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Friday, March 28, 2008

Home Invasion

Just got off the phone, after talking with a college friend of mine.

We talked about the current situation our country is going through, the food shortages and empty shelves, and how long things will hold on until people get desperate.

As an afterthought she mentioned that some robbers attacked her father and his girlfriend (divorced) while they watched over her recently married sister’s home, while she was in her honeymoon.

I always try to learn as much detail as I can from these situations.
As usual, 3 armed men intercepted the couple when they arrived to the sister’s house, when they were getting out of the car.

Then, three more guys showed up, each driving a car!
They tied them up, loaded the cars full of the newly wedded couple’s gifts, everything they had was soon fitted into the cars.
After that, one of the bad guys cut the cable off an appliance, stripped the end of the cable, and threatened to torture them with electric shocks.
There was also some money in the house, about $ 1000, and fortunately they didn’t fulfill the threat.

A few thoughts that come to mind:

1) Criminals ALWAYS seem to attack when entering or exiting your house. Those are the moments when you should be extra careful.

2) Be discrete about what you have. 3 cars? They knew about the wedding, the gifts, the new house, etc.

3) Once you are tied up in a chair, there’s no use in wishing you had done something before. If they end up raping or killing your entire family, you cant go back in time, buy a gun, learn how to use it, and defend yourself and your loved ones. It’s too late.

4) Some people just don’t get it, even when the truth is smeared all over their faces.

Right after telling me this, my friend told me that the best thing to do is surrender, cooperate with the criminals and hope for the best.
She told me that she was worried about me because she knew that I was armed and had the will to shoot if necessary.

I expressed my concerns about the opposite being true regarding her.

5)3 armed guys and 3 more near by? Do I really want a 6 shot revolver, or even worse, a 5 shot one?

The reality around you dictates the kind of weapon you need, and even then... guns are meant to be comforting, not comfortable. That’s one of the few gun maxims I like.

FerFAL

12 comments:

Ryan said...

Nice post, guns are meant to be comforting, not comfortable. That is a new good one for me. I would counter with "a .22 in the holster is better then a .45 in the car". At the end of amuzing quotes the truth is somewhere in the middle of those two extremes.
When it is all boiled down getting in a gunfight with a full sized glock (or for that matter an AK) is not going to end wellif u are facing 6 armed gobblins. Unless u are super good and have awesome luck and the gobblins are super not good and have horrible luck those suckers would prolli win.

If I lived there packing the full sized .40 cal and 3 spare mags might seem to be needed but here, where I am the .38 sitting on the table is good enough.

Anonymous said...

A lesson too is when times are tough and you are "flaunting" your relative wealth, expect the desperate to do desperate things.

For example, don't be boiling a pot of beefjavascript:void(0)
Publish Your Comment stew in your backyard while your neighbors are starving. Don't be throwing lavish parties and driving expensive vehicles when the rest of the area looks like a war zone.

Expect this to happen regularly in the USA too, when the economic implosion that may be occuring leads to increased crime.

Anonymous said...

Ferfal-another fan of yours up here in the States. You are providing an invaluable service. The economic collapse is progressing here in the USA. The sheeple are still sleeping but it is coming never-the-less.

Every time I feel my self getting complacent I read/reread your posts. FWIW my next puchases will be body armor and a sound suppressor

Anonymous said...

Ferfal,

What do you recommend to apartment dwellers? What happened to people who lived in apartment complexes in 2001-2002? During the protests of Dec 19?

I live in a complex set up like a mini-fort. Units form a square, with a central building with a few units and the managers office and a pool. Units facing the street have windows with cranks to open them - easily pryed open. But there are hedges planted all along the front of the building.

Back entrance is gated, the parking lot in back is walled on all sides with a gate opened by our remotes for cars to come and go.

Anonymous said...

Nice information. I am reading in the WS Journal of the rising tensions inside Argentina. It looks like the farmers are pretty upset. I am wondering if other segments are also fed up?
Can we see more organized opposition to the Governments policies?
Thanks for posting.

Anonymous said...

Wow, that's some amazing stuff bud. Thanks for putting your thoughts out there for us to read.

How often do you get to train? Are there ranges and stuff? And how friendly is the gov't toward gun owners? thx!

FerFAL said...

"FWIW my next puchases will be body armor and a sound suppressor."

The body armor is invaluable once shootings become common and the suppressor will come in handy too.

"What do you recommend to apartment dwellers? What happened to people who lived in apartment complexes in 2001-2002? During the protests of Dec 19?"

Apartments have one thing going for them. They are generally safer, and people quickly see the benefit of hiring a guard, which goes a long way in improving security.

Other than that, there’s not much good to be said about them during a crisis.
Blackouts are hell, you are left without elevators, without water, without AC or heat.
Sucks pretty bad.
Storage is also a problem, but being resourceful and taking advantage of every “dead” cubic inch goes a long way.
Try to live in the lower floors, so at least being left without elevator isn’t that big of a deal.

"Nice information. I am reading in the WS Journal of the rising tensions inside Argentina. It looks like the farmers are pretty upset. I am wondering if other segments are also fed up?"

Mostly the middle class is fed up of this socialist junk.

"Can we see more organized opposition to the Governments policies?"

It’s difficult. A few days ago when people where protesting against the gov, the president sent criminals, true mad max characters covered in prison tattoos, with their bare torsos, they broke into the peaceful protest and started attacking everyone, punching and throwing stones and sticks, kicking them out of the place.
The gov. uses these bands of criminals as their muscle, their anti strike force.

"How often do you get to train? Are there ranges and stuff? And how friendly is the gov't toward gun owners? thx!"

I shoot once a month or so ( ammo is too expensive!) and try to take classes once or twice a year.
The gov. is fervently anti gun and they are trying to pass several anti gun laws that ban guns for civilians.

FerFAL

Anonymous said...

Thanks ferFal for all of your insight, I've been reading your posts on the many boards for a few years now, and have been considering what you've been saying more and more, now that our(US) ecconomy may be headed in the same direction. As far a your revolver having only 5 or 6 shots, in most situations, especially involving criminals, if they see one fall, the rest will run. Criminals prey on weakness, and their friend bleeding out from the hole in his chest, and the muzzle flash of a .357 at night tend to make him think twice about whether or not this robbery was a good idea. I'd also reccommend having at least one reload for a revolver if you carry one. Finally, if home invasions are done the way you describe in your area, I'd suggest having a MBR loaded up in the car or garage, and use the revolver to fight to it. Paraphrasing COL Jeff Cooper on the subject, the highest ratio of BG's to 1 individual he'd heard of being successful was a student of his living in Africa. He took on 4, and killed 3 scaring away the 4th with the death of the 3. I would say shoot what you are most comfortable with. Better to hit with 6 than miss with 17 with no reloads for either.

Anonymous said...

I don't think apartments are any safer than houses, unless you are rich enough to live in one of those high-security apartment blocks. I live in Brazil, which is, I think, a far more violent place than Argentina, know many people that that live in apartments, and they seem to have the same share of break-ins and robberies as people that live in houses. In the most violent cities there are even gangs specialized in raiding apartment blocks. One common tactic, as stated in the blog post, is to catch people when they're entering the building, another one is to gain access to the building by pretending to be some kind of serviceman, such as a repairman, postman and even police officer. Even if apartments are slightly more secure, which I doubt, the other advantages of living in a house surely outweigh the little extra security will you have by living in a apartment block.

FerFAL said...

Yes, it happens here too. Bands that rob entire apartment buildings, or office buildings.

In the building where I work, just one block away from Obelisco, they robbed the 4 levels in my building, and the entire building next to ours.

These things don’t occur in more civilized places, but as you mention, in Brazil and here in Argentina, it occurs rather often.

FerFAL

Staying Alive said...

ferFal,

Reading your blog is an amazing experience. For sure!

Comment 1. The pistol you use must be graded on HITS, not on how many rounds it holds. Let the bad guy see his compadre erupt and it will take some of the wind out of his sails. Combat is personal. You are dealing with people who are willing to kill and rob and very much into having lots of help. Take aim and kill the easiest target. It might be pretty nice to not kill the guy but wound the hell out of him so he screams like a mad horse. You will be dealing with a lazy bunch of cowards. they will only be on duty for a few minutes while they destroy your life. They bring 3 to 6 players to go after 1 man. Not so brave.

Comment 2. I am a student of Elmer Keith, the man responsible for the 44 Magnum Pistol. He said NEVER shoot a pistol that uses a bottleneck cartridge.

Comment 3. Try to avoid ALL religions. Just worship God.

Comment 4. Get out of that God-forsaken city you live in!

Michael

FerFAL said...

Michael wrote:
"Comment 2. I am a student of Elmer Keith, the man responsible for the 44 Magnum Pistol. He said NEVER shoot a pistol that uses a bottleneck cartridge."


?? why not?
FerFAL