1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
As someone who has never owned a gun and somehow manages to navigate this scary, scary world without one, I see the scale weigh on the side of too much damage.
And, statistically, you probably never will be in a situation in which a gun would be required to extract yourself. Your success rate in navigating this scary, scary world unharmed has thus far been 100%. For those who do come under deadly threat, their success rate is zero.
Those people who have never been in a serious highway accident still wear seat belts, and chefs who've never had a stove fire still keep a fire extinguisher handy...or at least they do if they're smart. The adage about "Hope for the best/Prepare for the worst" is a good rule to observe.
I once heard a wise man address the question of carrying a defensive sidearm in today's increasingly perilous world, and he spoke from real experience.
"A pistol is a lot like an ambulance. We don't need one very often, but when we do, we need it desperately and we need it immediately."