How do you handle EXTREME tailgaters?

[Angelus359]

weather spotter
sweden and switzerland do that

Works quite well

[Weather Spotter]

So does Israel, I saw a report that claimed that 30% of terrorists were killed by civilians before committing the act (pulling cord to set off suit of bombs).

I distrust most big cities as the police will stay out of areas at night. If I know that most people are armed then I feel safer. I would help others and they would help me if I needed it. Things get politer and safer. Bad people will have weapons one step over the good guys. why not make them have to take more chances to win at crime. It will also keep the jails empty of repetitive crooks (they will be dead, too bad )

[Arragonis]

I'm still happier in a place where guns are unusual and not the norm. People aren't always rational and don't always behave sensibly for whatever reason. We have an issue here in the UK with alcohol at the moment - I would rather keep guns seperated from the drunks. I agree though, a 'crim carrying' should be subject to far more serious penalties.

Back to the matter in hand I read somewhere recently that Germany had cameras on some of their unrestricted motorways specifically to catch tailgaters - wonder what came of them ?

[miket]

non sensible people do all sorts of thing with deadly fast moving metal objects.

[Arragonis]

Originally Posted by miket

non sensible people do all sorts of thing with deadly fast moving metal objects.

You know you're an ecomodder when...

[endurance]

I've carried for years and never cleared the holster. Don't blame the gun, blame the nut behind the gun. There are at least as many traffic fatalities in the US than people killed with guns, but most people don't want cars banned in their country, do they?

There's responsible drivers and there's responsible gun owners; there's also idiots in the world. Don't punish law abiding citizens for the stupidity of a few.

[bestclimb]

I too have carried for years. Also I have never needed to clear the holster other than some dog issues.

Anyway, a person in a car is far and away more dangerous than a person with a gun.

A .45 (a big bullet other than the magnums) bullet is fired at about 850 feet per second and weighs in at 230 grains (7000 grains/pound for those unfamiliar) Netting 370 foot pounds of energy.

A Honda Civic (a small car by most accounts) weighing in at 2100 pounds (for an old light one) and traveling 50mph nets about 175500 foot pounds of energy.

Given that Extreme tailgaters are likely unstable to begin with and operating a potential weapon that can cause way more havoc than an armed fellow I prefer to deescalate potential road rage scenarios. Give the fellow ample opportunity to pass and let them bother someone else.

I had other thoughts to add/ideas to debate but this is not the most political of boards and would prefer to keep it that way.

[ShadeTreeMech]

it is true politics can make enemies of friends.

you know, the guy who waved a gun at me, what are the chances he would have actually shot me in front of my wife and kids? I didn't stay to find out, but it may have been low. I guess one deterant for him would have been if I would have stopped, put the car in neutral, and revved the engine as he approached. It may have given him a moment of thinking to realize hey, this is stupid, I should go about my way.

[Arragonis]

Unfortunately sensible, law abiding people can become very unsensible with a drink or three or perhaps something else, but that is hard to predict when the guns are handed out. That tapped you also need a license to drive and that sometimes works out bad.

Anyway - on with the tailgaters.

[bestclimb]

Originally Posted by Arragonis

Unfortunately sensible, law abiding people can become very unsensible with a drink or three or perhaps something else, but that is hard to predict when the guns are handed out. That tapped you also need a license to drive and that sometimes works out bad.

Anyway - on with the tailgaters.

I debated a with my self as to respond, but I was feeling froggy. If the mods want they can axe it as I know it is getting close to the line of political.

Sensible, law abiding people chose not to drink while around guns, they also chose not to drink when they are going to drive.

A license to carry a concealed firearm is harder to get than a license to drive (yet people do both without a license). To get mine I had to get fingerprinted and back ground checked for both criminal activity and mental illness. Oh yea and I had to travel to another state as the permit my state issues is not good in a few places that I like to travel to. It also costs more. Many locals require a proficiency check. My drivers license is good in all 50 states, most other countries honor it as well (Mexico, Canada, Ireland and others I assume). I have to do a bunch of digging around when I travel to insure that my concealed carry permit is honored by the other states I travel to.

The state where I live does not require a permit to carry concealed, yet even without all the background checks, proficiency checks. I feel much safer once I arrive at a shooting range, than on the drive there even though there are many people who I do not know using guns that may be far more powerful than the ones I brought.

Intoxicants keep getting brought up as a reason dislike guns, when in reality the intoxicants have their own issues. Availability of weapons may exacerbate the problems with intoxicants but weapons come in many forms such as cricket bats, swords, cars or chairs. It is likely in most of these cases, had the victim not been barred the use of arms they would have been able to defend them selves and been around for their loved ones.

Anyway, on with the tailgaters