# No thanks, I'll take my chances with the psychopath. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 23, 2012, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135 "2012-07-23T14:22:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/1 "2012-07-23T14:22:37Z")
Dear guy I work with, cousin, dude from the bar, friend of a friend, Louie Gohmert, and every other gun toting pussy who seems to think that they could have taken out the Aurora shooter with their ersatz penis: No, you couldn’t have. The theater was dark. The dude was wearing body armor. People were running all over the place. If there’s more than one of you goobers in the theater, it’s just as likely that you’re going to start taking shots at _each other_ as taking shots at the shooter. Your skill at Counterstrike and/or your experience peeling potatoes and pounding a daily twelve pack in the Army do not qualify you to engage in a shootout in a room full of several hundred panicking civilians. You’re more dangerous to the rest of us than you will likely ever be to an armed psychopath. I know the idea of getting to kill an honest to goodness Bad Guy gives you a tremendous boner, but please shut the fuck up about it already, you fucking menace. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/2 "2012-07-23T14:30:33Z")
Concur. Dude had an AK-47. (And a … gas mask? WTF?) ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/3 "2012-07-23T14:30:56Z")
I’ll bet those 12 people who died would disagree with you. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/4 "2012-07-23T14:36:34Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I’ll bet those 12 people who died would disagree with you. Do you actually believe that _any_ of those twelve would want more people dead from deadly crossfire from all directions in a dark, smoke-filled theatre? Tell me something, Rambo Jr.-If you were armed and in a dark theatre and you heard gunshots, and you looked up and saw people shooting at each other, _how would you decide who to shoot at?_ ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/5 "2012-07-23T14:37:41Z")
Because dying from a psycho’s bullet, is so much better than dying in the crossfire of a hero, I’m sure! ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/6 "2012-07-23T14:38:20Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Do you actually believe that _any_ of those twelve would want more people dead from deadly crossfire from all directions in a dark, smoke-filled theatre? > Tell me something, Rambo Jr.-If you were armed and in a dark theatre and you heard gunshots, and you looked up and saw people shooting at each other, _how would you decide who to shoot at?_ Several of them were active military. They have been known to handle similar situations in the past. Oh, and you shoot at the guy shooting at you. Pretty simple really. Oh, and the Rambo comment. If your reading comprehension was a little better you’d see that I merely said the deceased would disagree, not that I’d rush in with shock and awe and all that. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/7 "2012-07-23T14:41:23Z")
If one guy starts shooting, and by the time you get up five others draw guns, how do you know which one is shooting at _you_? ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/8 "2012-07-23T14:42:41Z")
Thank you, black rabbit. Them’s my thoughts exactly. I know a lot of guys would love to play Dirty Harry and take down the psycho, but realistically with the armor he was wearing and the theater being dark and smoke-filled, the chances of increasing the carnage would be much better than that of taking out the nut. Not to mention, unless you got lucky on your first shot, he’s going to fire back in your general direction, so you’re risking the lives of those around you to fulfill your little fantasy. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/9 "2012-07-23T14:43:47Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > Several of them were active military. They have been known to handle similar situations in the past. > > Oh, and you shoot at the guy shooting at you. Pretty simple really. > > Oh, and the Rambo comment. If your reading comprehension was a little better you’d see that I merely said the deceased would disagree, not that I’d rush in with shock and awe and all that. Let’s hear from former(or current) military, then. Would any of you have whipped out your weapon in a crowded smoke-filled theatre and started firing at the gunman? If there was more than one gunman firing(assuming that you were not the only one reacting), how would you decide who to shoot at? ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/10 "2012-07-23T14:47:15Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I’ll bet those 12 people who died would disagree with you. I’m sure that six year old girl was a crack-shot. ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/11 "2012-07-23T14:48:31Z")
A thought that crossed my mind is that maybe Mr. Psycho _knows_ someone(s) might play Dirty Harry when he starts shooting; why else do the rampage in a dark theater, using some kind of smoke bombs, and protected with a bulletproof vest? Obviously this nut was prepared for the worst. These Dirty Harry types seem to forget that Shooty McNutjob may have factored them into the equation, and by trying to shoot back, you are most likely just making the situation _worse_. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/12 "2012-07-23T14:49:09Z")
I posted almost exactly the same thread yesterday. > **[I pit Texas Rep Louis Gohmert for his stupid comments regarding the Aurora...](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=659422)** > > http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/20/louie-gohmert-aurora-shootings\_n\_1689099.html The first remark, about “ongoing attacks on Judeo-Christian beliefs” is too fucking stupid to even deserve a response. The question about why nobody else in the... ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/13 "2012-07-23T14:51:02Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Let’s hear from former(or current) military, then. Would any of you have whipped out your weapon in a crowded smoke-filled theatre and started firing at the gunman? If there was more than one gunman firing(assuming that you were not the only one reacting), how would you decide who to shoot at? Let’s be fair and relate it to my comment. Would any of you who were currently being fired at whip out your weapon and fire back? ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/14 "2012-07-23T14:55:13Z")
The guy who was carrying and got involved in the Giffords shooting has described how close he came to shooting another guy who had actually subdued the real shooter. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41018893/ns/slate\_com/t/armed-giffords-hero-nearly-shot-wrong-man/#.UA1kw\_V6sQY](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41018893/ns/slate_com/t/armed-giffords-hero-nearly-shot-wrong-man/#.UA1kw_V6sQY) > [@](#): > > But before we embrace Zamudio’s brave intervention as proof of the value of being armed, let’s hear the whole story. “I came out of that store, I clicked the safety off, and I was ready,” he explained on Fox and Friends. “I had my hand on my gun. I had it in my jacket pocket here. And I came around the corner like this.” Zamudio demonstrated how his shooting hand was wrapped around the weapon, poised to draw and fire. As he rounded the corner, he saw a man holding a gun. “And that’s who I at first thought was the shooter,” Zamudio recalled. “I told him to ‘Drop it, drop it!’” > > But the man with the gun wasn’t the shooter. He had wrested the gun away from the shooter. “Had you shot that guy, it would have been a big, fat mess,” the interviewer pointed out. > > Zamudio agreed: > > “I was very lucky. Honestly, it was a matter of seconds. Two, maybe three seconds between when I came through the doorway and when I was laying on top of [the real shooter], holding him down. So, I mean, in that short amount of time I made a lot of really big decisions really fast. … I was really lucky.” He was “really lucky” as was the guy who subdued the shooter without himself possessing a weapon and came within a split-second decision of getting shot himself. I know the fantasy when you own a gun is that you make good decisions, save lives and put down bad guys. Reality is not fantasy. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/15 "2012-07-23T14:55:18Z")
> [@](#): > > Let’s be fair and relate it to my comment. Would any of you who were currently being fired at whip out your weapon and fire back? In a dark room filled with smoke where I couldn’t see the guy who was shooting at me? Maybe if I was playing _Half Life: Movie Theater Edition._ ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/16 "2012-07-23T14:55:30Z")
Because there weren’t enough threads talking about the same issue. Not just the shooting, the same exact thing you said. But I know, you would only be one of the posters buried in a multi-page thread and maybe your brilliance would be lost in the noise. Now you can have your name right on the first page! ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/17 "2012-07-23T14:58:02Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > Let’s be fair and relate it to my comment. Would any of you who were currently being fired at whip out your weapon and fire back? Hell, no-not in a dark, smoke filled crowded theatre with people panicking and running around. ---
**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/18 "2012-07-23T15:02:58Z")
In the unlikely event that I happen to be sitting in a movie with a member of Seal Team Six or a SWAT guy or something, then I suppose they might marginally increase everybody’s chances of surviving the bloodbath by whipping out their piece and blasting away. None of the first four people I mentioned are current or former members of the Special Forces. One of them is ex-Army, but his primary takeaway from his service was a pretty nasty drinking problem. They’re all pretty average gun nuts (in my experience), and none of them project an aura that would lead me to believe the average gun nut would make the situation anything other than _more_ dangerous for everyone present. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/19 "2012-07-23T15:10:04Z")
What if Legolas was in the theater with a bow? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135/20 "2012-07-23T15:14:52Z")
You’re in a darkened theatre and you see a couple of people shooting at each other. People are panicking and running around, but you are clear-headed enough to notice that one gunman seems to be professionally outfitted and knows what he’s doing, while the other one is firing back wildly. Which one do you shoot at: 1. The panicked guy with the pistol, or 2. The professional dude who might be S.W.A.T. or military? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-thanks-ill-take-my-chances-with-the-psychopath/629135.md?page=2)