Wish I had a pistol to conceal....But I will be 21 in 2 1/2 weeks so maybe I will get one some time after that.

And hell yes to "An Armed Society is A Polite Society." ya'll should read More Guns, Less Crime by John R. Lott JR.

 

Washington has a very 'liberal' carry policy, basically you go to the county sheriffs office, write a check for $65, they do a background check and if it comes up clean then in 3-4 weeks you get your permit in the mail.

Before I got my CC permit I decided to do a little research on my liabilities since we live in such a litigious society. I purchased a book by Bill Quinn called 'Concealed Carry: A Practical Guide'. It's less than 150 pages but it is chock full of information that anyone who's considering actually carrying a concealed handgun should be aware of. It has some 'What would you do?' scenarios in it and also outlines just what will most likely happen if you actually have to use your weapon. It also includes practical defensive strategies, how to practice with your weapon etc.

I would highly suggest anyone considering whether or not to start carrying to purchase this book.

 

I live in a right to carry state and have a concealed permit. As my dad told me once, A gun is like a American Express card. Never leave home without it. Criminals have guns. Why can't we the law abiding?

 

My ideal federal law ...

I do not think it should even be an issue. Everyone should be allowed to carry a concealed weapon by default as long as they are 21 (most 18 year olds tend to be a bit hot in the head sometimes). Anyone serving in the arms forces or police force can carry one at 18.

Do not commit a felony and you do not have to worry about the person carrying the concealed weapon. Do not make other people fear for their lives and body and you do not have to fear for yours.

My only other choice would be make it a law everyone had to carry a visible weapon, like they did in that Texas town (required for all males) that had a soaring store robbery rate. For some reason after everyone started carrying the crime rate went down to almost nothing.

 

We are trying to get a carry law passed here in Ohio, but the Sherriffs union (or whatever) keeps trying to put insane little riders on the law....Such as keeping the gun in plain sight while in a car and keeping the gun locked up in a car if there are any minors inside. This in my opinion is outragous. If you are a criminal all you have to do is carjack people with minors inside, like a housewife with her infant! Or perhaps just look inside and see if the person has a gun on the seat. Not to mention all this foolishness with getting in the car and pulling out the gun, then getting out and holstering it. These riders are without question MORONIC!
I have talked to a few cops and sherriffs about this issue and have not found ONE that thinks ccw is a bad idea.
It is a well known fact that armed citizens LOWER THE CRIME RATE!
Our Governer will not pass the law unless the Sherriffs union (or whatever) agrees with it.
It says right in the Ohio constitution that the citizens of Ohio have the right to bear arms for thier defense and security, but if you try to carry open you WILL find yourself in the tank for insighting panic or some such nonsense PRONTO!
Conceal it and get caught and the proof will be on YOU to justify why you had it hidden or you will be doing time with unpleasent people.
It's all so bass ackwards...
I don't even WANT to get a permit!
But I do want that option for ANY LAW ABIDING CITIZEN!
The right to carry should exist in all states.
Plain and simple.

 

Nobody said you had to tell them you were concealing, just as long as you are legal.

 

Yeah but it's up to the judge to decide if you were legal or not.
Regardless, if you get caught legal or not you are going to jail here in Ohio.
Then after you post bail, get a lawyer, pay out a bunch of cash, THEN you get your day in court.
And the reason better be a GOOD one too.
Remember...You don't decide what a good reason is, the judge does.

 

I am so pleased that the carriers of weapons on this site have made the statements they have - It goes to prove the care taken by firearms trainers has really changed the society in which we live.

It is an honor to know such responsible people, who will, I know, defend the life of anyone in mortal danger. The responsibility that applies to a carry permit is nothing to do with guns - it is the responsibility for the life of every person you encounter when armed - That responsibility is the most sobering one of all - If you have a gun, you have total power over the life of someone else. The training, selection and natural honesty of the vast majority of CCW holders have proven to many sceptical Attorney Generals that having the public permitted to carry concealed is a very good thing. That Alaska has done the proper thing is wonderful.. Pity I can't actually get a gun to there, to go benefit from such wonderful laws. Vermont is the same, very proper. Can't get there carrying either, but at least I can take a gun there.

Canada will see the fruits of their foolishness, when they fully implement the disarm the subject laws they are playing with. just like: Britain, Australia, South Africa, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, and Mexico. All those countries have had massive increases in armed criminal activity, My homeland is beset with crime that 10 years was unimaginable.

More and More states are seeing the wisdom of arming responsible persons, and crime will suffer because of it. I know a few very evil people, because of my ministry, and the one thing that scares them is not the police - criminals laugh at the police - it is the fact a priest like me carries a gun, legally, along with many thousands of other normal looking people. Having been in the military, and been on special ops, and anti terrorist duty, I can spot an armed person very quickly, and am so pleased to see respectable people in the towns I visit, armed, and AWARE of their surroundings - not only does a good course teach safety and law, it teaches people to stop being sheep, and to actually notice what is going on around them. Ten years ago, I walked, armed in America, and saw sheep in people clothes, not one would look at me, not one would see me, and they would walk blindly past anyone. No wonder the crime of mugging has gone up - the average person who is mugged, or carjacked, or accosted on their own doorstep NEVER SAW the felon before he stuck a knife in them..

Sheep, that is what they are (I can guarantee their are a lot of sheep reading this, right now, and not realizing how much their life depends upon the good graces of a criminal just not wanting to rob them...)

So, my friends, wander off to the nearest gun range, and go shoot something. Get a feel for it, and then regard the carry permit as your absolute duty, because, like it or not, the police are not here to protect you, that is your job.

Theo.

 

I am in the market for a handgun to carry with me now, Even more so now that in AK the conceal carry permit law is about to go away. Being a pilot I fly out to some interesting places. I will be out to those places even more once I become a commercial pilot. First I want something I can kill animals with if I happen to ditch somewhere. Second sometimes some of these village people get mean. Pulling a gun on them is not a good idea, pulling out a bottle of Jack works much better I hear. But I think I have the right to carry.

Tyler
95 F-150 302 5 speed
94 F-250 PSD 5 speed

 

Well put theologian.

I can only hope that we will get a PRACTICAL ccw law passed here in Ohio.

 

god bless america the right to bear arms i carry mine all the time in my truck the only thing i have a problem with is kids on the streets with them

 

definately think I should be allowed to legally carry a firearm
but all them other yahoos out there should definatly not.
at least half of them should'nt even be allowed to drive.

 

Thanks Theo.

 

Here in Alabama we have concealed carry permits. They are 20.00 a year and as long as you pass the background check you can get one with the sheriff's approval. Several years ago there was a guy that thought it would be a good idea to hold up a Shoney's restraunt full of diners. It turned out to be a really bad one when he discovered that the majority of the diners carried guns. They ended up taking him out in a body bag. I personally think that good citizens should be allowed to carry concealed weapons for personal safety. One of the rules on the permit states that they are invalid if you are arrested for any reason. If you do get arrested they can then charge you for concealing if the authorities want to do so. This helps keep the permit holders on the right side of the law.

 

This is a great thread. I've been sitting back and taking it in, because, quite honestly, I'm a little torn on this one.

I'm a gun owner, I've got about a dozen of them, but no hand guns. Hand guns aren't worth the hassle here. They treat you like a criminal for even applying for the permit to own them.

I must say, that before I read all the responses here, my leanings would have been about 70/30 against concealed carry. Not because I distrust firearms, but because I distrust PEOPLE. I'm fine with me, and people I know, but I don't like the idea of having to trust everyone else out there to be responsible with a GUN, most people can't even drive. I don't like the idea of everyone around me having a gun, and having the power to end my life instantaneously should the voice in their head tell them too.

I think that having a gun provides a false sense of security in many cases too, and unless you are well trained, it can actually put you at greater risk. Of course there's always the typical anti-gun rhetoric too, trigger happy cowboys, the potential for escalated violence, accidents, etc...

After reading all the posts here, I'd say I've flip flopped, I'm probably about 70/30 in favour of concealed carry now. I'd still be concerned about the ease with which people can aquire the permits and guns, and of course the always unknown factor of trusting people. That's the big one for me.

I can see the logic behind concealed carry, and if all the stats in this thread are accurate, then the system is obviously working. It's hard to argue with the math.

It seems to me though, that it has to either be black or white. You either have to arm everyone, or remove firearms. While this applies to the law abiding population, clearly criminals don't play by the rules. That's the wild card, and why I'd be in favour of concealed carry.

Waxy