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Be Grateful for America
About 45 minutes ago, I woke up from a nap hearing someone singing, slamming open counters, and making a general ruckus. As this continued, I assumed a crazy guy was in my house, taking all of the stuff he possibly could. Being up in my room, I hid under my bed and attempted to call 911. My cell phone went into "Emergency Mode," which, to my dismay, was enunciated by a huge blaring ring. I immediately turned it off and used my land-line to call my friend who alerted the authorities for me. I then called my towns police department and was connected to a 911 dispatcher. I lied in my bathtub, face to the floor, and whispered to the dispatcher describing the situation as three police units rushed to the situation.
My dad, wearing headphones and listening to Shaft on his I-pod as loud as it went, caught sight of a policeman at the door with a loaded M-16. Luckily, there was no robber in my house, but only my he who was building a cage for our new dog. They realized what had happened and the dispatcher on the phone told me I was now safe.
This really made me realize how great of an infrastructure America has to bring men with loaded guns to my house in under 10 minutes. After hearing all of the complaining about the recent administration and the general decline of my country, I think it's good to recognize the efficiency and safety which is still held up by officials and authorities.
My dad, wearing headphones and listening to Shaft on his I-pod as loud as it went, caught sight of a policeman at the door with a loaded M-16. Luckily, there was no robber in my house, but only my he who was building a cage for our new dog. They realized what had happened and the dispatcher on the phone told me I was now safe.
This really made me realize how great of an infrastructure America has to bring men with loaded guns to my house in under 10 minutes. After hearing all of the complaining about the recent administration and the general decline of my country, I think it's good to recognize the efficiency and safety which is still held up by officials and authorities.
Comments
Ah... so you think black people are mentally unstable :-p
j/k
This whole thread is ridiculous. The first and only proper way to have handled this situation is exactly what luke said. Go check it out yourself, then call the cops.
Eric, aren't you the same guy who had that smoke ball incident a year or so ago?
1. Hear loud noises I don't recognize.
2. Grab gun.
3. Quietly check out what's going on.
4. Identify lack of threat.
5. Hassle father for making a racket.
6. Go back to whatever I was doing.
1. Grab Gun.
2. Shoot intruder.
3. Realize intruder is your dad.
4. Mental hospital/suicide.
When I hear strange noises in my home, the last thing I suspect is an armed intruder. I never even consider arming myself in my own home. It's patently silly and quite paranoid.
If you hear strange noises in your house, and you don't expect them, it's pure idiocy to go check it out. While the possibility of an armed intruder is slim, that can be a slim chance of being killed. If you arm yourself before going to investigate, you will be prepared for any situation you encounter.
Now, if the noises stop and there is no response (which would indicate a possibly hostile intruder), you're still in a much safer position than if you tried to sneak downstairs with your gun. The worst thing you can possibly do is try to "get the jump" on an armed intruder. I could go on at length about what control of a situation means and when/how this is achieved, but the simple truth is that unless you are in fact "in control" of the situation, any aggressive action you take is an extremely dangerous and foolish mistake.
If you verbally confront the person from an unseen position, you are now in control of the static situation. Even if they are armed, they cannot react with immediate violence without exposing themselves to immense danger. Unless you're dealing with a trained, professional hostile (highly unlikely) or an insane and violent hostile (also highly unlikely), the momentum is now yours, and you are safe. (Even in the event of these two exceptions, you are still much safer than you otherwise would have been, but that's another topic for another time).
Now, if the noises have stopped, you can wait for a reaction. The onus to react is on the other side: you are in the static, safe position, and the possible intruder is in the unstable, reactive position. This is when your father says, "Hey, it's me," or your dog comes bounding up the stairs, or the raccoon that broke in runs away. If there is no response, then you now, for the first time, have a reasonable fear that there may in fact be an intruder: at no point before do you have this.
The key is always control of the situation. Arming yourself and approaching is a terrible idea, and will most likely end in someone being undeservedly shot. Even if you successfully sneak up on a real, armed intruder, what are you going to do? Shoot him in the back? Confront him? The moment you announce your presence, either by firing or speaking, you will very likely have lost control of the situation. The person may react in panic, hostile or not. You can't predict how a hostile will react, and you may even end up attacking a family member. Armed confrontation is a stupid, dangerous course, especially before you have positively identified the source of the noise.
@Rym: I'll agree that verbal acknowledgment is a good way to take control of a situation, so why not call someone out and arm yourself? Most burglars will probably be scared off by knowing that someone else is home, so the gun just serves to clinch the situation. In the unlikely event that the person is violent, the gun will serve as protection.
A lot of this depends on the area in which you live. For example, the per capita murder rate in New York State, as a whole, is about 4 per 100,000. The per capita murder rate in Albany itself is twice that. The odds of an intruder being violent are probably greater in Albany than in other places, especially depending on the areas in which you live. If I lived in the ghetto, for example, my odds of violent break-in would probably be relatively high compared to most places.
I've been robbed twice in my life and in both events as soon as the intruders heard me or heard me opening the door they ran. (The first time someone was trying to steal the family Sega Master System and Sega Megadrive).
How much fear do US citizens live with on a regular basis? It's laughable reading it on a board.
Plus why would you want a response with cops requiring high powered rifles - that's the major plus point of gun control in Australia, cops usually only ever react turning up with regular pistol side arms.
I live 2 blocks away from the section of Albany where people are murdered for wearing the wrong color clothing. The park to which I am adjacent sees muggings and assaults at night. While I don't expect to have a crime perpetrated upon me at any point, it could happen. I don't lose sleep fearing for my safety at night, because I keep myself prepared for it should it happen.
The other thing to note is that the US has more violent crime than other Western nations, so the impetus to be prepared is not unfounded.
Re. your particular situation. Yes, it's nice that the police responded in 10 minutes. Of course, if it was someone that wanted to do you harm, you'd be dead by the time they got there (as has been the case with plenty of women out there).
In the sane parts of the US, if you call 911 to report a break-in or someone in the house, a cop with a pistol sidearm shows up. They might have larger weapons in their police cruiser, but I can't think of a single cop that shows up with an assault rifle at the ready.
The student ghettos and most of Arbor Hill are the worst neighborhoods. The rest of Albany isn't as bad, but it's not stellar either.