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Deleted member 21794
Guest
Wow dude, that's heavy. You were very lucky. I wouldn't expect someone as prepared as the guy that helped you to arrive in time. That would certainly haunt me as well.
Useful stuff....
- Thread starter freyasman
- Start date
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Deleted member 21794
Guest
I found one point incredibly interesting. With 20,000 people running for their lives, not one called 911 for what had to be something longer than 2:27, as there certainly had to be some lag time from the time the shooting started to the time the first cops arrived on the scene.
An example of primal instinct for sure.
freyasman
Senator
And look how long it took LE to actually get to the room.
The world's full of good people who will often help you, but you can't count on anyone to help you.... hope for sunshine, but prepare for rain.
Rescue yourself.
freyasman
Senator
http://cpr.heart.org/AHAECC/CPRAndECC/Training/HeartsaverCourses/HeartsaverCPRAED/UCM_473176_Heartsaver-CPR-AED.jsp
Got re-certified on this Monday....
Got re-certified on this Monday....
freyasman
Senator
https://www.click2houston.com/news/hpd-family-held-at-gunpoint-by-possible-police-impersonators-home-ransacked
This goes back to what I was saying about knowing who the bad guys and the good guys are in an area, and how they operate respectively. In the Houston area, the 4 LE agencies you would most commonly encounter are Houston PD, Harris County Sheriff's Office, Constables, and the TX DPS (State Troopers). I make it a point to be familiar with all of their uniforms, vehicles, grooming standards, and where possible, their common tactics and procedures. If you let a LE impersonator (and this tactic of dressing like cops is very common south of the border;
see this guy? Cartel shooter dressed as a soldier, in a truck cloned to look legit as well) get cuffs or restraints (flex-cuffs, shackles, etc.) on you, then you and any of your loved ones that are with you, are well and truly fucked.
Conversely, if you kill a guy who you think is trying to kidnap and/or rob you, and he turns out to actually be LE, then again, you are well and truly fucked.
It would behoove you to get this one right, because the consequences for getting it wrong, are pretty severe.
This goes back to what I was saying about knowing who the bad guys and the good guys are in an area, and how they operate respectively. In the Houston area, the 4 LE agencies you would most commonly encounter are Houston PD, Harris County Sheriff's Office, Constables, and the TX DPS (State Troopers). I make it a point to be familiar with all of their uniforms, vehicles, grooming standards, and where possible, their common tactics and procedures. If you let a LE impersonator (and this tactic of dressing like cops is very common south of the border;
see this guy? Cartel shooter dressed as a soldier, in a truck cloned to look legit as well) get cuffs or restraints (flex-cuffs, shackles, etc.) on you, then you and any of your loved ones that are with you, are well and truly fucked.
Conversely, if you kill a guy who you think is trying to kidnap and/or rob you, and he turns out to actually be LE, then again, you are well and truly fucked.
It would behoove you to get this one right, because the consequences for getting it wrong, are pretty severe.
freyasman
Senator
We all have kids, or grandkids....
http://www.corneredcat.com/scary-strangers-children-and-boundary-setting-in-the-grocery-store/
From the link;
"Today I’m thinking about an important question that I found in a private group on Facebook. Shared with permission and with names obscured, here’s the backstory:
To answer the first question you’re most likely to ask after reading the above: Yes, this incident really did happen. Not an urban legend, but something that does sometimes happen to moms with small children. Strangers in the grocery store, apparently stalking them or at least following them around the store, giving off a scary vibe and talking to the children or even touching them.
What’s a responsible concealed-carry person to do in a situation like this? Is this, as an online friend of mine asked, an appropriate time to tell others that we carry a gun? If it’s not, what should we do about persistent strangers who seem to be violating social scripts — who step inside our personal spaces, who talk to or touch our children without permission, who seem to be following us through the store, or who break the social expectations in other ways?
To answer the easiest question first, No. This is not the time to talk about your armed status. Or to pull out the gun. Not yet. In the beginning, this is an ambiguous situation, not a clear-cut one. And the use of a deadly weapon is reserved for times when human lives are definitely in immediate, otherwise unavoidable danger. This isn’t (yet) that. And we don’t know that it ever will be.
We need to find out. And we need to help avoid the situation ending up at that point, if that’s possible.
So … where do we start? Perhaps with this.
The process of self-defense starts long before using the firearm is appropriate, and it includes looking people in the eye and speaking with confidence about what we see."
More at the link.
http://www.corneredcat.com/scary-strangers-children-and-boundary-setting-in-the-grocery-store/
From the link;
"Today I’m thinking about an important question that I found in a private group on Facebook. Shared with permission and with names obscured, here’s the backstory:
To answer the first question you’re most likely to ask after reading the above: Yes, this incident really did happen. Not an urban legend, but something that does sometimes happen to moms with small children. Strangers in the grocery store, apparently stalking them or at least following them around the store, giving off a scary vibe and talking to the children or even touching them.
What’s a responsible concealed-carry person to do in a situation like this? Is this, as an online friend of mine asked, an appropriate time to tell others that we carry a gun? If it’s not, what should we do about persistent strangers who seem to be violating social scripts — who step inside our personal spaces, who talk to or touch our children without permission, who seem to be following us through the store, or who break the social expectations in other ways?
To answer the easiest question first, No. This is not the time to talk about your armed status. Or to pull out the gun. Not yet. In the beginning, this is an ambiguous situation, not a clear-cut one. And the use of a deadly weapon is reserved for times when human lives are definitely in immediate, otherwise unavoidable danger. This isn’t (yet) that. And we don’t know that it ever will be.
We need to find out. And we need to help avoid the situation ending up at that point, if that’s possible.
So … where do we start? Perhaps with this.
The process of self-defense starts long before using the firearm is appropriate, and it includes looking people in the eye and speaking with confidence about what we see."
More at the link.
freyasman
Senator
http://straightforwardinacrookedworld.blogspot.com/2009/08/dark-arts-for-good-guys-break-on_19.html
From the link;
"Dark Arts for Good Guys: Break on Through to the other side
One of the best weapons for getting out of a crisis isn't necessarily a gun. A decent size vehicle, even one that may not run so fantastic has more versatility and overall practical use than a pistol...not that you can't have both of course.
Faced with breaching a road block made from stationary vehicles a car makes a very serviceable battering ram. But like everything, there is a right way and a wrong way. Do it the right way and you not only surprise everyone, but you may also disable a few of the bad guys cars along the way. It just won't won't be in show room condition afterwards.
Do it wrong and you're gonna have a bad case of whiplash from the impact and a bloody nose from the airbag for the next thirty seconds until someone rearranges your school girl beauty with a magazine full of copper.
So first things first: Hands on the wheel. Just like the old man said, hands at ten and two or at nine and three.
Why?
Should the airbag deploy while you ram through the barricade your hands are going to be knocked away from the steering wheel in approximately 60-80 milliseconds after the first moment of vehicle contact. When your hands are at 10/2 or 9/3 they get knocked back and out of the way, but not into you. This allows you to quickly recover and get back on the wheel.
If you hands are in the 12 O'clock position when the airbag is you're going to break your nose, probably some fingers and maybe your face altogether. Why? Your hand is between the rapidly deploying airbag and your face. And airbags impact with some 200lbs of force, so instead of getting a face full of polyester goodness you get your own fist flying at you like Mike Tyson.
This applies on the beltway just as much as an evac out of Panama.
Your Fist+Your Face+Physics=Not good.
Ram through a barricade correctly and there is little likelihood that your airbag will actually deploy. Airbags are designed to open in frontal and near-frontal collisions that are of a severe nature. Think striking a parked car of similar size across the full front of each vehicle.
So how fast do you need to be going when you hit the bad guys cars to break through?
Between 35-45 mph is best when you make initial impact. Once you ram keep on the accelerator to force your car through and push the barricading cars to the side.But what keeps the airbags from going off?
If you try to ram the center of a broad sided car for example you displace too much force over too wide an area (essentially fighting the entire weight and body of the other car). This is where the airbag sensors read as you essentially hitting something akin to a brick wall and deploy.
The other car will move, but not out of the way. And along with deploying the airbags, it may also disable your engine temporarily or permanently. Preventing you from getting out of the kill zone and leaving you at its door step.
However you can force barricading vehicles out of your way, you just have to aim for the right targets.
General rule of thumb: Aim your car's headlight for the center of the tire of the car in front of you.
The reason it's unlikely airbags deploy here is because while it may look like you are trying to move two cars out of the way, you are actually only forcing away 1/2 of each car, and thus they are movable.
In most cases the people who set up road blocks are not use to having them breached, so they tend to park cars front to rear. Generally, its the rear of cars that are the lighter half and they will move first and farther out of your way.
As you approach a barricade at around 50 or so feet out brake and drop your speed to around 40 mph but no lower!!! At the moment right before impact floor it and stay on it, even though your mind is going to want to brake at the moment of impact. I can not stress this enough..... Don't!
You need every bit of inertia to force your way through and keep going.
At impact the other cars will start moving out of the way. Since these vehicles are stationary there will be resistance, hence the holding down of the accelerator. Tires are going to be squealing (yours) and metal crunching and grinding (everyones), but they will move out of your way.
As you force your way through the cars may try to momentarily drag along side. This won't last more than a split second. If you are fortunate and these are the bad guys only vehicles you may luck out and blow out one or two of their tires in the process.
You are creating an open wound the barricade that allows you and anyone else behind you to follow.Push on through and get out of the kill zone.
Your car may cough an sputter but, as long as its moving you keep moving until it quits or you are a safe enough distance away to abandon it.
The key things to remember:
From the link;
"Dark Arts for Good Guys: Break on Through to the other side
One of the best weapons for getting out of a crisis isn't necessarily a gun. A decent size vehicle, even one that may not run so fantastic has more versatility and overall practical use than a pistol...not that you can't have both of course.
Faced with breaching a road block made from stationary vehicles a car makes a very serviceable battering ram. But like everything, there is a right way and a wrong way. Do it the right way and you not only surprise everyone, but you may also disable a few of the bad guys cars along the way. It just won't won't be in show room condition afterwards.
Do it wrong and you're gonna have a bad case of whiplash from the impact and a bloody nose from the airbag for the next thirty seconds until someone rearranges your school girl beauty with a magazine full of copper.
So first things first: Hands on the wheel. Just like the old man said, hands at ten and two or at nine and three.
Why?
Should the airbag deploy while you ram through the barricade your hands are going to be knocked away from the steering wheel in approximately 60-80 milliseconds after the first moment of vehicle contact. When your hands are at 10/2 or 9/3 they get knocked back and out of the way, but not into you. This allows you to quickly recover and get back on the wheel.
If you hands are in the 12 O'clock position when the airbag is you're going to break your nose, probably some fingers and maybe your face altogether. Why? Your hand is between the rapidly deploying airbag and your face. And airbags impact with some 200lbs of force, so instead of getting a face full of polyester goodness you get your own fist flying at you like Mike Tyson.
This applies on the beltway just as much as an evac out of Panama.
Your Fist+Your Face+Physics=Not good.
Ram through a barricade correctly and there is little likelihood that your airbag will actually deploy. Airbags are designed to open in frontal and near-frontal collisions that are of a severe nature. Think striking a parked car of similar size across the full front of each vehicle.
So how fast do you need to be going when you hit the bad guys cars to break through?Between 35-45 mph is best when you make initial impact. Once you ram keep on the accelerator to force your car through and push the barricading cars to the side.But what keeps the airbags from going off?
If you try to ram the center of a broad sided car for example you displace too much force over too wide an area (essentially fighting the entire weight and body of the other car). This is where the airbag sensors read as you essentially hitting something akin to a brick wall and deploy.
The other car will move, but not out of the way. And along with deploying the airbags, it may also disable your engine temporarily or permanently. Preventing you from getting out of the kill zone and leaving you at its door step.
However you can force barricading vehicles out of your way, you just have to aim for the right targets.
General rule of thumb: Aim your car's headlight for the center of the tire of the car in front of you.
The reason it's unlikely airbags deploy here is because while it may look like you are trying to move two cars out of the way, you are actually only forcing away 1/2 of each car, and thus they are movable.
In most cases the people who set up road blocks are not use to having them breached, so they tend to park cars front to rear. Generally, its the rear of cars that are the lighter half and they will move first and farther out of your way.
As you approach a barricade at around 50 or so feet out brake and drop your speed to around 40 mph but no lower!!! At the moment right before impact floor it and stay on it, even though your mind is going to want to brake at the moment of impact. I can not stress this enough..... Don't!
You need every bit of inertia to force your way through and keep going.
At impact the other cars will start moving out of the way. Since these vehicles are stationary there will be resistance, hence the holding down of the accelerator. Tires are going to be squealing (yours) and metal crunching and grinding (everyones), but they will move out of your way.
As you force your way through the cars may try to momentarily drag along side. This won't last more than a split second. If you are fortunate and these are the bad guys only vehicles you may luck out and blow out one or two of their tires in the process.You are creating an open wound the barricade that allows you and anyone else behind you to follow.Push on through and get out of the kill zone.
Your car may cough an sputter but, as long as its moving you keep moving until it quits or you are a safe enough distance away to abandon it.
The key things to remember:
- Hands are ten and two or nine and three.
- Headlight is your front sight, center of the tire is your target.
- Approach at about 50-55mph
- Brake to 40ish mph at about 50 feet out
- Accelerate right before impact and all the way through
- Do not brake
- Do not brake
- Pray
freyasman
Senator
Another thing to watch out for; https://www.click2houston.com/news/virtual-kidnapping-scheme-leaves-houston-mother-worried-about-son-s-safety
From the link;
"On Monday, "Jenn" was at work when she answered a call from a Houston area code.
“The first thing I hear is someone crying, saying ‘Mom, please help me, they got me,’ Jenn said. It sounded like her adult son.
“Then another man got on the phone and said, ‘Listen, this is what you’re going to do,’ Jenn said. “And he’s yelling at me, ‘Keep your phone to your ear, or your son is going to die.’”
Jenn told her boss she had a family emergency and stepped out of the office. The apparent kidnapper demanded $5,000 in exchange for her son.
“The scammers attempt to keep victims on the phone so they can’t verify their loved ones’ whereabouts or contact law enforcement,” the FBI said in a news release. “The callers are always in a hurry, and the ransom demand is usually a wire payment.”
Jenn rushed to the nearest Chase bank and emptied her checking account, but also alerted her husband using a second phone.
“I could hear them doing something to this person who I thought was my son,” Jenn said. “In the background, they’re hurting him.”
Just before Jenn wired the money, her son texted: “Don’t listen to anybody. I’m safe. Safe. Safe. At work. Don’t go anywhere. I’m safe.”
“R u OK?” Jenn asked. “Yes,” her son texted, along with a photo as proof.
“I love you so much,” Jenn wrote back. “I love you more,” her son responded.
“Many victims do not report the crime,” the FBI said. “Either because they are embarrassed, afraid or because they don’t consider the financial loss to be significant.”
The phone numbers used in the scheme are usually untraceable. It is nearly impossible to track down the criminal."
A particularly effective variation of this is when they have stolen the phone; they snatch it off a table, or pick-pocket it, and make the calls from the "victim's" phone, making the threat seem more credible, as well as making verification more difficult.
From the link;
"On Monday, "Jenn" was at work when she answered a call from a Houston area code.
“The first thing I hear is someone crying, saying ‘Mom, please help me, they got me,’ Jenn said. It sounded like her adult son.
“Then another man got on the phone and said, ‘Listen, this is what you’re going to do,’ Jenn said. “And he’s yelling at me, ‘Keep your phone to your ear, or your son is going to die.’”
Jenn told her boss she had a family emergency and stepped out of the office. The apparent kidnapper demanded $5,000 in exchange for her son.
“The scammers attempt to keep victims on the phone so they can’t verify their loved ones’ whereabouts or contact law enforcement,” the FBI said in a news release. “The callers are always in a hurry, and the ransom demand is usually a wire payment.”
Jenn rushed to the nearest Chase bank and emptied her checking account, but also alerted her husband using a second phone.
“I could hear them doing something to this person who I thought was my son,” Jenn said. “In the background, they’re hurting him.”
Just before Jenn wired the money, her son texted: “Don’t listen to anybody. I’m safe. Safe. Safe. At work. Don’t go anywhere. I’m safe.”
“R u OK?” Jenn asked. “Yes,” her son texted, along with a photo as proof.
“I love you so much,” Jenn wrote back. “I love you more,” her son responded.
“Many victims do not report the crime,” the FBI said. “Either because they are embarrassed, afraid or because they don’t consider the financial loss to be significant.”
The phone numbers used in the scheme are usually untraceable. It is nearly impossible to track down the criminal."
A particularly effective variation of this is when they have stolen the phone; they snatch it off a table, or pick-pocket it, and make the calls from the "victim's" phone, making the threat seem more credible, as well as making verification more difficult.
Queen Titania
Senator
Blimey - scary shit.
freyasman
Senator
Welcome to the world I make my living in.
Queen Titania
Senator
A tough one -Welcome to the world I make my living in.
freyasman
Senator
True, but it wouldn't be as tough if more people started learning the type of shit I'm posting about in this thread. I want folks to be their own rescuers.
Queen Titania
Senator
I'm one of the holders of the code to the village defibrillator - dunno how that happened! It hangs on the village hall/post office wall.
One of the villagers pushed for it, I think we had a jumble sale or a few to pay for it, and then we all had a lesson on how to use it. All, is an exaggeration but there were quite a few of us there.
She is a great organizer, that lady, maybe she could get some first aid lessons going in the hall .... I'll ask her.
freyasman
Senator
AED, right? Just re-certified on that last week, myself.
Queen Titania
Senator
Yes - I'm not sure how many of us have the code - 2 or 3, I must check.
freyasman
Senator
Earlier in this thread, I talked about endemics. Knowing what kind of criminal groups and LE agencies operate in your area (or the area you might be traveling to) can be very useful.
On a related note, knowing what type of emergency services are available and how closely located they are, can also come in handy. How many ERs are near you? At home and at work? How many Urgent Care clinics? What are their hours? Which ones take your insurance? How close is the nearest Fire Station? Are any of them in walking distance?
Having the answers to these questions already, will streamline and simplify your decision-making in a crisis or an emergency. If you have already done the mental walk-through, then you will be calmer, and your response will be more efficient and effective.
Also, if you happen to live very close to a Fire Department sub-station, try to negotiate a lower insurance rate.... you'd be surprised what you can get from that.
On a related note, knowing what type of emergency services are available and how closely located they are, can also come in handy. How many ERs are near you? At home and at work? How many Urgent Care clinics? What are their hours? Which ones take your insurance? How close is the nearest Fire Station? Are any of them in walking distance?
Having the answers to these questions already, will streamline and simplify your decision-making in a crisis or an emergency. If you have already done the mental walk-through, then you will be calmer, and your response will be more efficient and effective.
Also, if you happen to live very close to a Fire Department sub-station, try to negotiate a lower insurance rate.... you'd be surprised what you can get from that.
Queen Titania
Senator
Criminal groups? That is a lol - a few 'not nice' gypsies and a very very few bored teenagers. Some bastards stole the flowers out of the Church a little while back and then all the pots full of flowers around the village hall ------- some idiots tried to break into the Post Office by trying to knock a hole in the back wall, the not nice gypsies gate crashed the village jumble sale ( they were stuffing stuff under their coats but called out on it they left) ----- that is about it.
Ambulances are not slow and ER is 1/2 - 3/4 of an hr away.
Fire brigade get here fast too and we don't pay for them - well not directly.
Must rush xxxx later.
Shit! I couldn't find my bank card so missed the post office - I need cash on Sat but the Post/Bank is only open Mon, Tues, Thurs mornings - why don't I put things back in their proper place? Don't answer that !
Life in the villages is slow and easy but the road running through the village has become very very fast --- It shouldn't be but people, including lorries, don't slow down to 30 mph after driving fast through the country - that is a worry, accidents on this road are a worry.
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freyasman
Senator
Didn't mean you specifically QT, this is the stuff everyone should be keeping current on.
Queen Titania
Senator
I got that - I was just thinking aloud. Such differences in the places people live.
