[TunnelRat]

there are lots of ways to carry a pistol where “I can shoot a second faster, with a zombie trying to bite my right hand” simply don’t apply

Kind of an ignorant summary of a complex problem, but okay then.

I remind people that lots of us are in the sport and have no desire or preparations to shoot people and we are just as alive as you are.

Who exactly here has expressed a "desire" to shoot people? I have insurance on my car and a fire extinguisher in my house. I don't plan to crash into people and I don't intend to set my house on fire. Preparing for something isn't the same as wanting something to happen.

Some fellas are very responsible in their concealed carry “game”. They read, they think, they take classes and practical seminars. They are indeed highly trained and experienced.

Quite a few more fellas bought a gun, took a 4 hour class, shot a box of ammo and are out on the street, watching YouTube videos of guys doing 20 round mag dumps in to old rusty refrigerators and think they are some kind of superhero. That’s just how it is because of the way laws are here in America. There are other countries, and other cultures we can learn from if you just wind up your thinkerbox.

As one of the people in the first group, I can tell you the problem I have with the second statement. My ability to attend those courses, practice as much as I do, etc. is a direct result of my income. Without my job I wouldn't have the time and money to do that. When you start getting into mandatory requirements it starts to become a form of income discrimination. Because a guy can't afford to shoot a case of ammo a month he shouldn't be allowed to take a pistol? You might say a case of ammo is more than you intend, but then the argument becomes how much additional practice and training is meaningful? And moreso who determines that? I've done 20+ courses and I still take more and wouldn't consider myself "done" with training.

I ask people to consider how much advertising plays a part in their rational decision making process.

Yes, because the main reason a person would choose to carry concealed is solely due to advertising . Do companies make money of of concealed carry? Sure, just as insurance companies make money and safety product companies make money. It's a capitalist market (unless that's one of those things you'd like to adopt from those other countries) and someone usually makes a profit. I don't accept that the people that do choose to carry concealed do it mostly due to marketing. In fact most people I have talked to that do concealed carry can often point to a specific instance in their life that influenced that choice.

Fact is, there is a problem in this country and if we don’t work for sensible solutions then I feel solutions will be forced on us, sensible or not.

I fail to see how concealed carry is contributing to the "problem" (and I put that in quotes because I have no idea if you mean mass shootings, overall gun violence, etc. when you use a very generic term). The people killing people are already committing a felony. I'm not sure concealed carry being restricted would really dissuade them.

There's a tendency among anti-gun groups to label themselves "sensible". It's one of the most common tactics. The point is to make themselves seem reasonable and anyone that would oppose them seem unreasonable (similar to Pro-Life versus Pro-Choice). The problem is what is sensible to one person might not be sensible to another, for instance carrying with a round chambered or not.

I have to say that for someone that touts being a gun owner for 35 years you seem to have a very skewed view of what is a rather large, and growing, segment of the gun owning population.