MJS, if people breaking into your house and attacking you isn't justification to use deadly force I don't know what is. Seriously. Deadly seriously. Think about it long and hard right now and make the Decision because it will be way too late to do complicated Deontic Calculus when the fewmets hit the air circulation device. If you can't honestly, deep in your soul, say "I would kill him if I or my loved ones were at risk" not "I might, depending, maybe in theory after carefully considering all options" get rid of the weapons and forget about martial arts as self defense.
I was taught that anyone breaking into my home while I was in it has the intent to kill me and my family/friends/room-mates. While it is justification and probably a lot of LEO's will nod their heads in the affirmative -- the law is still the law and it's homicide and it will be up to a jury to decide if it was justifiable or necessary. Thus killing should be the last resort. Crying out a warning to the intruder that they WILL get shot if they do not vacate the premises immediately helps the case I think in court. Though it maybe only your word against the burglar (if he lived) that you warned them before-hand.
In my present situation I am severely hard of hearing and that's
when I have my hearing aid on. Without it I might as well be deaf... well who am I kidding... I AM
My parents are both deaf and my father is blind as well. If an intruder wants to break in they don't need to worry too much about stealth as far as noise is concern... In our case all the
more reason for us to use deadly force when it comes to home defense. We wouldn't have a warning until after we wake up and realize that there's a fourth in the house. Extremely vulnerable to say the least I know.
I have my folder kept by my bedside and am considering bringing in and concealing (from my parents, because that sort of thing terrifies my step mother if she sees it laying about) my hunting knife which has a broad blade of 8 inches and is very -- very sharp. I'm not allowed at present to have a firearm.
Dogs? Can't afford one. Alarm systems, can't afford those either (parents on a fixed retirement income and I work at a McDonalds
). There are a number of police and state troopers that cruise by the house along our street which is actually a four-lane by pass from one freeway exit to another, thus they cruise past at a good 35-40+ mph. If I wake and I frequently do through the night and sense something is amiss then I am prepared to use deadly force if I see the person is someone other than my parents. I just hope (my parent's) lawyer is as good as they say he is.
Consider that any animal will defend its lair. And it will do it ferociously. Oh, there will be a back exit somewhere so that it can leave if it has to. But that is where it will make its stand and pull out all the stops. Even a big, fierce pit bull thinks twice about going into a little dog's house. Our cat chases squirrels. But she would never beard the squirrel in its den. She's not suicidal. The cat and the pitbull understand the score. It astounds (and appalls) me that civilization has made us forget it.
I don't think that can be a blanket statement as I've had the rare occasion in Dallas to see a dog go into another's dog house and drag the animal bodily out side and shake it like a ragdoll. T'was a bloody mess. By the way the dog doing the attacking was indeed a pit.
"If a man breaks into your house in the night and you are afraid, kill him and leave his body until morning. His own blood is on him."
"Someone broke into the lodge and was killed. Whose hand was on the bow?"
Interesting quotes... sounds familiar who said them and where did you find them? :asian:
Feudal Japanese society was incredibly oppressive to women. Female warriors? You've got to be kidding. But noblewomen were trained in various weapons, particularly the naginata, to defend the home. Everyone understood that when the house was attacked the normal rules did not apply, and everyone had a right and duty to protect it by whatever means were necessary.
Even back then they realized the importance of training
everyone irregardless of sex/age ... they just held a firm hand on their cultural rules.
Deterrence depends on the bad guy's belief that whatever he wants is not worth what he's going to have to pay to get it. If he's willing to break into an occupied home he's already heavily invested and doesn't care much about the legal consequences. You must assume that he is willing to kill you and that you and everyone else in the house are "in immediate and otherwise unavoidable danger of death or serious bodily injury". If you want him to go away the perceived cost of him continuing must be very, very high. Lights, locks, alarms and barking dogs help raise the cost before the crime. They make him think "Y'know maybe the house down the street will be less trouble."
This is true. The casual burglar will seek the un-occupied home so that the chances that they'll be interrupted while searching for valuables is less and they don't worry too much about the noise factor. Ironically most of these guys (the real professionals) choose their time of crime during the day when everyone is away at work/school. The desperate burglar or the combination burglar, read: rapist/killer/burglar will not care if someone is home or not. If it's a woman then it's a bonus. These types need to be permanently eliminated from our society IMO. Taking every precaution is a wise step. Dogs, alarms and arms (any type) increase your chances of survival.
Once he steps across the threshold it becomes infinitely more serious. At that point the cost has to be "If I don't run away I am going to die." And that, sad to say, only works if you believe it as much as he does. If you're willing to tear his head off and beat him to death with it there's a chance you won't have to. If you aren't you have to assume that he will pick up on that as well.
Indeed. Something happens to these people that are willing to go that far as to go into an occupied home unannounced and uninvited with bad intents. Their (human) animal instincts are heightened. They will sense if the "prey" is going to be easy or difficult. Putting up a bold front (and being able to back it up) will get most of the cowardly types to break and run... the key here is to "
let-them-GO!" and call the police immediately if you haven't already.
The dogs and the OC canisters are not something I rely on to stop the bad guys. The dogs are a deterrent before the invasion starts. Afterwards it's their job to "Bite the Bad Strangers and make them go away." That means that our beloved dogs will probably die slowing the Bad Strangers down and giving us a couple clear shots. That's been the Arrangement between man and dog for about 100,000 years. We aren't planning on sitting back and saying "The dogs will take care of it."
If getting a dog for the purpose of home defense then avoid as much as possible getting emotionally attached to it. Not easy I'll agree here, but it will make the loss more bearable. If it's for a family pet then
train the animal to respond
immediately to your commands to "back off" if you see the animal's life is in danger, i.e. the burglar has a gun or a knife or a crowbar or whatever.
The OC is more of the same. I would never count on it as a defense. But there's a chance that it will break the scumbags' script enough to get them thinking of easier pickings elsewhere, especially since it's mysteriously coming out of nowhere before they've even seen us. And if they've had a chance to breathe in a bit of it, cough a little and enjoy reduced vision and confusion it will give us an advantage in the gun and knife fight we were going to get into anyway. If it works, great. We didn't have to shoot, stab or bludgeon anyone. Break out the champagne. If it didn't (and that's our default position) we have a little bit of an edge.
Your home is your home and it should be one of the safest places on the planet. Do what you (reasonably) must to keep it that way.
An old baseball bat in the closet and a number of Arnis sticks. 
