What I am saying is that disproportionate violence (trying to escape in the car at all costs) against this crowd would be unjustified, unless there's a direct threat to one's life/health. Sure, they should have been stopped, if possible, and now after it's all over they should be brought to justice.
I have been very busy of late, but this just cried out for a response.
This is goddamn STUPID. If you are in your vehicle, surrounded by an angry mob that begins beating on it and breaking in the windows, you should
wait to find out what their intentions are??? Especially if they drag you out of the vehicle???
Let's see,
where have we seen this before?
On April 29, 1992, at 5:39 PM, Denny loaded his red, 18-wheel truck with 27 tons of sand and began driving to a plant in Inglewood where he said the sand was due. He left the Santa Monica Freeway and took a familiar shortcut across Florence Avenue to get to his destination. His truck had no radio, so he was unaware he was driving into a riot. At 6:46 p.m., after entering the intersection at Normandie, rioters threw rocks at his windows and he heard people shouting for him to stop. Overhead, a news helicopter with reporter Bob Tur aboard captured the events that followed.
Denny stopped in the middle of the street. Antoine Miller opened the truck door, giving others the chance to pull Denny out. Another man, Henry Keith Watson, then held Denny's head down with his foot. Denny was kicked in the abdomen by an unidentifed man. Two other unidentified men who had led a liquor store break-in earlier that day hurled a five-pound piece of medical equipment at Denny's head and hit him three times with a claw hammer. Damian Williams then threw a slab of concrete at Denny's head and knocked him unconscious.
Williams then did a victory dance over Denny. He then flashed gang signs at news helicopters, which were televising the events live, and pointed and laughed at Denny. Anthony Brown then spat on Denny and left with Williams. Several bystanders took pictures of Denny but did not attempt to help him. LAPD officers, despite the fact that they were in close vicinity as this took place, were unable to move in and provide help to Denny.
After the beating, various men threw beer bottles at the unconscious Denny. Gary Williams approached Denny and rifled through his pockets. Lance Parker stopped near Denny and attempted to shoot the fuel tank of Denny's truck but missed.
Bobby Green (a truck driver), Titus Murphy and Terri Barnett (boyfriend and girlfriend), and Lei Yuille (a dietitian), who had been watching the events on TV, came to Denny's aid. Denny eventually regained consciousness and dragged himself back into the cab, driving away from the scene slowly and erratically. Green, himself a truck driver, boarded Denny's truck and took over at the wheel, driving him to the hospital. At the time that Green took over, Denny was on the brink of losing consciousness again, and suffered a seizure shortly thereafter. Throughout the incident, LAPD squad cars were parked around the corner; they were however ordered to stay back from the riot in fear of officer safety.
And how did it work out for the innocent person in the mob-surrounded vehicle?
Paramedics who attended to Denny said he came very close to death. His skull was fractured in 91 places and pushed into the brain. His left eye was so badly dislocated that it would have fallen into his sinus cavity had the surgeons not replaced the crushed bone with a piece of plastic. A permanent crater remains in his head despite efforts to correct it. Denny had to undergo years of rehabilitative therapy and his speech and ability to walk were permanently damaged.
Warning: The following image of the victim, Reginald Denny, was taken some time after the attack when he'd begun to heal a bit. It is spoilered because it is still graphic and may be more than disturbing to some people. Do not look at it if you are squeamish.
Riiight. You sure you want to want to wait to find out what the mob that's assaulting your vehicle is going to do? And you want to advise others to do the same? Yeah.... okay... Words fail.
Fuck that bleeding heart kumbaya "let's all hold hands" "oh he was such a good boy/honor student/was turning his life around/was a good human being" bullcrap. Intelligent humans learned from the Reginald Denny incident.
YOU DO NOT WAIT TO FIND OUT WHAT THE MOB WANTS. Why? Because by then it's too late.
By attacking your car and threatening you, the mob has already declared they have no interest in your rights or even necessarily your continued survival, thereby forfeiting their own rights and deserving anything they catch.
As much as I hate to agree, a warning shot in the air would have solved this situation immediately.
I know you're a firearm owner, so let me ask you this - where do you think that 'warning shot' is going to come down? And do you know who is going to be downrange, or who it is going to hit?
WARNING SHOTS FIRED INTO THE AIR ARE IRRESPONSIBLE AND DANGEROUS. YOU DO NOT EVER DO THIS. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR EVERY ROUND YOU FIRE. IF YOU FIRE INTO THE AIR AND IT HITS AN INNOCENT CHILD A MILE AWAY, YOU CAN AND WILL BE CHARGED WITH NEGLIGENT HOMICIDE.
This is why training and law discourages warning shots. You NEVER pull the trigger without being sure of your target and backstop!!!!! I cannot emphasize this enough -
YOU DO NOT EVER FIRE WARNING SHOTS INTO THE AIR! To do so is callous and reckless disregard for human life.
That said, merely the display of a firearm is usually warning enough. If not, shooting the first three or so usually makes the rest run like hell, if you even have to get that far.
That, or she could have just started driving.
This is what current executive security driving trainers teach.
Edit: I would also note that despite the "thuggish" aspects of the sport, "uncivilized, Wild West" Dallas recently had some pretty huge celebrations for the Maverick's win of the NBA title - and we didn't have a riot. But in "civilized, peaceful, calm" Vancouver, they have city wide riots and looting. Might want to rethink those descriptors there...
