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Bill, that's funny. I can say I have been both blessed and cursed to be reared by a corrections officer who worked with mostly predatory sex offenders. :eek: He taught me some serious awareness and instructed me on gun safety and fun at a very young age. However, I might be a little more paranoid than the average woman, albeit, more prepared. Fortunately, once he hit the desk and rose the ranks in the legislature, things got more mellow. He got a lot of death threats against his kids. Must've been hard for him. I know it was hard on anyone coming to court me. They had to meet me at the house and get *thoroughly* checked out. I didn't get it at the time but now I do. It's not the strangers that tend to get us. It's the people we know. Though I've told him about my firearms hobby, I try to keep the scary stuff out because he's getting old.
 
I understand. I struggle with how much I share with my kids (3 girls, 1 boy), I try to share enough so they're carefull, but not so much that they are afraid of life. It's a precarious position.
As far as the boys who show interest in my girls (17,15,13) I jokingly (but openly) refer to them as "fertilizer", and tell my girls they may have a future home in our pond or somewhere else on our property. It's become a family joke. But the boys don't know that!
 
Bill,

LOL! Well I guess that's preferable to the "oh, I just happen to be cleaning my guns now" technique that would come into play on date night. He scared off quite a few from even asking me out! I don't think it was a particularly effective method for me, because I still wound up marrying nut cases and then had to process the whole overprotective dad thing for years. But I think it eased his anxiety and he did do the best he could with what he had. I hope your girls pick better partners. And I hope you taught them all how to shoot and appreciate a gun. They might find it irritating now but a few decades later, I clearly remember it fondly. See my post on "emotional ties." I talk about my dad there. There's a lot of baggage but a lot of love and it somehow got transferred onto my guns :)
 
That's funny. I have a friend at work who actually used to make sure he was cleaning his M-14 when boys came over. 3 out of my 4 have showed an interest in guns (I won't push it on the 4th) and I just try to trust in their good judgement.
As far as your situation at work goes, as your dad probably told you, awareness is half the battle. And as long as you are ready for trouble at your job, whatever tools you choose to defend yourself are only as good as your readiness and willingness to employ them.
I have a feeling you'll be ready.
 
I have a feeling you'll be ready.
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ditto.


There’s a lot of merit to revolver carry and especially those with a bobbed or shrouded hammer, as Glenn Dee pointed out. You might want to consider one because of their design features but imo, that’s something for you to decide according to what you’re comfy with.
My wife taught me a lesson there. Her favored pistol for carry is a slightly modified and slightly lightened .44 Bulldog. Due to her very small hands and light frame, I got it into my head that it was a little too much for her, and went through buying a series of pistols "more suitable" and "higher quality". She tried them all out, and handed more than one back dismissively (the two-fingered hold, like she was handing back a smelly bag of dog mess).
The only pistols she’s considered replacing it with have been a govt. model and a little .40 Astra, … and those weren’t ones that I bought for her to carry ! I’m glad she stuck with the revolver for several reasons, mostly what Glen said..
She can shoot tight groups quickly and she’s confident with it, even though she leaves every practice session with a bruised hand. The flinch that I expected to develop still hasn’t showed up after 20+ years. She’s had to pull it a couple of times, and all’s been well. It seems "right for her", even though I have a few reservations.

... now you guys are getting me on edge a bit. I still have a few years to go before I have to deal with fertilizer, but the girls are growing up fast … been kinda fantasizing about meeting the boys sniffin' around while cleaning my HK-91 or installing a ballistic box hidden in a basement wall :eek::D… wife probably wouldn’t let me get radical, though … maybe a good thing, but doesn’t sound like much fun.:confused::)
 
The bottom line - there is no place for a gun in the situation you described. There is no immediate, life threatening danger to you - based on what you described.

1. You can get up and walk out of the door to your left. Tell him you feel sick and have to use the bathroom. Fake vomit, or whatever you have to do.
2. You can stay seated and calm - he hasn't made any threats toward you...yet.
3. Telephone for help? Yell for help?

Possibly use a stun gun device or spray foam mace if you have to and he trys to stop you from leaving. The best weapon you have in this situation is your brain - do what you've got to do to get away from the person.

Reasons why a gun is a bad idea in this scenario:
1. No immediate danger of life threatening bodily harm to you.
2. No attempt by you to walk away from the situation.
3. No verbal threats or otherwise made directly toward you.
4. Walls are thin in office settings - usually just thin drywall held in place by a few sheet-metal studs. You don't know where your missed shot(s) will end up.
5. Are you really ready to "shoot to kill" this guy? Sounds like he's got a problem or having a really bad day, but not there necessarily to do you any harm.
6. Killing someone in your office isn't going to be a great carreer move.
 
@Skans, thanks for your thoughtful reply. This is how it's gone 100% of the time so far. My BRAIN is my best tool. Then my mouth for talking, my feet for walking. I've gotten out of sticky situations so far and I intend to minimize exposure to further ones and have a back up plan IN OFFICE for a threat of a level higher than what I've had before. I can't find a reasonable and safe way to use a firearm in the office and it's the last thing in the world I want to do. I've had many people on and offline say "shoot 'em" and when I raise objections they don't seem to get it. It took a bit for me to get to the point to be willing to use lethal force and one of the top three things I'm willing to use this for is MY JOB. More than likely if I use a firearm in my office, or was even seen with a firearm in my office, the powers that be will suspend and/or revoke my ability to do my job. Having sunk my entire life, my heart and a ton of $$ into this, I'm not willing to give it up. For those of you that have kids, think about this job as your kids. That's how I feel about protecting it.

That being said, out of the office, I'm willing to use my CCW or other deadly force if I have no other choice. The powers that be are unlikely to see it in the same light and hopefully I will remain alive and able to work.
 
Google Marc McYoung his web site "Psycology of Self Defense" is a must read for everybody. In my opinion. Lots of stuff there and very long. Your on target to think through scenarios before they happen, just remember everyone you meet is not an enemy paranoia is not preparedness.
 
In a close quarters situation with a stranger, then you should take into consideration the following:

- distance - try to keep the distance to the furthest extent possible

- barriers - see what you can do to place additional barriers in between you and the person, position a large desk between you and the stranger for example

- never stare at the stranger, but do not turn your back on them. keep a face of indifference neither smiling or showing anger

- every office space is required to have two exits. you should be properly positioned near one of the exits

Other then that, there is nothing you can do. Many retail establishments deal with the issue of security every day. Just try to be as nice as you can to the people who enter the office. Do not give them any reasons to attack you.
 
Might I suggest a civilian version of the taser?
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I'll tell you that I'm no fan at all of tasers. Personally, I prefer stunguns. Tasers require aim, and you only get one shot. There are all kinds of stun guns, even some that are disabled if the attacker wrestles it away from you. They are not effective on everyone 100% of the time, but they are very effective on most people, contrary to what you might here. Don't forget, a .45 slug isn't effective on everyone either.

You would never hear anyone in this forum recomend a Liberator Pistol for self defense. Why? Because they are not accurate and are basically a single shot pistol. A stun gun is basically the same thing, just harder to use and less effective. A stungun, stun baton, etc. is simply a better non-gun tool for self defense, in my opinion.
 
There are multishot tasers now - if they have reached the civilian market - I don't know.

Having been shocked with the standard handheld ones in some H2H, I don't recommend someone who is not a physical titan trusting in one. They are used for compliance as compared to disabling.

You want a distance weapon and/or some reasonable H2H training.
 
I carefully deliberated on the taser. In my state that is not considered "deadly force" so it made it more appealing. However, it seems that 8 feet (which is the IDEAL distance I'd have) is not enough room to separate the probes enough. The officer suggested that at first but when we chatted it through, he withdrew the suggestion. This guy was thinking through things quite thoroughly out loud so I got to see his reasoning, and he couldn't find any situation or arrangement where a firearm would be helpful. On the contrary, he said to carry it into the office. Shut the door. Lock it in the gun safe. So when I hit the panic button and dispatch is on the line (if I get a chance to dial 911), and they ask about weapons, I can say "yes there is a handgun locked in a gun safe in xyz location". He says they'll assume the person is armed but it will be one less firearm for them to worry about. He agreed that when I leave I should put the firearm back in the holster to get to the car and carry 100% of the time after that.

Whew! I just rearranged my office by myself. My Feng Shui consultant would say my desk is not in the ultimate "power position", however, for me, the power position is the one closest to the exit! I flipped the arrangement so the potential attacker is as far away from the door as possible and I'm right next to it.
 
Having been shocked with the standard handheld ones in some H2H, I
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I see your point, I'd agree that you do need some level of training to use one effectively. If you think you are just going to hold a stungun out in front of you and threaten someone with the "snap..snap..snap" sound, it would be all to easy to smack it out of the victim's hand. But, with a little training, it could be a very effective tool. I've never tried H2H combat with stun guns, but it would be interesting.
 
I dont get it. No references to your profession? We dont even know what you do or where you work. You are just an anonymous alias on a message board. How would we know your profession?

In any event, I thought it over and would probably have a ASP baton. If something were to happen, then whip it out, swing it around wildly while heading for the exit door. A baton would give you enough time to get out of dodge.

One time I had a roommate who was trying to get in my face. He was banging on my door. I took out my 3-cell Maglite, opened the door and whipped it around wildly like a mad-man. He backed up and I closed the door. Then I headed out the backdoor to my car because I know he probably called the cops. While I was out, the cops came and there was no case because I was not there. I believed I was in the right, but like I said before, when the cops come and find out that you were pointing or swinging a weapon...then you might find yourself with more trouble then you bargained.
 
Yes Skans your assessment is partially correct. I have PM'd with a few people who know the specifics of my situation. It's easy for them to forget not to mention it when posts talk about how not dangerous my situation is. It is very dangerous. The post has since been removed but was well intentioned. The point of that post was that people in my profession get killed all the time, unpredictably, and with very little warning. Sorry if I'm confusing people but it's important that key words that can be searched are not included in posts. I know it seems paranoid but trust me, it's warranted. I picked up some pepper gel today. Works on contact, only gets worse when you try to wipe it off. Also gun safe that can be discreetly hidden in office. Congratulate me on leaving the gun shop without the beautiful Sig P230 I handled multiple times today :D I'm learning impulse control.
 
Skans:

The secret is she is actually a secret ninja assassin for a group of Mars aliens in an alternate multiverse... :D

It is her business and the reasons are up to her and we need to respect that, who knows she could be a famous movie star...
 
Oh my God! My cover is blown...:(. I AM a movie star alien ninja working as a double secret spy! You guessed it. :D. But now I'm armed with nailed 2x4s, Raid, bear spray, a revolver, a police baton, a deadly pen, a fire extinguisher, a really bright and stunning flashlight, a taser, a stun gun, a hot cup of coffee and a cop best friend. So I should be good. If not I can feign illness, throw up on my attacker, stare them down with my secret mind control powers and run like hell. And as a trailing last resort, I can consider Aqua-net and praying. ;)
 
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