Defeating Without Fighting

[notasfancy]

Well, the biggest "weapon" created by man kind is the human brain itself.
The biggest force can be met with equally matching force. (try to push a tree)
But the biggest force is equally wasted when there is no opposing force at all. (lost in space)

 

[Deaf Smith]

Notice the thug got up close using some kind of conversation to get close.

Looks like he jumped him when he got back out of the car.

Lessons?

How about not talking to strangers. Tell them you cannot help them and to please stay back.

Then keep an eye out for any 'help' that might be waiting to run up.

Robbers tend to have tells like they rub their chin, or brush their hair back, and glance around before they attack. Yes keep some distance.

The defender also brought a gun to a mugging. Good idea!

Deaf

 

[LKB3rd]

Sun Tzu, In "The Art of War", says that the best victory is the one where you avoid fighting. Good book.

 

[NMGonzo]

Look for behaviors out of place.

Look for things out of place.

 

[NMGonzo]

10. Don't help suspicious people-trust your gut. If you live in suburbia and a random guy wants to use your bathroom, or your bicycle pump - tough.

Go with your guy and don't get eviscerated.

 

[trex1310]

Avoiding a fight or confrontation is the best course of action and there are
a lot of good and some not so good tips here. There is no end to the
number of internet lawyers and self proclaimed experts on these
forums. Take what you read with a grain of salt.

If you are preoccupied with legal consequences maybe you
shouldn't be carrying a gun.

Age is a factor in self defense decisions. I am not able anymore to
engage in hand to hand combat with a younger and stronger thug(s).

Thugs, like wild dogs, often travel in packs. Their strength is in numbers.
Alone they are less likely to be a threat.

Be careful out there.

 

[mbt2001]

A start....

Avoid eye contact, watch with the corner of your eyes

Avoid areas were young men congregate

Constantly keep your eyes and head moving when in trouble areas

Be in shape, or at least appear to be

Military inspired hair cuts (short hair), tucked in shirts, boots of some kind tend to inspire a look of someone who is serious.

Despite what the TV might tell you, criminals want to prey on the weak, if they see you "noticing" them and look like you might be trouble, they move on. Tiger attacks in India were cut in half by encouraging the locals to were a mask on the back of their head, giving the tigers the idea that they had eyes there. Predators want a blitz attack from the blind side...

Before any conflict, the aggressor has to get his timing synchronized with the movement of the target. So, be watchful for someone trying to sync their movement with yours.

 

[Cowtown Cody]

Staying out of places where you shouldn't be is a good start. But you have to know what those places are to avoid them, and how to recognize when you've maybe stumbled into a place where you shouldn't be. And you can absolutely get into a place where you shouldn't be by accident; I've done it myself.

So, know what a bad neighborhood looks like where you are specifically. Dangerous areas tend be poor and dense. High population density together with low income correlates very well with the presence of crime worldwide, from US neighborhoods to Indonesian slums. For hints on "poor", look at the kinds of cars parked along the street, and look at how well the properties are maintained. If you see lots of beaters and run-down property packed close together, you're probably not in the safest part of town.

For "dense", pay attention to how many people you see walking, and how many people you see riding in one car at a time, and how often you see it. Dense neighborhoods means more social interaction, more cliques, and more traveling with your clique because you're poor, and you all know each other and are going to the same place. It also means more opportunity for crime.

Once you recognize that you've stumbled into a place where you shouldn't be, stay calm while you find a way out. Act like you're supposed to be there and most people won't give you a second look (which is oddly true in a wide number of situations). Act nervous or like you don't know where you are or what to do, and you're much more likely to get noticed, and any attention paid to you is bad. Being noticed in a bad neighborhood won't guarantee you trouble, and that's important to remember so you can keep your head on straight, but every extra pair of eyes makes it a little more likely. Be unremarkable.

If you can't get out (because, say, you live there), know that there are different rules in operation. Absence of effective law enforcement - or the absence of faith in law enforcement - leads people to adopt rule sets that are effective yet outside the law - they lean on reputation and self-enforcement. But they most definitely are rules. Lawless does not mean Orderless. A really good book on this in the abstract is Azar Gat's "War in Human Society". Learn those rules so you know how to avoid getting tangled up in them.

I'll echo the "uniform" advice too. Clothing is a way of signaling your type to everyone who sees you, and people have a mental self-image of themselves that they are trying to broadcast when they cultivate literally any appearance. Everyone has some idea of how they want to be seen by other people. When someone looks dangerous, it's a safe to wager that they're intentionally cultivating that image. Pay attention to it, and get versed on how people create that image. Sometimes it's fake, and sometimes you can spot a fake. but don't count on that ability, and when it coincides with the Poor and Dense characteristics, you're safer assuming that it's not a front.

Know what gangs operate in your area and what their tags look like, and what their tats look like. You can't guard against them if you're blind to who they are and where they are. It's one of the easier steps you can take because they, unlike many criminals, are signaling their type loud and clear for anyone who is versed in what to look for. It doesn't cover every criminal but it's a start.

 

[Ole Humpback]

This is the kind of thread I've been looking for. I'm in the boat of deadly force is a last resort, but was wanting to know how to apply this information to Home Defense as most of this is what I already apply in day to day interactions with people and my travel. A thread on another forum about CC in a car got me to wondering about how likely am I to be faced with a weapon.

http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/robbery_types.html

If I get mugged, theres a 60% chance there will be a weapon against me and over half of that 60% will involve a gun. Home invasion is more likely than not to involve a weapon, again it'd more than likely be a gun.

Reason I ask is that while I don't currently have a family (24 & single), I am an Uncle and do see myself being married one day with a family and the last thing that I'd want to have happen is a family member get hurt or killed in the crossfire of a shootout in my home. My current means of HD comes from a replica sword, and while I know its not the best, I feel that my knowledge of my home makes up for some of its deficiencies.

I know a gun vs gun is far better than sword vs gun, but how does one defeat a home invader without fighting the invader?

 

[Owen Sparks]

I worked in a small venue “beer joint” as a bouncer for five years. The typical Saturday night crowd varied from 50 to 100 people. My job basically was to check ID’s at the door and watch the room for signs of potential trouble. After a few years of watching people I got to the point that I could tell just from a man’s body language, by the way he carried himself that he was going to be trouble. The things to watch for are exaggerated posture, guys trying to stand a little taller than they really are with their chest poked out. A little bit of strut and a little bit of bluster, making excessive eye contact with other male patrons. These men have some type of psychological problem and feel as if they have to prove themselves. They will fight at the slightest provocation and if there are two of them in the bar, they will find each other.

Another potential problem to watch for is people in a high emotional state. If you have a guy who is laughing and joking, vigorously shaking hands and patting people on the back, generally being loud and boisterous while having a good time, WATCH OUT! People in a high emotional state, ANY emotional state can switch from frivolity and laughter to rage in an instant. Ever see someone laugh at a funny story at a funeral and then burst into tears? It often takes very little for someone who is revved up and agitated to change moods, especially when drugs or alcohol are involved. A person who is calm and relaxed usually requires a lot to become provoked while someone who is already torque up, even in a fun positive way requires very little impetus to change from one highly charged mood to another.

 

[Sam1911]

... the last thing that I'd want to have happen is a family member get hurt or killed in the crossfire of a shootout in my home... I know a gun vs gun is far better than sword vs gun, but how does one defeat a home invader without fighting the invader?

There have been a lot of threads on this subject, and it is an important one. (Search on "Don't clear your house" for one.)

The best principles are to identify what is important to you -- life or death important -- and what isn't. Place the things that you would be willing to risk death over within your inner most defensive perimeter, and consign the rest of the property to the status of "insurance will cover it."

First, avail yourself of whatever early-warning systems you can. An alarm system is a very good idea. A decent DOG that has run of the house at night is arguably even better. They can give you enough time to enact your response plan smartly and while minimizing the risks to yourself.

HAVE A PLAN. Make sure your family knows that you will react to a threat, and that they should stay put and get low and behind cover if they believe trouble is present. For the adult members of the household, make sure they know their tasks. And know how to respond when the police arrive.

(Wife, get low behind the bed and get 911 on the phone. Adult son, grab the 870 and take a low position behind the door frame where you can see down the hall. Kids, get low on the floor behind your bed and stay put until one of us comes to get you. At the first inkling of an intruder, arm yourself and get into position. No one leave their spot until you hear me give the all-clear. Or something like that.)

Try to figure out what spot by (or in) the bedroom(s) you can take a strong point of defense and control the approaches to the sleeping area. When you're alarmed, go to that spot and take cover. DON'T go investigating noises. Use your senses to figure out what's going on. Do you HEAR movement? Voices? Multiple? ... or was that just the cat or the wind knocking something over. Use your ambush position to give you the time to discern whether you're facing a threat and what kind it is.

If someone IS in the house, and they're just taking "stuff", don't risk your life to go get that "stuff" back. Your job is to protect your life and those of your family. If you have a way to alert the intruders that they've been spotted -- without endangering yourself -- like turning on lights remotely, or even hollering to them ("Do NOT come any closer! We've called 911! The police are on their way!..."), you can scare off most intruders without even seeing them.

If they are bent on harming you, make them come to you, up the "fatal funnel" of your chosen approach path. If you've set your house up well, and made good preparations, you should be able to know that anyone coming your way down that hall or up those stairs is not friendly. A good plan will make that approach route long enough that you have some time to evaluate who's heading your way. You can set up lighting to put approachers in a lighted area while you stay in darkness.

Time and time again simulations and scenario testing has proved that the hunter is at a grave disadvantage to whomever is staying put. Even in YOUR OWN house, you will be at a disadvantage if you're moving around trying to find an intruder. DON'T go hunting them. Make them come to you. Even if you're armed with a firearm, you will lose more often than win if you enter into a room where an intruder/attacker is positioned.

A sword is a really really bad defensive weapon, in this instance. You are highly unlikely to face an attacker armed with a sword. ANY projectile weapon defeats a sword. You cannot effectively control a "fatal funnel" entry corridor by securing yourself at a commanding strong point with a sword. A sword gives you the false sense of being adequately armed, but then prompts you to go out and close to contact distance with a foe. That's just bad tactics.

Harden your house. (Security system, dog, lights, etc.) Make a simple PLAN, and make sure your family knows what they're supposed to do. (i.e.: don't go wandering around) Get a very inexpensive pump shotgun (generally the best idea) and practice with it until you can run it well. And fix your mindset on protecting your life and your family -- first, last, and only.

 

[Owen Sparks]

If you like to leave your bed room door open leave a night light on in the hall so that you can see the intruder but he can't see you in the dark. If you keep your bed room door closed look into geting a solid core exterior grade door and proper hardware so that it can't be easily defeated by one man. This will cost no more than a typical handgun. Also put a "BEWARE OF DOG" sign somewhere that it can be seen from the street. Don't have a big vicious dog? The potential home invaders will never find out. They will simply move on down the street to an easier looking target.

 

[Ole Humpback]

Sam,

Just read through the thread you suggested:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=556019

Tons of great info there. Lots of information for me to chew on and think about.

*EDIT*

I did notice in that thread that there was a distinction between identifying a sound in the night and assuming a defensive position. Following along the family line, I'm somewhat of a night owl. I get up and go to the fridge a time or two in the night and so do others in my family. I am wondering how to identify the night owl fridge run from the uninvited night time guest. I know that this is a very person specific thing, but seeing that there are guidelines for other things, maybe there are guidelines for this as well.