The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Good vs. bad of installing a laser sight on pistol?

444 · May 24, 2002, 11:46 PM

This whole intimidation thing to me, is an interesting aspect of lasers for several reasons. The first time I ever read about a laser being used on a firearm was many years ago in an article about the American 180 submachine gun. It had a laser on it that was huge by todays standards. They mentioned in the article that one of the potential uses of it would be in prisons, I guess during a riot or something, to shine it in the prisioners eyes and attempt to persuade them to listen to reason instand of mowing down the crowd with a full auto burst. As far as I know, this idea never caught on. Then there are the numerous threads I have read on this board or stories I have seen on television where some clown came home drunk or whatever and tried to get in the wrong house. I can see where this would be easy to do in a housing tract, an apartment, and I have even opened the wrong door on a hotel room. In one case a guy was going to a halloween costume party at a house he had never been to before, he spoke minimal English and was shot by the homeowner. The party goer thought he was just having fun with the party host only he was at the wrong house. There was a thread on here not long ago about a dude that snuck in after hours to visit the guy's daughter. On and on. In my case, I live in a rural area, and am single so no one could be entering my house for any reason, so it isn't a factor. But there are cases where shoot first, ask questions later isn't a real good idea. Then there is the moral dilema that does along with all of the above. Some might believe that they are going to shoot only as a last resort and would like to give the guy a chance to reconsider their options. Many would disagree with that, and I have no problem with it. I personally don't know what I would do and before I decided, I would have to get my Rottweiler off the guys throat. The biggest thought I had on the subject was in relation to the girl I was dating that I mentioned in my previous posts. She shot very well with the laser and almost no experience using a 9mm carbine. I could see where using that weapon in a home defense situation would be good for her. She could stand inside her bedroom with very little of her body exposed and hit an intruder with the laser. If you are going to hit the guy with the laser at all, why not hit him in the eyes ? Then reevaluate. She has a teenage son, is it him ? Is it one of his friends ? Is it a girlfriend ? Is it her mother, who has a key to the house ? When you jump up from a sound sleep to investigate a noise, you might not be firing on all cylinders. I know that she would definitely not shoot first and ask questions later. She doesn't have that mentality. However, she did tell me that if it came down to it, she would shoot and not lose any sleep over it. So, this might give her (or someone like her) one more tool to work with. And might avert a terrible mistake or a long drawn out legal battle that she can't pay for.

May 24, 2002, 11:46 PM	#40
444 Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2000 Location: Ohio Posts: 3,968	This whole intimidation thing to me, is an interesting aspect of lasers for several reasons. The first time I ever read about a laser being used on a firearm was many years ago in an article about the American 180 submachine gun. It had a laser on it that was huge by todays standards. They mentioned in the article that one of the potential uses of it would be in prisons, I guess during a riot or something, to shine it in the prisioners eyes and attempt to persuade them to listen to reason instand of mowing down the crowd with a full auto burst. As far as I know, this idea never caught on. Then there are the numerous threads I have read on this board or stories I have seen on television where some clown came home drunk or whatever and tried to get in the wrong house. I can see where this would be easy to do in a housing tract, an apartment, and I have even opened the wrong door on a hotel room. In one case a guy was going to a halloween costume party at a house he had never been to before, he spoke minimal English and was shot by the homeowner. The party goer thought he was just having fun with the party host only he was at the wrong house. There was a thread on here not long ago about a dude that snuck in after hours to visit the guy's daughter. On and on. In my case, I live in a rural area, and am single so no one could be entering my house for any reason, so it isn't a factor. But there are cases where shoot first, ask questions later isn't a real good idea. Then there is the moral dilema that does along with all of the above. Some might believe that they are going to shoot only as a last resort and would like to give the guy a chance to reconsider their options. Many would disagree with that, and I have no problem with it. I personally don't know what I would do and before I decided, I would have to get my Rottweiler off the guys throat. The biggest thought I had on the subject was in relation to the girl I was dating that I mentioned in my previous posts. She shot very well with the laser and almost no experience using a 9mm carbine. I could see where using that weapon in a home defense situation would be good for her. She could stand inside her bedroom with very little of her body exposed and hit an intruder with the laser. If you are going to hit the guy with the laser at all, why not hit him in the eyes ? Then reevaluate. She has a teenage son, is it him ? Is it one of his friends ? Is it a girlfriend ? Is it her mother, who has a key to the house ? When you jump up from a sound sleep to investigate a noise, you might not be firing on all cylinders. I know that she would definitely not shoot first and ask questions later. She doesn't have that mentality. However, she did tell me that if it came down to it, she would shoot and not lose any sleep over it. So, this might give her (or someone like her) one more tool to work with. And might avert a terrible mistake or a long drawn out legal battle that she can't pay for.