As a news photographer I spend a lot of time in my car and read a lot about real life situations where someone might be tempted to draw a weapon.
The other day I was first in line in a left-turn lane when a car came up the far outside lane and pulled over in front of, to block, the car in the lane next to me. It was apparent from the actions of the blocking driver that she was mad, really mad, at someone in the blocked car. I thought uh oh, what's she got in mind. She got out of the car and went up to the passenger side front seat of the blocked car and proceeded to raise hell with a young lady in the blocked car. I was relieved when she got out of her car and wasn't carrying anything, like a purse or especially a gun! They shouted back and forth at each other for the duration of the red light then she got back in her car and left.
I had made up my mind that I was not going to get involved, even if she displayed a weapon. I carry mine for protection and I feel as long as I reserve it's display or use for that I'm OK. The last thing I want is for the cops to show up and find two of us with guns!
Another time I was at a traffic light when an argument broke out between a person in the median and someone standing on the corner. The median person stormed across and made some very threatening moves toward the person on the corner. The corner person promptly reached into the back of a pickup truck he was standing by and came out with a four or five foot 2x4 and started swinging it at the median guy. This is a case where I wouldn't dream of displaying or using my weapon. I did however pick up my camera and take some neat pictures of the confrontation.
Truth is when push comes to shove each situation will be different and what goes for one could be totally out of place for another.
Sorry I took so long to reply. I keep trying to understand your point in the context of the larger discussion on this thread. In the case of Arizona, a legally armed citizen was nearby when the terrorist killed and wounded a lot of people. The legally armed citizen had no idea, when he entered the Walgreens Store to buy cigarettes, that he could have made a difference and saved a bunch of lives if he’d followed his first instinct to go see what the crowd was gathered about. I would hope that I would be close by with my legally held firearm should some terrorist attempt to take the lives or wound innocents. I would hope that, and think I would, have the courage to use my legally held firearm to protect innocent lives regardless of whether a dipshit like that sheriff down there were to arrest me in concequence. It appears that you would chose your own personal safety over protecting others and that’s your right......I guess.