"...supposed to be a country of laws" is a completely different discussion than "How will pulling the trigger affect me and my family tomorrow?"chasfm11 wrote:It doesn't matter what the kids that he was protecting might have done. We are supposed to be a country of laws with the assumption of innocence until proven guilty in a court of law, not given over to mob violence and the possibility of beating deaths. I do understand that, in some areas and with some ethnic groups, there may be little or no respect for the law, based on past conduct. Mob violence is not a solution to that either.RoyGBiv wrote:Of course my initial thought was "anyone breaking through my bolted door and threatening me with a pipe is going to catch some lead." But after a few minutes thinking about the situation.....
1. He had no idea what the kids in his house may have done to instigate the problem.
2. If he injures/kills an attacker, how does that affect the safety of his wife, 4 young kids, his house and himself?
Being "dead right" is small consolation. Unfortunate, but, reality.
I agree that his family's safety may have been compromised by his actions. It he cannot petition the local police department for help with that, we've sunk a lot lower as a society than even I believed.
Apples and oranges, I say. Both are valid concerns, but arguing one against the other is off-point.
I'm not saying I would or would not have pulled a trigger in that mans shoes (although it would seem from the article it would have been justified self defense). I'm just acknowledging that getting involved in anothers troubles, and then getting involved quite deeply in the quagmire of legal and vengeful repercussions that follow pulling the trigger, including potential life-changing repercussions to my family and home, is not a decision to be taken lightly.