Monitoring services you are using?

[Albert]

How much you are paying for your security monitoring and which company you hire for that? Because i am searching a new company who offering cheap rates as the monitoring fees will be high if i have a new contract with my existing company. And i have no more money to pay that high rates.

 

[BIGNASTY]

Couple of Dogs to sound the alarm and a full High Cap clip for the Para 45 and a full mag of 12ga 00 buck DONT COST THAT MUCH :-laf



We don't live in a city atmosphere any longer and these are OVERKILL but it don't hurt to be prepared.



Our intruders are more of a different kind

And a 45/70 with 540gr takes care of this if need be

 

[Jim W]

I do not believe in them at all. In fact the village will charge you a fee if there is a false alarm which happens all the time with the alarms. The only thing that I have that can't be replaced is my wife. I have not had the need for one in my first 64 years, so I guess I do not need one now.
Just my $ 0 . 02.

Jim W

 

[HBarlow]

A home security company sign in the yard works pretty well. They're hassle free and a lot cheaper

 

[Killgore]

I personally use ADT which I got through USAA. However, bearing in mind that the average burglary takes between 7-11 minutes, a home security system is in reality a personal comfort factor. Dogs, the nosey neighbor, a sign, motion-sensing security lights (I have five), thorny bushes at the windows, double-bolt locks on all doors, drilled and secured sashes on the windows, etc. are all an attempt to convince the perp to go on down the road and hit someone who is less prepared. Now, all of those preparations are assuming I'm not home.

If I'm at home everything changes: the lights, dogs, and finally the home security system are an alarm that announces the presence of an intruder. There are loaded and available firearms in almost every room. There is also a 'safe room' where we can make a stand; a heavy door in a substantial frame at the end of the hallway, appropriate firearms which include the 12-gauge, a flashlight, my cellphone so that I can reach 911 and direct responding officers to my position and location without good guys getting hurt, and an extra set of car keys if I have to get out fast through a back window. My wife and I have both been in law-enforcement and feel comfortable with our weapons. Practice makes perfect - so practice.

My advice is to make the proper decisions before you are in a stress situation if it all goes down bad. Have the appropriate mind-set to be able to defend you and yours and shoot center-mass, don't mess around trying to shoot warning shots or trying to shoot someone in the toe. Keep your finger off the trigger, identify the target, warn them verbally if possible, and then shoot to DEFEND yourself. After it's over, it has only begun unless you have Castle Law and your name is not George Zimmerman. Remember to CAREFULLY articulate what happened, preferably with the assistance of an attorney present.

Personal safety is both inconvenient and a hassle, but the alternative when not properly prepared is usually a lot worse. Being aware of your surroundings and developing your sixth sense, (if it doesn't feel right it probably isn't), and then getting away from a bad situation by quickly leaving is usually the best course of action. When you are in your home you are in your castle and that is why we have Castle Law. There is no place left to go as a refuge and under the law it is assumed that he that breaches your defences has done so with this knowledge and is prepared to pay the consequences.

Sign me as a retired cop, and a ten-year instructor for the NRA's Refuse to be a Victim Seminar.

 

[Jim W]

Sorry, but in the eyes of the leftist news media you are guilty for just owning a weapon. So I would not shoot anyone with a weapon even in the basement in a safe room, because they would convict you before you even have court date. You are guilty because you own that weapon that you used to shot this intruder.

If I remember correctly the news media is pushing for all known register gun owners names to be published in the papers so everyone knows who has a weapon. Why so the thieves no were to steal them from?

Jim W.

 

[mwilson]

My monitoring service... ... ... 19lb. Diabetic Yorkie. (beware of the tongue). . plus other items as back-up



I know, he needs a RAM collar.

MIke.

 

[Killgore]

Jim, one of the benefits of living in the South is that we don't understand nor receive leftist transmissions.



Hah, you will never find a retired cop who doesn't still carry. If he was worth his salt, he made some jerk unhappy at some time in his career and remembers that the same individual promised to even the score. It may be one underlying reason why there is a law in effect that allows law enforcement, acitve and retired, to carry in all fifty states, because somebody realized we would carry, regardless. This was enacted after 9/11 to enhance our anti-terroist capabilities, but we are all thankful for it for the above stated reason.



As far as the average citizen, if you are going to survive being victimized in some manner, (over 70% become a victim at some point in their life), you will first have to make the decision to not become a victim. I went into law enforcement after I had a blowout on I-65 at 'malfunction junction' in Birmingham late at night when returning from an Auburn football game with my first wife. That was in 1992 and it seems just like yesterday. Before I got the tire changed, I had two separate confrontations that involved attempted carjackings. I didn't have to kill anyone, however, there were several young black yahoos that had a chance to re-evaluate their career paths. The only damage done involved my wife ******* all over the leather seats. When it was all over, she told me that never again would she complain when I put my Glock in the glove-box.



Where would all you idealists have been? No offense meant, but you wouldn't have wanted to have been in my shoes without some kind of personal protection. It was enough of a jolt that it caused me to eventually make a career change; trying to help the good folks as well as making it a bad day for the low-lifes.



I respect your opinion, and for too many years I put my life on the line for folks just like you, the good folks. Unfortunately, most of the time I showed up after the fact to do the paperwork.



Molon Labe - Ed

 

[Killgore]

Better to be tried by twelve, then carried by six!

 

[HBarlow]

I personally use ADT which I got through USAA. However, bearing in mind that the average burglary takes between 7-11 minutes, a home security system is in reality a personal comfort factor. Dogs, the nosey neighbor, a sign, motion-sensing security lights (I have five), thorny bushes at the windows, double-bolt locks on all doors, drilled and secured sashes on the windows, etc. are all an attempt to convince the perp to go on down the road and hit someone who is less prepared. Now, all of those preparations are assuming I'm not home.
If I'm at home everything changes: the lights, dogs, and finally the home security system are an alarm that announces the presence of an intruder. There are loaded and available firearms in almost every room. There is also a 'safe room' where we can make a stand; a heavy door in a substantial frame at the end of the hallway, appropriate firearms which include the 12-gauge, a flashlight, my cellphone so that I can reach 911 and direct responding officers to my position and location without good guys getting hurt, and an extra set of car keys if I have to get out fast through a back window. My wife and I have both been in law-enforcement and feel comfortable with our weapons. Practice makes perfect - so practice.
My advice is to make the proper decisions before you are in a stress situation if it all goes down bad. Have the appropriate mind-set to be able to defend you and yours and shoot center-mass, don't mess around trying to shoot warning shots or trying to shoot someone in the toe. Keep your finger off the trigger, identify the target, warn them verbally if possible, and then shoot to DEFEND yourself. After it's over, it has only begun unless you have Castle Law and your name is not George Zimmerman. Remember to CAREFULLY articulate what happened, preferably with the assistance of an attorney present.
Personal safety is both inconvenient and a hassle, but the alternative when not properly prepared is usually a lot worse. Being aware of your surroundings and developing your sixth sense, (if it doesn't feel right it probably isn't), and then getting away from a bad situation by quickly leaving is usually the best course of action. When you are in your home you are in your castle and that is why we have Castle Law. There is no place left to go as a refuge and under the law it is assumed that he that breaches your defences has done so with this knowledge and is prepared to pay the consequences.
Sign me as a retired cop, and a ten-year instructor for the NRA's Refuse to be a Victim Seminar.

That's an excellent, informational post!

I have no law enforcement experience and am not a gun enthusiast but do own weapons and believe I would use one to defend what is mine. We are fortunate here in Texas to have the Castle Law and our law enforcement officers, district attorneys, judges, and jurors tend to be conservative with certain exceptions such as Austin which is the San Francisco of Texas.

 

[HBarlow]

Sorry, but in the eyes of the leftist news media you are guilty for just owning a weapon. So I would not shoot anyone with a weapon even in the basement in a safe room, because they would convict you before you even have court date. You are guilty because you own that weapon that you used to shot this intruder.

If I remember correctly the news media is pushing for all known register gun owners names to be published in the papers so everyone knows who has a weapon. Why so the thieves no were to steal them from?

Jim W.

Jim,

Your life's experience is in a dumocrap controlled leftist state where only criminal thugs are allowed to own and use guns. Most of the United States does not share your experiences or point of view.

Here in Texas if a criminal thug enters the home of a law abiding citizen to steal his property or to injure someone he frequently ends up dead or dying. When law enforcement officers come to the scene they are generally on the side of the good guy not the thug. DAs either review the facts and file the case or take the incident to a grand jury which no bills it.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

Ask the leftist media how well gun control is working for nearby Chicago. All it does it keep the streets safe for crime, the industry that supports the lawyers and courts.

 

[Tractorat]

For all the press that washington gets for being liberal, it is actually a "gun" state. Every once and a while someone will shoot a 14 year old kid in the back running from a house (that is murder). But, more often than not, a home owner has shot an intruder, or someone only trying to break in. In most cases, the media report goes something like "don't mess with this gun totting granny".

 

[mwilson]

Most folk in Maine (North of Portland) are well armed. We have a Castle Law. Most crooks aren't stupid enough to mess with an occupied dwelling in this state.



Courtesy WABI-TV



snip...







A Closer Look At Maine's Castle Doctrine Law {Part 1}



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



by Wayne Harvey - May 17th 2012 12:00am - Read more Special Reports



Augusta - Burglaries, Robberies, Break-ins, Home Invasions.



They are in our headlines frequently.



Mainers are now fighting back against intruders.



But are they protected when it happens.



In recent months, gun sales at Van Raymond Outfitters in Brewer are up by 40%.



There have been two reported shootings after break-ins this year.



Two incidents that fall under the law known as the Castle Doctrine.



"The law basically provides is, that we all have the right to use deadly force to defend ourselves from what we reasonably believe to be the use of deadly force against us," said William Stokes, the Deputy Attorney General. "And the second thing, and if you can with complete safety, the law requires that you try to avoid the use of deadly force, if you can, but if you reasonably believe you can't retreat, then you don't have to, you can defend yourself. "



That is the law of self defense. But an incident like recent shootings in Hermon and Eddington falls under Title 17-A of the Maine Criminal Code, subsection 104. Use of force in defense of premises, and they are not one in the same, according to Stokes. "So the difference now is number one, you don't have to retreat in your own dwelling, and number two, it's not the imminent use of deadly force. It can be to prevent the termination of a criminal trespass, which, and you reasonably believe the person is about to commit a crime in there, it could be any crime, could be assault, could be theft. Now there is one condition that the law imposes and that is under the law, you are, before you use deadly force, you are supposed to first demand the person terminate the criminal trespass unless you believe that to do so would endanger your life. "



If the person was invited into the home and an argument or fight happens, Stokes said the law works differently in that instance. "We get into an argument over politics or religion or whatever and I no longer enjoy your company and I want you to leave. Well I don't have the right to shoot you. I revoked my permission, unless you surreptitiously, unless you're hiding in the closet about to commit another crime, typically you call the police and you ask the person to leave. You don't have the right to escalate things to deadly force under that context. "



In a situation where you've asked someone to leave your home, the confrontation has to end when they leave the house.



"If the person is actually leaving the premises and is no longer trying to enter or is not surreptitiously remaining, then you are going to lose the right to use deadly force under those circumstances. The fact that something may have happened in the house doesn't mean it continues forever. "



"In a nutshell," Stokes continued. "That is the Castle Doctrine where you have a greater justification to use deadly force in the context of your dwelling place than you do to use deadly force outside the context of your dwelling place. "



It is a very complex law, one with very serious implications, and one that can arise in a fast moving and dangerous situation with very little time to think about or weigh out decisions. But Stokes believes the law works.



"Remember, this doesn't mandate that you use deadly force, you're authorized to use deadly force" said Stokes. "I think the law as the Legislature has set it up since 1975-76 when the code went into effect, so we're now into what, going on 35 years of dealing with this law? It's worked, generally speaking it's worked well. "



There are other security options for Mainers besides a gun, like a security system.



There have been cases where the Castle Doctrine has been used in Maine.



snip...



Mike.

 

[Jim W]

O. K. I agree with all of you too but I know how things roll in the Chicagoland area and IL.

Case in point several years ago there was a Traven that had been burglarized several times over the course of four weeks in Aurora IL. Will the owner got tired of replacing the windows that were being broken and his loss of product from the Traven. He posted signs that the windows openings were electrified and anyone caught trespassing would be prosecuted to the full existent of the law. Not think his low voltage electrical openings would kill anyone but it did.
Will he was broken into again and the poor BLACK man was electrocuted as he tried to climb through the window opening. He was the same person who had been robbing him for the last four weeks. As this information was played out in the news media, which had him guilty before he even went to court for entrapping this poor black man with his electrified window openings. In fact if I remember correctly the REV J. Jackson called for the fullest prosecution and jail time for this Traven owner who did this terrible thing and his operation PUSH would help the family in seeking justice against this individual.

Will everything was drop when it came to light that the Traven owner was also Black and the media drop the entire issue like a hot potato even the REV shut up which is hard to do.
Two or three months later in the back of the paper under the news in brief; it stated that the Grand Jury would not indict the Traven owner for second degree murder. He still went broke and had to close his business since he needed to defend himself.

Jim W.

PS I do have my FOID card far my 12 GA shotgun.

 

[Killgore]

Yes Jim, and your point is well taken. Another reason I taught the seminar was to inform folks of the ramifications associated with personal safety and crime prevention; what you can and cannot do under the law (and of course laws are different from state to state, as we have discussed), civil as well as criminal repercussions, and the moral implications if someone suffers injury or death. It is a very complex issue without even going into the actual confrontation or fight mode. Ouch! Did I mention the adrenaline rush associated with the fight or flight syndrome?



All of this can easily be viewed as a terrible responsibility that nobody in their right mind would want to contend with except some young cop who is an adrenline junkie, and I've worked with some. But, unfortunately the decision doesn't rest with the good guys. Most of the time the potential victim is forced into a bad situation when he is least prepared to respond on his own terms. As an analogy: the tiger doesn't go out into the middle of the herd and jump on the 3000 lb. cape buffaloe that's oozing testosterone; he jumps on the calf, the cow that's tangled up in the juniper bushes, the old, sick or lame, or at least something that looks like an easy victim. Remember he doesn't want to get hurt either. This brings up another cornerstone of personal safety: DON'T LOOK LIKE A VICTIM! If you look like one, chances are you will become one.



Forgive all these pontifications and ramblings, but if you don't carry anything away from all this, at least think about:



1. Don't look like a victim (lost, confused, out of touch, expensive clothes and adornments in a poor area, arms full of packages, etc. )

2. Be aware of your surroundings. If it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't. Get out!

3. Think! Have a plan if it turns into a bad day. What am I going to do if... ?

4. Under no circumstances allow yourself to be forced into a vehicle.

5. If you decide to not fight, at least run.

6. If you need help, yell "FIRE". Everybody comes to a fire but many run from those needing help, not wishing to get involved.

7. If you decide to carry a weapon, practice, and become proficient. If you pull it, be prepared to use it. Someone said that roughly 20% of officers killed were killed by their own sidearms.

8. The criminal mindset has no compassion, sense of right or wrong, or conscious. Don't judge a book by its' cover. What you see may in fact be a wolf in sheep's clothing.

9. Decide that you WILL NOT become a victim, and alter your lifestyle to include personal safety.



With all that said - Have a great day! Ed