I see the right to carry as multi-layered issue.
Second Amendment gives us the right to carry and should not be so segmented from one jurisdiction to another. I agree with others who have said more training is needed before a permit is issued. It needs to be a combination of the mechanics of shooting and maintaining the weapon in addition to the legal aspects like police officers going through "shoot, don't shoot" scenarios. This way a person can learn what is considered a justified shooting and what would land them in jail.
Gun holders in the past learned gun safety from childhood with hunting and target shooting. Back then there wasn't such a fear of guns. As mentioned in some posts we are no longer a rural culture so many don't grow up around guns so they fear them and don't see a need for them since they only see guns as an offensive thing. They have a mistaken belief that the police will prevent harm to them.
One saying says "when seconds count the police will be there in minutes." In reality that does appear correct in most cases.
Creating "gun free zones" like schools and churches etc. will only advertise to the criminal where to find a collection of unarmed people that makes for easy pickings. In Florida the car jackings and robberies went up around airports when they allowed more state residents to carry guns. Reason being the criminal couldn't trust that a Florida resident wasn't packing a weapon but they knew a traveler would be unarmed and probably carrying lots of vacation money and electronics. rental cars used to have large bumper stickers advertising their company and that was another way for criminals to spot the easy prey.
Lawmakers play to the general public that thinks passing a law makes you safe. That is sadly not the truth. The Columbine shootings were an example. had the two suspects survived the day they would have faced over 300 years in jail just on the existing laws they broke. So would one more year in jail for carring a gun on school grounds have prevented that tragedy?
I think we need better upbringing to accept responsability for our actions and to respect the value of human life don't get into a shooting over road rage or because someone "dissed" you. maybe the violent video games kids play today has desensitised them to value of human life?
I like the quote from Benjamin Franklin: They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Well said. Criminals who are smart enough (big disclaimer here) know where guns will be & where they will not be & use that to their advantage. The people that live in "Gun Free" cities - legislated as such - are easy targets, sadly.
If we require classes on who or where or when we can shoot - generally am ok with that - limited & to a point. But if the instruction is not clear, or the instructor is misinformed, or you cross a state line, or if the class does not listen, or if the listener is an abject idiot - it does no good. So I tend to go with personal responsibility as the over riding factor. If you use it, you are responsible. And SOCIETY is NOT responsible for our individual actions, IMHO.
If we continue to allow our freedoms to be stripped away, one by one, and do nothing to prevent it, then we deserve the eventual "safety" yoke that we will all be wearing in the place of the freedom we squandered.
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Topic: Do you carry? (Read 590654 times)