During the recent self defense discussions, there have been a few posters suggesting that Jiu Jitsu is not a practical skill to learn with self defense in mind -- that a violent act should be interpreted as potentially fatal and that a firearm is the best means of protecting oneself from such threats.
What about the basketball video that has made the rounds lately? It seems that such an incident is a scenario not covered very well by the "concealed carry is all you need for self defense" proponents.
(1) How would one have access to their gun in that situation? You wouldn't be wearing a holster while playing basketball.
(2) Is a basketball court scuffle at the local YMCA really a situation that calls for lethal force? This was a fight where onlookers were stepping in during the moments when someone looked like they were going to eat more than a few punches, and where a woman's scolding voice separated them instantly at the end. Would lethal force be appropriate in this situation if a gun was accessible?
It seems to me that this video demonstrates that having a middle ground can be very useful thing. The conflict was over and no one was hurt.
Ridgeback -
I mentioned a few things about CCW, but none of the things you are describing above. I did note on one thread that a CCW holder would be in big trouble for getting in a fight like that because it escalated. You are not allowed to escalate at all if you are carrying. The only valid reason to draw your weapon and shoot is to stop a person from killing you or killing someone else. That is it. So no a quarrel like that would not warrant lethal force. Using a gun in that situation would lead to a long stint in prison most likely. But the key is that a responsible CCW carrier would not engage in the verbal battle in the first place. The moment he sensed a conflict brewing he would find a way to extricate himself even if that meant simply walking out of the gym.
In the gravest extreme (to borrow the title of a Mossad Ayoob book) only a firearm is likely to save you IF you have honed your draw and shooting to a very high level. This is why cops carry firearms and don't rely on self-defense training bare-handed.
I could wear a holster playing basketball and you would have no idea I was carrying. But generally I would not do that. Better to just make sure you have some friends watching your back. The white guy in the fight could have easily gotten ghetto stomped by the assholes who just can't let two men fight without helping their homeboy to get to a dominant position by dragging them across the floor and changing who was on top. But they didn't start kicking him square in the face so that is nice.
Out of curiosity, when you are using quotes, who actually wrote things like "concealed carry is all you need for self-defense?" Or were you just paraphrasing what you took to be a general sentiment?
It was this post. I've seen this sentiment voiced on this board before. Poster of this specific one was Akston.
""Self defense " is an absurd notion
It's code for "bar fight I should have fucking avoided"
Actual self defense requires lethal force
I train in GJJ for that, glock Jiujitsu "
I'm not sure if the bystanders in the video purposely helped the black guy or just tried to break it up once it looked like somebody was starting to eat a lot of punches, and then changed their mind. If they wanted to jump in and beat up the white guy, they could have done it at any point. They were all playing basketball together; no reason to think this was a white guy vs all the black guys in the gym situation. I kind of doubt the white guy would have escalated things like he did if he were in completely hostile territory.
Already been said, but there is a serious need to differentiate true self-defense from immature, ego-driven, totally-avoidable altercations.
99% of these lame encounters are avoidable.