Carrying A Weapon

Blackguard_ · Sep 5, 2007

The safest solution is surely to have a level playing field where no one has a weapon.

Yeah, having everyone be unarmed when people are of vastly different strengths, sizes, etc. and the vastly varying degress of fight experience/training makes for a "level playing field".

WIthout weapons, your "one up" situation happens with better unarmed fight training instead of better guns. "Oh no, he's a brown belt! I'd better hurry up and make black!"

JadeTigress · Sep 5, 2007

jayem said:
Well hello, neighbor. Another non-native Missouri transplant here.

What you say is true about St. Louis city. Most dangerous US city over 75,000 population:

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0921299.html

But it's mainly limited to certain neighborhoods---homicides especially. I've never felt insecure going downtown to restaurants or to Busch Stadium, even at night. And the suburbs in the county, like Glendale, where I live, are quite safe.

But I'm not so sure about the safety of deep fried ravioli and processed cheese on pizza.

Yeah, I'm out in Wildwood...I'm not too concerned about getting shot.

Lynden1000 · Sep 5, 2007

Allister said:
Have you ever shot anyone?

No, I have not had the opportunity. And I will be quite happy if I never have the opportunity.

I am comfortable with a weapon, however, and feel no compuction whatsoever about using it for defense.

BlueAfgani · Sep 5, 2007

I carry a big ol police baton around in my car. At home, I trade my riot stick for a boomstick.

Steezie · Sep 5, 2007

Do you seriously? that seems a little ...erm, eccentric.

Im a little eccentric It falls under the category of religious/personal beliefs.

The safest solution is surely to have a level playing field where no one has a weapon.

And if you run into someone who has a gun and you've got a black belt? Are you going to politely ask him to put the gun down so you can thrash him?

.Sabre. · Sep 5, 2007

I don't carry anything dangerous unless you count shoes and freakish strength. I either avoid the situation or defend myself. Avoiding being preferable. It's pretty safe out here in the New Forest.

quatona · Sep 5, 2007

Steezie said:
And if you run into someone who has a gun and you've got a black belt? Are you going to politely ask him to put the gun down so you can thrash him?

If you threaten to thrash him in case he puts his gun down, he has good reason to not put it down.

Bombila · Sep 5, 2007

I stopped talking with Americans about gun laws - it is an area where our cultures don't overlap a whole lot, which isn't to say we don't have some gun crime here.

I'll just say, Steezie (wherever you live, and it will surprise me if you say 'Canada' - unless it's Calgary), that if you went around publicly armed as you describe anywhere around here (Atlantic Canada), assumptions would be made, ranging from "dangerously eccentric" to "likely a serious criminal". You would not be quickly trusted, it would be difficult for you to make friends, people would avoid you. You might be welcome in some rather immature urban subcultures. In rural areas, you would not likely be able to quickly develop the good relations with neighbours that are essential in a land of ice, snow and power outages.

That's not to say there are no weapons here, either. Many hunt, and in rural areas almost every household possesses one or more long guns, used for hunting, and ummm... ritually... at New Year's, when homeowners step out on the deck and fire off a couple shots to mark midnight. Frowned on by the Mounties, of course, but tolerated, as it's only ten minutes a year (nobody ever gets the time right).

I am not afraid of people who tell me they are armed publicly, but I admit it makes me trust them less, and unlikely to pursue either business or friendship with them - unfair, perhaps, but indicative of my subculture.

ArchaicTruth · Sep 5, 2007

Judo is the way to go

Beccs · Sep 5, 2007

I never carry a weapon. I have taken self defence classes, however.

jayem · Sep 5, 2007

I'm no firearms expert, but I don't see how a concealed handgun can be an effective defensive weapon--certainly not against an assailant who is already brandishing a firearm in your direction. You have to reach for your weapon, unholster it, disengage the safety and chamber the round (if it's a single action semi-automatic), and aim. And you have to do all this before being shot. Handguns are only useful defensively if they're already in your hand and ready to go.

Lynden1000 · Sep 6, 2007

jayem said:
I'm no firearms expert, but I don't see how a concealed handgun can be an effective defensive weapon--certainly not against an assailant who is already brandishing a firearm in your direction. You have to reach for your weapon, unholster it, disengage the safety and chamber the round (if it's a single action semi-automatic), and aim. And you have to do all this before being shot. Handguns are only useful defensively if they're already in your hand and ready to go.

Or in your car. It's always nice to have a handgun with you in your car if you find your car breaking down in a less than desirable part of town. Especially when you're alone and female and some seedy looking men approach you and start hinting that they might like to have a little fun with you.

Or, to use another example, you're in a restaurant or some other establishment and some psycho comes in and starts popping off people- VA Tech comes to mind. One of the students in those classrooms would have had plenty of time to pull out a firearm, especially a woman who had one easily accessible in her handbag.

Chrono Traveler · Sep 6, 2007

The thing is that we have a gun problem. It is beyond me people say. "Well other people have guns so I need one to defend myself." And don't think just cause someone has a license it means they will use theirs guns lawfully.

I'm sorry, but trying to use guns to fix the problem with guns just makes everything worse, much much worse... It is extremely clear even just looking at the surface.

flicka · Sep 6, 2007

Or, to use another example, you're in a restaurant or some other establishment and some psycho comes in and starts popping off people- VA Tech comes to mind. One of the students in those classrooms would have had plenty of time to pull out a firearm, especially a woman who had one easily accessible in her handbag.

That's the "hero fantasy". I'm not saying it can never happen, but it's just as likely the person would have been shot when the gunman saw them reach for something instead of running for cover.

TheManeki · Sep 6, 2007

Lynden1000 said:
VA Tech comes to mind. One of the students in those classrooms would have had plenty of time to pull out a firearm, especially a woman who had one easily accessible in her handbag.

Except every US university I've been in has some kind of ordinance prohibiting firearms on campus. Most people (the VT shooter, as a lunatic, is one noticeable exception) then leave their guns at home or in the car to avoid potential legal hassles. So even people with CWPs may not have been packing heat that day.

Near where I live is the city of Kennesaw, GA, which gained some notoriety in the 1980s for passing a law that required the head of every household to own a gun and ammo for it. Fun stuff, huh?

WingsOfTheNeophyte · Sep 6, 2007

I cant be bothered with carrying a weapon, where I live its a fairly quiet area, so I do not feel the need

Although later on in life, I will perhaps carry a gun with rubber ammo, would never want to kill anyone, but I have been told that rubber bullets cause more pain than real ones, although I may change my mind with the new personal defense technologies coming out, a gun firing electroshock projectiles would suffice all my personal defense needs ever

Steezie · Sep 6, 2007

Depending on where they hit, they hurt much worse than real ones, though admittedly I've never been shot with a real one. But a rubber bullet to the chest is exceedingly painful

Blackguard_ · Sep 6, 2007

^^^
And if you're hit in the eye, you're dead.

I'm no firearms expert, but I don't see how a concealed handgun can be an effective defensive weapon--certainly not against an assailant who is already brandishing a firearm in your direction. You have to reach for your weapon, unholster it, disengage the safety and chamber the round (if it's a single action semi-automatic), and aim. And you have to do all this before being shot. Handguns are only useful defensively if they're already in your hand and ready to go

.

That's the "hero fantasy". I'm not saying it can never happen, but it's just as likely the person would have been shot when the gunman saw them reach for something instead of running for cover.

So the Bad Guys are The Flash, while the Good Guys are Slowpoke Rodriguez?

And Jayem, you'd need to chamber a round in a DA semi too.

Darkhorse · Sep 9, 2007

Actually, there are a few U. S. universities which allow people with a permit to carry guns. Utah has at least one (and more I think), and Virginia has at least one, where armed students stopped a Virginia-Tech type shooter (who DIDN'T have a permit!) several years ago. This person killed 2 people, and would have killed far more had he not been stopped.

I own several guns, and almost always carry one in my pocket. I have a permit which makes this legal in my home state and 22 others. God bless the U. S. A. - especially the 40 states which actually issue carry permits, officially recognizing that we are the good guys (or gals), not the bad guys!

And my double-action autos can safely be carried with a round in the chamber - the cheap ones, maybe not...

rebelEnigma · Sep 9, 2007

The thing is that we have a gun problem. It is beyond me people say. "Well other people have guns so I need one to defend myself." And don't think just cause someone has a license it means they will use theirs guns lawfully.

I'm sorry, but trying to use guns to fix the problem with guns just makes everything worse, much much worse... It is extremely clear even just looking at the surface.

So what's your plan? Ban all fire-arms because a criminal or two decide to go killing? You do realize that you have just denied the innocent a chance to defend themselves, right? And you're okay with that?

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