Rampaging Bulldozer! Would a .50 have helped?

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From FoxNews:

Holahan said Heemeyer was armed with a .50-caliber weapon but appeared to be deliberately avoiding injuring anyone during the rampage, which began Friday at about 3 p.m. No other injuries were reported.

Hopefully since he didn't actually shoot at anyone there won't be as much heat from the gun aspect. Could have been a .50 desert eagle or a S&W .500. I really don't see how he could manuever a Barrett or some such other large rifle inside the confines of that bulldozer. :confused:
 
Maybe it's just me, but I always wonder when I see this sort of stuff in the movies or on the news why nobody ever seems to think of putting a few rounds through the RADIATOR.

Believe me, gang: when you let the coolant out, that engine WILL overheat. And when it does it's going to seize-up and stop running at some soon-to-be-discovered point.

When the engine stops, the vehicle does too. QED.

Just a thought.
 
Guess now we know

You occasionally see threads where someone asks if it's time to start the revolution, or 'what would it take to start the revolution?' type things.

I guess for this particular guy, we know the answer.

I kind of have to agree with TechBrute...I guess it's a good thing I have a wife and daughter to keep me grounded.

greg
 
Hi, Determined S.O.B. tho wasn't he ! Not that I condone that type of response, but I bet the next small town B.S. fight between 2 or more parties this will have to cross there minds ! Bye the way I am not allowed on any property own by Motorola ( enough said ) ..........WVleo
 
Yeah, when they mentioned .50 I immediately thought Desert Eagle. it's kind of awkward shooting yourself with a .50 bmg that has a 26' barrel...
 
The ".50 caliber" weapon will probably turn out to be a .38 special or Mark II Rimfire. But that is not as exciting and does not make a good story.

This just in..... we are getting a correction now from Geraldo; "The man was found with a 50MM handgun not a .50 caliber as last mentioned". "You know I spent a lot of time in the gulf and I know a 50MM when I see it".............
 
The man had it right and this was 100% justified. Because the only thing that will deter tyranny in the end is force.....now, if only we could all get bulldozers. :rolleyes:
 
For those of you who have BearShare, Kazaa or other file-sharing tool, look for:

Heywood Banks: If I Had a Bulldozer

I think the guy listened to this song... darn music influencing people!!
 
Looks like it is time for BATFE to expand to include the licensing of welding machines and welders. :scrutiny:

Not as impressive as the guy that stole the tank and took it on a test drive through town a few years ago.
 
Wow. I'm surprised they didn't send in the national guard.

I wonder if this has any importance politically...?

Nick
 
Hey, MainMech48

"Maybe it's just me, but I always wonder when I see this sort of stuff in the movies or on the news why nobody ever seems to think of putting a few rounds through the RADIATOR.

Believe me, gang: when you let the coolant out, that engine WILL overheat. And when it does it's going to seize-up and stop running at some soon-to-be-discovered point.

When the engine stops, the vehicle does too. QED.

Just a thought."

_______________________-

Well, yeah...but WHEN?!? It's the same thing as shooting a person. You can shoot someone in the stomach, and sooner or later they'll bleed out, but that's cold comfort when they turn around and put one in your head before they go... :evil:

Of course, this assumes that you can a) see/find/hit the radiator, and that b) the goon inside hasn't planned for this, and armored it. As with so many things, smart goblins=bad news.

Now, the better thought would be, go ahead and trash the radiator, and KEEP TRYING to stop the brute other ways. That way, you may get lucky, but you're also assured that the rampage won't last forever. I wonder what sort of a grade something like that could climb? I mean, it might have cost the city a few cruisers, but I wonder if the PD could've boxed him in effectively? Or does a 'dozer like that have the caljones to just go over or shove a few cars/trucks out of the way? How 'bout something like a flatbed towtruck? Just thinking...now that someone's done it--with some success--you know someone else'll be tinkering in their shed or garage or bunker...



D'OH!!! :D
 
Kalindras - at least one of the articles mentions that several cars were run over. The WND story says something about a truck being folded in half and pushed through a wall. Does that answer your question about boxing him in? I don't know much about bulldozers, but I imagine it would take something pretty dang big to stop it. Sounds like the PD coulda used an M1A1 tank in this situation.
 
Trouble with incidents like this, especially in small towns, is that the damage is done before a serious response can get geared up. It sounds like most of the cop's efforts were directed to getting him out of the dozer after he stopped knocking stuff over. Can't see every small town cop getting a .50 cal to carry in the trunk, either.


BTW, this wasn't an eminent domain dispute- according to what I read, he was mad that the authorities allowed his neighbor to build a concrete plant next to his property. Don't know the rights or wrongs of that, but it wasn't about his property being taken.
 
Eminent domain has been grossly distorted. Originally it was for 'the public good' not the good of corporations or even for a tax base for the city . It ment a highway or bridge for all the public , not a factory or mall for their profit or for a tax base .

"The idea that 'the public interest' supersedes private interests and rights can have but one meaning: that the interests and rights of some individuals take precedence over the interests and rights of others."
--Ayn Rand

It was a bad idea to begin with.
 
Everybody remembers the .500 S&W and the .50 AE. Doesn't Linebaugh get any love?
 
Not that I would ever advocate this kind of behavior, but maybe it will make several people think twice before being stupid and pissing people off.
 
Some new information

The whole "deliberately avoiding injuring anyone" thing is a crock, and he was trying to use the .50 to light off a propane distributorship...

"We had some deputies, officers and state troopers that were hiding behind a concrete wall," Trainor recalled. "When he saw them as he came around the building, he actually came over and tried to tip the wall over on the officers. At that point, it was certainly obvious what his intentions were."
"Heemeyer, who had not been firing a huge military anti-personnel gun mounted on the bulldozer during the pursuit, started shooting when he spotted the giant tanks of Independent Gas, but was unable to get them to explode."
It also appears that the original question has been answered...
"One local offered authorities his own .50-caliber bolt-action rifle, but six rounds failed to adequately penetrate the armor"

Ladies and Gentlemen,
I propose a toast, to the citizen who volunteered his .50 caliber rifle.
A bright spot in a dismal story...


The Denver Post
 
Well it throws some water on the uber-destructive powers of the .50, that's for sure. So much for shooting down satellites.
 
I notice the concrete plant workers tried to shoot his machine down, too.

John
 
Hey, Kalindras;

Never said that it was the ONLY thing to do. Just a good place to start the countdown clock on the whole mess, as opposed to waiting for him to run out of fuel, run into something that it can't knock over and get stuck, or whatever.

See/find/hit the radiator? We're not talking Geo Metro or new-style Volkswagen Bug here. With at least nine square feet of surface which would of necessity be exposed to airflow, it'd be kinda tough to overlook.

So would boxing-in the radiator (or the whole damn engine compartment, for that matter) with plate. It certainly could be done, but would've been just as conspicuous as the stuff on the cab: kinda like a goat in church. News photos didn't show it, or the whole concept behind my post would've been moot and the thought wouldn't have occured to me.


Anyone who can't figure out what that big rectangular thingey with the louvers HAS to be for or where to look for it on a machine like this probably would also be baffled by any device more complex than a wheel barrow. Such folks don't generally make it into police work, much less to the SWAT team.

Anyone who couldn't both figure out a way to get into an advantageous position to get a shot at it at SOME point AND put at least a couple of holes in an area of that size at normal "urban" engagement ranges also isn't likely to be found wearing a badge anywhere but Mayberry, USA.

YMMV. After all, the TV ads from the Texas tourism folks DO mention that "It's a whole other country!"

As for climbing over a flatbed truck: perhaps not. But I'd give ya attractive odds on any Cat of D-4 size up being able to push it the Hell out of the way unless you wedged it between two solid buildings or dumped beaucoup cubic yards of stones behind it.

Isn't it amazing just how much soup you can make from one oyster?
 
Not so interesting side note:

My father and I were having a recent discussion about large propane tanks and how they always make him nervous. In the course of our usual weekly call this morning, the subject of this guy and him shooting propane tanks with a .50 came up. I commented that if he couldn't make them blow with a .50, then having one in your back yard probably isn't that bad under normal circumstances.

The subject turned to the guy and how he armored up his CAT, and that they shot the thing a few times with a .50 without much joy. He said that they were probably using ball ammo, and that they needed the API ammo like he used to use. I commented that API ammo was illegal and he was surprised. My dad doesn't really keep up with all the gun laws, so he didn't know that you couldn't go to the gun show and buy it. Some disparaging remarks about Kennedy were then made.

My dad could really sympathize with the guy, I guess. He said that after 38 years in the military including 3 tours in Vietnam and now being retired, he understood how someone could get fed up with being screwed by the .gov.
 
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