At what point does being prepared go overboard

BlueTrain said:
but I fancied myself
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Blue, that's exactly the issue I think we're discussing here--and it's nothing to do with firearms.

As most of you know, I worked in finance for 30 years, and I hated it. It got so bad at the end of my career (which involved debt collection and "downsizing") that I shook like a leaf when coming home.

Imagine a guy like this stripping away every vestiage of imagined personal armor--slowly formed over decades--and then has to confront himself with a sad truth. There's a very good chance that no one reallys cares enough about him to even bother with killing him.
 
I'd like to agree with The Tourist since he is replying to my post but I can easily see quite the opposite. By that I mean as you get older, you might be more likely to go armed because of accumulating experiences that suggest it could be a good idea. Not everyone has the same experiences, however. Still, one seems to hear of too many cases of someone being killed for no good reason.

There's more to the story. I find myself wanting to learn more about things and generally it is the real focus of my activity with firearms over the years. You want to learn first hand about the latest thing or something old, you want to learn first hand about the utility of things you read about or thought about all on your own, so you try them out as much as you can. Reading gun magazines or something like this very forum can create interests you may not have had otherwise. You might call it artifical demand or something. There is something of following the herd, too. Everyone seems to have a 1911 .45, so you think you need to have one too, for some reason, good or bad. Even trying to be a little different, you still get one, only in .38 Super and think you're a little special for that reason. If you want a rifle, it has to be a Scout Rifle or you're behind the times. Or was that last year?
 
BlueTrain said:
I'd like to agree with The Tourist since he is replying to my post but I can easily see quite the opposite...as you get older
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Aging does alter your perception of the outside world, as well. You should see the crappy clothes I wear.:D

In getting older I realized my Dad (a professional in the security biz) was indeed correct. The honest answer to enhanced safety is not a back-up gun or a slick new custom 1911, but the boring old idea of the layered safety of better doors and windows.

He used to say, "Things that are good are good because they are good."

And frankly an alarm and a solid door trump a running gun battle any day of the week.

But when you open your eyes to that canard, you also start to evaluate all of the ancillary ideas. If a heated exchange is rare, then how can you rationalize six spare magazines, a Dragonskin vest, a combat knife fresh from the pages of TK and all than expensive 'up armor' you just installed on you VW beetle?

Even in the mesmerizing trench warfare of the local shopping mall, a cell phone and box stock .38 SPL revolver are probably more useful.

However, this idea is not romantic and it doesn't help you pose in front of a mirror. But the honest thought process of realistic tools will undoubtedly save your bacon.
 
I guess my problem isn't really that he carries all that stuff...

My issue is that he evidently likes to make it KNOWN that he carries all that stuff.

Carry all you want if it makes you feel safer... but as soon as you start to let people know you CCW an arsenal of weapons on a daily basis (in a "normal" setting) ... don't be suprised when "Mall Ninja", "paranoid", "tool", "loony" etc. start being used to describe you.
 
Man, do I get a sense of a lot of little and middle-sized kettles calling the big kettle overly black. I wouldn't personally weigh myself down with that much armament, but without knowing the guy, I would surely not rush into the judgements of "Mall Ninja" and other cute remarks.

We are not a homogenous group of gun-toters. I suspect we run the gamut from some not carrying even one gun, some carrying only one, and some having a back-up gun. (And don't forget that we as a group are a small minority and, as such, probably could all be referred to as "Mall Ninjas" just because we see fit to prepare for circumstances that are not very likely in our lifetime.

I guess what we need to do is eliminate the people who choose three guns and call them unfit. Then we can start on those that carry two guns as our next misfits. Next we can eliminate the guy carrying one gun and a knife. By the time we get through, we will have cleansed out all of the rabble. Then we join our friends in England and fight that ghastly urge to carry a beer mug.

My point is that using the basis of argument about overkill - if any of you die before you get the "opportunity" to defend yourself with you gun(s), you will be a classic case of "overkill" for all the years you carried.

It is ok to say that your choices would be different. However, until you meet and know the guy, maybe further judgements would be premature.

"That's my opinion - it oughta be yours!" :D
 
In my opinion, he is paranoid.
In his opinion, he is prepared.

As long as he is operating within the confines of the law, neither of our opinions is especially germane.
 
Some people like the full Batman belt but I find it hard to imagine a situation in the civilian world where such a level of equipment will be called upon, well at least outside DC or Detroit :p

Im not saying there aren't places or situations I would carry a backup but some people take it to the extreme.

So long as its within the law do what you want and exercise your right as you see fit. Who is really being hurt so long as the person is acting responsibly?
 
Packing Overkill

Anyone Watch the TV show Boston Legal when Captain Kirk
was getting interviewed for running for President?
Or...When he was getting mugged in the basement parking area?
Never Enough.
 
Gonna vote mall-ninja on this one. Why? Because he is carrying that small arsenal and then shows and tells an acquaintance all about it. He tells someone he doesn't know WELL not only that he has a CWL, but also shows this person every weapon on his person, and exactly where they are at. That my friends is called bragging. This gentleman is bragging to an acquaintance about his small armory.

Some people may call me a mall-ninja for carrying 3 or 4 different guns in different spots on different occassions (IE, 1911, hip, today; XD45, IWB, tomorrow) but they wont catch me bragging to random people that I just exchange pleasantries with about what I'm carrying, or how many extra mags I can fit in my underwear.

I don't particularly think this gentleman is off his rocker, but he WILL be an example if he is ever involved in any kind of shooting. He will be the poster child for the anti's.

There is ZERO reasons why a civilian would carry two different types of main weapon, and 4 backup weapons.
 
orionengnr said:
As long as he is operating within the confines of the law, neither of our opinions is especially germane.
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I politely disagree on this angle, which might sound odd coming from a strict constructionist who believes in all personal freedoms to the maximum level.

If you came to meet me at the bike shop, and (legally) armed to adhere to Wisconsin law, I'd sit next to you, share coffee, tell war stories and never give it a moment's thought. If you showed up in full pirate gear, replete with a parrot, and started each sentence with "arrghhh" I think I'd call a professional.

You can do bizarre things legally, but the line is "hurt himself or others."

Define it in the most of simple terms. Suppose you saw an elderly gentleman wondering around your neighborhood, confused, barefoot and wearing pajamas. Legally he has broken no laws.

We'd all get him help. His health and safety are in danger.

A guy suffering from paranoid delusions is in the same category. He's suffering, frightened. The best thing to be done here is to have a friend or relative take him to professionals.
 
I throw my supressed .22 carbine and a jar of peanut butter/tang mix in my tactcical wheelbarrow, which has rails on the exterior and molle straps for secring my gear on the inside.

Is that prepared?
 
"We could say the same thing about an older guy driving a red Corvette and tree-hugger at the wheel of a Prius. The 'Vette owner probably won't meet any swimsuit models, and it takes just as many raw materials to build an eco-car. But both guys have "dreams."

I'll bet the old guy in the vet meets more swimsuit models than the average Prius driver does. I haven't gotten to the point of a red Corvette YET but I'M close to it. Come on now if I cant make fun of myself from time to time:) how can I rib anyone else?
 
IMO way too much. At some point you risk being less mobile or worried about which weapon you'll choose for any scenario. You would also have to focus on weapon RETENTION in a struggle or a sprint someplace, and may have to stop to retrive that handgun that went flying across the parking lot under a car...

IMO for EDC, 1 reliable handgun, 1 magazine, a folding or boot knife and a 5" flashlight and a multitool will satisfy 99.99% of situations. I could possibly see the logic in a small BUG and/or a spare magazine for unusual circumstances (off duty cop or if you frequent really bad areas like you are a repo man, live in the 'hood, etc.).

But come one, 3 handguns, a hundred rounds of ammo, several knives AND a baton!!! I applaud his taking his self defense seriously, but that is way overkill to the point of endangering himself. A slip and fall on the ice on this back and he could damage his spine due to small of the back carry. If he is jumped/surprised how can he struggle and protect 6 weapons!? The ankle carry would be especially difficult to protect, and the small of the back carry makes grappling nearly impossibly painful for him.
 
I believe the general definition of when a personality trait or way of thinking crosses into a disorder is when it begins negatively impacting your life. Many of the best scientists have an obsessive compulsive personality type, but as long as it doesn't significantly hurt their livs it hasn't crossed over into OCD.
 
Ya' know, I guess it boils down to what you consider "being prepared." We all know some virtual tough guys on the 'net who profess that "constant vigilance and martial arts" is the only way to live one's life. Some have their own websites.

Right now, if you go inside my riding jacket you will find a clean rag, a folding toothbrush and perhaps dry socks. I prepare for a violent rainstorm when far from home. Taken out of context, you might think that being "a living suitcase" is somewhat bizarre behavior.

Well, I have been wet and chilled, but I've never met a ninja.

Personally I believe the slavish behavior is an indicator. I even know someone in the magazine biz that showers with a plastic knife, "just in case."
 
"As I've gotten older.....
my guns get smaller and so do my pocket knives.
"OLD BRASS"

amen to that brother! i think that all (most) of these mall ninjas armed to the teeth are on the young side.

i carry an automatic pocket knife, if i have pants on then it is in my pocket.
my usual carry is a 380 amt backup in my pocket. no ankle holster, no jock strap holster, nothing fancy it just sits in my pocket. i have 2 extra mags which i seldom carry unless i feel the need.

if i am going out of town or someplace i feel is out of my comfort zone i might take a snubbie 38 or 357 or one of my compact 1911's or taurus pt-145. if i carry one of these i usually bring 1 or 2 reloads but they usually sit in my glove box unless the hairs on the back of my neck tell me to carry them.

i guess there might come a day i would wish i had a half dozen guns strapped to my body but then i would probably wish i had an rpg and a 50 cal machine gun too. until then i'll take my chances with my little amt or one of my compact handguns.
 
'james, I think that time and experience pretty prove themselves in the long run.

*sigh* I just wish that ideal could be proffered without sounding preachy, and that's the real problem with forums. You have a scant few paragraphs to define some useful knowledge.

I also believe that being a mentor is some very valuable and important work. Having said that, the best thing I can do is be the proverbial "bad example."

A spare tire is good. On a longer trip, perhaps two tires make sense. Pulling a horse-trailor with 300 spare tires is not needed. This is a great topic and a worthwhile thread. But for me a good charged cell phone and SureFire flashlight make better sense.
 
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