What would you do, if you were faced with a violent attacker? How would you act, in a moment of danger?
That’s something many people are asking themselves in the city of Newcastle, in the U.K. It was a regular, Friday morning, much like any other. People had gone off to work.
The children were making their way through the school day. Folks in the neighborhood were going about their daily chores and mundane routines.
Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing worth reporting about. Simply another Friday, with people eagerly expecting the weekend. Until this one man showed up.
On this sleepy street, miles from the city center, a man appeared. He could have been a neighbor. He could have been a total stranger. In his hand was a machete. And no, he wasn’t cutting down sugar cane. He was trying to cut down regular people.
At around 10:50 am, he stalked the streets of this area. Anyone unfortunately enough to pass by became his target. This man, his motives not totally clear, made it his goal to harm people with his primitive and brutal weapon.
Until one lady stood in his way.
A grandmother stepped in front of the attacker, blocking him from hurting anyone that came close. She didn’t have any weapons of her own. She couldn’t shoot the man, or surely wrestle his knife from his grasp. But she did what she could to prevent him from inflicting harm.
The grandma reasoned with the man, hoping to calm him down. This shocking act of bravery distracted him long enough for police to take him into custody.
Now we are left wondering just what motivated the man. And how this sole woman was able to stop him.
From The Sun:
THIS is the chilling moment a brave grandmother confronted a knifeman brandishing a machete on the streets of Newcastle. Police were called to the Walker area of the city at around 10:50am this morning following reports of a man threatening passers-by with a knife.
An eye-witness said the woman had bravely stepped in to reason with the man as he attacked nearby property during the rampage. A man was arrested at the scene – around three miles from Newcastle city centre – and taken into custody.
It is understood the incident was linked to a domestic feud. A Northumbria Police spokesman said no-one had been injured in the disturbance and enquiries are ongoing…
“The man had been acting very aggressively, had threatened passers-by with a knife and caused some damage. Officers attended and the man has been arrested by police. He remains in police custody at this time.”
“Nobody was injured during the disturbance and enquiries into the incident will continue this morning. Police would like to reassure the public that this is very much a local incident and officers will be on patrol in the area if people have any concerns.”
Early reports claim that the man was shouting “Allah” during his attack. However the police are adamant this was a domestic feud. Hmm. If it was domestic, why was he outside, attacking strangers?
Call me crazy, but domestic disputes happen inside someone’s home. This man was motivated to attack strangers passing by on the street. If anything, this was more than a domestic attack.
We don’t know his name, nor do we have enough information to guess at his motivation. But it’s clear he wanted to harm many people in this city. Defenseless folks that were just trying to go about their day. That’s enough to assume this goes beyond “domestic.”
But thanks to the actions of this one woman, the man was thwarted. But what if she wasn’t there? What if the man was able to continue on his rampage? What damage would he have caused and how many people would he have hurt?
You might be wondering where all the men of this neighborhood were? Good question.
The only thing preventing evil from thriving in our society are the brave acts from men and women like you and me. Hopefully you will never face a scary moment like this grandma. Hopefully you will never be faced with a life and death situation.
But if you are, you need to ask yourself: am I brave enough to do the right thing? Am I willing to stop people from being harmed?
That’s something only you can answer.
Source: The Sun
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