Why I don't carry a gun

[livingonearth]

I was taught two things about guns, both from my father and grandfather. First, treat all guns as if loaded, do this at all times, even if you know you just took all the bullets out. Second, having a gun is a huge responsibility to be taken seriously.

When I'm out for an evening I want to relax and have a good time. I want to leave my responsibilities at home, not carry one with me. I don't want the responsibility of a gun at my side. Besides, if I am so scared to be out that I need a gun, I probably shouldn't be out in the first place.

If I go to a restaurant I want to think about my meal, the conversation, who I'm with. I might want to enjoy a cocktail or two, and that should never happen while carrying a gun responsibly. If I'm somewhere and need to use the restroom, I don't want to have to worry about the gun at my side dropping if I undo my clothing wrong(something that I've read about actually happening). At a show I don't want to worry about the way I'm sitting for my gun's sake.

Another reason is that I never want to get complacent about guns. I think there is a danger in that happening to people that constantly carry when there is no obvious reason other than something “might” happen.

Unless it's for your job, or your life is actually in danger, I don't see much reason to have that dangerous, high responsibility riding by my side all the time. I'm just going to take my chances. If things get so totally out of control that I feel the need to carry, I'll just stay at home in the corner holding my shotgun.

[mike_c]

1. for 60 years I've had no need for a gun....

Don't get me wrong-- I've been burglarized. I've been robbed. I've been pushed around by assholes. Nobody died. Nobody even got hurt, or at least not in any lasting way. Stuff is never worth more than someone's life. I have never had any need for guns, and don't anticipate that I ever will.

As a sad sort of aside, my partner visited her kids and grand kids for Thanksgiving, and her son showed up, at a family dinner, with what she described as an "arsenal" of weapons. I still can't get my brain wrapped around that one. I've never had any need for guns in my entire life, but her twenty something son doesn't feel safe visiting his mother without a car full of firearms.

On edit-- actually, I doubt if he felt safe even with the butt load of guns.

[hunter]

27. My little old lady mom would rip the arms of anyone who showed up for dinner with guns...

But not of guns.

In a sane nation, fools and their guns are soon parted.

[Hoyt]

2. Excellent post. Of course, you have grown up, matured, and don't view our society as a war zone or

place for bullies to patrol the streets like George Zimmerman.

[madinmaryland]

3. I have always said to my family, that when it comes to a person with a gun,

there is no way to tell whether they are good guy with a gun or a bad guy with gun. Always. Always. err on the side of caution and stay away from the person with the gun, because a good guy with a gun can always become a bad guy with a gun, but a bad guy with a gun is already a bad guy with a gun.

[gwheezie]

4. I avoid people with guns

There's a greater chance I would be shot by a person with a gun than say someone without a gun.

[shadowrider]

6. You do realize

every time you go out you're surrounded by people with guns, because, concealed means concealed.

There is no way to avoid them.

[Hoyt]

8. Laws should no encourage irrational/bad behavior.

[gwheezie]

10. I live in rural virginia

I know I'm surrounded by armed people, when possible I avoid them.

[Photographer]

11. That has to be the silliest post I've read here. You don't really believe that, do you?

[Straw Man]

20. Why not?

every time you go out you're surrounded by people with guns, because, concealed means concealed.

There is no way to avoid them.

That has to be the silliest post I've read here. You don't really believe that, do you?

Depends on where and how you live. I live in a rural/suburban area in New York, about two hours north of NYC. This is not a particularly gun-friendly state, as you may know. Population of my county is a bit over 180,000 and the number of concealed carry permits is around 10,000. That's one in 18 people. How many people do you encounter as you go through your average day? If your job or lifestyle involves a lot of public contact, the odds are that you going to encounter quite a few who are carrying concealed. If it never bothered you before, it shouldn't bother you now.

[JonathanRackham]

26. My brother has a carry permit.

The only time he carries it is when he's snowshoeing or cross country skiing with his dogs. Coy dogs and coyotes have come after them. Other than that the gun sits in his safe. The notion that if you have a permit to carry you do is incorrect.

[Straw Man]

30. Good for your brother.

My brother has a carry permit.

The only time he carries it is when he's snowshoeing or cross country skiing with his dogs. Coy dogs and coyotes have come after them. Other than that the gun sits in his safe. The notion that if you have a permit to carry you do is incorrect.

He has made his own choice about when and why he carries. Why do you think yourself qualified to make that choice for others?

[JonathanRackham]

33. I think there's a misunderstanding

I don't have an opinion one way or another if a person is in possession of a firearm in public. Twice a day I see people do dumb things in their cars. I've seen multiple car fatalities and zero firearm fatalities.

[Straw Man]

36. Sorry -- my mistake.

The notion that if you have a permit to carry you do is incorrect.

I read this as meaning people shouldn't carry. I see now that I misread it. My apologies.

[JonathanRackham]

43. Life should be so amiable.

Peace brother.

[hunter]

28. Yep, surrounded by assholes. Sucks, doesn't it?

Fuck gun culture, fuck their idiotic worship of the second amendment.

Piss on guns.


.

[Taitertots]

23. That's a hilarious tautological statement

[Martin Eden]

5. I don't carry a gun because ...

... I don't feel the need to compensate for an inadequate penis.

[TeddyR]

15. I've got a more than adequate

Penis and don't carry a gun, though may start doing so.

[Straw Man]

21. Very interesting, Sigmund.

I don't carry a gun because ...

... I don't feel the need to compensate for an inadequate penis.

Is that what you say to women who carry?

[Martin Eden]

22. Yes

It piques their interest in my penis.

[Straw Man]

29. So ...

Yes

It piques their interest in my penis.

... you pick-up line is essentially "I've got a big one"? How's that working for you?

[Martin Eden]

31. It's working great ...

... in my dreams. But then I wake up.

At least one of us is playing this for laughs (whether it elicits a single guffaw or not).

[Straw Man]

32. Well ...

At least one of us is playing this for laughs (whether it elicits a single guffaw or not).

Let's just say that at least one of us is trying to ...

[Eleanors38]

37. Man, I gotta keep mine wound up, like a fire hose!

Oughta see it in use!

[Martin Eden]

39. What comes out?

(not sure I really wanna know)

[Eleanors38]

40. I'd ask her, but she was swept away.

[elias49]

7. I want a big gun!

Not so big that it's hard to handle, but big enough so I feel a kind of weather-beaten self-confidence. I want to feel truly gritty like my hero, John Wayne. There are 3 gun shops within 10 miles of my house in the country. And, of course there's always WalMart. So there are plenty of guns to choose from. I went to one of my local shops a couple of times during the millennium scare. But it wasn't the fear of runaway lawlessness that got me going. If I lost my internet access because of the change to 2001, I figured I might need a crutch to support my rage.
In the end, I made it into 2001 unscathed. But ever since then I've been getting more and more anxious. What if an Arab knocked on my door one day? Or what about going into the Quick Mart in town late at night? I think the guy who runs it is Arab. I don't know how to explain this hang-up I have with Arabs. But there it is.
There are other reasons why I want a big gun. I worry all the time about someone coming around my neighborhood and stealing my shit. If I had a big gun - or just any gun - I could put my own personal stamp on things and turn an attempted robbery into a bloody mess.
Back when I was a chicken-shit, I installed surveillance cameras outside my house. Very cool! Now if I'm at my computer, downstairs in my finished basement, I can keep tabs on my driveway and my back door. It's like having caller ID in a way. You get that 5 second jump on the fight-or-flight thing. But I don't know...if I have security cameras and a gun, would that be considered unfair?
I need a gun that's really easy to use, with a light trigger, because I have rheumatoid arthritis and if I wake up in the night to the sound of someone trying to steal my shit, I'd want a gun that doesn't require a lot of dexterity. But that shouldn't be a problem. The elderly are a group that's often encouraged to keep a gun for 'self defense' so there must be a lot of choices for ease of handling. I have an aunt I'll call Mary - she's almost 80 and is still recovering from hip surgery - who was showing her dear friend the Beretta her brother had bought her for Christmas but when she knocked over her glass of Sherry with the pistol barrel and it got all over, she thought better and went and put the gun back under her pillow where it rightfully belonged. Lesson learned, I'd say!
Some have suggested that extended clips might be particularly helpful to the infirm. You can miss the target a number of times and still have a chance to save your crystal. But then there's the extra weight.
There are plenty of other issues to consider about owning a gun. But my arthritic fingers are getting tired, the sun's going down and I'm not sure, but I think I heard something in the kitchen.
Happy trails!

[aikoaiko]

9. Its sounds like you live somewhere where you are free to make that choice.

I'm pro-choice.

[uncle ray]

18. i guess letting people choose not to get shot would just be silly.

[krispos42]

12. Good post.

That's how I generally feel, although the way the laws are in Connecticut now I feel I need to get a concealed carry permit just to be able to do what I did before the Sandy Hook blowback.

[babylonsister]

13. I am in such agreement with you, but

I do know a few people who feel safer for whatever reason (I suspect the company they keep and their upbringing). Here's what I'm subjected to with my move to FL and this is my county. Sigh.

http://miami.cbslocal.com/2015/12/08/florida-sheriff-arm-yourselves-against-terrorists/

Florida Sheriff: Arm Yourselves Against Terrorists

[Logical]

14. I have a license to but never carry it. Not paranoid enough I guess. nt

[smirkymonkey]

16. I don't carry a gun because I'm not a paranoid freak.

I have lived in a number of major large cities and so far have never been robbed or attacked once. Which is pretty amazing, because I have walked home late at night pretty wasted numerous times. I guess I have just been lucky. However, I have managed to get fairly far in life without a gun and hopefully my luck will hold out. I just don't want to live my life with the paranoia of a gun freak and so far it has worked for me.

[BlueJazz]

17. I like what one DUer said in a post a week ago "We should be allowed to carry Hydrogen Bombs"

I'd go along with that.

[JonathanRackham]

34. Fusion or fission?

Nt

[BlueJazz]

35. I was thinking fission for small crowds and If you really want to leave an impression, Fusion.

I think the person was arguing with what is "Arms" and all that. Strange thread.

[SheilaT]

19. I don't carry a gun either.

I've never had a gun. Never intend to.

I'm not so afraid of everything that I feel the need to be armed at all times.

In the 1970's I worked at National Airport in Washington, DC. Didn't have a car. Rode the public bus to and from every single day. I mostly worked an afternoon shift, which means I got off work at 11pm or later, if the flights ran late. I NEVER felt insecure. Heck, anyone who'd be targeting me personally would give up in despair after a few weeks because I never took the same bus home twice. I did pay attention to what was going on around me, but I NEVER had anyone get off the bus the same time that I did, or another passenger who behaved in a way that made me feel uneasy. And there were times when I went home at 2am. A woman alone. And I had to walk two blocks to get to my apartment.

People who think they need guns all the time are idiots.

[romanic]

24. I don't carry.

And I won't prevent someone from carrying either.

[bemildred]

25. It is not an extra piece of bling for your ego, yeah. nt

[Blue_Tires]

38. Realistically, I don't trust myself with one

I don't think of myself as a violent person, but to be honest I've got serious anger issues and in a stressful moment would be too tempted to gat someone or a group of people...

I always have a mental "top 10 list" of people I'd like to end if given a chance...

[MohRokTah]

41. You mentioned cocktails

I think one reasonable gun control measure is to make carrying (concealed or open) under the influence a felony punishable by not les than five years in prison.

The felony part bars the offender from ever owning a firearm again.

[Snobblevitch]

42. I don't have a CCW permit.

I don't see the need. I have seven relatives who can legally carry a concealed weapon. I know that none of them carry a concealed weapon on a regular basis. (Four of them are retired LEO and carried daily for 30 years, well except for days off.) Only one of them ever discharged theircweapon in all that time. Two of them never even unholstered their gun in all that time while on the job. Two of them were shot at, neither were hit. One returned fire, the lther let the canine take the perp down. I would feel much saver if I was with these guys while they were carrying. Well, not safer, because I've never felt unsafe while out and about.

[X_Digger]

44. How much danger must one be in before it's appropriate to carry, to you?

In the last month, we've had posters claim that it's okay for some people to be armed or have armed guards because they're rich, they're politicians, they're famous, or they deal with large amounts of cash or valuable property (jewels, drugs, bonds, etc).

My question is, how much "value" (financial or political) must one attain before it's "acceptable" that these people can protect themselves?

Here's a scale. Please tell me where you draw the line:

Politicians-
-dog catcher
-city/county clerk
-sheriff/constable
-city council / alderman
-mayor
-state appointed position (solicitor general, comptroller, etc)
-state representative
-state governor
-federal appointed position
-federal judiciary
-federal representative
-federal senator
-executive branch

Non-politicians-
-joe six pack
-convenience store clerk
-store manager who makes deposits
-bank teller / jewelry store clerk / drug store clerk
-bank manager / jewelry store owner / pharmacist
-celebrity
-millionaire
-multi-millionaire
-billionaire
-multi-billionaire