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Are You a Soft Target?

I’ve never heard the term soft target. I prefer to use the term potential victim. The one thing I’ve learned from working in St. Louis most of my life is those who are elderly and alone are seen as prey by predators.

I do worry about my brother-in-law who lives in a nicer neighborhood in the City of St. Louis and doesn’t own a gun. He is definitely a very soft target. He is 70 years old and his knees are bad which is obvious to anyone that sees him walking his very small dog. He's also very overweight, has gray hair, and a lot of lines on his face. He is the epitome of a soft target. If I were looking for someone to shove to the sidewalk and grab a wallet he would be it.

He and my sister own a condo near Myrtle Beach, SC and I wish they would move back there permanently rather than just for the winter every year. I don't consider St. Louis city to be a safe place to live regardless of the neighborhood.
 
Oaktree45 said:
I’ve never heard the term soft target. I prefer to use the term potential victim. The one thing I’ve learned from working in St. Louis most of my life is those who are elderly and alone are seen as prey by predators.

I do worry about my brother-in-law who lives in a nicer neighborhood in the City of St. Louis and doesn’t own a gun. He is definitely a very soft target. He is 70 years old and his knees are bad which is obvious to anyone that sees him walking his very small dog. He's also very overweight, has gray hair, and a lot of lines on his face. He is the epitome of a soft target. If I were looking for someone to shove to the sidewalk and grab a wallet he would be it.

He and my sister own a condo near Myrtle Beach, SC and I wish they would move back there permanently rather than just for the winter every year. I don't consider St. Louis city to be a safe place to live regardless of the neighborhood.
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I spent the last 9 years working for the gas company in north city. I understand completely.
I saw a story on channel 5 last night. 15 shootings over the weekend. All in north city. They broke it down by patrol sector and obviously north led with nearly 60% of the murders. Central corridor ( CWE, midtown, downtown) had 34% and the south side had almost none. Nevertheless as far as I can see having spent 60 hours a week in the city for nearly a decade, the only decent area left is around St. Louis Hills.

I recently moved to the Valley Park yard and now all my work is in Chesterfield, Kirkwood, Eureka etc.

I have a thread or two here where I talk about my time in north city. Including when one of my lifelong friends took my truck while I was out for three days and him and my laboror were shot to death on my job on Minerva near Hodiamont. I’ve been literally shot at 3 times and had to dodge gunfire or dive in a hole more times than I can count. Level 3 vest and my own “ Means of security” was SOP for years. I’m happy to no longer have a reason to go to the city. Now uncle Joe is giving the city a half a billion dollars in “ Blue state aid” and Tishaura decides it’s the perfect time to do a little defunding of the police. I sincerely hope your brother stays safe, but AFAIC, the city can burn to the ground with my blessing. They repeatedly elect leaders that turned the once great city into the cesspool it is now.
 
Very true. Predators look for easy prey, it is best to not look like easy prey.

A personal story. A few years back I was having some work done on my truck in an unfamiliar town. I needed to have some passport photos taken so I decided to walk the 6 blocks or so to a drug store for the photos. My knees are worn out from years of running and when they flare up I will sometimes walk with a Brazos walking stick. I had my roller bag with my laptop in it and did not want to leave it in the shop so here I am, an old guy with white hair and beard, walking down the sidewalk with a walking stick, pulling my laptop case behind me. This is along a major street in broad daylight. I am sure at first impression I looked like elderly prey. A carload of 5 thugs pulls to the curb, the passenger window rolls down, and one of the thugs says, "nice stick". Another commented wondering what was in the bag. I recognized this for what it was from my many years in law enforcement and was thinking, "here we go".

I was armed as always with my concealed .45 with a couple of spare magazines and found myself counting the targets and working out a course of fire in my head. No need to show them a weapon but it was ready and I was hoping to avoid a fight. Instead of acting like a victim, I turned toward them, looked squarely at the talker, held my stick up in my left hand, smiled, and said, "yes, it is a very nice stick". A guy in the back seat who I presume was their leader says to the driver, "let's go man, let's go" and they drove off. I am absolutely certain when they stopped they planned to mug me, but I did not act like a timid victim so they chose to pass me by. I passed their car info to local LE, and these guys were known to them. It was one of those moments that things could have gone badly in a hurry and I am grateful to have avoided violence. Looking like prey, no matter how unintentional, can invite an attack.
 
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I'm soft AND squishy for the most part, but I do maintain a high level of situational awareness at all times. I've been told I have my dad's very non-friendly eyes...lol which keeps me from having people approach me for the most part. I do try to convey an air of "I'm not the guy to ask for money, a ride, or anything else from strangers. If I'm out in public, I'm armed, so the last thing I want to do is get into a confrontation. I can't fight worth a damn, too old and slow, but i can still shoot pretty well...
 
HayesGreener said:
Very true. Predators look for easy prey, it is best to not look like easy prey.

A personal story. A few years back I was having some work done on my truck in an unfamiliar town. I needed to have some passport photos taken so I decided to walk the 6 blocks or so to a drug store for the photos. My knees are worn out from years of running and when they flare up I will sometimes walk with a Brazos walking stick. I had my roller bag with my laptop in it and did not want to leave it in the shop so here I am, an old guy with white hair and beard, walking down the sidewalk with a walking stick, pulling my laptop case behind me. This is along a major street in broad daylight. I am sure at first impression I looked like elderly prey. A carload of 5 thugs pulls to the curb, the passenger window rolls down, and one of the thugs says, "nice stick". Another commented wondering what was in the bag. I recognized this for what it was from my many years in law enforcement and was thinking, "here we go".

I was armed as always with my concealed .45 with a couple of spare magazines and found myself counting the targets and working out a course of fire in my head. No need to show them a weapon but it was ready and I was hoping to avoid a fight. Instead of acting like a victim, I turned toward them, looked squarely at the talker, held my stick up in my left hand, smiled, and said, "yes, it is a very nice stick". A guy in the back seat who I presume was their leader says to the driver, "let's go man, let's go" and they drove off. I am absolutely certain when they stopped they planned to mug me, but I did not act like a timid victim so they chose to pass me by. I passed their car info to local LE, and these guys were known to them. It was one of those moments that things could have gone badly in a hurry and I am grateful to have avoided violence. Looking like prey, no matter how unintentional, can invite an attack.
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I dont go looking for a fight, and I dont go around looking for bad places either.

fights are not fair. This is not a sanctioned boxing ring. It will rough and ugly for all parties involved. When a perp understands you know and understand this with your demeanor, it may give them the second thought you are looking for.
 
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