combat of any time and place

[LT. Ox]

Just an Old man wondering but I was told that very few of those In the US of A have been in a serious physical confrontation. This would include unarmed, armed but non-firearm and firearm involved situations.
Me, I started young, raised in a stereotypical Irish household and fought my way through school and most of my life since has had mild to serious encounters, of course my choice of professions had a might ta do with the life style but my wife says that I am the exception rather than the rule.
I have had moderate success in avoiding serious injury but have been wounded and hospitalized on a few occasions. Well maybe a tad more than a few, laugh. Let me see blown up, shot, stabbed , cut and sliced, beat up and kicked when I was down, hmmm maybe a lot more than a tad. Well, let us see who else.
Oh if you’re outside the US and A Let me know but answer any how and thanks.

[Silent Hunter UK]

No in my case; I live in a pretty quiet part of East London.

[ArmySGT.]

IED and Non weapon.....

I have been in two uparmored M1114s struck by IEDs.

Unarmed conflicts.... numerous apprehending unruly drunks.

I skipped over firearm..... Bullets all around, shots all around..... but, I don't think I was the specific target or that the haji was trying all that hard anyway.

[LT. Ox]

It ain't the one with your name on it that is scary it's all the other ones flying around.
that counts live fire.

[ArmySGT.]

Your poll is missing rocks, bricks, feces, and molotov cocktails..... the essential joys of peace keeping missions like Albania or Somalia.

[LT. Ox]

And urine let us not forget urine!

[mpipes]

While in the Air Force I had two off duty incidents with guys armed with bats. Unfortunately for them, I had a 9mm. Didn't shoot anyone, but the sight of a 9mm pointed at their heads sure took the aggressiveness out of them!! And I made it clear they WOULD be shot in the head. You have a need to pull a gun in my opinion, and then have to shoot, you shoot to kill. Never know if they have a gun on them or not, and I don't intend to get shot by someone I just wanted to scare by shooting in the leg or some such nonsense.

We did have infiltrators that tried to get on the base one night in Korea, but the ROK battalion that manned the perimeter shot them up with M60s and claymores. Only found blood trails next day.

[Webstral]

Swag, your stories make me think I'd be a terrible cop. If I were stabbed from behind, I doubt I'd be able to stop myself from failure drilling him.

Baghdad. The usual. No confirmed kills. No idea how many unconfirmed kills. Few, I hope. I never pressed the trigger without having a target except for the warning shot I fired at Iraqi PSD who were loitering in front of the checkpoint. Got through a couple of incidents without ever firing a shot because I couldn't get my front sight post on a target. I'm much prouder of the guy I could have popped but didn't than any kill I arguably could have claimed. Let the Apache pilots explain their numbers to St. Peter.

[Milano]

I have been in two real bar fights.
The first one I took a few, 3 as I remember, good hits but I did hit him once that I do remember. He hit me once more and I "woke up" in the slammer. My antagonist was in the cell next to me with the most hideous bruise on his face I have ever seen! He wanted to press charges on ME for assault with a deadly weapon before a kind Lt. had a "coming to Jesus" with the two of us and flat out told me that I have half an hour to go away before he let him out. I really like that Lt. Had it had gone differently I am pretty sure my Military Career would have ended up with a dishonorable discharge. The weapon I hit him with? It was the cast that was on my (re)broken arm! Bad choice of "weapon" and the Lt saw it my way as well.

The second was just a drunk who thought my fiancé was his girl friend. Long story short. He came at me with a beer bottle and I somehow luckily broke his collar bone as he came charging. That was pretty open and shut because of his history, thankfully. By the way, I don't consider a beer bottle a weapon, I wasn't hit with it either though.

Then I got into two armed interactions. The first was that I was working as a Cowboy in Arizona, after I got medicaled out of the service. I must preface this as I swear upon my children's lives it's true. Me and the other guy with me ended up shooting 3 of 4 dogs that were killing our calves. Later that night, we met the owners when they rode into our camp. Shotguns and pistols in hand. When asked if we had seen their dogs we did the most natural thing that a cowboy could do in such a situation, we lied our a@@ off and told them NO. My buddy took off ahorse back to get help. I stayed stoked the fire and hid in the brush with my own horse saddled. A few hours later they came back and started ran sacking our camp. And, I ended up holding the 4 of them at gun point with an old but trusty 35 Remington until the police arrived.

The other time, I drew a 9mm on a Mexican gang banger who was threatening me and my girlfriend. By the time I got to my truck he was next to the door and he lifted his shirt for me to see his pistol tucked into his waist band. I lifted my pistol but it was pointing at him through the glass. We drove off without further instance, thankfully.

I never went overseas, got squished while fastroping. These are all that has really scared the heck out of me once I got through the incident. I DO however have lots and lots of fights with cattle and horses. Some won, most lost if they are applicable. Though I doubt it.

[LT. Ox]

Now that is good. I grew up in Richmond Ca. Worked for Oakland PD. Moved to western Colorado by invitation to a County Sheriff’s Office.
Sooooooo, I am to start and help train a SWAT team, no problem had some very good people to work all with recent military all but one over thirty.
Sheriff wanted me to put together a “new and modern” weapons training program, no problem again a lot of very good people and willing to try new techniques.

But!!! Whenever a call came in that a horse had gotten lose or sheep or cattle or damn emus guess who dispatch gave the call to if I was working, yep the city guy. A good old boy < cowboy from Wyoming, takes me in hand and says “Pard you need to get a Lead??? And keep it in your trunk. “

I got off on the wrong foot with him with my Irish humor and I say to him” you know what the only animal dumber than a horse is? “He looks at me all curious and I tell him “any damn fool that gets on one.” He sort of held that against me for about two years.

Now I have been here for over forty years and have a Granddaughter that rides barrels and is a rodeo Queens attendant, she is fourteen, and guess who bought the dang horse for her and made her white chaps? Would not have it any other way.

[swaghauler]

Originally Posted by LT. Ox

Now that is good. I grew up in Richmond Ca. Worked for Oakland PD. Moved to western Colorado by invitation to a County Sheriff’s Office.
Sooooooo, I am to start and help train a SWAT team, no problem had some very good people to work all with recent military all but one over thirty.
Sheriff wanted me to put together a “new and modern” weapons training program, no problem again a lot of very good people and willing to try new techniques.

But!!! Whenever a call came in that a horse had gotten lose or sheep or cattle or damn emus guess who dispatch gave the call to if I was working, yep the city guy. A good old boy < cowboy from Wyoming, takes me in hand and says “Pard you need to get a Lead??? And keep it in your trunk. “

I got off on the wrong foot with him with my Irish humor and I say to him” you know what the only animal dumber than a horse is? “He looks at me all curious and I tell him “any damn fool that gets on one.” He sort of held that against me for about two years.

Now I have been here for over forty years and have a Granddaughter that rides barrels and is a rodeo Queens attendant, she is fourteen, and guess who bought the dang horse for her and made her white chaps? Would not have it any other way.

Grew up on a farm (Black Angus, and Morgan Horses) here in PA. Round ups are a common call here to. I've Killed more than my share of wildlife that wandered into traffic during my career (PA leads the nation in "deer strikes" involving vehicles). Now my only two "horses" takes premium gas or has "clipless" pedals and dual air suspension with "anti-bob" features.

[.45cultist]

Martial arts sparring and knife fighting versus a larger man. Thankfully only MILES gear and never needed to use any of my firearms against humans.
Even the impromptu sparring puts me above the vast majority of people. Folks don't understand real fighting isn't Hollywood choreographed....

There are videos to help non combat folks grapple with combat, Both the 80's TV and training video of the Miami shoot out are online. The traing vid has interviews with the surviving agents. Just ambushed a chicken killing Sow raccoon with my K22/M17.

[Enfield]

Familial and systemic abuse growing up. When I began getting old enough to stand up to my stepmother's constant physical and mental abuse, I was accused of serious delinquency, my protests were not believed, and I was put first in a mental ward and then into a group home. I was frequently beaten up there and in school until an older kid who was a friend and mentor taught me how to defend myself.

Later in life I lived in a dangerous part of town, lots of meth heads and other nasty folk living there. You had to be ready to defend yourself at any time, including at night when you were asleep. I had to break up fights in the place I worked without getting involved myself. Later on in life I've mostly devoted myself to deescalating things and spotting trouble coming.