Am I too critical of some fellow gun owners here?

yhtomit said:

You're right -- there are some over-the-top queries, and some seemingly serious hand-wringing problems. "I'm a serious skydiver, and spend upwards of 20 minutes in free-fall each weekend; I don't like to be without my CCW during this vital time, because Bad Guys know that it's likely I'd be vulnerable while falling through the air. What caliber do you recommend, and what's the best full-retention holder?"

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Blackhawk Sherpa, of course. Calibre is not as important as practicing to ensure that your weapon will fire when upside down or at any angle. Therefore, a revolver may be a better choice.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the motto:

BE PREPARED.

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I prefer to carry at all times, but of course there are times when I do not. I am lucky right now as a federal LEO in that I can carry at almost all times. When I retire, I'll get my permit in NY, and I'll also have LEOSA carry privileges allowing me to carry in all 50 states. So it is likely that I wills till carry most of the time.

I do not think it overzealous to carry whenever practical, or even whenever possible if you can make it practical to some degree. There is just too much that can happen to catch you off guard and unarmed to make you wish you were armed. That is life in the world today.

Having said that, I'll also say, there are some who are simply paranoid or darned close to it who fear and thus carry, and those who are compulsive and need to carry. Those folks need to learn how to cope while not armed, and how to live life to its fullest. That sometimes includes being unarmed in certain situations. Life is full of risks small and large, and if you don't sometimes take a risk now and then you are not living. Still though, I am sometimes quite uncomforatble knowing I am not as prepared as I could be to defend myself or my family in a bad situation.

All the best,
Glenn B

Hokkmike - Yes, some are over the top, but not everyone has the luxury of living in rural PA as we do. You and I can pretty safely say that carjackings and home invasions are extremely rare where we live, that gangs exist and drivebys happen mostly in other places, that we can walk thru our towns at night and not fear being mugged.

I don't feel the need to carry a gun all the time, but I can easily understand why some people in other parts of the US do. I rarely carry when I go to State College on a Saturday night, but would you want to walk through Williamsport on a Saturday night armed with nothing more than a cell phone? It all depends on the situation.

But that said, I'm sure Dr Petit felt the town where he lived was safe too and I'm sure that the people of Littleton CO thought they had nothing to fear sending their kids to school. While the probability of random violence in most of Central PA is rare, it by all means still exists. I guess it just all depends on how much each person is willing to play the odds. When they're stacked in our favor, its obviously much safer to play.

I think some people get caught up thinking about things that are theoretically possible but statistically highly unlikely. Such as "what gun is best to bring into the shower with me in case there is a home invasion while I am bathing?" Or "what gun is best to carry while swimming in the ocean if I get attacked by a shark?" Those are both real THR posts. You are far more likely to have a heart attack than be shot by home invaders, but no one carries around a portable defibrillator. You far more likely to get in a car crash, but I've never seen someone wear a helmet while driving. Every door knob contains thousands of bacteria and viruses, but few people where gloves all the time. At some point you have to accept that life is random and largely uncontrollable. Cover the basics and then try to enjoy life.

I dont obsess about it. I carry all the time. One of the things I don obsess about is what other people think about my firearms.

That said, if you do not carry all the time, dont bother. What are the particular places that "if you take propper precautions" you dont need to worry about carrying? The church? The school? Other no gun zones? Are these not the places ALL the recent shootings have taken place?

Isnt "if you take precautions and stay in safe places, there is no need for you to carry a gun" a very small step from your statement? Why yes it is.

You have no more power to PREDICT a "no danger" situation than anyone else, and that ability is zero no matter how much you dissagree. Dont be confused, your decision is based on nothing more than a prediction, a gaze into a crystal ball so to speak. Are your predictions based on the people that surround you? Are you certain no other "types" could gain access to the area? There are just TOO many variables in life. VERY FEW PEOPLE that have been killed thought they were in a situation in which it would or could happen, or else they wouldnt be there.

Your false sense of security is the same malady that gun grabbers have, you just skate the edge. Do so if you want, but dont suggest that people that carry responsibly, as in consistantly, are over the top. I for one think fortune tellers are over the top, if you get my drift.

As far as folks having firearms in certain areas of their house, they are not as CERTAIN as you that they will NEVER be broken into when home. They are not as CERTAIN as you that they will be able to make a dash to a firearm or be saved by the police.

As far as carrying while on a date, is this one of the situations in which you always feel safe? Can you honestly say that the "parts of town" you visit when out for fun are a predictably safe environment. Others do not feel so CERTAIN that that is the case.

When we carry it is because we realize that one can not assume safety, that one can not assume that there will always be a "protector", that as is said "If you want peace, prepare for war". The assumptions you make, while maybe just fine for you, are but an extension of the reasons gun grabbers have concerning why you should not be allowed to carry.

I dont feel safe making that kind of assumption. I think most here do not. I am glad you have the right to carry when you have decided you are going someplace "dangerous" but lets not forget, verry few people who have met with tragedy at anothers hand felt they were walking into danger.

Can I get the brand of your crystal ball?

I am one that feels "naked" without my CW. I don't think that I ever posted anything "over the top" when it comes to my carrying. But I live in close proximity to Detroit, a city that elicits shudders from a great many people in the country, at the mere mention of it's name. And yes, I plan to get out of here as soon as I retire or shortly thereafter. I will probably take my cautious attitude with me wherever I go, but will feel greatly relieved, nonetheless.

Every person's situation is different. Walk a mile in their shoes, or at least do your best to think about how you would handle it in a similar situation, before calling their attitude "over the top."

Hokkmike,
I'm glad you asked...I thought it was just me. I realize that everyone has their own world to live in, and it requires their own best judgment.
As others have said, some people live in pretty rough areas, or in isolated places, that may require more thought and preparation.
I live in a pretty quiet suburban area, and rarely, if ever, feel threatened. I do carry sometimes, and I'm definitely prepared at home. But, I'd guess that at least 90% of my peers would think I'm nuts for carrying all the time. I realize you can never say never, and in my younger days I regretted not carrying a gun a couple of times; but somehow, I've survived for 50 years without experiencing too much trouble. I think that awareness, and common sense, are the first line of defense in most situations...but it never hurts to have an ace up your sleeve.

Glenn Bartley,

I appreciate your post above, as I do all your posts and sharing.

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The Reality is, WE have various groups of members on THR .

-WE have disruptive, immature, members, not even old enough to legally purchase a firearm, much less CCW, that post all sorts of "what if" and other paranoia around here.
These folks are so worked up, over the top, and/or their goal is to be get others stirred up, worked up, or over the top.

-LEOs and other Professionals.

-Business Owners, Corporate Heads and Mgmt.
i.e
Take a person such as a Bank Mgr and security risks of having access to the bank, also security measures used by the bank, and ADLs after having gone to work, come home, and after hours and weekend.

BE Prepared is great advice, I was raised like this.

I was raised into a hi-risk "something" and from the time I was a kid, I was a target for being kidnapped.
I understand and have my experiences and observations about some things.

I and mine were doing what we did, but when it came time to go see the FBI, for instance in that office, we were not going to get inside very far, if at all with a gun.

Back in the day, knowing folks, the "arrangement" we had, yeah times were different.

Currently, do not even try to do this.

One still has to park a vehicle, use parking deck/cross a lot, and return from said building.

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Over the top is a bat belt and a dozen mags to get the mail off the front porch for most folks.

Me and mine might have $500,000 or even $1million in mdse, and we gotta get from point A to Point B, and we don't have a bat belt,and a dozen mags, 5 knives and all that to do it.

I've done it with a Jetfire and pocket knife!

Be Prepared meant, mindset, skill sets, practiced plans.

I've been a decoy... oh yeah, I wanted the Professional Thugs to see me, so the real person, was not noticed, and went on about business.

Serious business! We use sick humor to stay sane and alert, Playing The Game we call it.

My car gun for instance might be a Model 29 with full house loads.
Ever been shot at?
Ever been rammed and folks trying to run you off the road?
I have.

Model 29 with full house loads - are not over the top for what me and mine are familiar with.

Each person has to access themselves and situations and take steps any prudent would do in that situation.

Be Prepared, means doing this, and thinking out of the box.

Hey, if a person carries, and no problems occur and no one notices, what's the big deal? When you criticize or define something, as being over the top, you do the same thing as the anti's do, that is define things outside your own behavior as being out of the norm. I certainly wouldn't carry where a particular property owner objects, and I also try to observe the laws.

I live in a peaceful country setting - people have hobby farms and real farms and towns are 1200 folks and 10 miles away. A meth head and his crack whore girlfriend came here from a robbing and killing spree hundreds of miles away by hopping a train. They just happened to get off the train near here, and just happened to be visiting the houses about 1/4 mile away, stealing guns and food and whatever else they could. Turns out a 53 year old lady was home in her secluded house and she suprised them so they choked her to death after beating her into submission for her ATM pass code. The police figured the two had been around for at least 4 days. Who knows, maybe they were "visiting" my outbuildings too. "Security" used to be a dog that would bark - no locked doors, no real concern about safety.

Now put yourself in my shoes. My wife and kids are all very vulnerable. My elderly grandpa and his girlfriend are both very vulnerable. And even I (in my 40's now) feel vulnerable to *a few* younger males. For sure, criminals nowadays are less likely to "feel bad" when they are strung out on crack or meth or whatever crazy drugs they do now. I've learned by close association that bad things can happen any time, and I like many others posting before me choose to carry whenever I can. They can make laws that say I "can't" carry here, or there - so they will have to penalize me for breaking that law after I've used my gun to keep from being a victim in that arena - and I will do my best to fight it.

In my opinion it is common sense that is missing from many of these posts, and you will never be able to regulate common sense. Some have it, some don't. Common sense tells me that of all places where some emotionally distraught person will show with a gun up are places that employ others, places where alcohol (or other drugs) is served, and places where classism makes people angry and want retribution, or just somewhere that gives the perpetrator opportunity to cause a big stir. Or, as my newly opened eyes have witnessed, right in my back 40 or in the chicken barn at the edge of my property.

I figure as long as you aren't pointing it at me or mine, I don't really give a rats ass where you carry your gun, and I hope that someone is willing to abide by the rules of common sense when the time comes to prevent innocent people from being slain, as was the case in that church in Co.

Maybe some of the people perceived as being "over the top" we simply caught in a situation where they needed a gun and did not have one. My guess is that after that happens one time you never want it to happen again.

Are we over the top?

Lest we judge too harshly, let's look at what danger "might" exist. I served in Vietnam where you never went to the can without a gun, never took a shower without an armed guard outside the showers. There were armed guards outside the hospital that treated me on the way to Saigon General.

I came back to live in upstate NY where nothing happens. Or at least nothing did in the 70's. I moved to Phoenix, Az in 81, and nothing was happening there.

In 85 I started a vending business which had me picking up cash everyday and storing it in my house. I had a group of druggies living next door and threatening me and my family. On the other side were a couple who fought constantly with me frequently being the one who called the police. I had a dog and security lights on all the corners of the house.

Then came the car jackings, home invasions, driveby shootings, rape and robberies in the early 90's.

All that time I never carried a gun or a knife. Then along came the Brady Bunch who thought they had the right to determine who bought what and when. For many of us, that was a wake up call. That made us think about why we should own a gun, and the circumstances of life made it necessary.

We all know that the police will arrive to take a report, but not to prevent a crime. In fact the Supreme Court has already ruled that the police can not be held responsible for personal safety. Who does that leave? Us. We are the ones responsible for our personal safety. Not the police, not our neighbor, not a CCW in church or at the mall. Us.

I can not fault anyone who believes their life or the lives of their loved ones are sacred and deserve protection. Would I go about it in the same way as someone living in New Orleans, or the border towns of Texas and Oklahoma? No, I doubt it. Do they have to carry because the remote areas around their towns are riddled with drug factories? I doubt it. Mine are. I have been out driving on jeep backroads and driven smack into a compound with multiple shacks with smoke stacks and the stench of chlorine in the air. Should I stay home and cower behind my fence just because there might be a threat?
Damned if I will. I will not allow the possibility of danger deprive me of my rights. I protect myself in any way necessary any time necessary. And I don't apologize for it.

Over the top? Depends on your prior experiences and how many of your basic rights you are willing to compromise.

Be Prepared

My take is simple and I like to break it down to the simple and to common sense, and to correct basic fundamentals.

I know about escaped folks, coming onto property, riots, kidnapping , rape, and all sorts of evil.
Rural, Semi-Rural, Bigger City, and out of the USA

I was was young with sibs under my care, and the 3 adults with evil intent, with weapons busted down the front door.
I was prepared, and I stopped that immediate threat.

I used a .22 nine shot revolver and I did not miss.
I had another .22 revolver and single shot shotgun.
I was not over the top, I was prepared, and I used the gun , MY gun, I learned on at age 3

Times were different back then, one was raised to be prepared, and parent kids, mentor, and pass forward.
There was no 911, no Cell phone and folks were prepared.

WE - run what we brung.
Now there is nothing wrong with nice guns and equipment.

One cannot buy skill and targets

One could not do it the mid 50's when I born, folks could not do so before I was born and they cannot still buy skill an targets and I don't care how gussied up and how many gussies you got, if one is not prepared, you will get injured, maimed, or dead.

My contention with these posers and wannbe's is simple.
They are ijits.
They are breathing MY air, doing harm to THR Mission statement, doing more harm to RKBA and Responsible Firearms owners.

Here is the real deal posers with your AR stocked Ultimate Shotgun with 3.5" shells of 00 buck, mag extension, and two side saddles:

Can you honest to goodness shoot a Firebomb out of the sky heading at your roof, or front porch!

I can, I have done it, and I learned that from Mentors, and actually saw then do so with bone stock single shot, SxS, hardware store shotguns with long barrels...and many did not even have a front bead sight!

Prepared meant, having garden hoses ready to go, to deal with fire, sand/dirt buckets, first aid, flashlights, candles, lanterns - as we had no power, no phones working...prepared for evil, natural disasters and...

So w-a-y before 3 gun, IDPA, IPSC and all - we had lessons and folks run what they brung. .

.32 cal break top revolver was brought, lessons on carry, how to shoot, while at home, doing chores.
That SxS kept handy, was brought out...
Lever Action in 30-30 was brought out...
etc...

Rural, Semi-Rural, Bigger City folks run what they brung.

It was not over the top for a lady to carry a .32 cal break top revolver back then, and it ain't now.

That lady was prepared, had common sense, when time to walk out and get the mail out from a mail box on the blacktop too.

Sheriff/ Corrections folks inform folks chain gangs would be working in the area...wait until someone else, even a Deputy, or Corrections fella was near and you know, a Deputy will ride down to her mail box, get her mail and bring it back.

Not over the top, common sense, common courtesy, and not putting everything down to "gun" when it comes to being prepared, and staying safe.

I thought so too for a while, until I came across more and more people who had stories where they thought their life was over for sure, and consequently, had their minds changed from that day forward.

It is obviously hard, even on the internet, to share your story of near death, or of having to take someone's life, but I realized that people in both of these categories existed here, and after that, became more accepting of how forumites felt about every day situations. I wasn't the one pulled out of my bed, gagged, tied up, kicked, pistol-whipped, and told that I was going to die if I didn't do something, and I don't feel that I personally should tell the person that was to mellow out.

It can be unhealthy of course, but the human mind is an incredibly complex thing, and personal defense is surely in there deep.

Hey Hokkmike

Too zealous? Not in my opinion, unless you just think about yourself too damn much.

The talk radio was discussing the fact that of the several GUN-FREE zones in this city (malls, etc) a couple of them have been the site of crazies coming in and shooting up the place. The point being, what's the use of a GUN-FREE zone if CRAZIES don't pay attention to the policy? And where's the guy with a gun when you need him?

If your worried about being obsessive, start playing chess. It's a wonderful way to "splay-off" troublesome energy, and besides, its a damn good education.

Yes, some are over the top, but not everyone has the luxury of living in rural PA as we do. You and I can pretty safely say that carjackings and home invasions are extremely rare where we live, that gangs exist and drivebys happen mostly in other places, that we can walk thru our towns at night and not fear being mugged.

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Around here, that safe rural area is the perfect location for meth labs and marijuana farms. The owners of either will happily kill you if you interfere in their activities, or they believe you are interfering. Positive you don't have any around there?

There are no safe zones anymore. Those that did exist did so because people knew their neighbors and who did or did not belong in an area. Those who did not belong did not stay long. These days, that kind of vigilance and dedication to each other no longer occurs.

Everyone has to run a risk/benefit analysis on all circumstances they may face. It's not enough to say "this is unlikely so I don't have to worry about it"; we buy insurance to deal with unlikely events all the time. At the age of most people on this board, we can expect decades of life ahead of us, yet buy term policies in case something happens out of the ordinary.

The problem is that some calculate the risks and benefits incorrectly, and so are hyperprepared all the time. Great way to burn out or be ridiculed.

Others calculate the risks and benefits incorrectly, but in the wrong direction. They aren't prepared for what has a reasonable chance of happening. As a result, we see horrific home invasions and car jackings in areas that 10 minutes before, someone would have said that "those kind of things don't happen here" and they were perfectly safe. Universities are really good examples, since the statistics say they are quite safe (please ignore the fact that universities were caught falsifying the stats so that people wouldn't see the actual crime rate and stop going to these high crime areas).

i mean i certainly wouldnt wear a beat holster to a wedding

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Of course not. That's the best man's job. And at my wedding, one of my best man's roles was to provide security as we had discussed and planned for a potential threat that might very well have reared its head. Weddings are wonderful events for everyone but the person who was (in fact or only in their heads) rejected in favor of someone else, and wants "their" bride or groom back.

There are some over the top posts in my semi-humble opinion.
As for me personally, I carry when I can. Since I work on a military base, I can't even transport to work, but I don't stress over it. At home, I often carry a 637 in my pocket and something more substantial on my nightstand. My particular street is quiet; if that changes, I'll make the Mossberg 500 more handy.
There is a level of drama also in some posts that I find uncomfortable; but all in all, the folks on THR seem to be a good bunch with the caveat that we're all relatively anonymous sort of like the character in the Brad Paisley song.
Lastly, on issues of information, THR is outstanding for folks willing to share their knowledge about firearms that I have found to be very useful.
We're mostly on the same team.

Just one more coment. Your analogy with the car and the helmet is not a good one. But the car is a good subject for this. Do you wear a seatbelt? This is your "safety net" in an automobile. Do you only wear your seatbelt on longer drives or drives into the city? I hope not because this basicaly makes your seatbelt worthless. A safety "routine" ONLY WORKS if it is cosistant. It is worthless unless it is followed constantly. The same goes for locks on the doors. Do you only lock your house at night, or if you are going to be away for more than a few hours? I think not. Why? Because you know very well that that would be an unwise move. I wear my seatbelt all the time, my doors are always locked. This is absolutely no different than carrying a sidearm at all times.

Buzz,
No, I can't say 100% that there aren't, but I can say 100% that there aren't any in my home, or on the street between my house and the grocery store in town. I don't feel the need to carry a gun when I'm at home nor when I walk to the store. I stand a higher chance of getting hit by falling space debris than getting mgged or randomly shot in my town.

If I take a walk in the woods, I'm armed. With a compact 9 and 10 rounds. I don't take 5 spare mags, a backup gun with 5 more mags, 3 tactical knives and a baton. That's over the top. The gun is more for dogs that are known to inhabit the woods around here.

I'm involved in Little League Baseball and on occasion travel to Williamsport, the LL HQ. That city has become a 5#!+ hole in recent years. I am armed anytime I go there. I carry sometimes when I go to the local mall. Not so much because I think something might happen, but more because I can.

Around here the biggest crimes are drunk college kids vandalizing cars. Our violent crime rate around here is next to nil. I'm more likely to hit an Amish buggy than get carjacked.

Don't get me wrong. Don't think I'm not prepared. I'm prepared sufficiently for my situation. I have guns in the house that are quickly accessible. Someone wants to invade my home, good luck. The dogs will buy me enough time to get to a gun. Want to attack my wife when she's out walking? Good luck again. The German Shepherd is very smart and protective and the boxer/pit would kill you if you mess with my wife.

There is a fine line between being prepared for your situation and being over the top and its a line that each of us must draw and be comfortable with. If I'm walking to the store one evening and get mugged, then I'll have to live (or die) with the fact that my line was wrong, but from where I stand right now, I'm comfortable with the odds that my line is right. I still reserve the right to erase and redraw the line at any time I so choose.

Is it me, or aren't some of these scenarios just a little bit over the top? Where I live, in Pennsylvania ....

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If by "scenarios" you mean "hypothetical situations," many of them seem over the top to me too, but I look at them as potentially good mental exercises that have perhaps gone too far.

After all, it's good for people around firearms to imagine what could go wrong, check that possibility against reality, and anticipate what one could do about it. You've done that by raising the issue here.

You don't see some potential problems other people do see, you checked your understanding against the reality you know, and since you can't resolve the two yourself you asked for other people's advice. Nothing wrong with that approach. The approach seems healthy to me and I think you might agree if you look at the situation from that point of view.

Although many of the hypotheticals do seem way over the top to me, they are a way for people who haven't yet developed their own parameters to benefit from input by others. And in more than a few instances those hypotheticals turn out to reflect reasonable concerns even if they're phrased awkwardly.

Take the "I don't feel comfortable not carrying in church" line of questions. If you Google "church shooting" from time to time you should see that churches have been the scene of several shootings and continue to be. Your church might be perfectly safe, but my hunch is that everyone who attended those unfortunate churches thought the same about them, and that people who believed their own church unsafe or was about to be the scene of a mass murder would attend some other church instead. There's an apparently over-the-top hypothetical that really isn't. But it might seem so to you based on your own experience with reality.

"Where I live in Pennsylvania" is the way you're testing other people's concerns and of course we all have to do that, but as we do it we also should recognize that an irrelevant concern to us in Pennsylvania might reflect a relevant concern to someone else. "So what do you do if you're walking along the golf course and an alligator grabs your leg" might seem laughable in the Poconos, especially if the person adds "and the golf course is a gun free zone and I'm thinking of carrying anyway." But the concern might be real for someone playing a Naples, Florida, golf course.

There's a much more important issue. Many gun owners object to gun control laws that impose other people's view of reality on them. "Nobody needs a gun" and "The police will protect you" and "You should call 911" and "You shouldn't have a semi-automatic pistol" and "If you haven't done anything wrong why would you object to registering your guns" and similar prohibitions are very much like "your concerns seem over the top to me" in nature. They represent some people developing rules they impose on other people because they see the world differently and because they can't imagine the possibility that they're wrong.

That's pretty narrowminded to me, and I think it's much worse and infinitely more dangerous than over the top hypotheticals. People who do the latter might have an overactive imagination but people who do the former have one that is limited and restrictive. In the end we don't have the right to decide the acceptable limits for anyone else's concern for his own safety as long as his behavior doesn't hurt other people. I just don't care if someone wants to legally carry the mean of self defense in a church I attend, and if it offers him comfort and doesn't hurt anyone else I don't see why he shouldn't.

I can say 100% that there aren't any in my home, or on the street between my house and the grocery store in town.

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How about in the trunk of the car sitting in the grocery store parking lot? We had one of those.

I grew up in an equally quiet area. Not much went on. Then one day, a serial killer passed through and murdered a teacher at a park less than a mile from my family home, the same park I could see from the backdoor when the leaves were off the trees, and where I went hiking.

Every person that ever had a home invasion was absolutely positive that there were no criminals in there home either. They were correct, until the criminals forced entry.

There are no safe zones.

There is a fine line between being prepared for your situation and being over the top and its a line that each of us must draw and be comfortable with. If I'm walking to the store one evening and get mugged, then I'll have to live (or die) with the fact that my line was wrong, but from where I stand right now, I'm comfortable with the odds that my line is right. I still reserve the right to erase and redraw the line at any time I so choose.

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That's the ultimate point, and one I agree with you 100% on. The only issue I have is when people evaluate their own risks, and then assume those risks apply to everyone else. That's usually how these "ya'll are paranoid" threads come about. People don't think "that" will ever happen to them, so it must not be a threat to anyone else. We should restrict our efforts to "educate" people out of their paranoia for times when the response is disproportional to any possible threat. And even then, we need to carefully consider the facts before doing so.

To each, his (or her) own.

Indeed, to each, his/her own. For my own part it would be my intention to carry whenever and wherever I may lawfully do so, but another new thread here recently asked in a poll if people would travel to states or countries that had no respect for RKBA. Some of the respondents said that, no, they would not do so. But my entire family, aside from my wife, son, and mother in law, live either in states that do not respect the RKBA, or in countries that do not (California and France, in particular). I love my family, and I won't let my having to disarm to go see them get in the way of doing so.

That being said, I do arm myself in more subtle ways. I spent years condemned to using a cane just to get around the house until I had surgery which mostly alleviated my symptoms. I own a heavy cane made from hawthorn root that is quiet a shileighly for administering beat downs, and I can carry it on a plane. And since I always travel with just carry on luggage, I buy a decent/affordable pocket knife of the "tactical" variety on arrival, and then I just give it to a friend or host when I leave, and chalk it up to the cost of traveling.

In those rare occasions where concealed carry is either unwelcome, or it just doesn't seem appropriate some how to me, then I just takes my chances. I value my RKBA and will exercise it at most opportunities, but I'm not so freaked out by the state of the world (which I admit is pretty bad) that I simply won't leave the house or car without a gun on my person.

Over the Top?

People obsessing over potential threats are only exceeded by the guys who write I bought a 1950 Belgian Browning HP NIB for $250 - how'd I do? I would like to call them morons but this is the High Road.

Some do seem over the top, but as mentioned earlier it is hard to know the circumstances in their entirety. So for now say different strokes for different folks. There will always be the occasional fish story though.