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This thread is inspired by the weapons debate thread. I'm interested in hearing from fellow members who've had to fend off a hostile individual/group and what(if any) impression it left you with.
On official record my homeland is famously known for it's low rate of violence and peaceful, almost serene socio-environment. However, there is a time when the dark figure of crime will greatly defile that reputation, so much so that some embassies will warn travellers. I'm of course talking about the downtown during Friday and Saturday nights, when drinking and fighting becomes the preferred pastime. Obviously I'm exaggerating a bit, however it still can be unsafe, I've witnessed many seemingly random altercations, and I can't think of many who haven't been a victim to some degree.
Apart from a few vague threats received from random "tough" guys, the only serious encounter I've had is the following: When I and two friends of mine were heading home after a night of clubbing through a street with a shattered after-party crowd. Out of nowhere two dubious men approached us while making threatening hand gestures and accused us of having "laughed at his cousin", we calmly explained that we had been exchanging banter and jokes between ourselves which they must've misunderstood. The two chavs promptly rejected the explanation and told us to prepare for a fight, my two timid friends quickly ran away. I had recently suffered a minor leg injury and thus flight was not an option. The instant my so-called friends fled I produced a concealed switchable knife and brandished it-- the sight of the knife was enough to fend them off.
Of course, everyone around who had witnessed the quarrel was under the bystander effect, mumbling to one another.
I experienced first-hand how responsible one is for ones own protection and how powerful of an instrument a weapon can be. A common reaction to my story and those of its kind has been the usual knee-jerk "Muh Police" argument, my refutation is as always: Law enforcement is not omnipresent and therefore it's not sufficient for everything.
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