Posted on 07/13/2012 5:26:12 AM PDT by marktwain
When photojournalist Kevin Van Paassen and I rolled into Toledo Monday, we only knew two things about the place: That it had once been the subject of an unflattering John Denver song and that its local hockey team, the Walleye, has one of the most hilarious logos in professional sports: an angry-looking fish missing a tooth.
It was late in the evening when we arrived, so I booked a hotel downtown, figuring we could wander over to a nearby pub and enjoy a pint on a patio in the warm evening. Unfortunately, every last bar within walking distance was closed by 11 p.m. The helpful staff at the front desk informed us there was just one pizza place in town open late. We plugged the address into the GPS and started driving.
----------------cut-----------------
“I think we just drove into the zombie apocalypse,” I said.
Finally, we reached our destination at the very edge of town, a brighly-lit shop in a strip plaza one block south of the Michigan state line. A pair of cheerful, rotund young men behind the counter took our orders. As we sat down to our food, a third guy headed out to make a delivery. Strapped to his belt, in plain view, was a semi-automatic pistol.
“I couldn’t help noticing he was carrying a gun,” Kevin remarked to the men at the counter.
“We deliver to some bad parts of town. The delivery guys have to protect themselves,” one of them replied.
“Does the company provide that?”
“He brings his own,” said the pizza chef. “We keep a gun in the shop, too. We’ve been robbed twice.”
“Is this a pretty rough area?”
“No,” he replied, without a hint of irony. “This is one of the nicest parts of Toledo.”
(Excerpt) Read more at theglobeandmail.com ...
To be honest, since most pizza delivery robberies are basically ambushes where you won’t have much of a chance, I’d be a little afraid about being targeted for the gun. It’s probably worth $50 on the street and that’s probably more than the typical pizza robber gets. Plus any cash, of course.
In this case I think concealed carry is the way to go. Or better yet, a buddy riding shotgun.
I knew one pizza delivery guy who worked in a bad area. He would always knock on doors holding the pizza with one hand, the other holding his gun underneath the pizza.
His plan was simple. If anyone answered the door pointing a gun at him, they would get two rounds right through the belt buckle. Then he would walk away.
Oddly enough, nobody ever tried to rob him. Guess he was giving off “negative waves” or something.
I think you have to need $50 pretty badly to try taking a gun from an armed person. I don't recall hearing of many policeman being mugged for their guns. You only have to fail once to be dead.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.