As I tried to say earlier in this thread -- It's NOT about "defending your iPhone" (or other material expressions of ones wealth!) its about defending yourself from physical and mental harm, from someone willing to risk his or her life and health by threatening You with extreme violence or death (I think we can safely make the assumption that pointing a gun at someone constitutes threatening you with deadly violence
) When someone makes that decision, that person has forfeited any "rights" IMHO .. So any decision you make from that point on should not include ANY consideration for this persons continued health or "rights" - If he gets harmed or dies in the ensuing violence, that is sad, regrettable and perhaps a tragedy for his loved ones, but should NOT be a concern for you, and certainly not IN the situation.. That you will feel bad afterwards is just a natural consequence of being a normal human being. There are ways of getting through that.
There is NO way you can simplify a robbery at gunpoint to a simple question of "defending your property" - for most normal people (leftist panty-wearers or right-wing macho-men included) it will be a harrowing experience, that it will take time to get over, especially if you take on the role of "victim" and do nothing to assert yourself or influence the situation.
Lokks like I'll just continue the "pontificating" trend here ..
The current increase in the US of "Stand your ground" legislation and the increase in CCW states seems a very reactionary trend in a modern society, seen from a European point of view. The changes in the "political climate" is also felt even in European countries that US citizens regard as "leftist" countries .. I constantly hear and read of people in the US that seem to live in the misunderstanding that my country is "communist" or "Socialist" -- Nothing could be further from the truth, The country has been run for the last 10+ years by conservative/right wing-liberal coalition governments .. Before that it was a "Social-democratic" middle of the spectrum government -- all with tight ties to capitalist interests ... Economic thinking dominates every single political decision..
(This so-called "Socialist government" sold most of the National Energy company to Goldman-Sachs .. go figure!!)
Politics and statistics may be the background reasons that you have a society that breeds "scumbags" and "predators" - but what you actually face on the streets can not be dealt with according to your political point of view, unless you have the wealth to move away from the affected areas, and not have to set foot there. That leads to the "leftist" belief that the problems do not really need to be dealt with by someone, or the belief that "the police will handle this, ordinary citizens need not concern themselves" AND it leads to the "rightist" belief that the problem is solely based on some people being "Evil Predators" or "lowlifes" and that extreme differences in wealth has nothing to do with it.
The realitiy is that you do run the risk of getting held up at gunpoint, in some places the risk is high, in others so low as to be insignificant (in which case, carrying a gun is just like insisting to bring your own parachute on commercial flights, you will very likely NEVER need it, and it will then be of very little help.)
Fortunately I have never been held up at gunpoint, a nasty looking "rambo" type blade was the worst "threat instrument" I have encountered
Even a long knife has a fairly short reach, so quickly putting a bit of distance to it, effectively removes any real danger, or fear for ones life.. Not so with a gun!
The look of confusion on the face of the guy with the big knife, when you look back at him from 15 feet away is very satisfying..
A simple release move and a dodge away changes that situation completely .. Again: Not so when facing a gun... The risk of being seriously harmed or even killed is just too big .. The likelihood that the scumbag actually fires the gun increases exponentially with the steps you take to try to disarm him or remove yourself out of harms way. Complying with his demands in a carefully controlled manner diminishes the risk, and increases your chances of resolving the situation, even if you choose a violent response! Confusion is an exellent strategy: start babbling incohrently, preferably in a foreign language (Not a lot of UK scumbags understand a single word of danish
) Then get your wallet out, and start fumbling with it to get some cash out.. and once you have one or two bills out, drop the wallet on the ground, or stuff it in a different pocket from where you took it.. Now the scumbag thinks you're scared shitless, and he relaxes his handling of his weapon.. increasing your chances of getting out unharmed, and the simple fact that you are consciously ACTING scared, boosts your own morale, and makes you feel much better afterwards.. It actually works, I've done it more than once... You feel much more in control of the situation, not helpless and vulnerable. By all means let the guy have your iPhone .. its a perfect tracking device, try to activate the camera as soon as you can .. It will record sound as well as images that may be very usefull later