19 May 22
“On our own!”
The Tops Grocery Store in Buffalo, NY where last Saturday’s multiple murder took place is now indefinitely closed. Residents of the local community now must shop elsewhere.
The 911 Operator who precipitously hung-up on the panicked Tops Store manager who tried to call-in the incident has been indefinitely suspended. He/she won’t be back!
A review of the video recorded by the perpetrator himself clearly shows that the first innocent shoppers he encountered in the Tops parking lot and immediately murdered had no clue, no chance. Had I been there, with my usual complement of gear, I doubt the result would have been any different!
The helmeted perpetrator, dressed in “military apparel,” and carrying an M4 was initially taken by many for a police tactical (SWAT) officer, or a member of the National Guard. I likely would have made the same mistaken assumption!
As with most of these incidents, police responded as quickly as possible, but by the time they arrived much damage had already been done.
The perpetrator (still at the scene) was located and arrested without incident. When confronted by officers, he initially threatened suicide, but quickly dropped his M4 and surrendered without additional resistance. At the same moment, many frightened shoppers were still hiding in various places. Police may have prevented additional murders. We’ll never know!
Not being paid to fill the air with silence, media pundits are now blindly, endlessly speculating about the perpetrator and his motive(s) (simultaneously injecting their own political agendas), but none of that is of any consolation to the dead, wounded, and their families!
What we all need to remember:
1) There are no guarantees! No matter well-prepared, prudent, cautious, alert, and observant we try to be, precipitous bad outcomes still lurk in our future! Preparation may stack odds in our favor, but catastrophe is never more than a breath away, and none are immune, as we see!
2) Be careful with naive assumptions! What sounds like explosions and gunshots may be explosions and gunshots! Sometimes, there is no warning. But when there is, no matter how short, take advantage without delay.
Don’t go there! Get out of there! Get behind cover! Plan your escape! Prepare to fight effectively!
The more time you squander telling yourself, “This isn’t happening,” the less time you’ll have to engineer your survival!
3) You’re on your own! Police, fire, and other public services (now de-funded) do the best they can, but they’re not there to serve you personally! As we see, by they time they arrive it will be too late for many!
You must be your own “First Responder!” Prepare accordingly. And, the one question we need to ask ourselves any time we see things going south:
“What can I do NOW to keep from getting hurt?”
/John
