People have zero sense of security

[ratman57]

I am an old fasioned door-to-door salesman. I sell high end food so I travel in upper middle class to mansion type neighborhoods. It never ceases to amaze me how many women and men will open their door to a complete stranger and invite him in.

I carry a Taurus PT1911 in a UBG IWB holster, a can of pepper spray, and some dog biscuts, just in case. These people just open up when I knock without a second thought.

About one in a hundred shows any real security sense by opening a window and questioning what I'm doing there. I don't sell much meat to these people.

If these people knew they had a stranger with a gun in their homes they would absolutely freak. Many times I leave like we are best friends. I have their credit card numbers or checking account numbers. I have phone numbers from them and their friends as well as addresses and when they will and won't be home.

I would guess that 99% of guys like me are perfectly legit. But what about the other 1%. I never thought about it until I took this job and found how easy it is to get all kinds of personal information from almost anybody.

Tell your wives, girlfriends, and loved ones to think twice before whipping open the front door just because that stupid little bell rings. If it's my smiling face they see they are probably safer for that 20 minutes than they are at any other point in the day until you get home.

But it won't always be me.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Anubis]

Very true. Although opening a window is not as bad as opening the door, it still increases vulnerability to potential foul play. Whatever question the resident asks will be answered with a lie if the visitor's goal is crime, of course.

I look through the spyhole and if it's not a neighbor I recognize, a police officer, or a man in a USPS/UPS uniform with a package, I don't respond.

[peacefuljeffrey]

Doesn't your post prove that in a world like we have today, people actually shouldn't be in your line of work?

I mean no disrespect, and would never argue that you should be out of a job and unable to make a living at your chosen profession; but with all respect, I offer that your job should not exist as such. It is actually counterproductive to ordinary people doing what they should do when a stranger comes to call.

In other words, you being able to do your job depends on people doing the wrong, dangerous thing when someone knocks, unsolicited, and asks to enter -- the opposite of what should be taught to people to do! I thus suggest that it is a bad-faith occupation.

Please, I really mean that I don't intend to offend you, but I just feel that a job that can't happen unless people get conditioned to do things that endanger them... couldn't the meat industry find a better way to market its products?

[sass20485]

and people like that are often called............ VICTIMS.

[tapout1003]

The world has turned it a sad place. Growing up we got company all the time. I owned an in home sales business for a few years and i'll tell you right now I met some of the nicest people. Maybe life is still a little slower where I live.

[packinnova]

My front door has a window now, but before that I usually opened the door just enough to see who's out there while my foot is wedged on the bottom of the door and my strong hand usually already has my gun hiding just out of sight.

[SIXTO]

It is a rule in my house that we dont buy anything from anyone who knocks on the door, calls on the phone etc. If I want or need any product, I'm smart enough to figure out how to get it without someone telling me I need it. So we dont answer the door or phone unless it is an invited guest or the beloved UPS/FedEx man. The Schwans guy is OK in my book too, I just dont buy anything from him unless I really want some ice cream.

I do enjoy those coupon salesmen though. They ring the bell, I let one of the dogs out the back door... we practice our "bark and hold" with these guys. Word must have got around, because my door bell has been quite this summer.

[retsupt99]

So much time has passed...the world has become so dangerous...

The Fuller Brush Man never needed a gun, and (as little kids) my dear wife (and her five sisters) used to sleep on her front lawn for the night...in DETROIT...hard to believe! Those days are gone and shall never return...

Stay armed...be very careful...stay safe!

ret

[BruceGibson]

Brilliant post. Well done.

[ratman57]

Doesn't your post prove that in a world like we have today, people actually shouldn't be in your line of work?

I mean no disrespect, and would never argue that you should be out of a job and unable to make a living at your chosen profession; but with all respect, I offer that your job should not exist as such. It is actually counterproductive to ordinary people doing what they should do when a stranger comes to call.

In other words, you being able to do your job depends on people doing the wrong, dangerous thing when someone knocks, unsolicited, and asks to enter -- the opposite of what should be taught to people to do! I thus suggest that it is a bad-faith occupation.

Please, I really mean that I don't intend to offend you, but I just feel that a job that can't happen unless people get conditioned to do things that endanger them... couldn't the meat industry find a better way to market its products?

Peacefuljeffrey,

I take no offence at what you say, I'm a door to door salesman

What I do is a uniquely American way to make a living. Granted it may be a throw-back to a more innocent time but still an accepted way to make a living for generations of Americans.

You're absolutely correct in your statement that I shouldn't be able to make a living if people were as security concious as they ought to be if they want to remain 100% safe.

I'm glad that where I live and do business people haven't been forced by experience to live that way. I feel they should be more careful than they are but hiding from strangers is not how I would choose to live either.

A little intelligent profiling before you open the door goes a long way.

A note to you dog owners; I own a big dog. I love dogs. I would probably take a pretty good bite before I did anything foolish to hurt a dog especialy if he's just doing what dogs do to protect their home and master. He doesn't know any better, you do. But you won't have to pay the ultimate price, he will.

God bless America

[semperfi.45]

[SIXTO]

A note to you dog owners; I own a big dog. I love dogs. I would probably take a pretty good bite before I did anything foolish to hurt a dog especialy if he's just doing what dogs do to protect their home and master. He doesn't know any better, you do. But you won't have to pay the ultimate price, he will.
God bless America

I dont mean to side track the thread, but my dog paying the ultimate price so I or a human family member wont have to is his purpose. I love dogs too, but we train our dogs to do just that.
I use the coupon salesmen as training tools for my dog because;

they are annoying
threat is low
it discourages them from coming back
they build confidence for my dog
it is in a controled setting
who wants to buy a book of coupons anyway?
its very fun to watch a guy with ill fitting clothes run up the street holding his pants up once the dog is brought back
the neighbors get a kick out of it too

[buckeye .45]

SIXTO, you have obviously never gotten a Larosa's buddy card from some kid's soccer team, two pizza's for the price of one, great deal.

Back on track, one house my parent's lived in had an intercom system built in it, with controls for it in every room, and a microphone/speaker at the front door. Hi-tech stuff for the 80's when it was built, but can probably be done now, with a camera easily added. Maybe these people should dump a few hundred bucks into one of those systems, although, they would probably not use it and just fling open the door anyways.

[SIXTO]

SIXTO, you have obviously never gotten a Larosa's buddy card from some kid's soccer team, two pizza's for the price of one, great deal.

I'm not talking about neighborhood kids selling stuff... they annoy the heck out of me, but they are OK. I'm talking about these gypsy types who knock on my door selling all kinds of garbage. The ones I get most often is the ones selling coupon books. Most of these guys speak in some jibberish dialect and cant even figure out how to properly wear their clothing.

[Pete]

Most of these guys speak in some jibberish dialect and cant even figure out how to properly wear their clothing.

Sounds like any kid at any high school, try putting a sign on your gate - 'Your pants must be this high to enter these premises'.