[kraigwy]

I think of "reality" more then risk management.

Alarms: Alarms are like calling 911, they rely on the response time of LE. Another problem with alarms one has to watch for. Do security companies respond or does the Alarm company rely on LE? A common occurrence is the alarm company notified the police when an alarm went off. Alarm companies charged the home owner for each false alarm. It was common for the alarm companies to make alarms more sensitive making false alarms more common.

The average burglary takes less time then the response time of LE therefore (assuming its not a false alarm), alarms in reality notify the police that a crime HAD occurred, and not that it will be occurring when the police arrive.

Cameras record the crime and often help in prosecution but not preventions.

Loud audible alarms do deter crime. The loud alarms scare off bandits often prior to entry, notify neighbors who will call the police eliminating the need for expense of hiring an alarm company. They are cheaper to install and there isn't an additional cost paid to alarm companies for false alarms.

Hardened entries: Unless you live in a bunker, its going to take about three seconds to kick in a door or bust through a window. That does not leave much time to hunt up your weapon, load it, or rack the slide. How many, regardless of where you are in the home can get your hand on your pistol and get it into action in less then three seconds?

Dogs: Dogs bark, its what dogs do. Most large cities wont respond to barking dogs. I'll use Anchorage for an example. We didn't respond to barking dogs, we referred the caller to animal control. Animal control normally didn't work at night.

In rural areas, again dogs bark, they bark at deer, loose domestic animals, squirrels, live stock, rabbits, or other dogs barking in the distance. Dogs barking is part of rural life. I have four dogs, it they aren't barking they are about to start. If you call the sheriff about barking dogs in rural area, you get a response of "SO what are we suppose to do about it". Chances are if the did respond you're looking at 30 minutes or more.

Safe areas: There is no safe area, yes some are better then others but there is no safe area. That's like saying there are certain areas where you don't need seat belts or smoke alarms. One only needs to watch/read the news to know there is no safe crime free area. I live in Wyoming, many would consider it a low crime area. In pure numbers that's true, but there aren't many people either. 5 murders per year wouldn't be considered a high crime area compared to a state that has 50 murders a year. Wyoming has 500K people, lets say the 50 murders a year occur in a state with 5 mil people, in reality the crime rate is the same, look at murders per 100,000 people.

Guns and ammo: Little J-frames don't hold much ammo, if you want more ammo you need a bigger gun, a bigger gun means its not going to be available because in reality, big guns are bulky and uncomfortable. Bulky and uncomfortable mean its less likely to be available. 5 rounds are better then no rounds. A gun is useless if its unavailable.

If you feel a gun isn't safe to be carried loaded or loaded without a round in the chamber, you need to re-evaluate your gun, training or both. If there is no guns laying around, there are no guns available for kids or other non-authorized people to get a hold of the gun. If a gun is on the person, its not likely a child or anyone else getting a hold of it without your knowledge. It also means you don't have to hunt it up if needed.

Long guns, if their available (we don't walk around with rifles/shotguns in our homes). They are difficult to use in small homes or rooms. They are difficult to use while carrying a shotgun, or phone, opening doors, etc. etc. They are fine in rural areas for protecting your pets or livestock from varmints. But for home use?????

Its all about reality.