We had our second burglary attempt within the past three weeks, and it changed our minds about gun ownership

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
So far our plan was always to hide in the attic and let the perpetrators take what they want as long as they spare us. But now, having had to hide up there for 25 agonizing minutes until the police showed up, feeling helpless and exposed, I want to buy a handgun to protect my family and my home. I am livid. Why should I have to bow down and remain at the mercy of whoever burglarizes my home?

My husband and I are from a very pacifist northern European country where civilians do not own guns except for hunting.
These two incidents have been watershed moments.

The first attempt was in the morning of the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, at 9:30 a.m. Our house is in a very expensive neighborhood. It is one of the very few that does not have a gate or fence (now made a priority), and you can see through the front door and the living room windows. We just had our carpets shampooed, so the furniture was removed and the curtains bunched up in a knot. I understand why burglars would think that the owners had their carpets shampooed just before traveling for Thanksgiving.

The perpetrators parked in a white pick-up truck in front of our house. They did not spend more than five minutes there, because I had just seen our neighbor from across the street drive away from that spot. Then they walked on the path at the garage toward the garbage bins toward the back yard. The motion sensor there went off, and that apparently scared them away. I was on the phone with the security company that gets alerted and sends out armed guards when I saw the perpetrators (through the glass panels around my front door) get into their truck, look at me and drive away.

The second attempt was this past weekend at 8:30 pm. I was alone in the house, and for the first time in several weeks I turned off all lights visible from the street at 6 pm when I went upstairs. Only an hour and a half later the same motion sensor at the garage path halfway toward the back yard went off. I sprinted to the attic, called the security company and the police. The police took 25 minutes to get here, and the security company never showed up.

Now I live in fear, thinking about the next burglary attempt all the time. I am done with this.

Nice bit of trolling

All a gun would do is get stolen in the burglary or increase the probability you or someone you love gets made dead

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:a motion sensor went off .... I wouldn't call that a burglary attempt

This. It's trespassing. If they are actively trying to break into your home or are already in, that's home invasion and should elicit a priority response from police. I don't know where you live but in Montgomery County that's about six minutes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP is probably fake but there really are a lot of people who constantly believe they were “almost” burgled. Someone is “casing” their house.

There is also a whole genre of social media for white women convinced they’re about to be human trafficked from Target.

People are just bored and like feeling scared and important, but then sometimes it gets out of control and they shoot someone.

Burglaries do happen so the fear isn't some far-fetched idea. My aunt was burglarized (very mc area, almost rural), my parents' neighbors, my neighbor across the street in a totally different area. It's not bad to implement protections though I personally wouldn't get a gun.

Sure but people walking around are not all burglars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I call BS.
Where do you live that a security company has armed guards on standby?
This also wasn’t an attempted burglary. It was a suspicious act. Someone walking around your house, while unusual and definitely concerning is not a reason to gosprinting to your attic in fear.
Take it down a notch.
You are the type of person who will accidentally shoot someone in fear.

I’m not op but my parents live on 20 acres. Someone walking around their house is reason to get a gun. You don’t just wander up a 150 yard driveway on a wooded lot.

That’s completely ridiculous and extremist. I mean, why don’t they just call 911?

You clearly don't live in rural America. Why on earth would someone be on their lot if uninvited? No reason whatsoever.

Drunk teen
Victim of a car crash looking for help
Medical emergency
lost contractor
police
city folks looking at land

I can go on and on.

[Anonymous]

Wow, OP you should not be living in a city or suburb if you can't handle someone walking around your house twice. Hiding in the attic? You are wired too tight.

I have idiots doing door to door marketing in my neighborhood who apparently have a death wish. I just yell at them and they scurry off.

[Anonymous]

Get a big dog.

[Anonymous]

Just get a loud barkey dog or two, less likely to kill yoursef or your kids with a dog vs a gun!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A dog will be a lot better deterrent than a gun. A mouthy dog, even better.

I would never have a gun in my house. A childhood friend accidentally killed himself when we were 15 showing his girlfriend his dad's supposedly-unloaded gun.

But, as Bill Burr says, a pitbull is a gun you can pet...

OP here. My husband and I are both busy professionals and do not have the lifestyle that would allow us to spend hours with a guard dog every day. It is not sufficient to walk the dog, it also needs mental challenges.

The gun would be in a safe accessible only with my or DH's fingerprints. Our daughter would most certainly not be showing it to her friends.

Burglaries are common in our area. They are looking for jewelry, watches and designer handbags.
The only place safer compared to our neighborhood is a gated community. There aren't many of those in our particular area.

If you are so rich get a dog walker FFS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you truly prepared to kill someone? Are you prepared to be someone who shot someone dead? Do you know what that does to a person psychologically? Think about that before buying a gun.

If someone hopped up on crack went towards my kids’ room I’f have no compunction whatsoever in shooting them in the head. I could live with myself if I was such a coward I could not defend my family.

What if they weren't on crack? What if they didn't go towards your kids' room? What if they just wanted to take electronics and china? Or steal your dog? Then would you kill them? Can you make that decision in a split second?

Why does it matter if they are on crack? They have no right to be in your home.

+1 Don't enter someone else's home. Works for me!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP if you are seen to have a gun by an intruder you are 100 x more likely to get shot by them.

This is a known fact, I am 55 and I was taught this in 7th grade.

Get a fence, get sensor lights and a ring on your doorbell. Get a loud dog or a recording of one that is set off by people coming close to the house. Put up a sign that says "beware, guard dog" and another that says "ADT" or whatever company does your security.

There are so many things you can do to deter a home invasion that do not require the purchase of a gun. FFS.

A big dog and a shotgun will deter them. Just cock the shotgun and point it towards the door. Problem solved.

[Anonymous]

OP, great thread. After the first 2 pages I skipped to page 9 and find out the expensive items you show theough the open curtains to your living room. Unfortunately, the burglers know you have it. Would suggest the panic room like someone else suggested. From the panic room, be able to detonate small explosives wherever needed. Should have a large monitor showing 10 camera indoor feeds throughout the house. Shoukd be on a battery powered system in case they cut your power.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
OP, if you’re real, you are exactly the sort of person who shouldn’t have a gun- emotional, impulsive, panicky. Bringing a gun into your home makes you more likely to accidentally harm yourself or a family member, self harm, accidentally harm someone like a delivery person, lost teen, etc, and you’re more likely to be injured if you try to use a firearm to defend your home (see below for a good collection of data).

It’s easy to say, that you can handle it, but most people have no idea how they will react when adrenaline is pumping and they are terrified. It takes a lot of training and certain personal qualities to physically attain calm and make good decisions with a gun during a crisis.

Since you have so much money, why not build safe rooms? Get a dog, any dog is a deterrent. You correctly assessed that you can’t manage a guard dog, well I don’t think you can manage a gun either. You can afford a dog walker.



https://www.thetrace.org/2020/04/gun-safety-research-coronavirus-gun-sales/

This is all BS.

And all of it was already refuted in the other thread.

PP: you probably think Kamala Harris should not be allowed to have her gun in her home for home defense.

I’m going to side with the VPOTUS over you, PP, since you’re just some internet rando who doesn’t care at all about my family’s safety.

Are you OP? You don’t sound even vaguely Northern European. You sound like a very American Karen. None of that research is debunked. And I stand by my assessment. You are a panicky overreactor and will only endanger yourself and others with a gun.

I support responsible gun ownership and common sense regulation. You want to argue about things I didn’t even say. Maybe you need therapy.

This PP is telling the OP that they need therapy?! That is something! How about the PP stop using the old, cringey Karen-term and move on to the next trendy moniker that will make them feel relevant.
I am so embarrassed for anyone still calling anyone "a Karen". Time to grow up and move on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you truly prepared to kill someone? Are you prepared to be someone who shot someone dead? Do you know what that does to a person psychologically? Think about that before buying a gun.

If someone hopped up on crack went towards my kids’ room I’f have no compunction whatsoever in shooting them in the head. I could live with myself if I was such a coward I could not defend my family.

How many times have you shot a gun?

DP, probably tens of thousands of times, but I grew up in a family where shooting was just something we did

So you plan to attempt a head shot on a moving intruder, in the dark, while you are groggy after being startled awake? Let’s think this idea through a little bit more…it sure sounds like the intruder is between you and your kids room….that means shooting in the direction of your own family. Hm. What a well thought out plan!

Um “DP” stands for different poster. This is Not the poster you think it is

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP if you are seen to have a gun by an intruder you are 100 x more likely to get shot by them.

This is a known fact, I am 55 and I was taught this in 7th grade.

Get a fence, get sensor lights and a ring on your doorbell. Get a loud dog or a recording of one that is set off by people coming close to the house. Put up a sign that says "beware, guard dog" and another that says "ADT" or whatever company does your security.

There are so many things you can do to deter a home invasion that do not require the purchase of a gun. FFS.

Pluto was a planet when you were in seventh grade

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you truly prepared to kill someone? Are you prepared to be someone who shot someone dead? Do you know what that does to a person psychologically? Think about that before buying a gun.

If someone hopped up on crack went towards my kids’ room I’f have no compunction whatsoever in shooting them in the head. I could live with myself if I was such a coward I could not defend my family.

What if they weren't on crack? What if they didn't go towards your kids' room? What if they just wanted to take electronics and china? Or steal your dog? Then would you kill them? Can you make that decision in a split second?

Why does it matter if they are on crack? They have no right to be in your home.

+1 Don't enter someone else's home. Works for me!

Anyone breaking into Kamala Harris’ house is getting shot. That’s her statement and she stands by it.

All of you in disagreement with her plan must just be a bunch of MAGAs.