Aftermath Of Disaster - One Armed Citizen’s Story (New Orleans/Katrina)

AMERICAN RIFLEMAN Magazine (12/05 issue) ^ | 11/12/05 | Martin K.A. Morgan

[Skibane]

This article appeared in the December 2005 issue of "American Rifleman" magazine, but apparently was never published on the net .

[xrp]

It was posted on ar15.com's forums (http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=5&t=429878) recently, too!

I'm increasing my collection this week. Gonna add a SigPro 2009, it looks like.

[Ostlandr]

Praise God, and thanks to the Founding Fathers for the Second Amendment.

[Fiddlstix]

BTTT

[Para-Ord.45]

I believe him but,

4 feet of water ?

The Blazer (K or S ?) musta had a lift kit and 35"`s on `em. Either the tailpipe would be under water or the engine would have sucked in water.

[Waco]

The gun is the ONLY reason they made it, and maybe the reason they are still alive.

[caryatid]

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[Skibane]

And it wasn't a "sensible", politically-correct .22 caliber single-shot, either –

"When you want to end a confrontation before it even gets started, nothing says 'intimidation' like a GENUINE KALISHNIKOV™!"

[Smokin' Joe]

I have been in both an automobile and on a motorcycle in fairly deep water. The exhausts made a burbling noise like on old inboard motored boat, but they started and ran fine. Keeping the intake and the ignition dry is the important part. (Helps if the distributor ia at the back of the block, like a small block chevy V8 engine which was pretty much the norm for the older blazers.)

[PAR35]

I don't know if a .25 would be on my top 4 list.

[notpoliticallycorewrecked]

I just drove my Astro through water that I'm sure was higher than the tailpipe. When I have driven and have seen others driven through high water it usually causes a wake that lowers the water lever around you.

Also some of the military vehicles that I have seen with a snorkel for air intake doesn't seem to have a special exhaust pipe, so perhaps it isn't a problem having the exhaust underwater. I wouldn't want to try and start it with the tailpipe underwater, that might be a problem.

[notpoliticallycorewrecked]

Sorry for the bad grammar, I reversed a correction and really messed the whole sentence up. What can I say, it's midnight.

[Recon Dad]

Good story. I know the area he lived in and discusses well. I thought that the Gretna police were turing everyone back when they crossed the bridge?

[The Red Zone]

A dummy gun would have worked as well. Looters tend to want easy pickins.

[JoeSixPack1]

A dummy gun would have worked as well.

Put the crackpipe down and step away from the computer.

[libstripper]

That's one of the great beauties of owning any AK or AK variant (I own a VEPR II)--the homies from the "hood" and all the other bad guys know exactly what they look like, understand what can be done with their fire power, admire the weapons, and are afraid of them. Hence, an AK or AK variant gives its law abiding user a tremendous leg up in a really bad situation like this, an advantage that usually makes actual shooting unnecessary.

[libstripper]

A real, loaded gun gives its owner courage to do things like take on a gang of potentially murderous looters, as here, that a "dummy gun" just doesn't provide. The idea's to promise annihilation knowing you can do it, not to bluff. The confidence that comes from that sure knowledge gives the promiser a menacing demeanor that can't come from any other source.

[ExSoldier]

A dummy gun would have worked as well. Looters tend to want easy pickins.

First of all, having been in a riot or three and having lived in South Florida during Hurricane Andrew, looters in those situations are on property after consumer goods and rarely are they aware of an armed property owner until a shot is fired. Then they may or may not scatter. I've seen looters throw a national guard chopper the "bird" and continue to loot. I say this because I was IN the chopper in question! The 05 in charge of the bird was going crazy because on the recon flight, nobody had a loaded weapon! He actually had the pilot try and hit some of those folks with the chopper skids.

The scene in N.O. wasn't a normal "disturbance." It was the apocalypse on the order of MAD MAX and predators were hunting prey. Under normal circumstances, if you look like prey you will be eaten and if you DON'T... you WON'T. In this situation, in order to prove the fact, potential prey had to prove the potential to BITE. Somehow I don't think I'd want to be rolling the dice with a toy gun.

[jjm2111]

Great post.

My brother lives in Houston and I bought him a handgun as very redneck gift for his wedding (Nice Sig). His wife was none-to-pleased until Rita was roaring its way to Houston and he said to her, "Aren't you glad we got the gun." She was.

Also, a friend of mine worked for the USCG in the rescue and he told me that when the news tried to retract the mayhem that went on down there, they were lying through their teeth. His team's helicopters and boats were shot at by looters and thugs.

[jjm2111]

"The scene in N.O. wasn't a normal "disturbance." It was the apocalypse on the order of MAD MAX and predators were hunting prey. Under normal circumstances, if you look like prey you will be eaten and if you DON'T... you WON'T. In this situation, in order to prove the fact, potential prey had to prove the potential to BITE. Somehow I don't think I'd want to be rolling the dice with a toy gun."

very true.