Been doing some thinking about the Colorado shooting...not the impending political fall-out(expect drum mags to become an easy target)...but more the 'what would I have done' side of things.
With the wife and kids out of town, I had thought about trying to catch a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises. It's just as possible that this chucklehead could have busted into a movie theater in Kennewick, Wa as in Aurora, Co.
So...like Mal and Zoe, would I have been a Big Damn Hero?
I just don't know. Anyone who has never HAD to respond to the sound of guns can say for certain how they would respond. More than once, I saw a highly trained sailor, who had run through HUNDREDS of drills, just to freeze when the some kind of shit really hit the fan.
That's the first hurdle...the emergency exit door slams open, and then there is noxious smoke, and gunfire. Except you are in a LOUD movie, so no one recognizes it as gunfire right away. When folks do recognize it...panic.
Now...there I am...sitting in my preferred seat right around 1/3rd of the way back, in the middle of the aisle. Because of my situational awareness, as soon as the panic starts, I know what's going on, and have identified the bad guy. Since I'm not a small guy, folks are getting out of my way as I move towards the threat, drawing my Kel-tec P3AT...
Yeah...that's a problem...but it's the truth. In the summer, the Kel-tec is what I'm gonna have on me(oh hell, let's not kid...the winter too. As long as I hide behind the fact that I can't carry at work to wimp out and keep carrying a gun that is comfortable, and not comforting, it's always gonna be the Kel-tec).
All is not lost though...since it's dark in the theater, and this guy is distracted by shooting the surging mob, and his muzzle flash, I'm able to close on him, maintaining some cover crawling through junior mints. My own real world experience tells me I need to get within 25 feet to be confidant of center of mass hit with my Kel-Tec. Yup...get to within 25 feet with my 7 rounds of .380 against whatever he had(turns out to be two .40 Glocks, a Remington 870, and a S&W AR with a drum mag. Suicidal...maybe, but he's still distracted, and my Cause is Just, stopping him from shooting another baby out of it's parents hands. It's makes sense on the balance sheet.
Best case is that in the dark, at 25-30 feet, I miss center of mass and catch him in the bicep or thigh, or knee. Something that can not just get his attention, but tear a few blood vessels, and maybe rip up some muscle, or crack a bone. Worst case here is that I actually hit him where I am aiming, and catch his attention by bouncing 2 or 3 90gr Hydra-shoks off his vest. That would be bad.
Obviously, part of the solution is not relying on my Kel-tec as my primary carry gun...but heck, even if I was carrying my CZ-75, I'm still aiming COM, unaware of a bullet proof vest...but I can do that from across a movie theater. I can also keep him pinned down a lot more with 30+ rounds of 9mm than 13 rounds of .380.
In the end though...things like this aren't why I carry. It's just not a scenario I have considered having to face. I picture myself getting ready for 1 or 2 guys with knives coming out of an alley, or the guy the next line over at 7-11 pulling a gun...not to act out Die Hard.
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