Originally Posted by
BigMat
I disagree with most of what you said, so I saved some space instead of going line by line.
We agree more than you think...
No training ever, fully prepares a person for the big show, I don't care how good it is.
Agreed. But like I said, it will definitely stack the odds in one's favor... or more to their side than otherwise, anyway.
You can run and jump and shoot under stress all you want, NO ONE has ever become a combat veteran by volume of training alone. And I have seen people train their asses off, and then fall flat the first time its time to go. Mind set is serious, but from my experience its something you have, not something you can get, and the only way to know, is to find out by being there.
Mindset is definitely more nature than nurture. But I've seen plenty of converts... having your eyes opened to the evils in the world is quite the experience, and I've seen many cases where people did a complete 180 after an experience.
The reason I said one shot, is after the first report reaches his ears, unless the bullet passes between them first, he's shooting back, and all advantage you had is gone.
Once the first report reaches his ears, he's aware that he's got some opposition. It still takes time to figure out where the shots are coming from and where to shoot back.... and in that time you can have plenty more rounds headed his way.
As to hip shots due to armor, I've seen one before, it caused neither tremendous blood loss or immobilization, it could, but not always. Again, pistols can't make promises.
Which, again, is why you shoot them to the ground. Until they're lying on the ground and not moving, there's no need to stop pulling that trigger.
Why didn't he move, no idea, I wasn't there. There could have been one harley between him and the IHOP. and concealment doesn't stop bullets, by definition, especially 30/60/90/120 of them. Sure trucks are big, but they are mostly volume that bullets can pass cleanly through.
Concealment doesn't stop bullets, but it prevents the shooter from knowing where to put those bullets. If you shoot while moving behind a solid line of cars, by the time he figures out where that shot comes from you can be dozens of yards away from where you shot from. My comment about trucks was about engine blocks. Put the front clip of a vehicle between you and the shooter, and you'll have some decent cover. Not great, but unless he shoots underneath the vehicle or gets lucky and the bullet dodges all of the large, thick pieces of steel in the engine bay, it's better than nothing.
As to taking him down to defend your customers, I think he was in a good postion to defend them as well, that's why he was best to keep his butt alive, hidden and parked.
I know I would sleep well every night of my life, (and I have vested my life's work to saving other people, and I have hung by butt out there a time or two to prove it) because what happened in that shooting was the shooters doing, and the defense of me and mine falls to me and mine, not to some guy in a BBQ joint across the lot. The people in IHOP didn't carry where legal to do so, why aren't we talking about them?