if one(or more) of the A/C was hit by firing if firing was necessary.

It could also depend on your location of either on perimeter or right next to the A/C on the flight line, though.

Anyway, it was still a PITA duty, even though it needs to be done on occasion. Not unlike Duty NCO, Fire Watch in a barracks, Mess duty, or the like.