Hypothetical Situation: At your favorite restaurant

[PUCKER]

Do they have tile/linoleum floors? 'cause I'd hate to make a mess that mom 'n pop would make me clean up. Also, if the pie frig is directly behind the bad guy then I'd really have to decide how bad I wanted mom's coconut cream pie, it is KILLER, ya know!

[bdickens]

It depends.

[bayouhazard]

It depends.

Yeah. What's the owner doing during all of this?

[AnthonyTX]

The other owner runs the kitchen!

So the way I see it is kind of like Embalmo... if I'm not directly targeted by BG I think I'd avoid confrontation.

There seems to be too many issues with being a "hero"... but can you live with knowing 'ma just got shot (if things turn for the worse)?

[WildBill]

With my right hand, I would slowly draw my gun from it's holster and keep it under the table until I had to make another decision. With my left hand I would be eat some mashed potatoes and gravy.

[Oldgringo]

With my right hand, I would slowly draw my gun from it's holster and keep it under the table until I had to make another decision. With my left hand I would be eat some mashed potatoes and gravy.

Where's your napkin? Ain't you got no manners?

[WildBill]

With my right hand, I would slowly draw my gun from it's holster and keep it under the table until I had to make another decision. With my left hand I would be eat some mashed potatoes and gravy.

Where's your napkin? Ain't you got no manners?

I don't think this type of dive has cloth napkins. If they did, I'd tuck it into the neck of my tee shirt.

[Pawpaw]

With my right hand, I would slowly draw my gun from it's holster and keep it under the table until I had to make another decision. With my left hand I would be eat some mashed potatoes and gravy.

Where's your napkin? Ain't you got no manners?

The napkin is in the right hand, helping to camouflage drawing the weapon.

(BTW, covertly drawing my weapon, if possible, was in my game plan too.)

[WildBill]

With my right hand, I would slowly draw my gun from it's holster and keep it under the table until I had to make another decision. With my left hand I would be eat some mashed potatoes and gravy.

Where's your napkin? Ain't you got no manners?

The napkin is in the right hand, helping to camouflage drawing the weapon.
(BTW, covertly drawing my weapon, if possible, was in my game plan too.)

That way you have the advantage of having the weapon in your hand if you need to shoot. If not, then you can reholster without anyone being the wiser.

[glbedd53]

If you have a Glock, just make your way to the kitchen. Then you can set up behind some other Tupperware and your gun won't be visible.

[Hoi Polloi]

I often wonder what other patrons would do if they saw us under the table with guns drawn during a hold-up. My fear is that multiple people would blurt out, "Gun!"

Embalmo

I would think the most likely thing they'd do is very intently look at you then the BG then you then the BG with eyes as wide as saucers like you were in an invisible tennis match to the death. If the BG had any experience, he'd notice the whole room full of people who are looking at your face then your hands then him. In this scenario, he's shaking like a leaf and won't notice anything outside his tunnel vision.

If I were in this hypothetical world, I would be still and quiet as I discretely drew, hopefully avoiding the attention of all as I blended in with the chair, and I wouldn't raise the gun unless I thought he was going to imminently fire. If I had a clear shot which I felt confidant in taking and thought someone else's life immediately and imminently depended on it, I'd shoot. The threshold for clear shot and sufficient confidence are pretty high, though. I'd be more likely to shoot after he shot if I thought he was going to turn on the rest of us. With how shaky he was, and after having just shot at a person, he'd have to take a moment to recover his senses and it would be easier to shoot then, and definitely justified.

Or more likely, my husband--the one of us with the CHL and the ability to shoot well--would shoot and I would either rush the children out of there or attend to the cashier, whichever seemed more pressing, keeping in mind that any remaining risk to my children would be first. Those are my thoughts.

[AustinBoy]

AnthonyTX,
Scenarios are great to think about.

Buy a book called "Thank God I Had A Gun" by Chris Bird

Read it cover to cover, twice.

Then play this scenario out in your head several times.

Just my advice,
Ty

[eddieconcarne]

There are a million ways to look at this, but given the limited facts, I would let him get his money and go. Money can be replaced, and restaurants carry insurance. Now, if the guy shoots someone, inflicting some bodily harm, and/or the situation turns into a hostage situation, I'd have to think twice. But I'd be dialing 911 on my iPhone with one hand, and have my hand on my gun with the other in case things escalated.

[AnthonyTX]

AustinBoy definitely going to check out that book. Sounds like a good read. I guess the reason I played this through my mind is.

Do I have the ability to take down the BG if the opportunity showed itself?
Does the BG have to inflict some sort of pain on cashier/owner before my mind allows me to even contemplating taking aim at BG?
Will I be able to live with the repercussions or shooting BG? Of not shooting BG?
What would be the signs to look for for the green light to take down BG?

Like Hoi mentioned its just a made up scenario... Honestly seems highly unlikely one would be caught in a situation like this. Probably same odds as being in a plane crash... Its just good to hear other peoples views.

BTW, pops uses bacon drippings n butta in all his food...

[Saintkingdom]

ok, first of all all of you who wait the situation out have lost all you best opportunities. on Sept. 11th two planes full of people waited the situation out, the third had some that did not. you say you don't want to be a "hero" but you are not even going to be proactive about your own safety? peoples lives are already at risk, how many(including yourself) are you willing to lose? you can never truly predict how a situation will end, you can however take advantage of it and steer it . this guy "appears" to be nervous and most likely is locked on to mom and the cash (is or has he been looking around?) any sudden movement will gain attention from mom causing her to look "instinctively" in your direction thus turning the BG to you. slowly slide to position yourself behind the BG where mom can not see and check the other patrons to make sure their attention is focused forward. if by chance someone is looking at you and not the action(not bloody likely), calmly smile and bring your finger to your mouth(be quiet). prepare for a "rodey run". the distance is short and you should close at the least 75% before any others turn towards you, by the time you aproch the BG if they have not been made aware of you announce yourself(tell mom to get down). turn him from mom, as the gun leaves mom's face and swings around up comes your left arm( reverse hands if he swings the other way) to block and/or graple the gun/hand. here is where you get to make a choice. 3-5 rounds to end the show or like I would do crack him in the temple till he goes down. if his other hand/arm becomes active then fire a few rounds into him. make sure his gun stays pointed up as he goes down! if by chance you were not fast enough getting to him then your gun is drawn and you still have the advantage. depending on your level of marksmanship, disable his ability to fire but dont rely on that. hand, arm, shoulder then head. a person running on adrenilene is more likely to take several center mass hits than you have in you mag. you have to STOP him first, if you hit center all 6-8 rounds he still turns and fires hitting you and/or others. take away his ability to fire and YOU are safe, ok yes and everyone else too.

pie for me
god bless texas