Do you carry a gun because you are afraid?

[AlexanderA]

Well, I carry at home and there is no threats here and I’m comfortable, since we live in the country. I carry out of habit more than anything.

So your "default" is to carry a gun. Well, OK.

I worked for 30 years in a government building, in the District of Columbia. Carrying a gun there was simply out of the question. So my "default" has been not to carry a gun.

So I guess people on both sides of this issue work on inertia.

The mantra is "better to have, and not need, rather than to need, and not have." So you prepare for the worst-case scenario. No matter how remote that might be.

Let me ask a question. There's a small chance that a toxic chlorine gas cloud could be released in a train wreck or other industrial accident. Does that mean that it's wise to carry a gas mask wherever you go? Even if carrying a gas mask becomes second nature? Even if people look at you like you're nuts?

 

[1976B.L.Johns.]

Afraid? No.
Prepared? Yes!

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

10 years ago i only carried in the woods. Or if we need to go to the city. Now we have a lot of inner city folks here in our small town. So i carry all the time. Afraid ?? No just cautions.

 

[JeffG]

JMO, but if I thought I would need a gun if I went to town, I'd probably stay home. We've got a good town.

Criminals and drug addicts visit good towns all the time.

 

[bdickens]

Let me ask a question. There's a small chance that a toxic chlorine gas cloud could be released in a train wreck or other industrial accident. Does that mean that it's wise to carry a gas mask wherever you go? Even if carrying a gas mask becomes second nature? Even if people look at you like you're nuts?

You're being ridiculous and you know it.

 

[Old Hobo]

JMO, but if I thought I would need a gun if I went to town, I'd probably stay home. We've got a good town.

Once had a carry permit in Tennessee (I've lived in multiple states due to career). Rarely carried. When visiting in Memphis, I had a handgun on me. ... and Memphis has gotten worse over the past 20 years.
.

 

[.308 Norma]

So no, I don't carry out of fear, but courage and responsibility.

Well put, JeffG. And thank you!

 

[crstrode]

What kind of response to that question are you expecting from this group?
What is the purpose of the question?

Trolling for click bait.

 

[luzyfuerza]

Let me ask a question. There's a small chance that a toxic chlorine gas cloud could be released in a train wreck or other industrial accident. Does that mean that it's wise to carry a gas mask wherever you go? Even if carrying a gas mask becomes second nature? Even if people look at you like you're nuts?

It is interesting that you should choose to use this to support your argument.

I actually used to work next door to a chlor-alkali plant (turns salt water into gaseous chlorine and sodium hydroxide). Minor chlorine leaks from this plant were known to occur. Then, about 30 years ago, it released 70 tons (that's roughly the contents of a railroad car) of chlorine gas into the air on a cool windless morning. A green, corrosive, choking cloud of chlorine was visible at ground level throughout the surrounding community.

As a result, every employee, contractor, or visitor who set foot in our facility was required to carry an escape respirator (a kind of emergency gas mask) on their person everywhere they went.

Yes, there was a small chance of a chlorine leak (I never experienced one during my seven years there). Yes, it was wise to carry (an escape respirator). Yes, it became second nature. And I couldn't have cared less what people thought when they looked at me with an escape respirator on my belt.

Your argument, as well as your example, are both specious.

No one can understand the risks that another person faces simply by reading their posts here. And comments about another's choice of tools to counteract those risks must reflect this uncertainty.

 

[Old Dog]

Let me ask a question. There's a small chance that a toxic chlorine gas cloud could be released in a train wreck or other industrial accident. Does that mean that it's wise to carry a gas mask wherever you go? Even if carrying a gas mask becomes second nature? Even if people look at you like you're nuts?

Sorry, Alex. I generally respect your opinions because you're clearly an intelligent, educated man. But your analogy is seriously flawed, as in pretty much any city, no matter how small, in this country, the likelihood of being an intended victim of the criminal element is far, far, higher than the almost miniscule possibility of a toxic gas leak...

 

[Ed4032]

I’m afraid not. I just need a sharp stick and my CCW is my sharpest stick.

 

[buck460XVR]

IMHO, it doesn't matter why you carry, as long as it is legal and you are responsible.

 

[lightman]

I carry not out of fear but to be prepared.

 

[CDW4ME]

How this works on gun forums...

"I carry everywhere I can and avoid where I can't" - this statement gets approval.
That means, "I avoid places with metal detectors" - that piece of extra info will elicit some negative feedback.
Full disclosure, "I only vacation where I carry" - Now, its eat our own time, this is labeled paranoid, fear, anxiety - all incorrect.

Why do you carry? In case I have to defend myself, same answer as most here would give. (good answer)
Am I psychic? LOL no, I can't predict the actions of others, bad people may show up anywhere, anytime. Carry everywhere. (good answer)
So, on vacation I'd like to be able to defend myself just like any other time, carry for the same reason as usual. (bad answer, that's paranoid & afraid)

That is exactly how that works.

 

[Simple Shooter]

My question would be why would you engage in behavior 9open carry at a garage sale) that's likely to draw exactly the response you got? No one outside my immediate circle knows I even own a gun. as a result, I rarely if ever field questions like that.

Agree. You will not get such questions from the can't-mind-my-own-business types if they don't know you are armed. And in today's social media- fueled voyeuristic society, there seems to be more and more of those people each day.

If you open carry, that is your decision to make and your right. But please consider the following: I taught weapons retention and recovery techniques as an LEO instructor. I have seen the video footage of criminals in prison exercise yards practicing techniques to disarm LEO's; an untrained civilian has no chance against them. My gun is always out of sight so it cannot be taken and used against me.

 

[Archie]

So your "default" is to carry a gun. Well, OK.

Sounds like you find that not particularly sensible.

I worked for 30 years in a government building, in the District of Columbia. Carrying a gun there was simply out of the question. So my "default" has been not to carry a gun.

I worked for thirty years in government buildings in the State of Confusion. I mean California. One could only carry a sidearm as directed by the head officer of the location. I was still in a reasonable target of attack.

So I guess people on both sides of this issue work on inertia.

Guess all you want. I do things for logical reasons and of my own choice. You seem to choose not to carry due to inertia (in your own words). I make a decision based on actual conditions.

The mantra is "better to have, and not need, rather than to need, and not have." So you prepare for the worst-case scenario. No matter how remote that might be.

Remote? Interesting conclusion. You do not read the paper or watch the news, then? On the same line, you do not carry a spare tire? Or own a first aid kit of some kind? Have more money in a savings account or a desk at home for exigent circumstances?

Let me ask a question. There's a small chance that a toxic chlorine gas cloud could be released in a train wreck or other industrial accident. Does that mean that it's wise to carry a gas mask wherever you go? Even if carrying a gas mask becomes second nature? Even if people look at you like you're nuts?

If I did, it would be accessible and discrete. I am a full time Christian and know God personally. Other (non Christian) people think I'm nuts. And? My decisions and life style are not based on opinion poles.

I am not scared in the sense of quivering in my boots expecting to be attacked or robbed at all times. I do have the right to protect myself. I choose to do so.
I always wear my seat belt when driving. Being cautious is not being scared.

 

[mavracer]

Well god yes I'm scared. I'm a Ford guy and I fear the ribbing I'd get if I bought a new Chevy. I can only imagine what they'd say about the gun guy not carrying one.

 

[FL-NC]

The truth is, I AM staying home today because I’m “afraid” to get out on the highway. Almost every Wednesday afternoon, there’s a small group (5-6) of us “old guys” from around the valley here that get together down at the local truck stop/diner (10 or 12 miles down the road) for a short bible study and prayer. Today though, it’s been an almost total whiteout at times here, and there’s even a tractor-trailer rig on its side out on I-15 that my wife and I can see from the house - whenever the wind lets up, that is.
So, I called a couple of the other guys and told them I’m staying home today. They are too. It seems I’m not the only “old guy” that’s afraid of getting out on the highway today even though some of us carry guns even to Wednesday bible study at the truck stop.

That's not real fear- that's just respecting forces of nature that you can't control (much less conquer with a gun) and making a good decision.

 

[AlexanderA]

Yes, there was a small chance of a chlorine leak (I never experienced one during my seven years there). Yes, it was wise to carry (an escape respirator). Yes, it became second nature. And I couldn't have cared less what people thought when they looked at me with an escape respirator on my belt.

I think you've just made my point. There was an identifiable risk of chlorine exposure, and so it was wise to carry a gas mask. Same with a gun. If you can articulate a threat, then yes, it might be wise to carry a gun. But just a generalized feeling that something might happen, doesn't overcome the downsides of carrying.

My prototypes are the Spartans and other warriors of ancient Greece. Scholars now believe that they would don their armor and weapons literally seconds before the clash of arms. Why waste their strength carrying that weight? They had servants to do the carrying.

 

[FL-NC]

What about those of use like myself that carry at home too?

That is rational behavior- knowing that a crime can occur anywhere at any time.

 

[JohnKSa]

So you prepare for the worst-case scenario. No matter how remote that might be.

People buy powerball tickets even though the odds of winning are, to say the least, remote. In some cases, it's less about the odds and more about the possible outcome.

There's a small chance that a toxic chlorine gas cloud could be released in a train wreck or other industrial accident. Does that mean that it's wise to carry a gas mask wherever you go?

There are examples on both sides of things that people think are reasonable and things that they don't. CO detectors in houses are pretty common even though the odds of dying from CO in your house in the U.S. are literally 1 in a million. AEDs could save about the same number of people annually as CO detectors, and yet they aren't very common at all. There are a number of reasons why one of those is ubiquitous and the other is not--and why they aren't good analogies for each other even though the level of risk they address is similar.

 

[TarDevil]

I'm not maniacal about carrying my gun. It's my right, I invested in my permit, so I carry when possible. Less now than a decade ago because I'm spending way more time than I like like admitting in health care facilities... including a chronically ill back that is sensitive to what and how I carry anything.

Guys.. enjoy life!

 

[JERRY]

I don't have a spare tire in my vehicle because I'm afraid to walk, I have a spare tire in my vehicle because I'd rather drive.

 

[mcb]

It's sort of yes and no for me. There is a real fear that I might be attacked at some point in the future and having a gun to defend myself with would be an asset in that situation, so fear plays a role. But there is also the fact that there are places I cannot or will not carry and thus I will not have that particular tool available all the time. I have other tools and means that address the fear. I fear I might get a flat tire and get stranded somewhere, I carry a spare tire, tire inflator, and patch kit in my truck. I fear I might get injured and have several fairly well stocked first aid kits at logical places. Same with fire extinguishers. Same with tool kits. Beyond the tools I also have the training to use them, they are not much good without knowing how to use them. I would be lying if I said fear did not play a role in some of my decisions but at the same time I do not live in fear. I have assessed the fear, made provisions (tools and training) for it and have continued my life for the most part fearlessly.

 

[theotherwaldo]

I think you've just made my point. There was an identifiable risk of chlorine exposure, and so it was wise to carry a gas mask. Same with a gun. If you can articulate a threat, then yes, it might be wise to carry a gun. But just a generalized feeling that something might happen, doesn't overcome the downsides of carrying.

My prototypes are the Spartans and other warriors of ancient Greece. Scholars now believe that they would don their armor and weapons literally seconds before the clash of arms. Why waste their strength carrying that weight? They had servants to do the carrying.

I carry a gun because I don't have a servant to carry one for me, unlike the wealthy and politically powerful folks that have security teams but don't think that the common folks should be armed... .