Hello. This is my first blog post! I decided I'd put down some thoughts here--really for no particular reason other than to share information with others so that they can avoid my mistake.
At 2:38PM while at work for my first "real world" job I received a call on my cell. I was busy with an experiment, so I couldn't get to it right away -- no big deal, figured I'd check the fresh voicemail that followed as soon as I got the chance. Bout 30 minutes later I caught a moment and decided to see who called. Huh.. That's strange.. It was a number from "Escondido CA" -- an area from which I know absolutely nobody (I grew up in the southwest, just finished undergraduate on the east coast, and just got my job in the Bay area -- so I've absolutely never been to Escondido/San Diego...nor do I know anyone who has spent significant time there).
So, feeling very curious, I decided to duck out and check the voicemail. Before listening I could see that it was only 14 seconds, so although intrigued, I was not expecting much. But man, how wrong was I! After clicking "play" and putting the phone to my ear, a raspy, creepy, plainout scary voice started to speak in a really lazy, drawn out way. It was a non-accented male voice. He said: "Is this where ________ _________ is? Hey faggot, we're looking for you. We're coming".
This instantly charged my body with muscle cramps. I wasn't outright scared, but I was...hmm, how best to describe it... I guess I was just seriously disturbed by this call: A) It came seemingly from nowhere; B) it presented in an extremely aggressive/hostile/threatening fashion; and C) whoever it was knew my full name and phone number, clearly.
Sitting there at work was absolutely unbearable. My mind was not at work -- it instantly began to race and race, searching for clues about who it could've possibly been. I excused myself from a project and went out to my car. Using my phone I searched: "Escondido CA non emergency police". From there I proceeded to report the incident, figuring it would be best to start in the area from which I received the call. The dispatch lady was nice, and she referred me to my own nearby police department in the Bay.
Before I made the same call to my Bay area police department, it struck me. This eery voice matched the voice of a guy from whom I'd attempted to purchase a dress shirt on eBay in Winter 2010. Yep, that far back.
To make a long story short, around that time I was in the habit of buying clothes off eBay -- solid quality & unbeatable prices provided patience. One seller ended up sending me a shirt that was seriously damaged. He would not respond to my requests for a return, so I had no other option than to leave him a "negative review". In the following weeks I received many calls and emails from two men, harassing me about my choice to leave them feedback. I threatened to take legal action, and they stopped.
However, one year later, I received threats/bashing posted on an SAT tutoring website with which I had been previously associated, from the same guy. Evidently he was still crazy enough to be in pursuit of that long passed dispute.
Sooo... Wow, I really need to wrap things up -- I'm rambling now and it's probably not interesting. In any case, a couple hours ago I arranged to meet with an officer in the Bay. I gave all this information in much greater detail, and he decided he would attempt to contact the guy, in order to let him know that he has potentially gotten himself involved in a criminal investigation. To avoid being dramatic, he did make it clear that as of now, the only thing going down on their behalf is a phonecall to the dude who called me, to order him to stop calling me. He said if it escalates however.... we can escalate things too -- we just need a more solid criminal reason, that's all.
All that being said... This does force me to reevaluate my position as a non-gun owner. Yes, I sound like a lunatic far-right winger for even mentioning that, I know. I've been pretty liberal all my life. I've always had an open mind about guns though, and this is ONE reason in favor in my opinion, to own one. That being said, I can also think of many reasons not to own a gun, so nothing will come of that idea, most likely.
Just some thoughts..
TL;DR Please be careful when you make the choice to leave someone negative feedback on eBay. You never how crazy the guy on the other side is.
I was just being overly dramatic because I think I'm still a bit, I dunno, shaken I suppose. Not outright scared, but I just don't feel at ease. Some guy out there -- who apparently hates me enough to pursue me for literally years -- knows my full name, my phone #, things with which I am/was associated...possibly more. Could probably use a drink, lol.
To theorycraft, the plan would be to simply become a licensed concealed-carry gun owner. I would simply own a weapon for defensive use. The plan would most definitely not involve any offense, just defense -- but really, the more I think about that the less serious I am about it
edit: As for whether or not he has an account, I cannot find it anymore. I do still have emails from him associated with his previous account, so if anything comes of this, we'll be able to start from there.
On January 11 2013 11:27 FallDownMarigold wrote: About the guns, No :/
I was just being overly dramatic because I think I'm still a bit, I dunno, shaken I suppose. Not outright scared, but I just don't feel at ease. Some guy out there -- who apparently hates me enough to pursue me for literally years -- knows my full name, my phone #, things with which I am/was associated...possibly more. Could probably use a drink, lol.
To theorycraft, the plan would be to simply become a licensed concealed-carry gun owner. I would simply own a weapon for defensive use. The plan would most definitely not involve any offense, just defense -- but really, the more I think about that the less serious I am about it
edit: As for whether or not he has an account, I cannot find it anymore. I do still have emails from him associated with his previous account, so if anything comes of this, we'll be able to start from there.
I believe it's difficult in the bay area to get a concealed carry permit. I thought you meant you would keep a weapon in your home, which does not require a concealed carry permit. As I said, just make sure you consult knowledgeable people before you go down that road...
On January 11 2013 11:27 FallDownMarigold wrote: About the guns, No :/
I was just being overly dramatic because I think I'm still a bit, I dunno, shaken I suppose. Not outright scared, but I just don't feel at ease. Some guy out there -- who apparently hates me enough to pursue me for literally years -- knows my full name, my phone #, things with which I am/was associated...possibly more. Could probably use a drink, lol.
To theorycraft, the plan would be to simply become a licensed concealed-carry gun owner. I would simply own a weapon for defensive use. The plan would most definitely not involve any offense, just defense -- but really, the more I think about that the less serious I am about it
edit: As for whether or not he has an account, I cannot find it anymore. I do still have emails from him associated with his previous account, so if anything comes of this, we'll be able to start from there.
I believe it's difficult in the bay area to get a concealed carry permit. I thought you meant you would keep a weapon in your home, which does not require a concealed carry permit. As I said, just make sure you consult knowledgeable people before you go down that road...
This is very good advice. I can't believe that less than half an hour ago that idea was actually brewing for a moment in my head. Even just after reading your first post, I realized the thoughtlessness behind what I initially said regarding guns. Definitely no longer toying with that thought. I think I've already calmed down a good deal, meh, still the thought of this crazy person is on my mind
@Torte Yeah :S Apparently some people take it extremely seriously -- that or apparently some people just be crazy. Maybe a bit of both in this particular example. Ebay gives sellers the option to defend their negative reviews -- which the guy did. That isn't enough for him though, evidently
You write blogs rather well for a first timer, as you have just the right amount of self-reference and declarative tone without seeming too "show and tell"-ly.
As to the issue of the Ebay crazy dude, constant vigilance is all I'll suggest until you can definitively say this dude is gone for good. I've had the misfortune of living through a brief period during which I needed to worry about someone threatening myself and my roommates, and during that period my attentiveness diffused two potentially violent confrontations. Stay safe
One doesn't simply buy a gun without the intent of using it. By the act of purchasing a fire arm, you clearly illustrate your non-objection towards using one... It's the first step into a very unpleasant scenario... Regardless of how the encounter goes. Now, look at it this way, once you've acknowledged that you're open to using a fire arm, you've already made half the leap to I'm willing to use it for personal purposes. And while you may not accept that point, look at it from another angle... The act of protecting yourself in another scenario down the road could simply be something that is concocted up by confusion and fear of all this craziness...
Furthermore, once you have this gun, how do you intend to use it? If it's at home you're no more safe than you were originally, and if you carry it on you, first thing... awkward, second... How are you going to have it concealed yet still available at quick draw? The odds of you drawing the weapon from a concealed location when you're under attack by someone who (likely) has more experience than you do in this... I just don't see it.
tl;dr Point 1: Harassment sucks, Point 2: Don't buy a fire arm.
I don't think leaving an appropriate review constitutes fucking with him, though. Had I harassed him with an unwarranted negative review for the sake of trolling, or something equally dumb, I'd understand his reaction better. This however seems to indicate sheer CRAZY, and not justified revenge.
@Eywa, yep fair points on all counts. A little bit after adding that into the thread I realized my foolishness, rashness, and sort of took back what I said. I think it must've been due to still being pretty out of whack-- at the time I wrote the thread I'd just finished meeting with the officer, so all the craziest ideas were freshest in my head. A little ashamed of myself for that one, heh
On January 11 2013 12:10 FallDownMarigold wrote: That's a fair point Shady.
I don't think leaving an appropriate review constitutes fucking with him, though. Had I harassed him with an unwarranted negative review for the sake of trolling, or something equally dumb, I'd understand his reaction better. This however seems to indicate sheer CRAZY, and not justified revenge.
@Eywa, yep fair points on all counts. A little bit after adding that into the thread I realized my foolishness, rashness, and sort of took back what I said. I think it must've been due to still being pretty out of whack-- at the time I wrote the thread I'd just finished meeting with the officer, so all the craziest ideas were freshest in my head. A little ashamed of myself for that one, heh
It's not something to be ashamed of, it's the natural human instinct in a situation like this... Now, this one time, one of my roomates was robbed (this was while I was living with him - So I was there when it happened). 2 Guys, both far bigger than any of the 4 of us in the room with 3 more in their car outside... So, they walk off with whatever they wanted, the 4 of us stood there like bumps on a log all equally stunned as the next (except for the guy watching his anime who didn't even notice the guys come in). In response, my roommate purchased a 3in switchblade... We briefly told him how much good that would do him in another similar scenario, basically, it was a consensus that he'd have it shoved down his own throat, given that they were all much stronger than him. Long story short, I know someone who had the exact same reaction (except he had no idea how to get a gun I take it...). So, don't feel bad about it.
On January 11 2013 12:02 Eywa- wrote: Furthermore, once you have this gun, how do you intend to use it? If it's at home you're no more safe than you were originally,
I doubt he will be attacked, but if was really in danger, the attacker would come to his house since they have his address. As such, it actually does make sense to keep the firearm at home... I doubt there is going to be a private investigator tracking his movements outside of his house.
On January 11 2013 12:02 Eywa- wrote: Furthermore, once you have this gun, how do you intend to use it? If it's at home you're no more safe than you were originally,
I doubt he will be attacked, but if was really in danger, the attacker would come to his house since they have his address. As such, it actually does make sense to keep the firearm at home... I doubt there is going to be a private investigator tracking his movements outside of his house.
Assume he does come to the house, why wouldn't the attacker wait outside at likely hours of departure rather than storm into an unknown environment in a country who's population owns more fire arms than any major military force in the world including their own? The likely availability of a gun in the house would route off any planned hit to the outside (or so one would think).
On January 11 2013 12:02 Eywa- wrote: Furthermore, once you have this gun, how do you intend to use it? If it's at home you're no more safe than you were originally,
I doubt he will be attacked, but if was really in danger, the attacker would come to his house since they have his address. As such, it actually does make sense to keep the firearm at home... I doubt there is going to be a private investigator tracking his movements outside of his house.
Assume he does come to the house, why wouldn't the attacker wait outside at likely hours of departure rather than storm into an unknown environment in a country who's population owns more fire arms than any major military force in the world including their own? The likely availability of a gun in the house would route off any planned hit to the outside (or so one would think).
Maybe if the people in question were reasonable and rational... clearly they aren't.
And no, I don't think it's more likely, in general, that they would stalk the house and wait until the op was away from home.
On January 11 2013 12:02 Eywa- wrote: Furthermore, once you have this gun, how do you intend to use it? If it's at home you're no more safe than you were originally,
I doubt he will be attacked, but if was really in danger, the attacker would come to his house since they have his address. As such, it actually does make sense to keep the firearm at home... I doubt there is going to be a private investigator tracking his movements outside of his house.
Assume he does come to the house, why wouldn't the attacker wait outside at likely hours of departure rather than storm into an unknown environment in a country who's population owns more fire arms than any major military force in the world including their own? The likely availability of a gun in the house would route off any planned hit to the outside (or so one would think).
Maybe if the people in question were reasonable and rational... clearly they aren't.
And no, I don't think it's more likely, in general, that they would stalk the house and wait until the op was away from home.
I think we already covered how to defend against night-time home invasions, burglary, and generalized harassment:
On July 26 2012 15:45 Shady Sands wrote: There are a number of solutions that may provide relief from the nighttime stalking. Please note that this post is purely informative and I do not in any way encourage you to take any of the below actions. I do not live in Sweden so I do not have any idea what the local laws are--highly recommend consulting with a local lawyer before embarking on any of these courses of action. As always with posts of this nature, the actor, not the poster, bears all responsibility for any consequences arising from any techniques bearing either a substantive or superficial resemblance to the ones listed below.
Deterrent/warning/nuisance
Paint dispenser Basically a device that either drops or sprays paint on him, or splats him with a paintball. Good for tagging down the target so you know who is sneaking up on your house at night.
Stink dispenser Same philosophy as the paint device, but with a foul/irritating fluid. Best choices include butyric acid (harmless but smells like rancid butter, obtainable from any chemical company or even your high school chemistry lab.) Alternatively, you could also make a homemade stink solution of ammonia and match-heads--just swirl the match-heads around in ammonia, seal the container, wait two days, and you have a solution of ammonium sulfate, which is what goes into commercial and military stink bombs. Spray/drop/splash your assailant if he intrudes.
Light trap Some other people have already posted about this in the thread: basically a triggering system that turns on a powerful light, like a commercial floodlamp. Best if combined with the noise trap below:
Noise trap Fire up your loudest, most jarring track of music (or annoying noise like an alarm clock) and set it to go off if he gets near.
Caltrops are an antipersonnel weapon made up of two or more sharp nails or spines arranged in such a manner that one of them always points upward from a stable base (for example, a tetrahedron). They cheap and easy to make--all it requires is two long-ish (10cm) nails to make one. So with a box of 500 nails (should be cheap, less than 20 euros), you can make over 250 caltrops and scatter them about your front porch/the grass in your yard. Best idea is to put in the grass or buy a shaggy rug and hide them in there, as they will not be visible. Also remember to spray paint them black or brown so they don't shine in the moonlight. Depending on the thickness of his shoes, the assailant will get a 1-2cm deep wound to the sole of his foot and lose the use of that foot (since the caltrop will be stuck to his shoe), which is usually enough to give you the decisive edge in any physical encounter.
Nail Heads on Carpet Same philosophy as the caltrop, but easier to clean up. Drive nails through the bottom of a rug so that the sharp end sticks up, and superglue or epoxy them in place from the back side. Space them about 5cm apart in a triangular pattern. When you need to dispose of the trap, simply pick up the rug and move it.
Aerosol Flame Trap Basically a trap that incorporates a lighter, an aerosol can, and a triggering device. Assailant triggers lighter and aerosol spray, which sends a 1-meter jet of flame in a set direction for approximately 3-10 seconds (depending on how much fuel is in the spray can). The flame will not be hot enough to set him on fire, but will scare him and cause minor burns.
Mace Canister/CS dispenser/Mustard Gas dispenser Same philosophy as the stink dispenser, but uses irritating/painful chemical agents this time. Mace is commercially obtainable and usually comes in nice spray bottles that you can easily hook up to an automated triggering system. The other two have the advantage of being much more painful than Mace, but also dangerous to yourself as well. Use with care. Your assailant will likely be incapacitated after an encounter like this, and will require medical attention if the chemical amount is high enough.
Potentially Lethal
00 Buckshot Trap You do not need a firearm for this trap to work, although it makes it much easier. If you do have a shotgun, simply wire it to go off when someone triggers a pressure plate or tripwire. If you don't, use a thickened metal pipe and an improvised firing pin. Pipe strength is not critical as the "barrel" only has to withstand one shot. The advantage of this is that spread of 00 Buckshot out of a 15-20 cm unchoked barrel is about the size of a fist at 10 meters, which means that you can place this trap well out of sight of an entryway, or it can guard all the windows and doors along an entire wall as opposed to just one point of egress. If you want to tone down the lethality, substitute a lighter load of shot (or beanbag shot) for the device, and/or place at knee/ankle level to disable movement.
Spring-loaded axe/knife/machete Basically a device that swings a blade down a predetermined path upon triggering. The ideal path for a thrusting movement is usually upwards through the floorboards or downwards from the ceiling at a slight (20 degree-40 degree) angle. The ideal path for a swinging movement is either at abdomen height or neck height (lethal), or from behind towards the back of the knee/hamstring (disabling).
FFV 013 / VP 88 / MON-50 These are the Swedish, Finnish, and Russian versions of the American M18 Claymore directional landmine. Since you live in Sweden, these devices should be the versions that are available if you have the right connections in your local community. Triggering systems include tripwires and infrared laser beam triggers (basically one of the beams that goes across the bottom of a garage door.)
On July 26 2012 16:18 Shady Sands wrote: I forgot to add the last one, should go under painful but non-lethal:
Get a Dog Get a large attack dog--bonus points if you can find a dog with a vocal cord injury, as they will not be able to bark as loudly (or at all), making sure that your dog retains the element of surprise. And dogs are cute and cuddly too, and if you adopt an injured pet, you've just saved an innocent animal from being put down.
On July 26 2012 17:51 Shady Sands wrote: Under the Potentially Lethal option set, here is another method:
Grenade In A Can A hand grenade works like this: you pull the firing pin, then throw it, at which a spring-loaded handle held flush to the grenade body is set free when the grenade leaves your hand, arming the fuse and beginning the countdown. So the grenade in a can works by pulling the firing pin but jamming the grenade into a steel can. Then you place the can down on the ground and weight it down with rocks (or glue it to the ground). Then you wrap a thin, clear string (piano wire or nylon fishing lines work the best here) around the grenade and thread the other end around a vertical object to form a tripwire. When the wire is pulled, the grenade will pop out of the can and arm itself, and explode; if you can get the variants with a zero-delay fuse (an instantaneous fuse) then the grenade will explode without warning.
The best grenade to use for this is the Soviet RGD-5, as it is can-sized, cheap, and comes with a zero-delay UZRGM fuse. The grenade itself is usually available in bulk for about $5 (or 4 euros) per unit. It has a guaranteed lethal radius of 3 meters and can inflict fragmentation injuries/shatter glass out to 15 meters, so do not plant one of these close to a window or door. As always, paint the device matte black or brown for low-visibility in nighttime conditions.
If I were you, I would take him seriously. If he can keep his hate for you burning bright for YEARS as well as put forth a fair amount of effort in harassing you, I really wouldn't put it past him to follow up on his word to pay you a visit. Having strong negative emotions like that for years is incredibly difficult and rare for most people. Only a few really ever manage to incite that much raw hate in most people. He managed to pull it off with only a fucking negative review on Ebay.
This guy has issues.
In other news, Shady Sands is officially scary as fuck.
I think we already covered how to defend against night-time home invasions, burglary, and generalized harassment:
On July 26 2012 15:45 Shady Sands wrote: There are a number of solutions that may provide relief from the nighttime stalking. Please note that this post is purely informative and I do not in any way encourage you to take any of the below actions. I do not live in Sweden so I do not have any idea what the local laws are--highly recommend consulting with a local lawyer before embarking on any of these courses of action. As always with posts of this nature, the actor, not the poster, bears all responsibility for any consequences arising from any techniques bearing either a substantive or superficial resemblance to the ones listed below.
Deterrent/warning/nuisance
Paint dispenser Basically a device that either drops or sprays paint on him, or splats him with a paintball. Good for tagging down the target so you know who is sneaking up on your house at night.
Stink dispenser Same philosophy as the paint device, but with a foul/irritating fluid. Best choices include butyric acid (harmless but smells like rancid butter, obtainable from any chemical company or even your high school chemistry lab.) Alternatively, you could also make a homemade stink solution of ammonia and match-heads--just swirl the match-heads around in ammonia, seal the container, wait two days, and you have a solution of ammonium sulfate, which is what goes into commercial and military stink bombs. Spray/drop/splash your assailant if he intrudes.
Light trap Some other people have already posted about this in the thread: basically a triggering system that turns on a powerful light, like a commercial floodlamp. Best if combined with the noise trap below:
Noise trap Fire up your loudest, most jarring track of music (or annoying noise like an alarm clock) and set it to go off if he gets near.
Caltrops are an antipersonnel weapon made up of two or more sharp nails or spines arranged in such a manner that one of them always points upward from a stable base (for example, a tetrahedron). They cheap and easy to make--all it requires is two long-ish (10cm) nails to make one. So with a box of 500 nails (should be cheap, less than 20 euros), you can make over 250 caltrops and scatter them about your front porch/the grass in your yard. Best idea is to put in the grass or buy a shaggy rug and hide them in there, as they will not be visible. Also remember to spray paint them black or brown so they don't shine in the moonlight. Depending on the thickness of his shoes, the assailant will get a 1-2cm deep wound to the sole of his foot and lose the use of that foot (since the caltrop will be stuck to his shoe), which is usually enough to give you the decisive edge in any physical encounter.
Nail Heads on Carpet Same philosophy as the caltrop, but easier to clean up. Drive nails through the bottom of a rug so that the sharp end sticks up, and superglue or epoxy them in place from the back side. Space them about 5cm apart in a triangular pattern. When you need to dispose of the trap, simply pick up the rug and move it.
Aerosol Flame Trap Basically a trap that incorporates a lighter, an aerosol can, and a triggering device. Assailant triggers lighter and aerosol spray, which sends a 1-meter jet of flame in a set direction for approximately 3-10 seconds (depending on how much fuel is in the spray can). The flame will not be hot enough to set him on fire, but will scare him and cause minor burns.
Mace Canister/CS dispenser/Mustard Gas dispenser Same philosophy as the stink dispenser, but uses irritating/painful chemical agents this time. Mace is commercially obtainable and usually comes in nice spray bottles that you can easily hook up to an automated triggering system. The other two have the advantage of being much more painful than Mace, but also dangerous to yourself as well. Use with care. Your assailant will likely be incapacitated after an encounter like this, and will require medical attention if the chemical amount is high enough.
Potentially Lethal
00 Buckshot Trap You do not need a firearm for this trap to work, although it makes it much easier. If you do have a shotgun, simply wire it to go off when someone triggers a pressure plate or tripwire. If you don't, use a thickened metal pipe and an improvised firing pin. Pipe strength is not critical as the "barrel" only has to withstand one shot. The advantage of this is that spread of 00 Buckshot out of a 15-20 cm unchoked barrel is about the size of a fist at 10 meters, which means that you can place this trap well out of sight of an entryway, or it can guard all the windows and doors along an entire wall as opposed to just one point of egress. If you want to tone down the lethality, substitute a lighter load of shot (or beanbag shot) for the device, and/or place at knee/ankle level to disable movement.
Spring-loaded axe/knife/machete Basically a device that swings a blade down a predetermined path upon triggering. The ideal path for a thrusting movement is usually upwards through the floorboards or downwards from the ceiling at a slight (20 degree-40 degree) angle. The ideal path for a swinging movement is either at abdomen height or neck height (lethal), or from behind towards the back of the knee/hamstring (disabling).
FFV 013 / VP 88 / MON-50 These are the Swedish, Finnish, and Russian versions of the American M18 Claymore directional landmine. Since you live in Sweden, these devices should be the versions that are available if you have the right connections in your local community. Triggering systems include tripwires and infrared laser beam triggers (basically one of the beams that goes across the bottom of a garage door.)
On July 26 2012 16:18 Shady Sands wrote: I forgot to add the last one, should go under painful but non-lethal:
Get a Dog Get a large attack dog--bonus points if you can find a dog with a vocal cord injury, as they will not be able to bark as loudly (or at all), making sure that your dog retains the element of surprise. And dogs are cute and cuddly too, and if you adopt an injured pet, you've just saved an innocent animal from being put down.
On July 26 2012 17:51 Shady Sands wrote: Under the Potentially Lethal option set, here is another method:
Grenade In A Can A hand grenade works like this: you pull the firing pin, then throw it, at which a spring-loaded handle held flush to the grenade body is set free when the grenade leaves your hand, arming the fuse and beginning the countdown. So the grenade in a can works by pulling the firing pin but jamming the grenade into a steel can. Then you place the can down on the ground and weight it down with rocks (or glue it to the ground). Then you wrap a thin, clear string (piano wire or nylon fishing lines work the best here) around the grenade and thread the other end around a vertical object to form a tripwire. When the wire is pulled, the grenade will pop out of the can and arm itself, and explode; if you can get the variants with a zero-delay fuse (an instantaneous fuse) then the grenade will explode without warning.
The best grenade to use for this is the Soviet RGD-5, as it is can-sized, cheap, and comes with a zero-delay UZRGM fuse. The grenade itself is usually available in bulk for about $5 (or 4 euros) per unit. It has a guaranteed lethal radius of 3 meters and can inflict fragmentation injuries/shatter glass out to 15 meters, so do not plant one of these close to a window or door. As always, paint the device matte black or brown for low-visibility in nighttime conditions.
You wrote a guide for a grenade in a bottle? Really? Remind me not to fuck with you.
On January 11 2013 13:33 AnachronisticAnarchy wrote: If I were you, I would take him seriously. If he can keep his hate for you burning bright for YEARS as well as put forth a fair amount of effort in harassing you, I really wouldn't put it past him to follow up on his word to pay you a visit. Having strong negative emotions like that for years is incredibly difficult and rare for most people. Only a few really ever manage to incite that much raw hate in most people. He managed to pull it off with only a fucking negative review on Ebay.
This guy has issues.
Clearly, if this guy is that disturbed, only a superior display of force will defeat him. I'd recommend the 00 buckshot trap combined with nail heads embedded in the carpet. All items, including the shotgun, should be easily available at your local Wal-Mart
On January 11 2013 13:33 AnachronisticAnarchy wrote: If I were you, I would take him seriously. If he can keep his hate for you burning bright for YEARS as well as put forth a fair amount of effort in harassing you, I really wouldn't put it past him to follow up on his word to pay you a visit. Having strong negative emotions like that for years is incredibly difficult and rare for most people. Only a few really ever manage to incite that much raw hate in most people. He managed to pull it off with only a fucking negative review on Ebay.
This guy has issues.
Clearly, if this guy is that disturbed, only a superior display of force will defeat him. I'd recommend the 00 buckshot trap combined with nail heads embedded in the carpet. All items, including the shotgun, should be easily available at your local Wal-Mart
Correct me if i'm wrong but isn't it illegal in the US to lay traps on your property with the intent to injure/kill trespassers? Could end up with your crazy stalker getting injured and then suing your pants off.
On January 11 2013 13:33 AnachronisticAnarchy wrote: If I were you, I would take him seriously. If he can keep his hate for you burning bright for YEARS as well as put forth a fair amount of effort in harassing you, I really wouldn't put it past him to follow up on his word to pay you a visit. Having strong negative emotions like that for years is incredibly difficult and rare for most people. Only a few really ever manage to incite that much raw hate in most people. He managed to pull it off with only a fucking negative review on Ebay.
This guy has issues.
Clearly, if this guy is that disturbed, only a superior display of force will defeat him. I'd recommend the 00 buckshot trap combined with nail heads embedded in the carpet. All items, including the shotgun, should be easily available at your local Wal-Mart
Basically, IF you are going to get a gun, don't get a pistol, get a shotgun. They have enormous stopping power. You won't get attacked on the streets, this guy isn't the CIA, he isn't tracking you. If you feel the scare of being robbed, the peace of mind a gun can give you (especially something like a shotgun) is invaluable. You don't have to use a shotgun to have one, seriously, the fact that you own one at all, and unloading a single blank (not even a bulltet) will scare the shit out of any intruder. That said, I'm not a big gun guy, and I certainly don't think guns are the only answer, I feel the Eywa's answer is a bit too extreme on the anti-gun end, but it is a definitely legitimate answer. This guy doesn't have the balls to attack you. He has harrassed you via phone, he has harrassed you via internet, but he has a whopping 0 on the ballsack-o-meter. He won't come and get you IRL, thats why he did this over the phone and internet, there is a wall protecting HIM too in that case. Now back to the guns; I live in a city that has a terribly shit crime rate and has been in the top 5 worst cities for violent crime for a LONG time depending on what survey you use. Of that violent crime, homocide and aggravated assault are the most common. Police here say the 2 best things you can do, if you are afraid, are to A) buy a big dog, and they don't mean like a labrador retriever, by this they mean something like a wolf-hound a dobermann-pinscher or if you can find one, an actual husky-wolf mix breed (they are gorgeous and very easily trained btw) and B) get a shotgun, and I don't mean like some crazy sawed off thing, I mean like a remington or an easy to use, high stopping power rifle with buckshot. No one will attack you with those two. That said, that is over the top for this guy who will never touch you IRL.
On January 11 2013 12:02 Eywa- wrote: Furthermore, once you have this gun, how do you intend to use it? If it's at home you're no more safe than you were originally,
I doubt he will be attacked, but if was really in danger, the attacker would come to his house since they have his address. As such, it actually does make sense to keep the firearm at home... I doubt there is going to be a private investigator tracking his movements outside of his house.
Assume he does come to the house, why wouldn't the attacker wait outside at likely hours of departure rather than storm into an unknown environment in a country who's population owns more fire arms than any major military force in the world including their own? The likely availability of a gun in the house would route off any planned hit to the outside (or so one would think).
Maybe if the people in question were reasonable and rational... clearly they aren't.
And no, I don't think it's more likely, in general, that they would stalk the house and wait until the op was away from home.
I think we already covered how to defend against night-time home invasions, burglary, and generalized harassment:
On July 26 2012 15:45 Shady Sands wrote: There are a number of solutions that may provide relief from the nighttime stalking. Please note that this post is purely informative and I do not in any way encourage you to take any of the below actions. I do not live in Sweden so I do not have any idea what the local laws are--highly recommend consulting with a local lawyer before embarking on any of these courses of action. As always with posts of this nature, the actor, not the poster, bears all responsibility for any consequences arising from any techniques bearing either a substantive or superficial resemblance to the ones listed below.
Deterrent/warning/nuisance
Paint dispenser Basically a device that either drops or sprays paint on him, or splats him with a paintball. Good for tagging down the target so you know who is sneaking up on your house at night.
Stink dispenser Same philosophy as the paint device, but with a foul/irritating fluid. Best choices include butyric acid (harmless but smells like rancid butter, obtainable from any chemical company or even your high school chemistry lab.) Alternatively, you could also make a homemade stink solution of ammonia and match-heads--just swirl the match-heads around in ammonia, seal the container, wait two days, and you have a solution of ammonium sulfate, which is what goes into commercial and military stink bombs. Spray/drop/splash your assailant if he intrudes.
Light trap Some other people have already posted about this in the thread: basically a triggering system that turns on a powerful light, like a commercial floodlamp. Best if combined with the noise trap below:
Noise trap Fire up your loudest, most jarring track of music (or annoying noise like an alarm clock) and set it to go off if he gets near.
Caltrops are an antipersonnel weapon made up of two or more sharp nails or spines arranged in such a manner that one of them always points upward from a stable base (for example, a tetrahedron). They cheap and easy to make--all it requires is two long-ish (10cm) nails to make one. So with a box of 500 nails (should be cheap, less than 20 euros), you can make over 250 caltrops and scatter them about your front porch/the grass in your yard. Best idea is to put in the grass or buy a shaggy rug and hide them in there, as they will not be visible. Also remember to spray paint them black or brown so they don't shine in the moonlight. Depending on the thickness of his shoes, the assailant will get a 1-2cm deep wound to the sole of his foot and lose the use of that foot (since the caltrop will be stuck to his shoe), which is usually enough to give you the decisive edge in any physical encounter.
Nail Heads on Carpet Same philosophy as the caltrop, but easier to clean up. Drive nails through the bottom of a rug so that the sharp end sticks up, and superglue or epoxy them in place from the back side. Space them about 5cm apart in a triangular pattern. When you need to dispose of the trap, simply pick up the rug and move it.
Aerosol Flame Trap Basically a trap that incorporates a lighter, an aerosol can, and a triggering device. Assailant triggers lighter and aerosol spray, which sends a 1-meter jet of flame in a set direction for approximately 3-10 seconds (depending on how much fuel is in the spray can). The flame will not be hot enough to set him on fire, but will scare him and cause minor burns.
Mace Canister/CS dispenser/Mustard Gas dispenser Same philosophy as the stink dispenser, but uses irritating/painful chemical agents this time. Mace is commercially obtainable and usually comes in nice spray bottles that you can easily hook up to an automated triggering system. The other two have the advantage of being much more painful than Mace, but also dangerous to yourself as well. Use with care. Your assailant will likely be incapacitated after an encounter like this, and will require medical attention if the chemical amount is high enough.
Potentially Lethal
00 Buckshot Trap You do not need a firearm for this trap to work, although it makes it much easier. If you do have a shotgun, simply wire it to go off when someone triggers a pressure plate or tripwire. If you don't, use a thickened metal pipe and an improvised firing pin. Pipe strength is not critical as the "barrel" only has to withstand one shot. The advantage of this is that spread of 00 Buckshot out of a 15-20 cm unchoked barrel is about the size of a fist at 10 meters, which means that you can place this trap well out of sight of an entryway, or it can guard all the windows and doors along an entire wall as opposed to just one point of egress. If you want to tone down the lethality, substitute a lighter load of shot (or beanbag shot) for the device, and/or place at knee/ankle level to disable movement.
Spring-loaded axe/knife/machete Basically a device that swings a blade down a predetermined path upon triggering. The ideal path for a thrusting movement is usually upwards through the floorboards or downwards from the ceiling at a slight (20 degree-40 degree) angle. The ideal path for a swinging movement is either at abdomen height or neck height (lethal), or from behind towards the back of the knee/hamstring (disabling).
FFV 013 / VP 88 / MON-50 These are the Swedish, Finnish, and Russian versions of the American M18 Claymore directional landmine. Since you live in Sweden, these devices should be the versions that are available if you have the right connections in your local community. Triggering systems include tripwires and infrared laser beam triggers (basically one of the beams that goes across the bottom of a garage door.)
On July 26 2012 16:18 Shady Sands wrote: I forgot to add the last one, should go under painful but non-lethal:
Get a Dog Get a large attack dog--bonus points if you can find a dog with a vocal cord injury, as they will not be able to bark as loudly (or at all), making sure that your dog retains the element of surprise. And dogs are cute and cuddly too, and if you adopt an injured pet, you've just saved an innocent animal from being put down.
On July 26 2012 17:51 Shady Sands wrote: Under the Potentially Lethal option set, here is another method:
Grenade In A Can A hand grenade works like this: you pull the firing pin, then throw it, at which a spring-loaded handle held flush to the grenade body is set free when the grenade leaves your hand, arming the fuse and beginning the countdown. So the grenade in a can works by pulling the firing pin but jamming the grenade into a steel can. Then you place the can down on the ground and weight it down with rocks (or glue it to the ground). Then you wrap a thin, clear string (piano wire or nylon fishing lines work the best here) around the grenade and thread the other end around a vertical object to form a tripwire. When the wire is pulled, the grenade will pop out of the can and arm itself, and explode; if you can get the variants with a zero-delay fuse (an instantaneous fuse) then the grenade will explode without warning.
The best grenade to use for this is the Soviet RGD-5, as it is can-sized, cheap, and comes with a zero-delay UZRGM fuse. The grenade itself is usually available in bulk for about $5 (or 4 euros) per unit. It has a guaranteed lethal radius of 3 meters and can inflict fragmentation injuries/shatter glass out to 15 meters, so do not plant one of these close to a window or door. As always, paint the device matte black or brown for low-visibility in nighttime conditions.
What the hell? You will goto jail forever is you make some of these things. You crazy.
On January 11 2013 14:02 ZeaL. wrote: Correct me if i'm wrong but isn't it illegal in the US to lay traps on your property with the intent to injure/kill trespassers? Could end up with your crazy stalker getting injured and then suing your pants off.
its state by state law, the state i live in says that as long its not some "automatic" thing like the shotgun tied to a door or something to that effect it is legal(IE caltrops are legal, barbed wire is legal, etc.) a grenade in a can is not haha , btw if you want to get some good booby trap ideas just watch home alone, thats where I learned most of my shit(granted you have to do a bit of background research but if I had ~2 hours minimum I could easily fashion plenty of booby traps to stop people from entering or advancing in my house with just every day common house hold items, such as making mustard gas bombs )
wow, I never realized that negative reviews could cause that many problems before. I've only had good experiences on ebay and my worst one, the guy sold an item to me, got the money but he resold it to another individual but everything worked out in the end and I didn't hear back from the guy at all.
You should definitely keep an eye out though. I mean, if the guy can harbor this hate for several years, then clearly you should be on the lookout just incase. Hope things work out for you!
Thanks for the replies, definitely cheered me up. As for the right wing comment, yeah that was tasteless, I have pretty moderate views and I just meant to clarify that I'm not someone who is hardcore all about guns no matter what. Just a poorly expressed thought altogether really, shouldn't have included it!
God Shady Sands how do you even come up with it ? Are you in military or in sexurity ? Claymore ? I thought those things would blow up the guy intirely no ?
To Op it's really not fun to be harassed by phoned. Happened to me once but it stoped after a few weeks so i don't know what to tell you. About the gun thing... In my country it is not really the mentality and it's really dificult to own a gun so i couldn't tell you what i think about it because i think my opinion is not really valid.
This is why I sacked off ebay, I know 'people like this exist' and 'welcome to the internet' but when I was 16 I bought an amp from ebay for £80, it didnt work and was quite clearly damaged. The advert said no damage and working.
I sent the guy an email and he basically threatened me and warned me to stop. I was literally frightened and gave up persuing it. £80 is a lot of money to a 16 year old.
From that moment on I have avoided ebay, unlucky op, you have a moron on your hands.
Person 1 "Hey ShadySands, fancy a beer?" Shady "Sure man, come over, doors unlocked" Person 1 "er...... maybe some other time"
I'm sorry to hear you might have a nutcase on your coattails. Though you might've said that you're considering purchasing a firearm jokingly, it is neither crazy nor an overreaction to start thinking about self-defence. Always prepare for the worst, and hope for the best (I just realised how incredibly cliched that was). And self-defence isn't just about owning a gun, or a stun-gun, or a pepper spray. It's about being aware that shit can happen at any time or any place. Just take precautions to make sure you're not leaving yourself blatantly vulnerable. Avoid traveling by yourself at night, and use well populated/lit routes if you must. Always ask/check who's at your door before opening it - stuff like that. It might seem unnecessary or a little on the paranoia side, but life has a tendency of throwing curve-balls at you, especially at your nuts when you just happen to have your pants down.
As for this particular case, this guy might be a serious wacko or just a really vindictive guy who gets kicks out of harassing people. Impossible to know which. And you might very well not be the first person he's done this to. It might be worth looking up other accounts who gave this guy a negative feedback, and checking whether they've experience something similar. Anyways, just make sure the police have spoken to him, and if it stops after they warn him, you should be ok. If it persists or gets worse, make sure you take detailed records of how he's harassing you and take it to the cops.
So the officer who met with me called him but was unable to get in touch with him. The officer left him a message stating that he is advised to stop calling me/contacting me in any way, and that if he does not heed the advice it's possible he could become the subject of a criminal investigation.
I feel like if I was in that guy's position, assuming he's not crazy but rather just really vindictive and irrationally upset over long periods of time, I'd take that as a fair warning to cut the shit. Then again, if he's truly crazy, it could exacerbate things, lol.
Ah well! Figured I'd at least wrap it up with a confirmation that the officer did leave him a message (or at least whoever that phone number belonged to, which for the record, wasn't even blocked)
Read a pretty convincing article promoting getting a baseball bat for home defense over a gun, especially for an untrained person. Can't find it right now though.
On January 11 2013 23:02 FFW_Rude wrote: God Shady Sands how do you even come up with it ? Are you in military or in sexurity ? Claymore ? I thought those things would blow up the guy intirely no ?
Haha, nah, I'm not in the military or security. I have a friend who's an FBI field agent, he talks about this stuff a lot.
As for blowing up a guy entirely--that's possible if the Claymore is detonated from a close enough distance (< 5m away). If the target is further away than that, they won't be disintegrated by the blast wave, but they'll be cut open by dozens of metal ball bearings flying at between 800 and 1300 m/s, kind of like a full-body shotgun blast.
On January 12 2013 11:59 Jonoman92 wrote: Read a pretty convincing article promoting getting a baseball bat for home defense over a gun, especially for an untrained person. Can't find it right now though.
Yes I think having a baseball bat in the bedroom is a great idea... it can be most effective for an untrained person, but blends right in to a normal household. Someone who encounters your baseball bat in your bedroom won't make a big deal out of it, and an intruder who gets the jump on you won't freak out when he sees a baseball bat leaning against the wall. If he saw a gun sitting next to you, even if you didn't plan to use it, he might freak out and shoot you!
On January 11 2013 23:02 FFW_Rude wrote: God Shady Sands how do you even come up with it ? Are you in military or in sexurity ? Claymore ? I thought those things would blow up the guy intirely no ?
Haha, nah, I'm not in the military or security. I have a friend who's an FBI field agent, he talks about this stuff a lot.
As for blowing up a guy entirely--that's possible if the Claymore is detonated from a close enough distance (< 5m away). If the target is further away than that, they won't be disintegrated by the blast wave, but they'll be cut open by dozens of metal ball bearings flying at between 800 and 1300 m/s, kind of like a full-body shotgun blast.
That's what i thought But now that i know that you will be my friend for all my life and i will never say something bad to you
You never had a gun nor gun/shooting training I guess? A gun with no experience to it probably harms yourself more than him. You will a) hurt yourself b) get your gun taken from you and be shot with it.
In intense stress situations you will shake, cannot focus correctly and you probably won't even able to pull the gun outright... not even mentioning shooting him. Best of luck, most of the time people like that just want to scare you anyways.
EPT
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