What should a free man do?

Hush, little baby; don't say a word

As if there isn't enough bad news to go around, we can read here about a woman who had a 5-year old child with her when she detonated her bomb ~ on purpose ~ in a crowd of other women who were waiting in line to get food.  Evidently she tugged her child along with her.  So, looks like this bitch really had no regard whatsoever for human life of any age, gender, or religion.   I guess the child was hers, but no matter who the child belonged to, this is just another facet of the savagery that is too often committed in the name of Islam.

By their books and their preachers they are told to kill those of us who don't and won't believe in their prophet and their god, and that there are no innocents except those who embrace and live Islam. To many, that makes it open season on anyone who isn't Muslim... or Muslim enough.

To add MOGAS to that fire, read here about how The One is letting terrorist-trained Somalis into the US, with no regard at all for their potential for indiscriminate murder and mayhem~ as though the training they got at summer terror camp was in basket-weaving and badminton.

But it really isn't necessary to import terrorists, is it? There are several thousand of 'em inside our walls already, as you can see here ~ men and women. And, as we see here, they're training their kids to be killers.  If you think they're just doing that in Iraq, you're... misguided. And you can't afford to be misguided and ignorant about this any longer.

So, what might a woman wearing a bomb look like? We're going to assume she's covered head to foot with what looks like a shroud, maybe even wearing something that looks like an abaya.  But I'm not sayin' all bombers are Muslim, or that all Muslims are bombers.  I'm just sayin'.

Let's imagine you're out minding your own bidness and you see a woman you've never seen before, so you have no frame of reference as to what might be unusual about her in a way that makes her suspicious.  Things that might catch your attention:  She's walking slowly, looking over her shoulder now and then, maybe muttering something as she shuffles along that sounds like, Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un (Verily we belong to Allah and truly to him shall we return).  This is a common Muslim prayer said by those who know they're nearing death.  A bit far-fetched, but maybe she's got a compass of some sort and seems overly concerned with facing toward Mecca so she can pray her last prayer towards the Kaaba.  Maybe she's carrying a backpack that looks a bit too bulky/heavy to be holding normal, day-to-day stuff ~ maybe there are oily stains on it that could be residue from the manufacture and placement of the IED in the pack.  Maybe you'll notice what appear to be wires going from the pack or her bag/bundle to her hand ~ not elastic cords: wires or cables that appear to be capable of carrying an electrical charge.  Maybe she's got a small metal/plastic device in her hand that doesn't look like a cell phone or such device and it has a wire going up her sleeve or toward her waist.

In the case of the woman in the above-linked story, the woman stood out only because she began nudging her way through the crowd, which had been waiting patiently for the food that the police were handing out.

So much for the compassion of Islam, huh?

Okay, now; let's say you're out, still minding your own bidness, when you notice a woman you have seen before.  Now you have a frame of reference by which you can spot differences in her dress a/o demeanor.  Maybe she's now suspicious because you notice she's suddenly very pregnant, when she wasn't just the day before.  Of course, this condition would be easier to spot if she was wearing western clothing ~ which is why she probably won't be wearing a halter-top and daisy-dukes.  Maybe you've seen her walking around in the past and she's always seemed calm ~ though moving with purpose between A and B ~ but now she's walking much more slowly, looking around as she moves along her way as if she's trying to find someone. She might be looking for police or security or her handler, the one who'll remotely detonate the bomb she's wearing.  Perhaps her head hangs a bit, maybe she mutters something to herself as she walks, La ilaha illa-Allah (there is no god but Allah), another common near-death prayer for Muslims. Maybe she's carrying a backpack you've never seen her with before.

For either of these situations, whether you've seen her befor or not, there needs to be more than just one indicator to trigger your suspicions. Just  one indicator is probably not enough.

So, what to do.  As I've written previously here and here, it's probably best to move away from the bomber, to cover, while letting other people in the area know what you see so they can move to cover or get down, just like you.

Advice to shoot homicide bombers in the head comes from the IACP, the International Association of Chiefs of Police.  Other advice spun from their work suggests that, since most people aren't going to practice that much and the stress during an actual incident will be sky-high compared to any training session, even the most confident shooter stands a good chance of missing the head.  That leaves a pissed-off bomber, seems to me.

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

You need to decide now if you'll shoot a bomber if the necessity arises. You won't have time to go through all the moral angles then.  Whatever you decide's alright with me. If you decide you'll shoot in a situation like that, then you need to practice head shots. A lot.  Know your gun ~ where it hits at different distances and with what ammo. If you're confident that you can take out a bomber with a head-shot, remember it'll probably be best to shoot for the area of the nasal cavity or the ear canal or the brain stem.  This one sorta brings the whole concept together.  Actually the easiest target to remember and get to might turn out to be an old sniper stand-by: the eye. Put the muzzle of your gun against whichever bad-guy eye you can and put a couple rounds into his brain. Game over.

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

There is a lot of professional opinion that you'll have to be within contact distance ~ near enough to the bad-guy to touch him with the muzzle of your gun ~ to get off a for-sure shot.  I agree. So, if you're within contact distance of a person you reasonably suspect has a bomb he's about to detonate and you've decided in advance that you'll shoot in such a scenario and you've trained and are prepared, then quickly but calmly draw your weapon and put at least two bullets into the head/brain area depicted above. 

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

If you're not in contact distance, you still have options... if you decide. It's a normal reaction to put your hands out to break your fall when you suddenly find yourself being pushed or dragged to the ground, so there's no reason to think a terrorist wouldn't do the same thing.  With that in mind, you might have a couple seconds to tackle and shoot a bomber. If you're not within contact distance of the bad-guy but are within lunging distance ~ less than 6' ~ an apt option might be to tackle the bomber with your weak arm around his neck, like steer-rasslin' cowboys do, and simultaneously put your gun muzzle against one of his eyes and then quickly put two rounds in his head.  If the bomber isn't looking your way, you might be able to quietly rush ~ maybe from even as far away as Tueller Drill distance... 21'  ~ and get him on the ground long enough to put a couple in his head. You've got about 2 seconds, 3 max, to pull this one off, if you want to give it a try. 

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

Can you get exploded along with him even if you do get off your two rounds?  Sure.  Can you shoot yourself with a bullet that passes through him, into you? Absolutely. Hey, you wanna live forever? Juuuust kidding.

Prepare mentally. If you see a situation develop that to you looks reasonably like a guy or girl about to blow people up, AND THERE ARE NO COPS IN THE AREA TO DO ANYTHING, then... carry out your decision, whatever it was.

Though the Bobbies in this story ended up shooting an innocent man, their tactics were about the only thing they could do given the information known to them at the time: they grabbed the guy and threw him to the ground, pinning his arms and legs ~ and then they shot him multiple times in the head.  Some preliminary info here and here on what were the totality of circumstances on the scene that morning.  And, more detail here on the subsequent findings of the British court. His death is a tragedy, but the court found that no prosecution of the officers involved was warranted based on the evidence available.

You do the legal and moral research and make up your mind as to what you'll do in a bomber situation. And, if the totality of circumstances lead you to believe you're looking at someone about to detonate a bomb he or she is wearing or clearly has direct control over and you decide to tackle and shoot, I hope it turns out well for you. Sincerely.

But remember:

You should never try any of these moves if law enforcement officers are on scene and actively involved in the scenario.

Things that go BOOM in the night

Well, here we go again.  Seems you can't even be safe from attacks in a major hotel.

Here is more detail gathered after the blast.

We can't suppose and hope this type of attack will only be perpetrated, um... elsewhere.  We must understand that there are many men and women already here in the US and other parts of the West who believe all the same things the Marriott bombers believe.  Some of those many are perfectly willing to kill as many of us as possible, whether we're "officials" or just a simple family on vacation.

Take a look here if you think the threat's over.  If you think it cannot reach out and touch you, then you're sadly mistaken and may be part of the problem.

If you have some level of belief that something as horrible as this hotel attack can be planned and carried out at a place and time you just so happen to be, here are some things you might do to minimize your risk:

• When you're making reservations or at check-in, remember the safest floors are 2 through 7
• Floor 2 since it's usually too high for bad guys to jump up to from the ground, and Floor 7 because it's not out of reach of most fire equipment
• If you’re visiting a high-risk country, try to get a room on the highest floor to minimize your danger of being hurt in a bomb blast 

Yes, there were some people who jumped from the Marriott hotel to their deaths because they thought they couldn't get out.  But that was then and there.  I don't know why they jumped... neither do you.  Maybe they didn't have a plan.  You do.

Here are some thoughts...

• After check-in, locate the fire and evacuation plans posted in the halls
• If you can't find any, ask the front desk or concierge for a copy or directions
• Pace off the distance between your room door and the nearest exit in case smoke from a fire obscures your vision
• Use exterior side doors that allow hall/stair access to/from your room 
• Don't go to the lobby unless it's necessary
• If you're in the lobby, stay away from large windows, interior or exterior, and mirrors which may be near or above you, since they could become a source of dangerous secondary debris
• If you see an attack developing and can't get away, duck and cover as necessary and available. If cover is not available, lay flat on the ground
• Don’t run to look at the explosion but move quickly away from the sound since terrorists often set off a first explosion and then detonate a second bomb once a crowd and emergency workers have arrived
• Stay away from vehicles and trash cans in the area of the blast ~ avoid anything large enough to conceal a bomb

In the 2002 Bali bombing where Islamist savages set off a bomb that killed over 200 people, the first explosion was from a small bomb, perhaps a hand grenade; carried by a "suicide bomber" and detonated inside the club. People fled out the main entrance, since it was the largest, most obvious route. Once many people had fled the club and were outside, the second much larger bomb was detonated. In a scenario such as this, with a small bomb detonated inside, it may be advisable to leave the building by a rear or side exit door. Move away from the location of the blast as soon as debris has stopped falling. If you witnessed the blast tell law enforcement what you saw ASAP.

If a bomb is detonated and the hotel is damaged and you can move:

• Use a flashlight so you don’t bump into things, and cause stuff to drop into your head
• Do not use matches, candles or cigarette lighters to find or make your way ~ gas lines may have been damaged in the blast and your flames may cause another explosion
• Cover your mouth with mask or cloth to protect yourself from dust and harmful particulate matter
• If trapped in debris, tap on walls, the floor and/or pipes so the rescuers can hear you
• Use a whistle to signal rescuers because it makes a more piercing sound ~ shout only as a last resort because you may inhale some nasty stuff as you prepare to holler
• If you're not injured a/o trapped and can help, do not try to rescue others unless you are trained in rescue techniques
• Make a note of where the injured a/o trapped are and assure them you will send help
• In certain circumstances it may be okay for you to wait for trained rescue workers and give whatever First Aid you can to the injured

Nightmares can come true, it can happen to you.  So have a general plan, remember it, practice it.  Follow it as much as possible.

Live, unerschrocken

Coming soon to a restaurant near you

Or a shopping centre.

You don't think so?  Well, I hope you're right.

What am I getting on about?  This. 

Update on that story here; with a crisp salute to Robert at JW.

Remember this song?  Actually a really nice, inspiring piece of art.  The last line; Britons never, never, never shall be slaves, very patriotic 'n all that, eh?  Looks like somebody forgot to tell the knucklehead in our story all about loyalty and love of country and compassion for your fellowman and how he doesn't get to make slaves of any freakin' body, just because he decided to become one.   

Or maybe his conversion stripped all the niceness away.  That would be my bet.

Some quick points, based on a future similar event here in the US:

If some dope detonates a device in the latrine, by accident or on purpose, get down and move out of the AO quickly and quietly.  The conversation you may have been having should immediately go like this: WTF was that?  Let's not wait around to see.  The back door's over there.  Follow me. 

If you can't remember all that, just say Follow me.  Know what you're doing and lead the way.

Don't wait for someone to call the cops.  And if someone does call the cops, don't wait for them to show up.  Get out.  Try to get out the back or side doors, avoiding the main entry.  Then call the cops.

Why are you going out the side and back doors?  Could be a small explosion inside meant to drive everyone out the front doors where a larger, more destructive bomb waits.  Like in Bali in '02.  Just like that; boom... BOOM!  Over 200 dead because they ran screaming out the front door.

Following the Exeter scenario, if a terrorist fails to properly detonate the first device and waddles into the street to give it another go, then he's shown himself to be a continuing deadly threat to people in the area.

That's you.  That's someone you love, huh?

Given the totality of circumstance you may be faced with then and there, what are you prepared to do?  What are you willing to do?  What will you do?

I'll write more on this later.  But you should start deciding now, if you haven't already.

If he turns out to be a convert from whatever to Islam, then he probably moved along the course suggested here.

So, unerschrocken, you need to familiarize yourself with the indicators the NYPD came up with after much exhaustive research, not what you hear on PBS.

And here is an update as of Friday afternoon. Seems this guy really was connected after all.      

And with the news shown at the link above, that little Nicky was a tool, I have to draw your attention back to this post. 

It's just a matter of time before they try it here. 

And when they do, little Nicky's not a tool.  He is a threat.  Certain laws apply to how you can deal with threats like that.  You need to know your local laws.                    

               

Homeless Alert

Update on story below. I told you so.

I've written on homicide bombers and what we need to be aware of, if not proactively looking for here in the US. Anyone who doesn't believe people will soon start going BOOM here is, as they say; stuck on stupid.

If it works in Iraq, it will work here. So, what section of US society is the close equivalent of these mentally disabled women, if they truly were, in the story you should have just read? That's right; some of the homeless wandering our streets, all over the US.

I'm not going to research the statistics to find out what percentage of homeless are mentally disabled. The fact is that many of them spend most of their time, day and night, in a drunken or drug-induced stupor. How difficult would it be for some crafty terrorist to make the following offer to one of our less fortunate citizens?

Terrorist: Hey, buddy; you look hungry. Let me get you out of the weather and buy you some chow.

Buddy, the vagrant: That's mighty kind of you, mister.

They drive off to some ritzy establishment where fine fare is set before the emaciated vagabond.

Buddy: Thanks for the food, mister.

Terrorist: No problem. Hey, listen; I'm just feeling really generous today. Why don't we stop by the mall and I'll get you a new pair of shoes ~ those look pretty worn out.

Buddy: Yea, new shoes would surely be nice. Thanks again.

Buddy and Terrorist park in the mall lot a short time later. In the back seat of Terrorist's car is a bulky, warm-looking coat.

Terrorist: Hey, Buddy; put this on, it's cold out there.

Buddy's still so messed up from drugs a/o alcohol that he doesn't notice the coat seems a bit heavier than normal. They step into the mall together and begin walking. As they approach a cluster of shoppers, Terrorist takes out his cell phone.

Terrorist: Buddy, I have to make a quick call. I think there's a shoe store up there by those people. I'll catch up in a second.

Buddy: Okay.

As Buddy ambles toward the target crowd, Terrorist moves back toward the exit door, keeping an eye on his mule. When Buddy reaches the middle of the crowd, Terrorist sends a cell phone detonation to the bomb Buddy's unwittingly wearing.

BOOM!

It's just that easy.

If homeless folk, male or female, seem out of place a/o with/near someone who may be a handler with a remote detonator, you need to do something.

As always; these are just some options that come to mind. You decide.

1. Run away silently.

2. Call mall security.

3. Call 911.

4. Stop and observe from a position of cover. Loudly but calmly (not mutually exclusive terms) warn the crowd down there that the hobo may be carrying a bomb.

5. If the person you suspect as a handler turns and looks at you as though you just wrecked his caper, he or she might try to detonate the bomb. If he does, at least you gave the crowd some warning so maybe some of them can get down and not get hurt so bad. How many would have been hurt a/o killed if you didn't sound a warning. If you're worried about the embarrassment you'll suffer if the whole thing is an innocent misunderstanding on your part, consider the shame you will and should feel if the scenario is not innocent and people are injured a/o killed so you could keep intact your pride.

6. If the handler doesn't detonate the bomb but turns and attempts to flee the scene, maybe you can follow him and get a license number and personal description to the 911 operator you just happen to be calling at the time.

7. If you're armed and you have reasonable belief that what you're witnessing is a legal deadly force situation within the parameters of the laws of your particular state a/o municipality, then you need to remember the four universal firearms laws, shown below, and, presuming you've already made up your mind what you'll do in such a situation, you should probably commence.

If you haven't read Massad Ayoob's The Truth About Self-Defense, you need to do so ASAP. Any questions or comments, feel free to jump in here.

And be careful out there, unerschrocken.

The Four Rules of Firearms Handling - by Jeff Cooper.
		Rule #1 - All guns are always loaded. The only exception to this occurs when you have a firearm in your hands and you have personally unloaded it for checking. As soon as you put it down, Rule #1 applies again.
		Rule #2 - Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not ready to destroy. You may not wish to destroy it, but you must be clear in your mind that you are quite ready to if you let that muzzle cover the target. To allow a firearm to point at another human being is a deadly threat, and should always be treated as such.
		Rule #3 - Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target. This we call the Golden Rule because its violation is responsible for about 80 percent of the firearms disasters we read about.
		Rule #4 - Be sure of your target and what is beyond it. You never shoot at anything until you have positively identified it. You never fire at a shadow, or a sound, or a suspected presence. You shoot only when you know absolutely what you are shooting at and what is beyond it.

But the fire is so delightful

The information in the north end of this post is excerpted from The Homeland Security Institute which you can't access without an account. So, set up an account and take some classes.

Effects of bombs

When detonated or ignited, explosives and incendiaries will produce three primary effects: fragmentation, blast pressure, and thermal. Although explosive agents and incendiary agents are often categorized together because they cause the same effects, they vary in the type of damage produced. An explosive produces damage primarily through fragmentation and blast pressure, while an incendiary does harm mainly through its thermal effects.

Fragmentation

An explosive agent may propel fragments at high speed for long distances. Fragments may move outward from a device as fast as 2700 feet per second, about as fast as a bullet fired from a rifle. These fragments can create penetrating wounds when striking the body, causing injuries or casualties. An explosive may also contain nails, ball bearings, or other forms of shrapnel in an attempt to injure or kill more victims. Depending on the construction and size of an explosive device, the fragmentation effect may be minimal or quite devastating.

Blast pressure

There are two different phases of blast pressure. The first phase is a positive blast pressure (overpressure), which moves rapidly away from the seat of the explosion (ground zero) due to the expansion caused by the release of energy. After the positive pressure phase, a vacuum is created at the explosion site, causing the second phase of a negative pressure that moves toward the original center of the detonation at hurricane speed. It is less sudden, but lasts approximately three times as long as the positive pressure wave. Both the positive and negative pressures in concert with each other can have a significant effect on people and structures in the vicinity. Buildings can be ripped apart such as when they are hit by a tornado. The human body can suffer from the formation of water vapor in body tissue as a result of a rapid and extreme change in atmospheric pressure (embolisms), blood vessel damage, and other internal injury from the high pressure being applied to it and then removed at extreme speeds. It is important to note that a victim may not display injuries from an explosion for up to 48 hours. It is for this reason that any persons in the vicinity of an explosion should report to a hospital for observation.

Responders should also be aware of the phenomenon of reflected pressure, which takes place when a blast pressure meets a solid structure. Reflected pressures can be two to nine times the pressure experienced in an open-air environment. When determining perimeters in a pre-blast response, responders should take the likelihood of reflected pressure into consideration.

Thermal effects

Thermal effect is the heat produced by the detonation or ignition of an incendiary device. Explosive devices may produce only temporary thermal effects, such as a bright flash or fireball momentarily produced by the explosion. Fire and thermal effects are usually localized and short-lived with conventional explosive devices -- those not enhanced for collateral incendiary effects. Thermal effects vary depending on the type of agent, the container, and the presence of additional fuels or accelerants. Responders should consider using hardened structures such as masonry walls and buildings (not glass), or even fire apparatus, to keep responders away from potential line-of-sight blast pathways. Remember, stand-off distance significantly factors into selecting physical protection mediums. Ensure that the type of shielding used is substantial enough not only to prevent penetration but also to prevent spalling. Spalling is the phenomenon whereby the positive pressure wave delivers enough energy into a solid object not to penetrate but to knock the backside of the object off. This in itself can potentially kill or injure any persons behind the object.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now that you have a basic understanding of how you might be hurt, let's look again at who might be tryin' to do the hurtin'.

First of all, let's get this straight: they're not 'suicide bombers.' Someone whose primary motivation is to kill other people is a murderer; a barbarian, not a martyr. They are homicide bombers, to be polite. They are savages and killers, and they can be male or female, of any ethnic or racial group, of any age.

They will use any ploy to get to their target, which as we all remember is... you.

Bombs can be made into just about any shape. Some have been made to fit into brassieres and others to make a woman appear to be pregnant. Still others have been hidden under burkas , worn by both men and women of the ethnic group which wears burkas.

They may be dressed in bulky, heavy, too-large clothing that seem unusual for some reason. Of course, it's relative depending on the season and the weather on any particular day. But if you combine unusual clothing with a few more of the indicators here, you may be seeing some sort of weapon under or in the coat. Put this same person in a crowded mall and add all or a couple of the variables mentioned here or seen there and you might have a problem on your hands.

When these murderers are about to strike, they'll try to avoid contact with security and the police ~ because they don't want to get caught before they murder as many innocents as possible.

Some attackers with bombs are sedated in order to make them more obedient to their handlers. The sedative might cause excessive sweating and mild shaking. Murderers like this might be walking slowly because of a sedative or perhaps they're thinking deeply about what they're about to do, looking to the sides to see if anyone is coming up behind to try to stop the attack. They might be wondering where their handler is. They might walk along, appearing hesitant, as though they don't want to reach a particular point, probably the target. They might be muttering, perhaps some religious phrase or prayer. If the phrase that the person is whispering/saying/shouting sounds something like alla-hu-ak-bar, my guess is you've got a serious problem there. Decide what you're going to do in that case, but don't just stand there.

People who don't usually carry weapons tend to touch them to make sure it's in the right place. So, murderers like this might repeatedly and nervously handle parts of their clothing, not just have their hands in their pockets or fingers up their nose. Someone touching themselves in a manner that indicates they are feeling for something (as opposed to scratching) or maybe adjusting something under their clothing may be carrying a weapon of some sort.

This may be far-fetched but, as this murderer is walking along in front of you, are nails and screws, metal washers and ball bearings falling from his clothing? Hey, it could happen. And I guess if it does, maybe he should have put that bomb together better, eh? Too bad for him.

A well-groomed, clean-shaven, heavily-perfumed male murderer might have cleaned up because he feels he's about to meet his Maker and wants to be clean for that appointment. It's called ritualistic hygiene. If you know for certain that you saw the same guy just the day before and then he had a bushy beard and was a real slob, the sudden change might add another suspicion to your list.

Murderers might be wearing obvious disguises such as a police, security, or EMT uniform. They probably wouldn't wear a uniform like that while on recon because of the risk of getting caught early in the mission and then having to explain, 'Well, ya see officer; it's like this ...' They'd more likely use uniforms in an attack in order to quickly get to or away from their target. They might have on, or don in front of you, a fabric headband upon which are written words in a foreign language. Some murderers wear these as badges signifying their death. If you see that, trouble's there, not on the way.

Look for green

red

white

or perhaps a nice checker pattern.

But then black goes with everything.

Going through a search point, an individual who's not willing to let go of his/her personal effects may be hiding a bomb. Or, maybe he's just finicky; eaten up with terminal OCD.

Bombs usually have two switches or buttons, each on a separate wire. One button arms the device, the other detonates it. The bomb can be detonated any time after it's armed. Attentive individuals in Israel have been able to spot murderers there as they arm the bomb, and 'neutralize' the murderer before he or she kills anyone. You can imagine, or research, how those events transpired.

Maybe the murderer wearing the bomb doesn't have the detonator, maybe his handler has it over there in the corner. That would make the handler a murderer, too. There are may possible scenarios and I won't pretend to know them all. I do know this: the enemy is not outside the walls, he is inside the gates. Sooner or later they will push the buttons on bombs and then, if it hasn't changed for you since 9-11, life will change forever. So, do your homework, get some heavy-duty training here... and be careful out there.

The best response is probably to back off quickly and carefully, letting others in the area know what you're seeing so they can make life decisions for themselves like you just did. I covered this in a little more depth in a recent post, but you get the point. You should notify the police ASAP. If possible, it should be you who calls the cops because you'll be best able to describe what you've seen that has everyone screaming in the background. Try to do it by land-line phone, not cellular because a cell phone signal can detonate a bomb.

And, remember; if you can see a bomber, the bomb can see you. If it can see you, it can hit you. If it can hit you, it can kill you.  Taking cover is probably the best option.

If you're armed, you'd better be sure this murderer you're about to draw down on is a bona fide bad guy/girl. Remember, it's your decision, not mine. Not here and now, not there and then, if it ever begins to happen in front of you. If you decide to shoot, a head shot might not work because the bomb may be detonated by a dead-man switch, one that is activated if the bomber lets go of the detonator, like that Cyberdyne whiz-kid, Miles Dyson, in T2.

And we all know how that turned out. Uh-uh-uh-uh-uh ... ka ... BOOM.

Again, the best response is probably to move away. Try to get some cover between you and the murderer. If just getting down on the ground/floor is your only option, be careful what you're behind ~ it may be blown over onto you. Try to have your feet pointed in the direction of the coming blast. Why? Because the leather/rubber in the soles of your shoes will stop bomb stuff better than the hair on the top of your head.

If something goes Boom and you're not hurt, maybe it would be best just to stay put until cops and EMTs arrive. There might be a secondary explosive in the area set to be detonated away from the first explosion and that second explosion might get you as you're moving from the scene. Whatever amounts to your best judgment in that case, use it.

A friend, call-sign Tracer, offered this sagacity based on her training and experience: If you're driving along minding your own bidness and you see something along the road that's 'Free' ... leave it alone. Don't touch it. It's the perfect IED. Random. Innocent. Deadly. If you want it that bad, ask someone in the area who maybe the thing belongs to and confirm with that person that it's harmless. Even if it's something as simple as, let's say a 'Leatherman' there in the dirt, leave it alone. Objects can be attached to explosives that detonate when moved. Remember booby traps? Yea, I know; both Tracer and I are crazy paranoid.

Sure.

Just in case I haven't been subtle enough, they are not martyrs. They are murderers.