4 ms·

The death of a police officer is no more tragic, necessarily, than the death of anyone else. However, an attacker who is brazen enough and well-prepared enough

The death of a police officer is no more tragic, necessarily, than the death of anyone else. However, an attacker who is brazen enough and well-prepared enough to attack and kill a police officer is more of a threat to the public. Ordinary citizens are generally not as well armed, armored, or trained as police officers, nor are they in near constant contact with police dispatch. Someone capable of and willing to kill police is someone who just doesn't care anymore and is willing and able to kill almost anyone.

rdouble 14y ago
Ordinary citizens are generally not as well armed Not sure how accurate that statement is in America.
- InclinedPlane 14y ago
  I said generally. Also, even with someone who religiously carries a gun as much as possible it would be unusual for them to carry a full-sized duty pistol and the ammunition that most cops do (stereotypically a Glock 22 w/ a 15 round magazine and 2+ additional magazines, a total of 45 or more rounds). Certainly some folks do but I'd doubt that number is even in the double digits throughout the entire US, excluding off-duty LE and people working security in some capacity. People who carry concealed tend to choose smaller, lighter guns and not quite as many total rounds, because ammunition is heavy (stereotypically a Kahr PM9 w/ an extra magazine, a total of 14 rounds, or maybe a Glock 26 w/ an extra magazine, a total of 20 rounds).
  - rdouble 14y ago
    Most concealed carry people I know use a normal sized 9mm. It's only been very recently that mouse guns have become trendy. Kahr has only existed as a company since the mid 90s. However, I wasn't talking about concealed carry when I made my comment.
  - sk5t 14y ago
    Double magazine pouches for concealed carry are not exactly a niche product. I would wager there are tens of thousands of Americans who pack a medium frame pistol and two spare mags.
    - InclinedPlane 14y ago
      Maybe. For single-stack magazines carrying 2 extra magazines can make a lot of sense, but once you get into double-stack magazines on guns with full-sized frames you start talking about a lot of bulk and weight. From my own observation, which is certainly anecdotal, I don't see that being commonplace at all. It's within the realm of possibility that there are "tens of thousands" of folks who concealed carry with that amount of ammunition, but I would be surprised if that was the case. Also, even if it is that many, it's still a tiny fraction of the populace. Even in the most enthusiastic pro-gun states only a tiny fraction of the public carries on a regular basis.
- m_myers 14y ago
  Disclaimer: the following text is written for non-American readers. If you are in fact an American and your statement was simply hyperbole, feel free to ignore. America isn't the wild west. We value our right to keep and bear arms, but not that many people actually carry weapons with them. Most gun owners keep their guns at home. The best numbers I could find [1] indicate 8 million active concealed carry permits; so at most ~4% of the adult population has a permit to carry a gun outside the home. And most of those (anecdotally) don't do it often. [1]: http://www.nraila.org/news-issues/articles/2012/7/new-federal-report-shows-right-to-carry-boom.aspx http://www.nraila.org/news-issues/articles/2012/7/new-federa...
  - rdouble 14y ago
    Where I grew up everyone had a shotgun and/or a deer rifle in their truck. I guess I wasn't equating being armed with having a concealed carry permit.
zobzu 14y ago
The bad guys are also generally more likely to kill the police officer because they know he will kill them as soon as he figures out they would. The general citizen, even when armed, will often run for his life instead.

rdouble 14y ago

Ordinary citizens are generally not as well armed Not sure how accurate that statement is in America.

InclinedPlane 14y ago
I said generally. Also, even with someone who religiously carries a gun as much as possible it would be unusual for them to carry a full-sized duty pistol and the ammunition that most cops do (stereotypically a Glock 22 w/ a 15 round magazine and 2+ additional magazines, a total of 45 or more rounds). Certainly some folks do but I'd doubt that number is even in the double digits throughout the entire US, excluding off-duty LE and people working security in some capacity. People who carry concealed tend to choose smaller, lighter guns and not quite as many total rounds, because ammunition is heavy (stereotypically a Kahr PM9 w/ an extra magazine, a total of 14 rounds, or maybe a Glock 26 w/ an extra magazine, a total of 20 rounds).
- rdouble 14y ago
  Most concealed carry people I know use a normal sized 9mm. It's only been very recently that mouse guns have become trendy. Kahr has only existed as a company since the mid 90s. However, I wasn't talking about concealed carry when I made my comment.
- sk5t 14y ago
  Double magazine pouches for concealed carry are not exactly a niche product. I would wager there are tens of thousands of Americans who pack a medium frame pistol and two spare mags.
  - InclinedPlane 14y ago
    Maybe. For single-stack magazines carrying 2 extra magazines can make a lot of sense, but once you get into double-stack magazines on guns with full-sized frames you start talking about a lot of bulk and weight. From my own observation, which is certainly anecdotal, I don't see that being commonplace at all. It's within the realm of possibility that there are "tens of thousands" of folks who concealed carry with that amount of ammunition, but I would be surprised if that was the case. Also, even if it is that many, it's still a tiny fraction of the populace. Even in the most enthusiastic pro-gun states only a tiny fraction of the public carries on a regular basis.
m_myers 14y ago
Disclaimer: the following text is written for non-American readers. If you are in fact an American and your statement was simply hyperbole, feel free to ignore. America isn't the wild west. We value our right to keep and bear arms, but not that many people actually carry weapons with them. Most gun owners keep their guns at home. The best numbers I could find [1] indicate 8 million active concealed carry permits; so at most ~4% of the adult population has a permit to carry a gun outside the home. And most of those (anecdotally) don't do it often. [1]: http://www.nraila.org/news-issues/articles/2012/7/new-federal-report-shows-right-to-carry-boom.aspx http://www.nraila.org/news-issues/articles/2012/7/new-federa...
- rdouble 14y ago
  Where I grew up everyone had a shotgun and/or a deer rifle in their truck. I guess I wasn't equating being armed with having a concealed carry permit.

zobzu 14y ago

The bad guys are also generally more likely to kill the police officer because they know he will kill them as soon as he figures out they would. The general citizen, even when armed, will often run for his life instead.