Body armor poll

[Pathfinder]

Put a vest on last night at the SWAT night class. Had a Level IV ballistic plate too. Damned heavy, only 1 plate (front), and no other gear other than a comm headset - with no label or brand name. Wonder why they do that? ? ? ?

[twyacht]

I have seen  body armor at gun shows for sale,,....

Questions: Why would I, as a law abiding citizen want it? Why would someone not in Law Enforcement want it?

If criminals are going to purchase it, to commit crimes, than wouldn't a rational defense be to have more firepower/better aim?

Maybe my .357, by the bed isn't enough,...maybe a 12g Rifled Slug, or multiple rounds from 5.56 frangible? Or just my .45LC with Silvertip JHP's. If it won't pass through body armor, it should at least hit them like a dump truck..... At least than I can beat them with a good ol' Louisville Slugger,...

Still thinking head shots....

[Fatman]

I have seen  body armor at gun shows for sale,,....

Questions: Why would I, as a law abiding citizen want it? Why would someone not in Law Enforcement want it?

Answer: You, as a law abiding citizen aren't going to abuse the added protection afforded by a vest and police aren't the only people criminals shoot.

[fightingquaker13]

This truly is gun cotnrol exposed for what it really is. You can make an argument for banning handguns in the interest of stopping crime. But thats not the real reason and we all know it. When it comes to body armor, a purely passive defensive device, the rationale becomes clear,to make us vulnerable to agents of the state. Bad enough we can't go on the offense, but merely to have defensive capacity makes us suspect. Granted, I want a bullet proof vest about as badly as I want a pet iguana, but why would you deny me the right to own one? One reason, and one reason only, to leave me defenseless. The 2A is there for one reason. Its to provide insurance against tyranny if the 1A fails.
FQ13

[tt11758]

They should decriminalize shooting put a bounty on politicians, it would be an incentive for them to keep their dumb ideas to themselves.
Go ahead, regulate body armor, it should just as blazingly effective as the laws against murder, drug dealing,and felons possessing guns.
What idiots.

There, I fixed it for you.   

[Sponsor]

[tombogan03884]

I like your version better,I need a job 

[MikeBjerum]

This discussion/debate is a better one than why do you carry.  I get into the debate of why would a person carry, and I need to bite my tongue a lot because I don't want to let just anyone know that I carry.  With body armor, I don't have, but wouldn't mind it for the same reason I carry. 

I won't go to the Twin Cities without a gun.  As I have followed this thread I have thought to myself about safety and preparedness.  If I believe that a gun is a good idea why don't I think protecting myself from a bullet would be just as good an idea?  To me wearing body armor is no different than buying car insurance - You hope you never need it, you don't plan on needing it, but the stats are out there that prove it is in you best interest to have it.

When I taught EMS and specialized rescue I learned that Hennepin County (the county Minneapolis is in) issued body armor to all paramedics and several levels of firefighters (dependent on their main duty and how it worked with other turn out gear).  If I'm visiting or working in those same neighborhoods during the same hours shouldn't I be just as protected?

Also, there are many other uses for body armor.  I have seen demonstrations and read of a vest being used to provide protection in a room ie. I gather my family in a back corner of a bathroom where they can use fixtures for cover, but we drape a vest to help protect vitals of mom and the litter.  Body armor can become a vital part of a "portable" safe room.

Just more ramblings from a highly stressed pea brain.

[JC5123]

I am for having body armor all the way! About a year ago we had some gangs move in from California. Aryan Nation was one of them, I forget the other one. White supremisists all of them though. They were selling cocaine and heroin out of 4 houses in the neighborhood. Everybody knew it. Arrests were happening every week, but the LEO's couldn't keep them in jail long enough to stem the tide.

We knew they were armed, and many had violent rap sheets, and everytime LE would launch a raid on one of these houses, these guys would scatter into the neighborhood. I BOUGHT BODY ARMOR FOR MYSELF AND MY WIFE! Everytime they raided these houses and these assholes would go running we were armored and armed. Fortunately we never had to confront one of these individuals, but I wasn't going to let them take me down.

We as a community finally ousted them. We formed a neigborhood watch, and every time we saw something that seemed even remotely out of place we were calling the cavalry. They finally gave up and moved out. But here is what I took away from the experience:

In the absence of government, or ineptness, lawlessness is going to be what we will end up fighting agaisnt. And we need to be better protected than those trying to harm us.

[brosometal]

I'm half-joking, but has anyone in office ever watched the A-team or The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly?  B.A. could weld up some plate steel in a vest shape or that Clint guy just had a stove door of some sort.  What's next? Regulating steel?  No car doors allowed?

 RETARDED

[Ping]

This may not be popular but I believe only the military, security details and police should own body armor. They are the ones who are paid and trained to deal with threats up to and including deadly force and the uniform makes them a target. Civilians have no reason to wear body armor unless they are a confirmed target by some psycho. Captured criminals do not deserve body armor either. Just my personal opinion.