To carry or not

theotherwaldo said:

I carry like I wear shoes - because it's silly not to... .

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I hate shoes but I wear them out of necessity. Kinda like I carry a gun (I don't hate guns but I get no particular joy from them).

I retired a year or so ago. At some point between then and now SWMBO and I decided we're better off not leaving our home unless we have a specific reason to. That alone has reduced the drama in our life to almost zero.

If l/we leave home we're armed. It's not something we consider or think about it's our default setting.

Ignition Override said:

If you carry, but realize that an actual thug might grab you from a blind spot, requiring you to, with no warning, use Both hands and both legs…

study Krav Maga if you are physically able, at least for a few months.

If you can Not begin to reach for a weapon,

a very strong —elbow strike to the belly, throat or face, or using a foot strike if you are pushed to the ground— can give you a chance.
Thugs know that many men “Carry”, but don’t want you to know they are about to attack- do they?

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There are easily accessible highly vulnerable areas ,which simply require practice and speed to execute on the human body .
Thumb ,Nose , Knee ,eyes ,etc. . It requires little strength to disable someone ,provided you're motivated and experienced and WILLING to do just that under pressure . As with anything in life PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT or a close second , the more practice the more adept one becomes .
I'm 6'4" 235 lb. and can count on one hand ,with fingers left over when a close encounter presented it's self or reared it's ugly head .
Still like shooting has Never deterred MY Practicing . However movement becomes slower with age and as I continue to pass through the Seventh Decade ,realize and armed conflict is more likely now . However I do agree , Practice close quarter defensive forms of self defense and KNOW where the vulnerability accesses are .

We are gun guys. This is a gun board. Of course we're going to tell you to carry. Mindset, skillset, toolset.

Howevercomma

Just be cautious about suddenly reacting to a bad situation. Carrying is only part of maintaining a risk-averse lifestyle. It's the tool you have when all the other measures have failed. That doesn't mean you get to skip the other measures. Harden your house. Drive defensively. Assess risk when you are making plans. If there is an activity or area you are considering, but it is a dangerous part of town, the correct answer is 'don't go there', not 'go anyway and strap on a gun'. There's a fine line between carrying a gun as a good habit, and using it to defend yourself responsibly, and carrying a gun as a substitute for prudent safety practices and looking bad when you were in the wrong place at the wrong time and something bad happened.

mljdeckard said:

We are gun guys. This is a gun board. Of course we're going to tell you to carry. Mindset, skillset, toolset.

Howevercomma

Just be cautious about suddenly reacting to a bad situation. Carrying is only part of maintaining a risk-averse lifestyle. It's the tool you have when all the other measures have failed. That doesn't mean you get to skip the other measures. Harden your house. Drive defensively. Assess risk when you are making plans. If there is an activity or area you are considering, but it is a dangerous part of town, the correct answer is 'don't go there', not 'go anyway and strap on a gun'. There's a fine line between carrying a gun as a good habit, and using it to defend yourself responsibly, and carrying a gun as a substitute for prudent safety practices and looking bad when you were in the wrong place at the wrong time and something bad happened.

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Worthy of a sticky.

Better to have and not need, than need and not have.

I'm old & live in a getting bad area. At my age even if the perp doesn't have a weapon just his physical force is enough for me to use deadly force against him.
So I carry any time I'm outside my home.

In Viet Nam we had a radio station -- you may have seen the movie "Good Morning, Viet Nam!"

This station carried "commercials." There was a series for the In-Country Rest and Recreation Center at Vung Tau. They were very clever, full of double entendre. And they all ended with the same three words, "Bring your weapon."

Good advice. I've followed it ever since.

A gun is like a parachute. You may never need one, but if you DO need one and don't have it, you'll never need anything else again.

i would carry when always outside my place, except when my routine takes me into a military base that forbids private firearms. my loudest complaint to the nra is about its inaction here. i wouldn’t mind securing my otherwise lawful ccw in a locked container upon entry but i do greatly mind being unarmed and helpless on my day’s other stops outside the gates.

I had a 44 mag stuck in my ribs while being robbed once... Not fun AT ALL!!! And I had been around firearms my entire life at that time... Hunting, shooting, etc. Afterwards I got my permit, training and started carrying ALWAYS/EVERYWHERE... Maybe it's a security blanket... Kids have their "blankies" right... The other things it changed in me... Situational awareness... And staying away from areas, people, and situations that just don't look right... Listen to your gut... That seems like the most help in being prepared to first think and act if needed... I don't know how I'd react to a Robbery around me but not at me... Again my filter looks back on that SS 44 in my side... I would hope to be ready mentally for that... Especially if it involved my wife or kids... It's a humbling experience for sure... And one that... in our world now... Seems like a regular possibility...

Never forget what My 1 St. Sargent told a group of us . This Isn't the range and do remember your targets are agile and fire upon you without warning !.
So any of you cocky little sh t's who believe you were expert marksmen on the qualification range , think again !. Your Life as well as squad members lives DEPEND UPON YOU . Don't F up MY outfit . It got REAL first body bag I hoisted into a THWACKA , It humbles the stoutest soul .
Now days with the crap being shoved down our kissers from the political morons , NO one is Safe !. Carry ALWAYS but Do it Responsibly .

I practice a life style of avoidance (Stupid People Places & Things) You will not find me at a Convenience Store after the sun goes down. Its extremely rear to find me out and about after the sun goes down period. There are sections of population centers that I do not frequent. I am past the mid point of my seventh decade and to a certain extent understand and realize my limitations. Yes I conceal carry but application of it is absolutely the last resort.

HighRoadRover said:

Well, my gas station got robbed yesterday. The perp walked in, ... and has robbed several stores in the area, including a 7-11 he successfully robbed the day before he tried to rob the gas station. We have a progressive Commonwealth Attorney ... and the perp will be back soon and probably keep it up until....

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This wouldn't be the first era of our society in which businesses could not expect justice from the state. A long-standing tradition has been to provide for extra-judicial protection. I'm sure there are a lot of people that either forgot this or were under the impression that kind of thing only happened in the past.

LaneP said:

Crime is soaring in the catch and release jurisdictions, which I can only think has the purpose of destabilization. It's a sad state of affairs. I would certainly be carrying.

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There has always been a segment of our society that finds itself in a jurisdiction that is underserved in justice from the state, which has traditionally created a demand for another source. Destabilization is a vacuum of order and peace, and that void only exists for a short time before it is filled by something. The incumbent's always the favorite though.

I do, but I knew I should from the get go. If you still question it by now, maybe you shouldn’t.

HighRoadRover said:

but I think the world is getting to the point where I need to carry… all of the time.

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I think it’s been that way for a long time.

Kleanbore said:

Armed citizens may undertake protection, but that has nothing to do with justice, which is the purview only of the judiciary.

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It's only the purview of the judiciary according to the judiciary. Throughout history, there have been vigilantes, strongmen, militias, street gangs, ganglords, cartels, triad societies, mob bosses, underworld families, and others who also laid claim to having something to do with justice. It's not unprecedented that the police also took justice into their own hands. Was that just in the past? My statement doesn't advocate for justice apart from the state and federal judiciary, but as long as there is a segment of our society and a portion of our community where robberies are recurring repeatedly and the police and courts are only providing a corrupt revolving-door, those circumstances will engender demand for alternative justice. There are plenty of places where a police report and an insurance claim still suffice, but what are people going to do when those won't suffice? Carry a gun? That might give them an opportunity to defend their life, but it isn't a justice system.

I try to always carry. I can't choose when bad stuff will happen and that demands that I must always be armed. I don't get much joy when I think about the whys. I was in a hurry the other day and rushed out the door without my edc. I started to pull out of the driveway. I remembered and stopped went inside and got my edc. Again, I don't get to choose when and that means I always must be armed. Our society and culture is riddled with crime and hate. I don't want to be the next victim. Best wishes!

Kleanbore said:

And according to the legislature and to the supreme law of the land. That trumps everything else.

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Then take the justice from the judge, the bitter with the sweet, Amerigo.

kerreckt said:

I try to always carry. I can't choose when bad stuff will happen and that demands that I must always be armed. I don't get much joy when I think about the whys. I was in a hurry the other day and rushed out the door without my edc. I started to pull out of the driveway. I remembered and stopped went inside and got my edc. Again, I don't get to choose when and that means I always must be armed. Our society and culture is riddled with crime and hate. I don't want to be the next victim. Best wishes!

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I have said before, there are people who think the VICTIM chooses the time, place and mode of the attack. They're the ones who say, "Where are you going that you need a gun?"