ratetankmark
Samurai Cop
Equalist Lex Luthor
RIP Rik Mayall, you blimmen genius - Ria Vandervis on Rik Mayall
Posts: 2,426
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Post by ratetankmark on Dec 30, 2013 8:00:31 GMT -5
I was inspired to make this because in the North East where I live, there is a lot of elderly people getting mugged and I'm seriously thinking of arming myself when I go out in case it happens to me.
If you carry a weapon around with you to stop from being mugged (like a knife or something like that) then you're technically in possession of an illegal weapon but you're using it to stop from a crime from happening to you? So where does FAN stand on this? Is it a case of two wrongs don't make a right?
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shaker
Team Rocket
The numbers don't lie - and they spell disaster for you at Sacrifice!
Posts: 779
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Post by shaker on Dec 30, 2013 8:31:13 GMT -5
Get a license to carry a concealed weapon and invest in a handgun if it's really serious. Also look up your specific state laws - I'm sure you would be able to carry a concealed knife in some situations, you'd just need some kind of permit I assume.
Never be the aggressor in a confrontation, but you can definitely defend yourself and your property.
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Post by Red Impact on Dec 30, 2013 8:41:31 GMT -5
You live in the northeastern US, or somewhere else? If it's in the US, then yeah, you can get a permit. I'd definitely recommend taking classes if you're thinking about getting a weapon and spend quite a bit of time practicing.
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ratetankmark
Samurai Cop
Equalist Lex Luthor
RIP Rik Mayall, you blimmen genius - Ria Vandervis on Rik Mayall
Posts: 2,426
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Post by ratetankmark on Dec 30, 2013 8:52:05 GMT -5
I live in the UK, I don't think I'll get mugged but if people'll mug off vulnerable OAPs, you can never be too careful with scumbags like that.
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Post by Red Impact on Dec 30, 2013 8:58:10 GMT -5
I don't know how it works in the UK and what you're allowed, so it'd definitely something you need to research heavily. There are probably legal options that you can use to protect yourself, and I'd go that route first.
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SOR
Unicron
Posts: 2,611
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Post by SOR on Dec 30, 2013 10:15:33 GMT -5
I think the answer is pretty obvious, you're not usually allowed to carry a knife over a certain size and you would be a massive social outcast if you took a knife everywhere you went. Who would want to hang out with a dude armed with a knife? What if you're about to have sex with a woman and you pull a knife out of your back pocket? She'd think you're a psycho.
Here's what you should do. Go to a local Youth Club (They're called PCYC's in Australia) and take up a 3 dollar boxing class. Take enough lessons to learn how to throw a punch, some combinations and how to block. Odds are if you get mugged and you're an in shape dude who immediately goes to a fight stance the guy is leaving. Unless he's armed.
After you've done that, take a bag with you when you go out with some spray on deodorant in it. If you're walking through a bad area tuck it into your pants and cover it with your shirt or put it in your pocket. If anything goes down and you're in a situation, just mace them in the face with it and bail.
If they have a weapon, give them what they want.
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NerdyGerdy
Trap-Jaw
El Hombre Enmascarado
Posts: 492
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Post by NerdyGerdy on Dec 30, 2013 10:34:44 GMT -5
You're going to want to check on the laws in your area for this kinda thing. You don't want to break the law because you will still be charged for it even if it was self defense.
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Post by A Platypus Rave on Dec 30, 2013 10:48:12 GMT -5
You're going to want to check on the laws in your area for this kinda thing. You don't want to break the law because you will still be charged for it even if it was self defense. Very much this. Know the law for where you are. Also if there is a group of them threatening you with a weapon (especially a gun) just give them what they want... resisting at that point is a good way to get yourself killed.
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Post by SHAKEMASTER TV9 is Don Knotts on Dec 30, 2013 11:08:47 GMT -5
I live in NYC and I carry pepper spray. When I walk in the dark, I have my hand on it in my pocket and just be aware of my surroundings. Only cops can carry mace here. Some states are more restrictive, like getting licenses and such. I wouldn't recommend carrying a knife. If a mugger comes up to you saying give me your phone, you pull a knife but he has nothing, it'll only go bad for you.
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BigWill
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Posts: 16,619
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Post by BigWill on Dec 30, 2013 11:19:08 GMT -5
I live in NYC and I carry pepper spray. When I walk in the dark, I have my hand on it in my pocket and just be aware of my surroundings. Only cops can carry mace here. Some states are more restrictive, like getting licenses and such. I wouldn't recommend carrying a knife. If a mugger comes up to you saying give me your phone, you pull a knife but he has nothing, it'll only go bad for you. If you pull a knife on a mugger, and he ends up having a gun, it'd go even worse for you.
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shaker
Team Rocket
The numbers don't lie - and they spell disaster for you at Sacrifice!
Posts: 779
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Post by shaker on Dec 30, 2013 11:31:53 GMT -5
One personal story to add:
When I was very young, my parents and I went to go see a movie. We were running late afterwards, so we cut through a dark alley. A man appeared and pointed a gun at my father, demanding his wallet and my mother's pearls. My father attempted to talk the guy out of it, and both he and my mother were shot and killed.
Since then, I have learned that criminals are a superstitious and cowardly lot. The best way to fight them is to become a symbol that strikes fear into their hearts.
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Post by SHAKEMASTER TV9 is Don Knotts on Dec 30, 2013 11:33:03 GMT -5
I live in NYC and I carry pepper spray. When I walk in the dark, I have my hand on it in my pocket and just be aware of my surroundings. Only cops can carry mace here. Some states are more restrictive, like getting licenses and such. I wouldn't recommend carrying a knife. If a mugger comes up to you saying give me your phone, you pull a knife but he has nothing, it'll only go bad for you. If you pull a knife on a mugger, and he ends up having a gun, it'd go even worse for you. If you have a knife and he has a rocket launcher, it'd be even worse.
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Post by Piccolo on Dec 30, 2013 11:48:32 GMT -5
One personal story to add: When I was very young, my parents and I went to go see a movie. We were running late afterwards, so we cut through a dark alley. A man appeared and pointed a gun at my father, demanding his wallet and my mother's pearls. My father attempted to talk the guy out of it, and both he and my mother were shot and killed. Since then, I have learned that criminals are a superstitious and cowardly lot. The best way to fight them is to become a symbol that strikes fear into their hearts. This story sounds strangely familiar... Anyway, what are these crimes usually committed with? Are the muggers usually armed themselves?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2013 12:17:28 GMT -5
I live in the UK, I don't think I'll get mugged but if people'll mug off vulnerable OAPs, you can never be too careful with scumbags like that. In the UK it is against the law to carry a knife without "good reason" self defense does not count as a good reason in the eyes of the law. Basically you can only really carry one if you need it for work or whatever. If its 3 inches or less with a foldable blade or a swiss army knife then the above does not apply. Any knife with a lockable blade is illegal to carry in public no exceptions. If you get caught with one for no reason its a maximum sentence of 4 years, though I doubt you'd get more than a suspended sentence and a fine if you didn't have previous history, or they didn't have something else to charge you on, unless you looked like you were about to or tried to use it as a weapon - but I wouldn't risk that also a weapon your in possession of is probably more likely to be used against you than used by you. Basically they don't f*** around when it comes to weapons in this country, with things like guns for example any report they get in they will send the armed response unit out even if they are pretty certain it's just kids messing around with toy guns or whatever, they don't take chances here.
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Bo Rida
Fry's dog Seymour
Pulled one over on everyone. Got away with it, this time.
Posts: 23,326
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Post by Bo Rida on Dec 30, 2013 12:19:57 GMT -5
You are not allowed to carry a knife for self defence, it's still classed as carrying an offensive weapon and you can be prosecuted for it. The only way around it is if you have a valid reason for carrying one (and no self-defence isn't a valid reason) but unless your job requires one or you're a Sikh there's not many ways you can use that loophole in a way that would stand up in court.
If you ended up using one even in self-defence I'm pretty sure you'd be in deep shit especially if you struck first.
It's better to take a self-defence class, even they teach you to hand things over and avoid confrontation and that any weapon you carry is more likely to be used against you but at least you'd know what to do if things did turn violent, plus you'd probably carry yourself differently making it less likely you'd be targeted in the first place.
Edit: Damn beaten by two minutes.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2013 12:36:22 GMT -5
Take a self defense class. Preferably one that practices it's training in an alive manner. It's near useless to take a class without any sparring where they stand there and punch air for two hours because that just means the second you're in a real fight all that training and imagination goes out the window. Not only that, but a decent martial arts class does a lot for your attitude and keeping you out of crappy situations. You learn to stay calm and not give the sort of cues that make situations like that escalate. That and honestly? Most people have no idea how to fight. A guy who rattles them a few times with a few decent shots and makes it clear that he's not going to be an easy target is probably not worth fighting.
That said, that all goes out the window if a weapon is involved and the best art for self defense is still track and field. Know your surroundings, take familiar routes home and be smart about what you do. Yes, I know that can sound like victim blaming but we don't live in a perfect world. Carrying weapons is a hit or miss solution, it ends up being more likely to be used against you and if you carry a weapon you end up looking for excuses to whip it out and use it.
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Post by "Gentleman" AJ Powell on Dec 30, 2013 12:45:20 GMT -5
Yeah, you're better off taking classes. And even then, you've got to consider what reasonable force is. It's all well and good choking a mugger out, but snapping their arm and then beating them into a pulp would probably be viewed as excessive.
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Post by Amazing Kitsune on Dec 30, 2013 13:31:22 GMT -5
It's a shame you're not afforded the basic right to carry a weapon for your own defense--but there are ways to defend yourself without weaponry as well. I hope you live in an area with a fast responding police force, because where I live I'd have to wait 30-40 minutes for police to make it to the area to respond during a confrontation. You should be your first line of defense--not the police.
You can avoid situations by traveling properly and avoiding questionable areas. You can take a reputable self-defense course that will teach you how to react in a crisis situation. Most of the time, that's simply getting as much distance between you and your attacker as quickly as possible--not roundhouse kicking him or something like that. You can also learn that your body language helps avoid situations as well. If you look like a target--you'll be treated like a target. You'd also gain some self confidence that would help you.
I kind of get culture shock when I read posts on here. There was one post above where it said that carrying a pocket knife would make somebody a social outcast. Everybody has a pocket knife around here.
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Post by SsnakeBite, the No1 Frenchman on Dec 30, 2013 15:19:32 GMT -5
Is carrying a knife illegal in the UK? I'm pretty sure it's legal over here (at least under a certain size) and our country is very strict on weapons control.
Honestly, I can understand that being armed could make you feel safer but they way I see it, if the mugger notices it, they WILL kill you and make no mistake, you won't have time to use it.
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Cranjis McBasketball☝🏻
Crow T. Robot
Knew what the hell that thing was supposed to be
Peace Love and Nothing But
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Post by Cranjis McBasketball☝🏻 on Dec 30, 2013 21:50:11 GMT -5
I'm glad I don't live in your f***ing physco country where buying a weapon seems like a reasonable choice.
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