A dressing gown is a bath robe. I'm not much for PJs myself so running out side in a pair of boxers wasn't a good option. Besides it was a cold morning
I certainly didn't willingly give up my firearms. I've managed to hang on to a couple and I'm still a keen shooter. Thankfully the government hasn't managed to take all of them away.
One problem with a gun for home defense is the storage requirements. You can't just keep your shotgun on top of the wardrobe. it's got to be locked in a gun safe with the ammo in a seperate locked container. By the time you find the keys unlock it and get it loaded the bad guys have stolen all your crockery and raped your cat.
The other problem with running out the front door brandishing a firearm is that the laws are somewhat biased towards the criminal in this instance. If you shot someone on your property that you were sure was going to do you and your family harm it's more likely you would be the one going to jail. I think they figure that if you went to all the effort mentioned earlier to grab the fire arm then the shooting was somewhat pre meditated.
Our government sucks re the firearms laws. We had huge protests and rallys when they proposed the law changes but the arseholes changed the laws anyway. So we said we would vote them out next election but since we have a stupid 2 party system and the other side has the same policies what's the point? Once the media painted us all as gun toting loonies our case was lost. It didn't help either that some of the Rifle Association heads up the front making all the speeches sounded like gun toting loonies.
So the best home defence weapon is a regular item you would find around your home i.e a cricket bat or a golf club is a good one. The 6x D cell maglite torch is a pretty reasonable option but the old handle from my sledge hammer works for me.
As for the car BBQ it was a 93' Mitsubishi Magna (Sorry Les I know you have a soft spot for them
).
Apart from being furious at the thought of some bastard torching a car right out side my house I feel sorry for the poor girl that owns the car. She's at university and doesn't have a lot of money. Her parents aren't wealthy either so I hope the insurance company does the right thing.