An urban gunfighter: The lessons of Lance Thomas

[warthog]

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http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m ... _82533205/

Situation: A law-abiding armed citizen faces multiple armed robberies and murder attempts.

Lesson: Only the power of lawful force can answer the power of lawless criminal force.

wow what a story that tronces on all anti gunners.They will never show these things in the news.

[MoA]

Warthog...
Lance was very very very lucky.
The key to a gunfight is knowing your weapon, and practise.
There really is no substtue for trigger time. And given he consistently missed with his first choice I would'nt use him as a role model. Besides is also a little arrogant.
Personally I would never want to draw in anger... and if I did. I dont want the possibility of a target coming out of jail to haunt me.

[TwoRivers]

MoA: Lance isn't a role model for a gunfighter. He is a role model for some one willing to stand up to thugs and defend himself. These weren't staged or ritualized fights, where practice and proficiency with your weapon are the deciding factor. I would rate mindset above practice; you need to condition yourself mentally so there will be no hesitation in your reaction. You are just about to squash a scorpion that's about to sting. You need to be convinced that any one about to rob and kill, you or others, is not worthy of consideration as a human being. No one has a right to threaten your life. Period. The reaction must be instinctive and absolute. You can't afford to think about why the poor guy was driven to become a criminal, and is now threatening your life. Don't underestimate the adrenalin rush you'll experience in such a situation, affecting both you and the thug. For unless he's an experienced and stone-cold killer, his adrenaline will be flowing, too. Which means he'll be able to absorb quite a few shots before going down. Few hits are instant immobilizers when the adrenaline is flowing, or the thug is high on some of the good sh.t .
No question that Lance was lucky to the third degree. But he was also prepared mentally, and armed. He was determined not to be a victim. And I don't see him as arrogant. Until you have faced a gun in anger; or pointed a gun at a man to keep him from harming you, philosophical insights are really pointless. Unless you'd rather be a victim than spill blood in self defense. The world is, and will always be, a violent place. Cheers.

[MoA]

I do reccomend standing up for your rights. Nor did I ever say these were ritualized gunfights.
Lance himself stated that he was worried about others arming themselves, since they did not know what it took to be proficient.
At the end of the day, he did have the common sense to know when to cut his losses and shut shop.
I do know the world is a very violent place, and do respect the willingness of not being a victim.
However Lance was incredibly lucky that he survived the number of gun fights he has.
Finally I do still mantain, that Lance is not really a role model. Too many people will use him as one, not practise, buy the biggest caliber handgun they can and wonder how they wound up dead.
Offence is often the best defense, however even Lance knew when to diffuse a situation by closing shop.

[TwoRivers]

MoA; Don't know where my last reply went to, so will try again. It was I who used the term ritualized, not you. "Training" always becomes ritualized. I have seen too many shooters here practice their defensive shooting by starting with a shuffle of their feet, proper footing?, or orientation toward the target?, that would surely get them killed. You "fight like you train". There is no doubt that you have to be totally familiar with your gun, and have practiced to be thoroughly competent with it. Beyond that, you have to have the mindset. Be able to instantly evaluate a situation, and act/react accordingly. I would say these situations are gunbrawls, not gunfights. There are no rules, no expectations of on unfolding scenario, just an instantaneous decent into chaos. No time for anything, but to respond. When that adrenaline spurt comes in a situation like that, you just react. Unless the thug is an experienced, cold blooded killer, his adrenaline will be up, too. He will survive hits that are not immediately fatal. Your shot, even if it misses, will rattle him and may give you a second chance for a better aimed shot.
Surely, there will be people who won't get the gist of Lance's message, get the biggest gun, a gun they can't handle, and get themselves killed. But, most likely, the thug would have killed them anyhow. Live witnesses are bad for business. I know, the official line for far too long has been not to make the thug mad at you, give him your valuables, let yourself be raped, or beaten near death. In most cases, bullies and thugs are cowards; and a determined defense is the better choice.
There is no doubt that Lance was lucky to have survived that many fights, but there is good chance he would have been shot, with better shot placement, had he not fought back. Robbers do not like to leave live witnesses behind.
Lance closed shop when he became afraid innocent customers would be killed by a gang bent on revenge; not because he thought his had been the wrong course, or to diffuse the situation. How can you diffuse the situation when someone wants to rob you and is determined to kill you? Only by killing him first.
I don't recall any claim being made to Lance being a role model. His story is simply the story of a man who refused to roll over and play dead when confronted with armed robbery. And so, what would be your idea of a role model for this instance? Cheers.

[MoA]

Lance's true motives for closing shop, whther due to customer concern or self preservation are at this point conjecture. And either way he did back off.
In an escalation, if there is way to back down, it might be prudent. If not ... strike first.
I am not sure where you're getting the message that I am happier being a victim. Quite the opposite really.

As for people I consider role models.. down to earth people really Oskar Schindler, Madame Curie, Alexander Pechersky, the keelor brothers... amongst others.

[TwoRivers]

Heck, MoA, I never realized these people you mention where victims of armed robbery! How did they handle the situation? Guess we get to learn something new every day. Conjecture does not prove that
Lance's concern for customers' lives was not his primary consideration. I think we should believe him, rather than conjecture that his motivation was not as stated. After all, he had proven that he is a brave man. Cheers.