Have you ever bluffed to avoid a confrontation?

[CWL]

I wasn't bluffing. I had my hand on my right hip and about to pull my Benchmade. The other guy rushing me probably thought it was a gun, he put both his hands in the air, yelled that he was a church pastor, got back into his car and drove off.

So much for my experience with a road-rage tailgater.

 

[Mandirigma]

I bluffed once, I was in elementary school and got the snot beat out of me. Dad simply asked "Did you win?"

Since then, I don't bluff, [] I try not to give any notice that I'm about to attack.

When you confront someone and they go silent, it usually means they are done talking and about to do something.

 

[soccergod04]

I bluffed in elementary school, too. I was in first grade and big for my age. Some 3rd grader was smaller than me and picking on my little sister. I told him to leave her alone, and he asked what grade I was in. I told him 5th and that was really pushing it, but he either bought it or just gave up to the fact that I as bigger.

 

[shooterfromtexas]

All the time and it works.

 

[Deanimator]

I'm not a big guy, but I don't smile much and always have some kind of gun book or magazine with me. I used to ride the bus through some of the worst parts of Chicago, usually reading a Shotgun News. No problems. Predators look for prey, not other predators.

Actually a few years ago, I was taking Amtrak to Chicago. There was a guy who was probably either manic depressive or schizophrenic who showed up, headed for Philly, I believe. Seemingly on a whim, he changed his ticket for one to Elkhart, IN. He then proceeded to wander around the tiny Cleveland Amtrak station, annoying people and making inappropriate comments to women. For some reason known (probably not even) only to him, he latched onto this young Amish couple and proceeded to torment them. I started speaking German to them, saying that he was nuts and that they shouldn't talk to him. He bothered a few more people, then turned to me and was ready to start in when I gave him my best Clint Eastwood "Outlaw Josey Wales" stare. He turned pale and quickly walked away.

 

[sarge83]

Only once,

we were at a 4th of July fireworks show and in a Burger King parking lot which offered the best view of the fireworks. The wife, kids and grandma in the vehicle waiting for it to start. Some high school kids were about 75 ft. away shooting their own fireworks and decided to send one toward our open window in the SUV. I happened to see and hear it explode next to my door and yelled in a stern voice, that better be the last one I see in this direction tonight.

One of the kids said are you a cop? I replied do you want to see how fast I can get your [butt] a night in the county jail? The kids then said sorry man, won't happen again and left. I wasn't a cop and never claimed to be, they made the assumption I was and I had my finger on the 911 fast dial on the cell phone and yeah would have got him and his buds a night in jail. I also had a Glock 23 in the glove box...

 

[tmajors]

Yep I've bluffed.

Several months ago in a Walmart parking lot I got "interviewed". Scummy guy starts walking up to me with some sob story or other asking for money. Keeps coming closer and closer. I notice 90 degrees to my right his buddy hiding between some cars.

I happened to be unarmed that day (a rarity while shopping), but still emptied my strong hand, planted both feet in a draw stance and loosened my shirt. Said "sorry buddy I don't carry cash", even though I had plenty on me.

Both guys decided they had other things to do.

 

[ranger335v]

"Have you ever bluffed to avoid a confrontation?"

NO. I was deadly serious.

 

[Grey_Mana]

not a THR story, but...

Once, working in a state laboratory. A state auditor shows up, shows his badge, ID & documentation. He's driven 3 hours to investigate a suspicious purchase made using a state account. I'm the senior person there with signatory authority to make purchases on the account, so I stop what I'm doing to meet with him. He's worked up over a Walmart purchase; thinks it was all personal use, and is ready to make an arrest. So I show him, yes, we use the aluminum foil over here, yes over here are the legos (good for custom-building electrophoresis chambers), on and on. Finally, a pack of two 9 volt batteries. We're walking around checking everything that uses batteries - portable thermometer, portable pH meter, etc. I can't find anything that takes 9 volts. He says something to the effect of, if you can't show me the batteries, I'm going to place you under arrest. I say "hold on, let's check the log book and see who actually made the purchase." It was Mike. Go down to Mike's lab space, explain the situation, ask about the 9 volts. He gets a nasty look, and says "I'm busy, can't you see I have both hands in the biohazard hood? Look a the clock on the wall. It takes 9 volt batteries. Are we allowed to have clocks?" The auditor looks sheepish, packs up, leaves, presumably drives 3 hours home.

I get a chair, climb up, check the clock. It takes AA batteries.

 

[Malice]

Once, and it worked.

I was at a bar enjoying some beers with my friends. A girl decided to be really friendly with me, and I was friendly back.

After she left my part of the bar, word got back to me that she was some frat boy's "girl" and he was none to happy with me, so I should keep both eyes open.

Well, me and my friends were there to socialize with each other, not to act tough. So, we decided to calmly finish our drinks and leave, without looking like we were "running away" (no worse way to look like an easy target, after all).

So, we are leaving and in the parking lot the guy follows us out, drunkenly walking towards me with murder in his eyes.

I pulled out my cell phone and tossed it to my friend, while squaring off to the drunk frat boy. At this point he is still 10 yards away or so, closing in.

I instruct my friend as loud enough for frat-man to hear it, but not loudly enough to be obvious,

"Alright, you better call an ambulance."

The guy's face sobered up and he suddenly decided he was just out for some air, and quickly went back inside. We left.

Yeah, I am not really the fighting type.

 

[SeanSw]

It's fine, have a chuckle on my behalf

I took my lumps the way dad taught me to. Proudly. I was raised not to consider violence as a solution and I naively believed that other "stand-up men" would do the same. I was wrong, and I'm pretty sure dad wasn't right about things that day either Now I realize that standing up for yourself isn't an act of violence.

Some people want to hurt you and no amount of bluffing or reasoning will prevent it. That's why most of us wish we could meet their force with an equal or superior force.

Chest beating simply isn't part of my demeanor, despite the long hair, beard, and biker leathers. My ego is alright with that. Two jabs and a cross took me outta the fight as I stood there arms folded and legs spread wide. In the future I'll try to avoid going down so easily!

 

[The Unknown User]

I'm not sure if there's something wrong with me or not, but I have what I percieve to be abnormal responses to potentially serious situations.

For example, one time a guy who had at least 200 lbs. on me started to pick a fight with me. I didn't feel scared, or threatened, or anything like that. The entire time, I remained calm, cool, and collected, and frankly, he was boring me.

I didn't really "bluff" my way out of a fight, but the fact that my reaction didn't match the aggressor's expectations completely defused the situation. He actually looked flustered that I wasn't afraid of him.

He eventually backed down and walked off with his friends.

 

[GatorDude]

"Yo' man, you got a dime? Give me some money."
"No man. I got no money."
"What's that?"
"It's my switchblade..."
"Cool. See ya."

Yep, it was the fourth grade and my switchblade was my collapsible Cub Scout toothbrush. I bluffed my way out a couple of times. Once with the toothbrush and once by hiding my dime between my fingers and pulling out my pockets to show them empty. Finally, a week or two later, my assailant and a cohort administered a minor beat down in the hallway.

Sadly, it's probably reason #124 that I won't be voting for Obama. . .

 

[SouthronBoy]

Life and poker are different. In life, it's almost always better to bluff than to fold. Not so in poker.

 

[Calen]

Only when I was a kid. My dad, an ex-marine, taught me you could get out of a lot of fights by bluffing. Had a "gang" of kids surround me and one punched me in the stomach. I stared him in the eye for a good 30 seconds and then took a step forward. He stepped back, I stepped forward again and then walked out of the circle. They never bothered me again.

Before I got my CCW, I would have probably bluffed if I felt it necessary. If it's already a deadly situation a bluff may get you out where turning into a victim guarantees it will end up bad. I generally try to avoid situations where I have to do either though.

 

[45Guy]

Welcome to THR Calen!

No thanks on the bluffing part. Maybe ten years ago, but nowadays almost everyone in my age range (early 20's) and a little younger, has to be ghetto/rapper/thug, so they feel they have to fight to prove something.

I'm not getting beaten or killed because I stared down some punk and told him to "make my day." It's not my way, but if you feel it works go for it.

 

[Bob F.]

'Bout a hundred years ago, I was a college student walking home on a COLD December morning; car went past going the other way, 4 guys in it (it'd looked, casually). Heard him get on the brakes. Pulled my Old Timer 80T and opened it. I had on a HEAVY Car Coat (remember them?) and gloves. As the car pulled up I had my gloved hands together in front of me, concealing the knife. "You holler at us, punk?" "Not me." Deadpan look. {If a near side door opens, I'm kicking with all my 135 lbs, catchin a head or leg in the crunch}. They drove off, thank God.

Stay safe.
Bob

 

[shadowalker]

I think that by the time bluffing is an option a confrontation is already well under way, bluffing may end one without violence though.

If you fold the bad guy knows you are at his mercy, even if he suspects you are bluffing he knows there is a chance you are not and that may be enough to avoid a more serious confrontation.

When I was 14 my step dad was high on prescription drugs, he decided to berate my mom for an hour and make some other really bad decisions.

Eventually enough was enough and I respectfully but clearly told him that he knew he was wrong, and he needed to stop. He got up out of his chair, walked up to me and stopped about a foot away from me.

We locked eyes, I could feel the tension in the air and see his stance and muscles tighten. After what seemed like an eternity, he turned and left the room.

Even with 5 years martial arts training there was absolutely no way I was going to win but I was willing to fight anyway.

 

[spyder1911]

I was walking near Chicago with a couple other people when a man in really dirty clothes started following us. He followed us a couple of turns and it was getting late so there was no one else on the street. One of the people I was with noticed my hand was in my pocket and quietly told me to put 'em down at my side to look more menacing. I turned back to him and said, in a loud enough voice that the man following could hear me, "Nah man I always carry off-duty, don't you?" The man decided he found his destination and quickly turned off. I was/am not a LEO and neither was anyone I was with. I did have a knife, the real reason my hand was in my pocket, so not true bluffing.

 

[New User]

Two bluff stories:

1)
My buddy and I spent the evening working on his motorcycle. We drank a few beers. In no shape to drive, we walked to the closest bar: a frat bar, on frat row. We were both wearing our most beat-up, ratty, battery acid eaten Carhartts, when this pretty tough lookin' frat monster came over and said, "You two guys don't look that tough." We don't, I'm tall and skinny and my buddy is short and skinny. I say, "Well, we are." I turn around to the bar, take a drink off of my beer, and wait to get pinched in the back of the head. Two minutes later I turned around and the guy was still there. He started towards me and I looked at my buddy and said, "Jon, do you want to go outside with this?" The frat monster asks, "With what?" My buddy, picking up the bluffing macho vibe says, "Let us just buy you a drink and we can say you won." The frat monster thought this a good idea and accepted. We ordered him a sea breeze. So, it cost us four bucks, but we didn't get our teeth knocked in, and he had to sit down with his friends, explain why we didn't get beat up, and drink a sea breeze.

2) At another bar (maybe I should stay away from these) when a guy at the next table over starts telling pedophile jokes where preachers and teachers are the punchline. I (a teacher) say, "Maybe you should check and see if any teachers are around before you start shooting your mouth off. The guy stands up and says, "Yeah?" My friend, also a teacher, stands up (all 6'5" of 'em) and says, "Yeah." I was bluffing because, if it came to a fight, I'd probably curl up into the fetal position, start sucking my thumb, and wait to come out of the coma. The joker sat down and said, "Hey, chill. They're just jokes."

 

[bogie]

When I was 14...
snippage
Even with 5 years martial arts training there was absolutely no way I was going to win but I was willing to fight anyway.

****. Such a revelation.

I -really- wish that a lot of kiddies' parents would realize that sending their children to dance class does NOT ensure that they're never going to have problems with violent people.

Of course, if some folks get into the spiritual bit, that can be helpful, because it's purely evil to look into someone's eyes, and have them tell you "Karma's on my side, bleepitybleep, and do you wanna dance?"

But the dancing by itself? May help with some muscle memory, but since the primary training is in how NOT to harm someone... Sigh...

 

[RobMoore]

By "Dance Class", are you refering to the way some martial arts classes are all about katas and don't concentrate on hand to hand combat?

 

[ErikS]

Don't know if this qualify as a bluff...

Years ago when we got discharge from military service, all of us went to a town to have a last night out before going home.
Later in the evening, one of us got into a disagreement with a local tough guy (leather jacket, attitude, two friends backing him up).
Well, we didn't want a fight, so the rest of us separated them and took our guy into a fastfood place, just in time to avoid the cops that came by. Apparently the toughguy didn't have much sense, because as soon as the cops passed, he came after us into the fastfood place, buddies behind him.
I saw them coming, so I put myself in their way before they could reach the counter where the rest of the plutoon was standing. (Now consider the brains of this guy. He has two friends with him, and is trying to pick a fight with what is obviously a group of ten military guys, with maybe 200 more military guys within shouting distance. )

So I stood infront of them to block their access, totally relaxed, arms acrossed chest, and calmly said "look, we *really* dont want to fight..". He put his hands up, claiming we needed to settle this. I still didn't move an inch, just calmly said "I *really* dont want to fight...".
While I'm saying this, I'm thinking about just how I'm going to hurt him, should he make a move. (I had just completed military service, and even if I wasn't much of a fighter, I was in great shape, had MA experience, and was a lot tougher than I looked. I also had no qualms about going full force from the first punch, breaking bones.) I remember my plans including a cementpillar and some of the tables around us.

Anyway, after a while his buddies start looking a bit unsure. They noticed the rest of my plutoon had turned around to observe, not making a move to help me but going "hey watch this! He's messing with Erik, this is gonna be *fun*..." So his friends just turned and left, and within a few seconds he decided that he should leave too. Never saw him again.

I have no idea how a fight would have turned out, I was mostly bluffing, but I think he might have gotten a real surprise when he threw the first punch

 

[herohog]

I guess I'll share one more. I was working gate security at a dirt track in North Louisiana near the Texas border. My gate was at turn one to the right of the main grand stands and at the end of the pits. My job was to keep people without pit passes out of the pits and handle whatever came up till the deputies that worked main security got there.

One summer night 2 bikers (the real deal, not these new Harley owing yuppie wanna-bes) come from the main stands to my gate and want in the pits. I say "Sorry, no pit pass, you can't get in." At this point, I 'd like to point out that I am by myself in a area that is not well lit or traveled. It's just me. Period. Well, these 2 bow up and start telling me how they are goin in the pits and there's nothing I can do to stop it. I planted myself in the gateway, crossed my arms across my chest and told them "If you boys want a fight, ya had better pack a lunch cause we are gonna be here a while" and gave `em a little smile like I looked forward to the opportunity. They looked at each other, mumbled a few nasty things and walked away. That was the last I saw of them.

I was bluffing big time. I doubt I could have done more than irritate them for a while till the deputies came and I would be paying for it for a while but for some reason, I just didn't feel like rolling over for them. I'm a biker. I've been riding since I was 8. I used to hang with bikers. Most are good people. These guys were trash and just rubbed me wrong.

 

[velobard]

This isn't one of my own, just one I remember reading here from someone else. It was a thread about how much ammo to have on hand. One guy said that ever since once when he was younger and had to stand down a couple of night-time intruders with an empty rifle and no ammo in the house, now he's a bit obsessive about making sure there's plenty on hand.