I have shut a few people up with the following logic.
When something happens that is bad enough that deadly force is required, it probably won't just be ONE bad thing. It will be a lot of bad things happening all at once and careful plans flying out the window. You cannot apply logical limitations to a chaotic situation.
In Utah, we have a lot of wilderness in varied types of terrain, from desert salt flats to forests of all altitudes. I love to be able to just get out and drive where I won't see anyone else, offload my ATV, and ride. Unfortunately, the abundance of remote areas also attracts pot farmers. They set up grows in canyouns and plateaus where they have a low likelihood of being seen. Some of these grows number in the thousands of plants, with advanced irrigation and fertilizer. Now, for years, I figured that these guys would set them up, with all of the plants and pipes, and then pay a sheepherder (who are mostly of the same general ethnicity) fifty bucks a week to go check the water. But a year or so ago, I was at an outdoor expo, and the local DEA office had a booth set up, so I talked to the agent who was there. He told me I was wrong. They have too much at stake financially. They HAVE to keep watch over the operation, and (this is the important part,) EVERY SINGLE ONE of the farmers they have caught has had firearms on the site, usually an AK.
So, here is the test question. Let's say I'm tootling around on my quad in a remote area. I head up a canyon, and notice some exposed PVC pipe. A little further, I see a cannabis bush. I immediately turn around and head back down the canyon, and in the road, there are three gentlemen. Let's say I see one gun, but I don't know if the others are armed or not. They are blocking the only way out of the canyon, and they have a LOT riding on this crop. Not to mention a management chain that isn't known for handling bad news very well. Maybe something will happen. Maybe they will step aside, smile, and wave as I ride through. But if they DON'T: HOW MANY SHOTS AM I GOING TO NEED?
Now when I pose this question, I get a few different responses. Some say I am living in a fantasy world. I tell them that all of this is very real, and not only possible, but likely, when you spend as much time as possible outdoors as I do. Some think I am a trained soldier and I am able to switch magazines like Todd Jarrett. I have to explain to them that the best I have ever been is about two seconds, and that was with an M-4, not the SKS I usually ride with.
The bottom line is, you have absolutely no idea what kind of trouble you will encounter, where it will happen, or how bad it will be.
