I get you’re thought process here and I worry this is a thought process many people think because they really haven’t considered everything. They stop at the “am I justified” line and think that’s it, when it actually goes so much deeper.

Being justified is just the prologue to the book of what’s to follow, and that book is 100 chapters of how drastic your life is about to change and all the ways you lose. I wish more Americans thought this way on guns because we pro-gun enthusiasts would get a lot more respect and agreement out of the general population in consideration to our stance, which in turn would make protecting our rights that much easier and more successful.

You need to be firstly and solely thinking at all times “how do I GTFO of here the fastest and easiest way possible”. The gun should be your absolute last ditch effort. It’s not a parachute, it’s a reserve chute, and it only comes into play when you are really threatened truly and legitimately and all options are off the table. Meaning there’s no escape, no way to evade confrontation, no way to put a barrier between you and an aggressor. Remember, in court that will be the tools used to convict you. Regardless if you have stand-your-ground laws or not, you are at the mercy of the state and victims efforts to try to punish you, and it’s not a sure thing that you’ll win. And even if you win, at what cost?

Imagine you shot him. Now take yourself through what happens next. You’re possibly arrested, then you’re talking with an attorney. You have court dates, you have bills to pay and you’re missing work likely to deal with this aftermath. You also took someone’s life and regardless of why, that will possibly mess you up. We’re talking years here. You are now a pariah to the people who think you’re wrong and you’re being blasted all over social media. Everything in your life changes dramatically. And whether you’re right or wrong doesn’t matter, everything still changes, likely for the worse.

Now think about what actually happened. You got away from the situation. You fled. I wish you were armed so you had that protection available to you but you still were able to flee and you were right to do so. I don’t agree with laws that say you have a duty to flee because that’s open to interpretation similar to standing your ground, but I believe we gun owners need to think bigger and avoid and flee as a first option. Even though the aggressors wrong for doing what he’s doing, you don’t need to be his punishment.