Reasons as to why having a pistol by your side is important...

[JohnH1963]

I do not carry my pistol with me wherever I go. I do not have it by my side all the time. However, its oftentimes very close by. At night, my pistol and the Cold Steel baseball bat are not too far away.

On another thread, someone commented about the paranoia behind answering the door with your pistol. I dont believe this is paranoia however.

When I was much much younger, I was coming home from a bar and in the back of a friend of a friend's car. The person driving the car was perfectly sober and seemed like a nice guy. He was nice enough to give me a lift back to my home because I did not want to drive while intoxicated. I just met this guy that night and it was a friend of a friend. I did not know him very well. He pulls up to a car in a random parking lot and there was a lot of fog. He gets out and pulls out a long steel pole from the back and then smashes the parked car. He then gets back in and keeps driving. I found out later that this was his ex-bosses car.

Another experience where a random car chased me down the highway after I mistakenly cut him off. The guy would not let off so I had to slow down to literally 15 mph on the highway until he finally decided to pass and after slowing the traffic behind us down quite a bit.

Its experiences like those in my life that make me keep my pistol close by, the doors locked at night and always have me paying attention to my environment. The fact of the matter is that you never know who you are going to anger. You never know what type of individuals are out there who you might randomly meet. They might get mad enough to knock on your door and do something crazy.

In a way, it is paranoia, but after you have had enough bad experiences then a pistol hidden away somewhere in your household makes sense. A pistol stashed away in your car or on your persons makes sense. The baseball bat placed somewhere in the house makes sense.

[smince]

I do not carry my pistol with me wherever I go.

Why not?

[Brian Pfleuger]

No offense, but I fail to see how several situations wherein NO weapon of any kind was needed make for justification for carrying a weapon. You yourself don't even consider it justification since you still don't carry.

Paranoia is an individual thing.... and it's always someone who carries something different than "I" do. Carry less than "me", you're an unprepared fool. Carry more than "me", you're paranoid."I" and "me" in the general, all-inclusive, third person sense

[JohnH1963]

Both situations demonstrated irrational violent behavior on the part of someone else. In those situations, no weapon was needed, but you can imagine where such behavior could lead to one needing a weapon.

[Brian Pfleuger]

In those situations, no weapon was needed, but you can imagine where such behavior could lead to one needing a weapon.

That's certainly true. Problem is, the people who need convincing need convincing because they (obviously) don't think carrying a weapon is necessary or even prudent. Examples involving situations wherein no weapon was needed are more appropriate for explaining why you DON'T carry a gun. After all, does anyone really believe that there AREN'T irrational people in the world? Your examples will just make "non-carries" say "See? Why do you need a gun? There was no problem there."

Personally, the best analogy I've ever heard for carrying a gun is the comparison to wearing a seatbelt in a car. We all drive 100's of thousands of miles in our lives. Many of us will NEVER need a seatbelt and a huge proportion of us will be in accidents akin to your examples wherein the seatbelt was not necessary but was nice to have "just in case". However, there are many thousands of people every year who would be DEAD if it weren't for seat belts. It's relatively rare but it does obviously happen. Carrying a gun is the same rationale. It's not for every day, it's not for the "fender bender scenario" that you outlined above, it's for the SUV that crosses the center line that you can't avoid. That's why you wear a seat belt and that's why you carry a gun. You only need either of them a very slim percentage of the time but if you need them then you NEED them, and there are no second chances.

[JohnH1963]

Let me provide a reason as to why I included the above example. Lets say I was this guy's manager and on my way out to the parking lot. All of a sudden a car pulls up to my car and the irrate employee gets out with a bat not knowing I was in the lot. He turns to see me and then comes running after me with the bat.

Lets say the irrate employee decides to hide in some bushes and, instead of going after the car, he goes after me the manager.

This is the motivation behind the above example.

[Brian Pfleuger]

I won't belabor the point any further except to say that hypotheticals don't convince people. It has to be real. If you think that your examples will convince then by all means use them.

[curt.45]

I won't belabor the point any further except to say that hypotheticals don't convince people. It has to be real. If you think that your examples will convince then by all means use them.

if its real it may have been to late.

[Loupgarou]

I live in a region that sees a fairly frequent number of aggressive criminal activity and violent confrontations. There are now some 60k CW license holders in the county where I reside. I am one of them. Many law abiding gunowners have successfully defended themselves from assault here, and the stats are part of the record. Countless individuals including several close friends and relatives, who years ago would not have dreamed of applying for a CW license or carrying concealed, are now doing so every day or at least keep a gun at home and attend training classes frequently. I never lectured them on why they should train themselves and carry. I just explained to them the circumstances and experiences that led me to buy a gun when I was 32 years old and to keep me a gunowner for the last thirty years. Their own observations, judgment and life experiences did the rest.

[N.H. Yankee]

Geez, you guys live quiet lives, I have had to pull a weapon a few times in the capacity of a citizen. I don't go to bars or the wrong side of town, heck I am usually in bed by 9PM! Been shot at, had guns as well as knives pulled on me. I don't try to stir up crap, but when pushed will stand my ground, all of this happened in the capacity of being a civilian. All these instances were people who were later deemed mentally unstable. Fortunately I have only had one instance responding to my door that I was glad I had my gun in hand when a future cop killer was insistant on coming in to use the phone, which he wasn't allowed.

I don't believe that being armed is paranoid, off duty LEO's have been killed unarmed. I feel a LEO should carry 24/7, if crime was predictable, there wouldn't be any because it could be stopped before the act. The town I grew up in was quiet, heck if someone kicked someone else in the kneecap it made headlines. Yesterday there were 5 murders, 4 were family related and 1 drugs. I hate to say it but most of the crime is committed by people who moved here from big cities out of state, or other countries. Sadly, today I don't step out the door unarmed, I wish it were different, having to act like life is a combat zone isn't pleasant, but it is reality.

[Microgunner]

Because it occurred to me that I'm not bullet proof.

[Mello2u]

In discussing paranoia or what amounts to paranoid behavior, it helps to define the term.

The "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders", fourth edition (DSM-IV), the US manual of the mental health professional; lists the following symptoms for paranoid personality disorder:

* preoccupied with unsupported doubts about friends or associates
* suspicious; unfounded suspicions; believes others are plotting against him/her
* perceives attacks on his/her reputation that are not clear to others, and is quick to counterattack
* maintains unfounded suspicions regarding the fidelity of a spouse or significant other
* reads negative meanings into innocuous remarks
* reluctant to confide in others due to a fear that information may be used against him/her

Three of the six definitions above use the word unfounded, the other three are even more subjective. If you base your preparations to go about the day based upon real world facts, however remote the possibility that they may occur to you balanced by the degree of inconvenience to you; then who is to say that you are paranoid?

For example, say that you live in the suburbs of a city that is experiencing a couple of home invasions per week with shootings and deaths involved. Even though those acts are occurring in neighborhoods with homes comparable to yours, they are 20 to 25 miles away. Yet you have no fear of firearms; in fact you enjoy shooting, talking and reading about them. You have training in the defensive use of handguns and have a concealed weapons permit. You have never even drawn a handgun for defensive purposes in over 30 years of adult life other than as a law enforcement officer. Yet you choose to carry a handgun on your person, concealed whenever you are dressed.

Is that paranoid, or is it a minor preparation which keeps your options open with little to no downside?

[Win73]

Well, if you are going to have one noid, you might as well have two (get it, pair-a-noid?) And just because you are paranoid doesn't mean that they aren't out to get you!

But seriously folks, why is being prepared to react to something that does occur many times every day being paranoid. The seat belt analogy is a good one. I wear mine every time I get in a vehicle. I haven't needed one since July of '03. At that time a seat belt, air bag, and a nice big, heavy Chevy Suburban saved my life. Does that mean I have been paranoid since then?

Another good analogy. I am 63 years old. I have lived in eight different houses in my life. I have never had a fire in any of those houses. So I guess that means I don't "need" fire insurance. Yet I have fire insurance on my house. Does that make me paranoid.

If I have my pants on, I have a gun in my pocket. I have multiple bigger guns strategically place around my house. Does that make me paranoid? I don't think so. I am just taking measures to properly respond to what could happen. And I realize it probably won't. Probably is the key word there. Because I can not say for certain that it won't.

In fact it did happen just three blocks from my house. An elderly gentleman's home was broken into by someone who thought he kept a lot of money in his house. He didn't but he was murdered anyway.

And I was accosted a few years ago by someone who, by his actions, his tone, his overall demeanor, totally convinced me that his initial intention was to mug me. I never had to show it to him but I had a little two shot .32 derringer that I carried in my pocket at the time. As he approached me I took it out of my pocket and concealed it in my hand instantly ready. He could not see it but I am convinced that just having it ready if I needed it gave me the confidence to stand up to him. I am no tough guy but I am about 6 foot 2 inches tall and weigh about 220. I replied to him just as rough as he addressed me. Even though he couldn't see the gun, he could tell I was ready for him. He eventually left me probably to look for an easier target. It was a bad area and a guy had been murdered just one block from there.

You might ask "Why were you there?" Well, it was where my office was, where I worked. In fact it was in the company parking lot. Which was surrounded by a six foot tall, barbed wire topped chain link fence for a reason. Fortunately the company moved the office to a better area of town since then.

I don't go around all the time thinking something is going to happen. I just know that it could and does to many others. I just want to be prepared on the off chance that it might happen to me.

[Drummer101]

I dont have a pistol (not old enough) but I always have either my Leatherman TTi or my Spyderco Para Military in my pocket. I have had to pull them out a few times (I know how to use them).

I think that there is nothing wrong with a sidearm if used correctly.

I will probably get one when I can.

[CARGUY2244]

Situational awareness and threat avoidance are dramatically more effective when accompanied by a 12 guage shotgun in my hands, an ar-10 slung over my shoulder, and a Glock 20 in my holster.
Given more serene circumstances, I neither take the trash to the curb nor the dogs in the yard unarmed. Bogies never set appointments.

[JohnH1963]

The majority of all violence is usually planned out against an individual.

You have to ask yourself the question if you have ever made an unpopular decision that negatively effected someone else's life. Managers, for example, are increasingly finding themselves in the position of letting people go at workplaces due to the business climate. However, random situations do occur and quite frequently. One search on google of missing adult persons comes up with a lot of links. In browsing through the photos, you find the missing persons are not just smaller framed individuals but larger persons weighing in over 200 lbs. Someone overpowered these individuals and now they are missing.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&s...=f&oq=&aqi=g10

Guys on here like Wildalaska pack an M16 in their vehicle with a few other backup weapons. This seems over the top, but when you browse through the missing person list then it becomes more logical. When you are out in certain remote places of the United States you dont know what would happen next and sometimes a long-arm is the wisest choice for personal defense against an unknown threat. Having more then one pistol and a long-arm is not unreasonable. If a person or groups of people purposely attack you, then will a simple pistol do the job of fending them off? Im certain any pistol would do the job, but not in every situation. If someone is motivated enough to attack you, then they might be carrying excess firepower themselves.

If some of the people on the missing person list were carrying a weapon, would they be missing today? I guess the answer to that question revolves more around the decisions they made at the time and situational avoidance. However, random acts of violence do occur and people turn up missing. Someone can break through my back door right now and be up the stairs to get me within 5-10 seconds. Would that be enough time to call the police? Even if I had time to call them, would the response time be enough time? The only answer is to have a loaded pistol within 3 seconds of deployment either on you or a short distance away. That is the only thing that will make a difference between you being displayed on a missing person's website or not.

Should police officers have assault weapons and SWAT gear in their vehicles? Yes. Should the average homeowner have multiple pistols and a long-arm in their house ready and loaded? yes. Should you carry a pistol, legally of course...Yes. Its the only way of stopping the violence and threats that are out there.

[uncledewey]

If you carry you have a choice you can make; if you don't (carry) there are no choices. I carry all the time, because I don't ever want to have to say, "I should have....."

[zombieslayer]

The best gun in the world is the one you have with you when you need it. Theres one sitting on this desk right now. My mom's "nightstand" gun did her no good when she walked in and thugs were ared with her own gun ransacking the house Christmas eve.

[dabigguns357]

I don't want to walk into a situation where i need it and find my self grabbing air instead.I don't want to come home late one night to a stranger doing God knows what in my house or to my family.

Yes i do carry every where i can and i also carry when sitting around in my bath robe and pj's,infact the only time i don't have one on is when i'm sleeping or at work.

_______________________________________________________________
"it's better to have a gun on your hip than one to your head"

[zombieslayer]

I dozed off on a friend's couch after a long car trip, for got to take my KT P32 out of my pocket. So, I guess I've even slept armed.

[riggins_83]

The only time I don't carry is when traveling to a place where's it's illegal for me to do so (college campus, etc). Places where it's a gray area I tend to avoid. I prefer to use the drive through at banks anyway!

[threegun]

#5 Because being a helpless victim sucks.
#4 Because I can't launch a 230 grain JHP with my finger.
#3 Because 1911 is greater than 911.
#2 Because I can't carry a cop in my back pocket.
#1 Because my laser vision isn't working.

[omkhan]

I posted it in another thread just now but it fits here too.

Two days ago, here, 5 armed robbers : 4 men + 1 woman, got into a home @ 11:00 AM. A neighbor saw them and called 15 (kinda like your 911 but of course no match of the response/ service). Meanwhile the homeowner fired on them killing 2 while the 3 fled including the woman. The police came, took the bodies to hospital and the homeowner to Police station. He was back home after an hour or so.

Apparently, the police is taking credit of the killings by calling it a Police Encounter.http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default...10-2009_pg12_3 Which is IMO good since that means the homeowner will be safe from any charges/ cases that may have come across him. Another good reason to carry while at home.

[Firepower!]

why always? What about when you are taking a shower or in restroom? Are there any hypotheticals that might foresee a danger there as well. What does being prepared really means? Is having handgun on person a must or does keaping it in reach at home sufice?

[dabigguns357]

What about when you are taking a shower or in restroom

Of course i carry in the bathroom and if i'm in the shower i leave it on the sink and lock the door behind me.Being prepared is always being prepared.

Is having handgun on person a must or does keeping it in reach at home sufice?

Say you are sitting on toilet and you hear something,you know it's not your family,they are gone shopping.Your h/d gun is laying on your nightstand,they find it then they find you,no thank you.I wouldn't ever want to be caught with my pants down.