to carry or not to carry

[sansone]

I have carried for years in the past, but not lately. sometimes I feel it's laziness, or the: "it won't happen to me" thing. I stupidly let the ccp expire and now looking at the long painful process and doing it a second time, please talk me into it. ..My dad was a cop all my life. as adults we hung out together a lot because we had the same interests.(grateful) .. back then I carried full time and questioned him for NOT carrying when he was off-duty. his reply was: "son, you're a professional mechanic. Do you carry your heavy toolbox after work?" my carry piece was a tiny Colt mustang which was no trouble at all, fit anywhere and was truly concealed. I told him about plastic guns with no weight and he reminded me that he was still a cop and sees ALL the newest guns everyday. We never agreed on the "carry or not" issue. What do my gunny buddies think??

 

[BrianB]

Sounds like you want to re-apply in spite of the "ordeal." Time to start the process NOW to keep it as short as possible.

I'm getting the Utah non-res CCP, even though it's no good here in Illinois. I think it's better to have the choice legally when I travel.

 

[romma]

Carry!

 

[grampster]

Years ago, I was transporting an older fella (60's) to do a little time in the county jail for ccw. I was looking in his file and he'd never had so much as a traffic ticket in a lifetime. I asked him why he'd been packing, why take a chance on getting caught. He said something that has stuck with me for the last 40 years. He said, "Officer, I'd rather have you catch me with it, than have them catch me without it." Good advice.

 

[hso]

If for no other reason consider this, having a carry permit means not having to put ammunition in one compartment and firearms in another when you're out in your vehicle. Makes range trips much more convenient.

 

[obxned]

I keep paying for fire insurance even though I have never had a fire.

 

[ZeSpectre]

My dad was a cop all my life. as adults we hung out together a lot because we had the same interests.(grateful) .. back then I carried full time and questioned him for NOT carrying when he was off-duty. his reply was: "son, you're a professional mechanic. Do you carry your heavy toolbox after work?"

Bad analogy, more like do you cancel your car insurance when it's parked safely in the garage?

Seriously though, you want to be convinced to put the effort into getting your CCW/CHL again? Find your local police webpage and read their posted crime reports.

For example (and North Arlington is considered a pretty upscale area by the way).

ARMED ROBBERY, 4/23/2007, 2300 block of S. Eads St. At approximately 0045 hrs on 04/24/07, a man was robbed at gunpoint while showing merchandise to a potential customer. The victim says he arranged to meet the suspect in Arlington after the suspect indicated he was interested in buying some clothes. But instead, the suspect drew a weapon and took cash and clothing.

AGGRAVATED SEXUAL BATTERY, 4/23/2007, 1300 block of Quincy Street At approximately 1749 hrs on 04/23/07, an 11 year old girl, who attends a different school, was dropped off at her bus stop at Randolph Elementary School. A custodian let the girl inside the school to use a telephone then inappropriately touched her. 48 year old Darrell Beckham of Camp Springs, MD, was charged with Aggravated Sexual Battery and held without bond.

BREAKING & ENTERING/DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY, 4/21/2007, 1300 block of N. Troy St. Between 1400 hrs on 04/20/07 and 1115 hrs on 04/21/07, someone attempted to break into two offices on a construction site, and damaged the door to a bathroom.

ROBBERY BY FORCE, 4/21/2007, 4000 block of N. Washington Blvd At approximately 0349 hrs on 04/21/07, a passenger in a taxi cab reached into the front seat, grabbed the driver and took cash from his shirt pocket. The man got out of the cab and tried to get at the driver but could not open the driver’s door. He then fled on foot. Officers located a suspect in the area and the investigation is ongoing. No charges have been filed at this time.

ATTEMPTED ABDUCTION/ROBBERY BY FORCE, 4/21/2007, 3800 block of Columbia Pike Just after midnight on 04/21/07, a woman entering an apartment building was confronted by a man known to her. The woman refused to go with the man and tried to call for help but the man took her cell phone. He attempted to pull her into a vehicle but a witness helped the woman get away. The suspect then left in a vehicle with the woman’s phone. Charges have not yet been filed.

BURGLARY, 4/19/2007, 1100 block of S. Hayes St. Between the morning of 04/18/07 and 0630 hrs on 04/19/07, someone broke into the storage room of a retail store and took clothing.

and on and on.

 

[sansone]

I new it wouldn't take much convincing, I should have asked you fellas BEFORE letting it expire

 

[helpless]

"son, you're a professional mechanic. Do you carry your heavy toolbox after work?"

YEah okay, apples and oranges anyone.

This is my fathers opinion also. He is an LEO for 25+ years.

 

[bigmike45]

sanson1,

Your thought process is slightly skewed. Carrying a concealed weapon is the right and priveledge of a law abiding citizen, to protect themselves, when local law enforcement, is not able to do so. If there is a LEO around, I will gladly let them risk their life in the persuit of law enforcement and protecting and serving the public. On the other hand, and this is by no means meant as derogatory, they are never around when you need them. So for that reason I excercise my right to carry and do everything it takes to maintain that right and priveledge. It follows the same lines as having a drivers license. You have to keep it from expiring, not allow yourself to do anything that could get it taken away, and use it responsibly.

The right comes from our Constitution, the priveledge comes from living a non-criminal life, and completing the steps it takes to earn that priveledge. Come on man.....excercise those rights and earn those priveledges.

 

[MD_Willington]

couple weeks back, someone, student of U of Idaho IIRC, near our church was held at knife point and robbed... in the same area, another person, again a student of U of Idaho, was shot in the head by a sociopath, now I don't live in a high crime area, but I'm one for the boy scout motto of always being prepared...

 

[P97]

If I knew when I would need it, I would only carry it then. Since I don't know when my, or my family's life will be threatened, I carry all the time. Guess it depends on how you value your, and your family's, life.

 

[calldog73]

If a mechanic is on his way home from work and his car breaks down would he not want his tool box? Or a least a smaller version on it. It is better to prey for the best and prepair for the worst.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Carry if and only if your life is worth defending.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

sanson1 --

You live in a jurisdiction where you cannot legally carry concealed without a permit. If you get the permit, you can choose when you wish to carry. If you don't get the permit, you can choose when you wish to break the law.

What kind of choice is that?

 

[Glockamolie]

I would ask any cop that doesn't carry off-duty how well he'd take it if he found himself in the position to need to defend himself, his family, or a third party for that matter. He had the training, the will (I'd hope), and the desire (and I'd go so far as to add the duty) to stop someone, but not the means. Is that lifetime of regret worth it? The time to wish you had a gun is not when you find yourself needing one.

 

[thexrayboy]

The decision to carry or not is, at this time, a personal one for most of us. We get to choose, whether you choose to or not is a matter for you to decide. The side arm you carry, or leave at home is that insurance policy that you maintain or allow to lapse. It is a gamble, plain and simple and only you can decide if you like the odds or not. However a defense weapon is different from insurance in one crucial way. If you need fire insurance and don't have it you will suffer economic loss. If you need the insurance a weapon offers you may suffer the loss of life. A gun is like an ambulance. You may never ever need it, but if you do you will need it desparately and you will need it NOW.

 

[zoom6zoom]

If I knew when I would need it, I would only carry it then.

If I knew I was going to need it, I'd be carrying a shotgun or rifle. So I carry my sidearm the rest of the time.

 

[koja48]

"son, you're a professional mechanic. Do you carry your heavy toolbox after work?"
I'd vote "carry." You may not haul your toolbox around, but I'll bet there's a jack & spare tire in your rig . . .

 

[jeepmor]

Emergencies are not something you schedule on your calendar.

And if you think of it from an insurance angle, it's considerably cheaper and almost a one time purchase with the exception of the permit renewal every 4 years or so. At least it's 4 years in Oregon. That's cheap insurance man, very cheap.

From Zespectres thread, that's 6 incidents in four days. Unless you live in a cave, you'll be near one very close to you or directly invovled eventually.

I've got several people within one or two tiers away via friends and family that have been directly involved in ugly sociopathic related firearms incidents, all of them were unprepared. One perished, one was shot, and one just got lucky and called in sick the night that 13 people were shot. When one comes to my doorstep, I can say I learned from their encounters and hope to respond differently. I can't state that my results will differ from theirs, but I can say I will have a firearm on me in hopes of keeping the outcome for me and mine as grim as some of these mentioned tales.