[P95Carry]

Just an observation, nothing more.

Slipped into town just now - yep, to gun shop :wink: (got to pickin' up Gary's old SIG 220 at last) - and school buses were around unloading here and there.

Kid gets off bus OK but then after walking some way decides to cross street. Darned near got hit by a car.

Well first off and obviously, she did not look properly but second - she was wearing a Walkman type deal and so probably could hear about zilch around her.

Got to me thinking that if there is one thing for sure not to be mixed with carry - it is these Walkman deals or derivatives thereof. No way can folks hear properly what is in their local environment.

I have always disliked the isolation factor for years and never used one but sure seems like it'd be one fine way to enable condition white!

Can't somehow see any of the crew here using one! :tongue:

 

[Bud White]

Naw wouldnt be the hot tickit plus you might be targeted just for the device most of which are ipods now i use one in work van that plays though radio since rest of stuff actually on radio sucks

 

[QKShooter]

It really bothers me to see people (both male and female) jogging in the evening and after dark while listening to music.
Sometimes the music is so loud in their head/ear phones that I can hear it 5 feet away.
They are not aware of anything going on around them.
It amazes me that people actually work so HARD at being potential victims of violent crime.

 

[XD40]

Its surprising how close you can get to one of these droid with the ipod on. You are right, they work real hard at becoming isolated and then don't consider they are also becoming vulnerable.

 

[Tangle]

+1 - What you guys said!

 

[Betty]

I don't like walkmans. They scream "Hey, mug me - I'm completely oblivious to my surroundings." iPods are trendy targets for thieves. A teenager was killed for his a while back.

The only thing nifty about headphones is that when I'm really busy at work and have them on (but I'm not listening to anything), it actually dissuades co-workers from bothering me. I get uninterrupted work time. :biggrin:

 

[Euclidean]

Here's a test. I don't make a habit of it, but I clap my hands and snap my fingers when wearing headphones. If I can clearly hear the clap and the snap, the volume is fine. Else, it's too loud.

 

[gunthorp]

I'm waiting for the Peltor iPod.

 

[the-fly]

i guess this is one area where my personal habits fit in fine with ccw. I ONLY like music when i am driving, and even then, not very loud. When i am walking, shopping, biking, at work, etc, i prefer it dead silent.

 

[FLM]

I listen to my Walkman when walking the dog. However, I use earbuds, not earphones and can hear external noises pretty well. Also, I'm in condition yellow, not white. Not too many people are going to bother me when I'm walking a 110 lb dog anyway.

 

[OD*]

Not too many people are going to bother me when I'm walking a 110 lb dog anyway.

Good point. :biggrin:

 

[Q-ball]

Here's a test. I don't make a habit of it, but I clap my hands and snap my fingers when wearing headphones. If I can clearly hear the clap and the snap, the volume is fine. Else, it's too loud.

Don't lie Euc, I know that's your funky way of dancing. :tongue: Kinda like the 'Elaine' dance on Seinfeld.

 

[gregarat]

Second to worse is oblivious wandering/driving while talking on a cell phone.

In N.Y.S. driving while on a cell is illegal. Not here in F.L.

I hear driving while on a cell is as much a distraction as driving drunk. Its like every kid in town has one permanently attached to their ear. On the other hand The other day I saw a cute girl driving a nice 70's Camaro, with a bumper sticker that said "get off the phone and start driving!" I wanted to propose marriage on the spot .

 

[Anubis]

A lot of people who listen with headphones tend to have it too loud. Years ago I was a safety professional and had a sound meter. Walked in on my then-teenage son one day and slipped the probe under one of the headphones. Can't remember the numbers, but I proved to him that the sound level was high enough to cause permanent damage after not too many hours. Miraculously, he wised up and stopped.

 

[LPguy]

I agree that a walkman or Ipod or whatever can distract you and prevent you from hearing properly. However, such a thing will prevent you from stopping short after hearing "Excuse me! Ya got a dime?"

Now that I think about it, I lost count of how many shoplifters I have called to within reach completely oblivious as to who I was simply just by asking if he had the time....lol

It's easy for ones mind simply wander and not pay attention to what you are doing.

I dare say we ALL have had to slam on our breaks, stop just short while walking, outright bump into somebody or even have somone else get our attention when somebody 2 feet away asked us a question without us wearing a walkman.

Mike

 

[Euclidean]

Don't lie Euc, I know that's your funky way of dancing. :tongue: Kinda like the 'Elaine' dance on Seinfeld.

No I only do it once or twice. I promise.

I only know two dances. The Charleston and the Funky Chicken.

 

[Q-ball]

Second to worse is oblivious wandering/driving while talking on a cell phone.

In N.Y.S. driving while on a cell is illegal. Not here in F.L.

I hear driving while on a cell is as much a distraction as driving drunk. Its like every kid in town has one permanently attached to their ear. On the other hand The other day I saw a cute girl driving a nice 70's Camaro, with a bumper sticker that said "get off the phone and start driving!" I wanted to propose marriage on the spot .

I talk often on the cell while driving, but I have a hands free headset. Some people are going to be distracted with the radio, newspaper, PDA...you name it, people do it.

I only know two dances. The Charleston and the Funky Chicken.

:dancing2:

Sweet.

 

[ExSoldier]

Distractions = Victimhood

I'm sorry, Walkman; I-Pod; whatever...that's stuff for my students to play with (and me to confiscate in class); not for ME. Just not my era. I much prefer books to relax with and I never relax in a mall or anywhere I'm on the move especially with my wife. Anybody wearing such a device is in condition "WHITE" and begging to be victimized. As Clint Smith says....If you look like prey...you will be eaten.

 

[spacemanspiff]

i've had two close calls the last few years that would have had worse outcomes had i been plugged into my headphones.

first was before i had a gun, but i did carry the industrial sized canister of bear spray. middle of winter, icy roads. i'm walking home late at night. oddly enough the batteries to my cd player died so i was walking in silence. i hear something approaching fast behind me, but it doesnt sound like footsteps.
i turn around and see a pit bull charging me, now hes about 20 feet away. my turning around caused him to veer off course and he skids by me. i pull my spray out, the dog is circling me. he gets within 10 feet and i give him a face full of spray. which he proceeds to sneeze off without so much as a whimper. i spray him again and do something i never do: run. as fast as my fat legs can take me.

had my batteries not died, i'd have been bitten, probably more than once.

more recently, i was walking home, chose not to put the headphones on (i dont learn from past mistakes that easily, can you tell?), and came close to getting mugged. my ability to pay attention to surroundings and more importantly hear what was going on around me helped me stay on the defensive and get out of the situation without drawing my gun.

 

[P95Carry]

Spiffy - say after me - ''Yellow is better than white - :wink: Ok you are alert but sure as heck even partial impairment of hearing can be less than useful - instance the alternatives with your two episodes.

I reckon - dead batteries are way better than dead Spiffy! :smile: