In today's society, why does anyone other than a law enforcement officer need to take a gun, concealed or otherwise, into a restaurant or bar?
Uhhh...for the same reason the law enforcement officer might need to? Just because someone isn't an LEO doesn't mean they lose their rights to self defense.
Edit: Sent this letter to their editor.
Mr. Casey,
I'm writing regarding your website's opinion piece "Our Opinion - Back to the Wild West?". Where to begin...
For starters, I will answer your question: "In today's society, why does anyone other than a law enforcement officer need to take a gun, concealed or otherwise, into a restaurant or bar?" The simplest answer is this: For exactly the same reason a law enforcement officer needs to. Just because a person doesn't have a badge doesn't negate their right to an effective means of self defense. I want to ensure my family and me are protected if we want to go out to eat, AND on the way to the restarant. I don't know about you, but I don't magically step into a restarant or wherever my destination happens to be everytime I step out of my front door.
As for your next comment "We want our law enforcement officers to carry weapons for our defense if necessary. Permits to carry concealed weapons should be issued rarely through a process rigorous enough to assure that permit holders have sound reasons for carrying a hidden weapon and also are responsible and sane persons." Relying on someone who may not be there for your defense is irresponsible at best. Even the most experienced law enforcement officer will tell you that they aren't there to protect you from a violent crime. Oh, if they're in the vacinity at the time, sure, they'll stop it from happening, but 9 times out of 10 they get there just in time to pick up the pieces and either make an arrest or gather evidence that may eventually lead to an arrest. If you knew that your life were in danger right then-and-there, would you want to wait the average 5 minute response time?
Lastly, I want to opine on your comment that "The theory that citizens should commonly carry guns for self defense is wrong in today's society. The more guns that we carry, the more likely they will be used in error, or in confusion, or in frustration, or in retribution, or in anger -- just as it was in the Wild West when too many men went to "Boot Hill" at too young an age.". Statistics show that rarely, if ever, has a concealed weapon permit holder committed a crime. In fact, they save more lives than they take. Too many stories on the news these days could have had a different outcome had a responsible citizen, or even the victim themselves intervened. There is one story though, where the outcome could have been alot different if somebody hadn't stopped the attacker, and that is the one of the volunteer security guard (a concealed permit holder) who stopped the shooter at the church in Colorado.
Thank you for your time.
With Warmest Regards,
XXXX XXXXXX
