Not all good in the hood

T

Tim Houston

Member
So tonight I took the Inspire out for a round of sight seeing in the hills near the house. After finishing my flight I cruised the unit down to the truck. I started to remove the camera to get it ready for the trip back to the house. A car rolls up and I can tell by the way the driver exited the car I knew this could go one of two ways, the way it went or a column in the local police write up, me getting my a$$ handed to me. Big boy, VERY big boy.

The gentleman proceeded to drill me about what I was videoing and taking photos of. Telling me that he was just shy of blasting my bird out of the sky. Thanks to his wife and friends. Is this the point where I explain i have the right to fly in an open field? No, I don't think so. I explained to him how I was a local in the neighborhood and I had my paperwork filed with the FAA and I was getting a little stick time in. He calmed down a little, however, demanded to see what I had captured during my flight. I have nothing to hide, so I obliged him to keep the peace. This is a situation that could have escalated quickly had I not recognized his initial intentions.

It is funny how people will put everything on face book for the world stage to sift though but a guy/gal and their hobby (even if you could care less who they are or what they are doing) are a threat to their privacy? For those out there facing this same situation remember to keep your cool, know your local laws for flying and call the police yourself if necessary.
 

dazzab

dazzab

Member
'Just shy of blasting my bird out of the sky'???? Does that mean he had a gun? Honestly, in the same situation I think my first move would have been to call the Police first and start talking second. It really sounds just shy of assault and I think you may have been very lucky.
 

Old Man

Old Man

Active Member
Cops are a reactionary force and prone to large delays in response to a call for help. Worse, in the U.S. several courts, including the Supreme Court, have ruled cops do not have a responsibility to protect the people. So they won't be there in time to save your butt, will show up long after your health or physical condition has been compromised, or may not show up at all. Diffusing the situation on your own is realistically what you should first depend on, with your ability to protect yourself a second consideration.

The likelihood of someone having a gun is dependent on several things, location and criminal status of the individual. If in Texas, Wyoming, Montana, Oregon, and a few other states the odds are in favor of having a gun. Same applies if your are playing around a rough neighborhood just about anywhere. If the individual has a history of criminal activity, which would be unknown to you, the odds of them having a weapon increase exponentially. You just don't know. It doesn't have to be a gun, a knife or baseball bat does the same job, just a little slower and with more violence. Everyone has a moral right to protect themselves but when to initiate use of that right can be tricky. To wait until your opponent has initiated direct violence can be much too late, and initiating your defense prior to that can be legally tricky. I'm a strong proponent of legal personal carry and having that ability can be quite comforting in situations such as this.

I think Tim handled the situation quite well, and might have actually turned the conflict into a positive because of his ability to keep calm and rational.
 

dazzab

dazzab

Member
Old Man said:
I think Tim handled the situation quite well, and might have actually turned the conflict into a positive because of his ability to keep calm and rational.
Click to expand...
I don't think it was his ability to keep calm and rational that resulted in it being a positive situation. I think it was luck. Angry people are often times also violent people. Each of us makes our own decisions based on the circumstances. I've had people approach me while flying who start off with an aggressive tone and by the time we are done talking we are swapping stories about our kids etc. But none of them have said they were considering shooting my UAV down or demanded to see the footage.
 

Old Man

Old Man

Active Member
Understood. I'm old, slow, and a bit limited physically hence some of my support for a decisive means of self defense.

One thing is certain though, if every one involved lacks the ability to maintain a sense of calm and rationality the situation will probably end badly. One can control a situation by keeping their emotions in control.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 


Old Man

Old Man

Active Member
Oceans11,

Our media is being forced by a very liberal billionaire, who also happens to be a media mogul himself, to prominently report on any activity involving a firearm. The various outlets will repeat a story over and over to provide the appearance of greater levels of firearm violence. The only firearm activity they won't report are those that prevent further violence to save the lives of the innocent or those being subjected to violent criminal activity. If it's bad, or could be construed as bad, you'll read all about it. If it's good you'll have to dig it out of some statistical database on your own. If you did that you would find the good far outweighs that bad. They don't report the daily death toll from drunk driving, or from medical malpractice. If they did I doubt there would be a call to ban alcohol or pull the licenses of the medical providers.
 

Oceans Eleven

Oceans Eleven

Wassup?
@Old Man Not here to get into political left or right discussions. Mostly here to lurk and learn. Don't know what you mean by "liberal billionaire" as the majority of your news outlets seem to be influenced by your right-wing. That aside, there's no disputing the fact that your country has one of the highest death rates per capita by firearms of almost any country (democratic or not) on the planet. Last time I checked there were nearly as many firearms circulating around the U.S. as there are inhabitants. Pretty scary IMHO.

Anyway, 'nuff said. Am very glad Tim Houston was able to walk away from that encounter.
 



D

droneup

Member
Tim Houston said:
So tonight I took the Inspire out for a round of sight seeing in the hills near the house. After finishing my flight I cruised the unit down to the truck. I started to remove the camera to get it ready for the trip back to the house. A car rolls up and I can tell by the way the driver exited the car I knew this could go one of two ways, the way it went or a column in the local police write up, me getting my a$$ handed to me. Big boy, VERY big boy.

The gentleman proceeded to drill me about what I was videoing and taking photos of. Telling me that he was just shy of blasting my bird out of the sky. Thanks to his wife and friends. Is this the point where I explain i have the right to fly in an open field? No, I don't think so. I explained to him how I was a local in the neighborhood and I had my paperwork filed with the FAA and I was getting a little stick time in. He calmed down a little, however, demanded to see what I had captured during my flight. I have nothing to hide, so I obliged him to keep the peace. This is a situation that could have escalated quickly had I not recognized his initial intentions.

It is funny how people will put everything on face book for the world stage to sift though but a guy/gal and their hobby (even if you could care less who they are or what they are doing) are a threat to their privacy? For those out there facing this same situation remember to keep your cool, know your local laws for flying and call the police yourself if necessary.
Click to expand...

Well done for diffusing the situation. How do you feel about going back out to that area now? Will you be avoiding it completely, or do you feel you got the individual in question 'onside'?
 


Betelgeuse

Betelgeuse

Member
Oceans Eleven said:
@Old Man Not here to get into political left or right discussions. Mostly here to lurk and learn. Don't know what you mean by "liberal billionaire" as the majority of your news outlets seem to be influenced by your right-wing. That aside, there's no disputing the fact that your country has one of the highest death rates per capita by firearms of almost any country (democratic or not) on the planet. Last time I checked there were nearly as many firearms circulating around the U.S. as there are inhabitants. Pretty scary IMHO.

Anyway, 'nuff said. Am very glad Tim Houston was able to walk away from that encounter.
Click to expand...

Politics probably should not be brought into these discussions imo.
But since you did....Your information seems to be a bit misleading.

"The majority of our news outlets seem to be influenced by your right-wing?"
You mean like MSNBC, CNN, Washington Post, NewYork times, Huffington Post, NBC, ABC, CBS etc ?

"there's no disputing the fact that your country has one of the highest death rates per capita by firearms of almost any country (democratic or not) on the planet."
61% of all gun-related deaths in the U.S. are suicides (not murders)
The remaining 29% is mostly gang related and between rival gangs. The way you present it, America is a dangerous battleground.

Fear mongering due to mis information or biased information should also be avoided.

Good job handling the situation Tim. However, noone has the right to demand to see your videos.
For the safety of others, I might file a police report just the same. That would at least put him on the local LEO radar.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

C

cootertwo

Member
"Quote"
"Last time I checked there were nearly as many firearms circulating around the U.S. as there are inhabitants. Pretty scary IMHO."

And that fact, as far as I'm concerned is what keeps others from trying to take over OUR country. We fought for it, we will fight to keep it, even in the sad state it is today. Strange and funny, how times have changed. I've been watching some old Roy Rogers, Lone Ranger TV shows, I used to watch as a kid. I'm now close to 66. I never noticed, as a young-in, but those good guys, and bad guys, were always fighting and rolling around in the dirt, while BOTH had guns strapped on. Never a thought to just pull a gun and shoot the SOB. Just beat on one another till one gives up. I even noticed clips where after the bad guy was beat to submission, he was marched off to the jail, "still wearing his guns" And all the shooting at one another, while riding their horses. Never a horse hurt. Ahhhh the good ole days.
 

SleepyC

SleepyC

www.AirHeadMedia.com
SO... yea.. Tim.. good job you're alive and well and still have your rig.

The rest of this conversation.. everyone has an opinion just like a poop shoot so yea... no one is right and no one is wrong!

And to be fair, there are wack jobs in EVERY country... so :D
 


Betelgeuse

Betelgeuse

Member
I've had people "jokingly" say they'd shoot my drone down if I flew near their homes, but I took it in jest.
If someone actually did hit my drone with any type of gunfire or even took a shot at it they'd be facing charges.
Period. Homey don't play that game.

In Tim's case, I'm wondering what that dude was so concerned about or hiding?
What if Tim had had video the idiot didn't approve of? Would he have smashed his drone? Beat Tim down?
Confiscated his $3000 drone?

I couldn't care less if someone flew a drone over my house or yard.
 

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