Cold Steel story

I ain't scared of much in Florida I was raised in Florida. It ain't scary it ain't dangerous. Good times yes dangerous no
 
jbmonkey said:
I'm from Florida, always lived here. its very dangerous and scary here. not a place for you. stay in ct. where you're safe.
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Lol, the only time I gotta be in that comedy show of a state is when I have to drum up the courage to visit the in-laws. Don’t even get me started on how much CT sucks.
 
Vlade said:
Did I handle this right.?
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No.

Vlade said:
He called me and MFer and then he put his fingers close to my face.
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Yeah, that's annoying. If I was the cashier, I would have said something and asked him to leave before I called the cops.

Vlade said:
And he called the gentleman from Ocala a MFR as well Of course I exploded and called him every book name in the book.
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Some people can suffer an insult, and these people are great at deescalating a situation.
Sounds like your taunting was completely unprovoked, so the guy might have personal or mental issues.
Understanding that, just don't respond - it's water off a duck's back.
I can't imagine a situation where hurling a string of insults back at him causes him to turn around and go, "you know what, I'm sorry man... I was being a jerk".

Vlade said:
I dropped my hand down to my Voyager which has a snaggle tooth and I was very close to deploying it.
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So the guy was going to punch you and you were going to stab him?
I'm no lawyer or cop, but that seems like it's going to be a headache for you.

Vlade said:
And if I had to I would have used my Cold Steel Voyager.
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No doubt- but I'm not sure you have a great idea of what constitutes "have to".
Maybe I'm naïve, but I don't believe in bringing a knife to a fist fight.
The best way this would play out is you'd be spending a lot of time and money defending your choice to stab the guy.

Vlade said:
Any opinions on something I could have done differently?
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Deescalate the situation- stay cool, calm and collected.
Doesn't really matter what that guy says- provoking you might be just what he's after.
You don't know what weapons he may have on him, and maybe you'll ultimately lose the arms race.
Maybe his lawyer would be making the case to the jury why he felt he had to shoot a guy who flashed a knife.

Be slow to anger.
 
Glad it worked out for you Vlade and that nobody was hurt. I know my viewpoint will not be popular, but I’ve learned (as I’ve gotten older) that confrontation/escalation often just makes things worse. If someone is mouthing off at me, I’ll let them say whatever they want without responding. BUT, at the same time keeping a very close eye on them. If I actually feel physically threatened in any way, then yes, you have every right to protect yourself. I know it’s incredibly hard to remain calm in a situation like that…you feel that everyone will see you as weak. But there are just too many deranged people out and about in public nowadays. I don’t worry too much about having my ego hurt nowadays. I feel it’s better to walk away unscathed, so that I can be with my family at the end of the day. You have no reason to feel bad about what happened and it was good you had your Voyager (in case things went sideways).
One more thing, FL is a GREAT states. Lived there many years. Unfortunately it was all the “transplants” that flooded in during the late 80’s and early 90’s that changed it forever. Well maybe not “all” of them, lot of them are good people too. Glad I got to experience life there before that happened.
 
EngrSorenson said:
No.


Yeah, that's annoying. If I was the cashier, I would have said something and asked him to leave before I called the cops.


Some people can suffer an insult, and these people are great at deescalating a situation.
Sounds like your taunting was completely unprovoked, so the guy might have personal or mental issues.
Understanding that, just don't respond - it's water off a duck's back.
I can't imagine a situation where hurling a string of insults back at him causes him to turn around and go, "you know what, I'm sorry man... I was being a jerk".


So the guy was going to punch you and you were going to stab him?
I'm no lawyer or cop, but that seems like it's going to be a headache for you.


No doubt- but I'm not sure you have a great idea of what constitutes "have to".
Maybe I'm naïve, but I don't believe in bringing a knife to a fist fight.
The best way this would play out is you'd be spending a lot of time and money defending your choice to stab the guy.


Deescalate the situation- stay cool, calm and collected.
Doesn't really matter what that guy says- provoking you might be just what he's after.
You don't know what weapons he may have on him, and maybe you'll ultimately lose the arms race.
Maybe his lawyer would be making the case to the jury why he felt he had to shoot a guy who flashed a knife.

Be slow to anger.
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Thank you sir, I appreciate your insights and wisdom. I'll try to remember the things that you wrote.
 
sean2021 said:
Glad it worked out for you Vlade and that nobody was hurt. I know my viewpoint will not be popular, but I’ve learned (as I’ve gotten older) that confrontation/escalation often just makes things worse. If someone is mouthing off at me, I’ll let them say whatever they want without responding. BUT, at the same time keeping a very close eye on them. If I actually feel physically threatened in any way, then yes, you have every right to protect yourself. I know it’s incredibly hard to remain calm in a situation like that…you feel that everyone will see you as weak. But there are just too many deranged people out and about in public nowadays. I don’t worry too much about having my ego hurt nowadays. I feel it’s better to walk away unscathed, so that I can be with my family at the end of the day. You have no reason to feel bad about what happened and it was good you had your Voyager (in case things went sideways).
One more thing, FL is a GREAT states. Lived there many years. Unfortunately it was all the “transplants” that flooded in during the late 80’s and early 90’s that changed it forever. Well maybe not “all” of them, lot of them are good people too. Glad I got to experience life there before that happened.
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More excellent advice thank you sir
 
When you replied to him the situation is drasticall altered, you are now escalating the encounter. Don't know any cop that would happy about that. Let the OP escalate the situation not you. You will be in the right without a doubt. If it becomes physical you have right to defend your self if there is no other alternative for you. You could have been in a lot of trouble if you had deployed that, even if you didn't use it. A knife is not considered an appropriate response to a fight in most cases I am sure there are exceptions but needs to go to jail and hire a lawyer to figure it out. And of course there is always the possibility that your threatening him with a knife and he feels justified in shooting you.
 
nephron said:
When you replied to him the situation is drasticall altered, you are now escalating the encounter. Don't know any cop that would happy about that. Let the OP escalate the situation not you. You will be in the right without a doubt. If it becomes physical you have right to defend your self if there is no other alternative for you. You could have been in a lot of trouble if you had deployed that, even if you didn't use it. A knife is not considered an appropriate response to a fight in most cases I am sure there are exceptions but needs to go to jail and hire a lawyer to figure it out. And of course there is always the possibility that your threatening him with a knife and he feels justified in shooting you.
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Yeah I know I guess I fouled up. Next time I'll just run away like a little boy.
 
killgar said:
My thoughts-

It is impossible to predict how a total stranger is going to react. Sometimes de-escalation works, sometimes it doesn't. You could channel Gandhi himself, with the wisdom of the ages, and speak in calm, soothing tones, but that won't guarantee that some psychopath won't stomp a hole through your face.

Sometimes assertiveness is what works. Sometimes showing the other guy that you're willing to stand up for yourself and fight back, and possibly cause him physical harm, is what will convince him to back down.

With some aggressors, if you appear passive and unwilling to fight, they will see that as a sign of weakness, and they will see you as an easy victim that they can beat to a pulp, either just to make themselves feel good, or to rob you, or both.

And of course with some aggressors, if you get tough and stand up to them, they might kill you.

Self-defense is always a gamble. Whatever course of action one takes might very well save their life, or get them killed, or put them in prison. Such is the nature of life and human beings. People are unpredictable, and we neither have the ability to see the future, nor dictate how things turn out.

Self-defense is all about the outcome. Success or failure aren't determined by what you might have done, they are determined by what you did, and by what actually happened. I don't like to play what if?, because like I've said, there's simply no way of knowing what might have happened if you did something different.

When I read your story Vlade, I thought of the old aviation cliche- "Any landing you can walk away from is a successful landing". I feel the same way about an encounter with an aggressor- if you were able to walk away unharmed, if you're not in jail, and if the police aren't after you, then I'd call that a success, and I would have to conclude that whatever you did was the right course of action in that specific situation with that specific person. Or, maybe you were just very lucky. Either way, the outcome is what matters.

I'm glad you're alright, and I'm glad that you didn't have to hurt the guy.
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Exactly this. I may be on the less popular point of view but I am a Texan and I believe in standing your ground. I agree with the de escalation as mentioned above but when shit hits the fan it's good to know you were going to defend yourself. People are crazy. You never know. I'd rather be tried by 12 than lowered by 6. You never know what someone is going to do. People don't stop and state rules before a fight. Who's to say he wasn't going to beat you to death, shoot you, etc. I don't know your age or physical stature but it's irrelevant to me. Anyone can key away about how wrong what you did was or call the police but the honest to God truth is you are your own first responder and you walked away from it. Self reflection is always a good thing. Asking a bunch of people and sheeple online if what you did was right is going to bring a mixed bag of bullshit in my opinion. Youre alive and well. Nuff said'
 
anthonycastorena2014 said:
I'd rather be tried by 12 than lowered by 6.
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Not that I disagree with you, but those 12 might make your days a living hell until you’re lowered by 6 anyway.

anthonycastorena2014 said:
Asking a bunch of people and sheeple online if what you did was right is going to bring a mixed bag of bullshit in my opinion.
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Yeah, you gotta be ready for answers you don’t like. This doesn’t really feel like a plea for real advice though- common sense prevails and we all know some tough talk and flashing a weapon wasn’t a great idea- just happened to work out this time.

I prefer the adage, “speak softly and carry a big stick”.
 
Vlade said:
Today I was going to use my Kershaw, but as I grabbed my wallet and car keys I grabbed my Voyager tanto instead. So me and my wife get in the car and go up to the gas station to get cigarettes. I was talking to a fellow from Ocala. The cashier was counting change. There was one guy online that was very obnoxious.
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This is the part that trips me up, what do you mean he was online?
Vlade said:
He called me and MFer and then he put his fingers close to my face. And he called the gentleman from Ocala a MFR as well Of course I exploded and called him every book name in the book. I even told him to go blank his mother. He reared back to take a swing I believe it was split second escalation. I dropped my hand down to my Voyager which has a snaggle tooth and I was very close to deploying it. But he had to keep going he said something about how he could cripple my old butt. I asked if he ever screwed with a sicilian before? Now he can clearly see my hand is on my handle of my knife. Things changed rapidly. He paid for his stuff then we both cursed each other out and he left. Did I handle this right.? it was very close and intense. And if I had to I would have used my Cold Steel Voyager. Thank God I didn't. Any opinions on something I could have done differently? Thank you in advance this was an hour ago and I'm still nervous
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I have found that swallowing the pride is best for on the street. You need to remember you have an off hand, and I understand not everyone knows how to fight, so wear steel-toed boots, or get something like pepper spray, Sabre red comes w/ a pocket clip, that is what I carry, or a Maglite 2x AA, any combo of that, and try to do something else to discourage assault before using deadly force. Those persuasion tactics are not sure to work every time, so have a medium way. You do not want to pay with your freedom.

You do not need to reply to every dumb**** to come up and start talking crap, as you can see, you might be opening yourself up for deadly conflict. Next time, don't engage nonsense talk, no matter how offensive, because then they have the power. If someone still pushes it, let loose with the spray and get outta there while keeping aware. Work with an assumption of another person you cannot see is there.
 
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EngrSorenson said:
Not that I disagree with you, but those 12 might make your days a living hell until you’re lowered by 6 anyway.
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Worthy of a forum sig right there.

To the OP, telling someone to go **** their mother or any of its colorful variations may not be the best method of deescalation. But if that story really happened, I’m glad no one got hurt at the end of the day. It’s always better to avoid conflict whenever humanly possible.
 
I'd create distance at first sign of a problem, If he chooses to close that distance, he will see Mr. Voyager in my hand.
 
jux t said:
And in some regions, they do use the term “on line” interchangeably with “in line”. Heard it said that way by people from New York City.
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What could be interchangeable in the 20th century can be confusing in the 21st century lol.
 
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