So I bought a self-defense gun....

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by priuslyfe, Jun 9, 2025.

  1. highmilesgarage

    highmilesgarage Active Member

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    the sad fate of media today, if you keep on tuning to media where hate fear and uncertainty is portrayed every minute.. you become so paranoid, very insecure and will resort to things that make you think a gun is the ultimate weapon.. feels great to have one.. nobody dares messing with you because of the gun.. Can't blame faux news for the ever growing gun issue in the US.. of course when there are school shootings and innocent kids are involved we just hear the chorus of "let's pray for..."
     
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  2. douglasjre

    douglasjre Senior Member

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    With regards to roadrage, now that you carry a firearm you really must avoid roadrage at all cost. The outcome of roadrage will be deadly, and you don't need that on your conscience, and you don't need to be a defendant. Risks are higher now that you carry. Like going to a sketch gas station. Don't do it now that you carry. Avoid those places more than ever
     
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  3. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    One also must keep in mind that even mainstream media (ie, not the outright propaganda outlets) will always show the most extreme elements of any event.

    At the lowest level, this manifests as "why are the murders on the local news increasingly far away"? Local news loves to cover extreme crime events. Unfortunately for them the murder rate is currently not very high. So they have to look farther and farther afield to find content to fill the "horrible crime of the day" slot. It seems like the murder rate is constant, or even rising, but all that is happening is that they are covering larger and larger areas. With some exceptions - there are some local areas which actually have high enough murder rates to keep the outlets well fed. (There is also the "happy story of the day". This will often involve a cute animal or a child. If it is a child the story will either cover some great charitable work, having a dread disease and getting to play cop or fireman for a day, having a dread disease and the neighbors throw them a parade or a party, or their having called 911 when a parent/neighbor/teacher/etc. needed help, but only if that person recovered and is still present to say what a great kid this is.)

    We had a mild earthquake (for California anyway) and the damage was really minor. However one building had a front wall collapse dramatically into the street. Every single major network ran a story about the earthquake and they all showed that one collapsed wall. If you had stood in front of that building and scanned up and down the street for a mile in either direction there wouldn't have been any other damage. When there is a protest they will only show the peaceful protestors if there isn't some crazy throwing fireworks, burning cars, or looting stores. Which there often are, so it seems like the world is on fire when only a small number of people are actually making trouble. (Pro tip - the people who loot stores during a protest typically have absolutely nothing to do with whatever protest is going on. They are just a bunch of low level criminals who wait around for a major distraction to keep the police busy so that they can steal some stuff. Certain parties love to conflate the two groups - "look, the protestors are criminals, they loot stores". Nope, the criminals come out to take advantage of the protests.)

    Conversely, these same outlets are oddly pretty bad at showing the extent of major devastation. Put a drone up over the Eaton Canyon or Pacific Palisades fire areas and it just goes on and on and on. Gaza is another example. Instead they usually go for a ground shot that shows an area of half a block or so, or sometimes just a single building. Not saying they never put up the overview shots, but for some reason they prefer to show a small number of destroyed structures in detail over a very large number in lower resolution.

    The number of people in the current protests (the anti ICE ones) is not all that large, and they aren't all that violent. Compared for instance to the riots after the Rodney King decision, where there were structure fires all over the area and the whole basin was filled with smoke. The LAPD and Sheriff's departments were not overwhelmed by the current protestors. Had they been the Mayor would have been making a big show of asking for the National Guard, and the Governor would have made an equally big show about sending them. These two politicians may not be fond of the current incarnation of ICE, but that doesn't mean they are pro-riot. So sending in the National Guard wasn't yet necessary, and sending in the Marines was completely over the top (and I believe completely unprecedented). The marines weren't even MPs, just regular troops. "Restoring order" wasn't actually the point of sending either group, even though that is the reason given, and I will leave it at that.
     
  4. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Sage advice.
    I always advise people that if there's a place that they would not go without being armed then they darned sure shouldn't go there ARMED!
    If you're the type of person who reacts badly to being tailgated, brake-checked, cut off, etc then leave the weapons at home and be one of those people that use dashcams instead.
     
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  5. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    ETC and I do not always agree, but when we do, we do.
     
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  6. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Adults may chose to disagree, agreeably.

    Opinions are opinions.
    Truth is truth.
     
  7. priuslyfe

    priuslyfe Member

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    Not really an update but should you choose to keep a gun in the "secret compartment" in the armrest, here is an updated pic. Made a foam cutout to hold the gun and extra magazine. Fits perfectly.

    [​IMG]

    And no...before you ask, I'm actually not a psychopath.
     
  8. Paul Gregory

    Paul Gregory Senior Member

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    What has this to do with Prius?
     
  9. priuslyfe

    priuslyfe Member

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    Well for starters, once I caught a guy underneath my car in a store's parking lot. He quickly left as soon as saw him but mumbled something about "almost got ya catalytic converter" (very valuable in Prius). Typically what they do though is attach an Apple IDtag somewhere on the bottom of your car and trace the car to wherever you live so they can steal it overnight while you are sleeping.

    also its just a great place to stash your gun. most cars don't have a non-obvious compartment that big (at least not in my previous cars). people typically break into pickup trucks to steal guns alone knowing that demo carries.
     
    #29 priuslyfe, Aug 1, 2025 at 1:19 PM
    Last edited: Aug 1, 2025 at 1:30 PM
  10. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    The Prius is the gun holster.
    Many US states have (like, Ohio) have adopted permitless carry, also known as Constitutional carry, although I always advise people to go ahead and get a carry permit if you're going to regularly keep a weapon in the car.
    It will do a couple of things for you if you get pulled over, like tell the LEO that you're probably armed (once they run your plates) and also that you've passed a background check and thus are not 'in the system.'
    Most of the time it will also allow a firearms dealer to see your a weapon without having to perform the background check - although I always encourage them to run one anyway for their protection.
    That would only work if you are dull witted enough to ignore the warnings on your iPhone, or if THEY are dull witted enough to risk throwing away a $20 AirTag if you don't use a 'droid.

     
    #30 ETC(SS), Aug 1, 2025 at 1:29 PM
    Last edited: Aug 1, 2025 at 1:37 PM
  11. priuslyfe

    priuslyfe Member

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    Great thing about Gen 2 Prius is they don't get profiled to be pulled over in the first place. I need to get out and shoot more but anytime the weather is nice there are a 100 things I'd rather do. Will look into a carry permit though...thanks.
     
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  12. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    Don't drive it in California, transport like that would be illegal. Locking one in a trunk is OK, but since this car doesn't have a real trunk I'm guessing that a gun safe of some sort would have to be installed (perhaps in the same location) to stay on the right side of the law.

    Transporting Firearms in California | State of California - Department of Justice - Office of the Attorney General
     
  13. AzusaPrius

    AzusaPrius Senior Member

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  14. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    If you get one, get an Enhanced Carry permit.
    Many times you can legally carry in some places that your state would not allow you to.

    Example: A restraunt where they also sell drinks....

    You DO need to familiarize yourself with reciprocity laws because they can ger complicated and there are a lot of people (including some LEOs) who are not very familiar with all of them.

    Example:
    The Firearm Owners' Protection Act (FOPA), also known as the "Safe Passage" provision (18 U.S.C. ยง 926A), is a federal law designed to protect individuals transporting firearms across state lines.

    DO NOT take my word, or any other internet chucklehead's for anything having to do with a firearm!!!
    If you like getting lots of junk mail you can join the USCCA - or at least read some of the info on their site.
    They also have a YouTube channel.
    I do not recommend joining the NRA.
    They used to represent shooters but now they seem to be interested more in the gun manufacturers.

    MY opinion.
    Your mileage will vary.
     
  15. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    If I'm not mistaken, recent Android versions also monitor for co-traveling tracker devices.
     
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  16. qmanqman

    qmanqman Active Member

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    LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL . . . cough, cough, cough . .
    LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

    If you don't know where to keep it you probably shouldn't have a gun.
     
    #36 qmanqman, Aug 1, 2025 at 2:54 PM
    Last edited: Aug 1, 2025 at 5:25 PM
  17. Paul Gregory

    Paul Gregory Senior Member

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    I bought a hot dog today, and took it home in my Prius. Is my Prius a hot dog wrapper?
     
  18. priuslyfe

    priuslyfe Member

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    say or think whatever you will.

    a gun is one of the few things in life whereby there are no substitutes when you actually might need one.

    hey if crime hasn't come to you in the past decade but esp in the past 4 years, consider yourself lucky. Going to any public space in any major city is gambling with your safety. Primarily because if you let hordes of people in; with no credentials/merit and nothing to lose materialistically....odds are against you. google is your friend.
     
    #38 priuslyfe, Aug 1, 2025 at 3:19 PM
    Last edited: Aug 1, 2025 at 3:28 PM
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  19. Paul Gregory

    Paul Gregory Senior Member

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    I think it's a bit delusional that someone who owns a gun is actually capable of shooting someone with it.
     
  20. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    They don't list the 2nd generation as supported. Years that they support are 2015 and up.