Carry a firearm
 

I have lived in Florida for 23 years. In less than a year after moving to DeLand, I got robbed at gunpoint at the end of my street taking a walk. I lived in a very desirable neighborhood that attracts losers looking to steal and rob. My wife and I quickly got concealed carry permits that we still have. When leaving the bubble, we carry. I would not go to these shopping centers unarmed. These punks around here know the Villages is loaded with financially well healed residents. Common sense should prevail knowing that a senior citizen from the Villages is a easy target. Get a permit and get a gun. If you need to shoot, empty the gun. This is the ONLY cure for this behavior! :mad:

thanks, Papa, good advice. I am pretty wary, having worked in several institutions with criminals and crazies and crazy criminals...
what a hassle to wear a gun clothes shopping.

Remember, shooting at someone who has robbed you and is running away is not self defense nor "stand your ground". Also, shooting in a stressful situation is far different than at a target range.

Also, this mugging DID NOT occur IN The Villages. It was technically Lady Lake.

Florida does not permit citizens to legally "open" carry.

You are right Diane,
WE do live in lower Paradise and we are mostly smart as tacks. The SOB's aren't going to get the best of us.


Mace, Photograph, be aware of your surroundings. If you SEE something, call the sheriff, not our dear and beloved Villages Watch. They help us in many other ways.

Good points, Buggyone!

Macing an amped up meth head will do nothing, except maybe get you killed.

Excellent reply

Are you sure about that === the villages does not own that property == thought they did - but maybe wrong. ----

If he were a tweaker, he would have been white.

Hi buggyone TJ max is located in the VCCDD and literally in The Villages.

I am not an expert here but I believe a person who is threatened for his or her life falls under protection of stand your ground laws.

Florida draws good people and some the worst dregs of the earth. I never sought a need for a gun by have been rethinking my position about owning one

Personal Best Regards:

I do not know if the that shopping center is or is not defined as being part of The Villages - but what does it matter? It is in the close proximity of us even though it is located on a major highway that brings through traffic for many miles.

As for stand your ground, you should have the right to protect yourself and your property. There should also be a deterrence for someone who wants to harm you or take your property. Shooting someone in the back or running away from you is probably not a good defense to robbery.

If you have been knocked down and the robber is running away from you, he is not a threat to you anymore. You will be in a :loco: mind at that point and starting to empty your pistol at the fleeing person will likely result in others being hurt at that very stress filled time for you.

Rather than give your money, Give your lead. Drop the SOB before he can turn and run. Never give a crook a chance to turn and run because if he gets away, he will repeat the offense.

I think we have lost track of the real point, NOT where it is but who frequents it. Us older people called Villagers. We CANNOT let the outside world begin to see us as easy targets.


Keep aware of your surroundings. Keep cell phone in hand. Practice on your husband kicking them in vulnerable parts......or maybe not.

Girls, a little story about testosterone vs estrogen:
In my very healthy, fit as a fiddle late 40's I worked with crazy criminals. I was trained in "aggression control"...since these folks were in a "hospital" we weren't supposed to hurt them.
I practiced with my strapping 20 something son, to whom I announced, "and this will be the 6 point takedown with a hip roll---run at me"....so he did, and as I pulled him over my hip, or so I thought, he reached down and grabbed my ankle and dangled me upside down. I don't think he cared that his mother had her skirt upside down. He wanted me to understand the odds I faced. I had brought a knife to a gunfight.