Most people who carry concealed aren't afraid. They simply recognize that threats exist and that the police tend to arrive after the incident is over. They take responsibility for their own protection as opposed to pawning it off on someone else and hoping.

Then there's the fact that in the U.S., police actually have no legal duty to assist you. If the police see you in danger and don't do anything, they have not legally failed at their job.

Thankfully, most police officers are willing to go above and beyond what they are legally required to do.

Concealed carry in the United States of America is not about self-defense. It is a Constitutional right.

It just so happens that a collective of concealed carry weapons makes for one hell of a deterrent against violent crime.

If someone feels safer, wants to play Rambo, has a God complex, feels superior, or whatever the reason may be that they choose to exercise their right to bear arms, who are you or I to judge?

Now for some irony. My wife is an NRA certified Conceal Carry Pistol instructor. I, on the other hand, do not have a conceal carry license. This is for a couple reasons:

1: Much of the time when I'm out of the office, I'm headed to Court. I can't carry in Court, so what's the point? I'd pretty much be limited to carrying to protect myself while driving - and since there aren't many stoplights around here, I'm not likely to get carjacked.

2: I don't like the idea of gun registration of any kind. It's patently unconstitutional as an infringement of the 2nd amendment right to bear arms (you'll find that I'm a strict constructionist and that it's not that difficult to understand what the Founding Fathers meant because the left a lot of documentation of their discussions leading up to the preparation and execution of the Constitution). Also, if you get a conceal carry permit, you're likely to be one of the first ones they come to see if/when they want to disarm people (or anything short of there). It is what it is, but I don't like it.

3: Both states I practice in allow open carry. As such, if I wanted to carry, I could - although a lot of law enforcement officers aren't amused by open carry - even though it's legal.

All that said, my personal weapon is a S&W M&P9C. My wife carries anything from a Sig P250 Compact 9mm to a Sig P238 to a Ruger SR22. We also have a Mossberg 20ga and Mossberg 715t... and the first AR is about to enter the family - a DPMS Oracle which shipped today.

As far as off the rack stuff, my wife prefers Remora holsters, but she's had a couple custom holsters made up.

As to not being able to carry in court, I find that odd. The entire constitution was designed and intended to preserve God-given rights of the citizens and to limit the power of the government. Yet, the one place in the country that you can be absolutely sure that you cannot carry is in a government building.

More irony: Attorneys are generally not checked for weapons by the officers at our local courthouses - if the metal detectors go off, they are ignored. Attorneys are trusted that much... but we're still not permitted to carry in court.

I apologize for my fellow idiotic Canadian. Not all of us are gun hating idiots like him. Now back to the topic. People carry because you cannot carry a cop with you.

When I was competing in USPSA back in the '90s, I met a few Canadians that I liked. I'll add you to that list.

Ruger SR9c and Ruger Lcp with crimson trace.

No holster for lcp and I use a Galco IWB holster for the sr9c. (I believe it was a glock 19 holster if I'm not mistaken. )

http://technaclip.com/

Do you use the TechnaClip for the LCP when you no-holster? If so, do you keep 1 in the chamber?

I have the technaclip on my LCP and this allows it to fit perfectly inside my pant line, comfortably with no printing, even in slacks. However, because the LCP doesn't have a safety and there's no holster I don't leave one chambered.

Just curious how others do it.

Daily conceal with a Glock 26(9mm baby Glock) housed in a custom made IWB holster. Really like the holster since it's a kydex IWB. Other guns we own are Glock 17, Glock 22, various rifles for hunting, old school sks, bushmaster m4. We have more firearms than most people.

Now, is it because we are scared? Not at all. Is it because we wake up every morning and say "I'm gonna have to defend myself with a firearm, not at all.

The reason my whole family's conceals, is a two step process. IF something did happen, we want to be ABLE to defend ourselves, as well as the conceal part is simply to make it where IF something happened, you are not an instant target for said attacker.

The guy who was talking about crime rate drops is absolutely correct. I live in Georgia. Look up kennesaw ga crime rate. Wanna know why it's so low? To OWN a house, you are REQUIRED to own a firearm. It's a deterrent to any criminal.

Difference of opinion doesn't make them idiotic. Canada love's guns, but it's not about rights or protection over here as much as sporting/hunting. So you can't blame a Canadian for asking why you would want to carry. I have a handgun, most of my friends have handguns; given the choice to carry them in public I dont think any of them would do it.

I'm a police officer with military background, I carry a Sig 12 hours a day most days, yet the idea of carrying while off duty still does not appeal to me.

I'm neither for or against. There are pros and cons, no one is wrong or right in this age old debate.

I've thought about it for awhile before I got my permit and it's a culmination of a few different things that lead me to it.

First:
"God didn't create men equal, Samuel Colt did."

That's really it for me, being equal. I don't have military combat skills, ninja or kung-fu skills, I'm not a big dude and I have people who I want to come home to. I don't live in the safest area either. So at the end of the day if it's hand to hand combat I'm probably at a disadvantage, perhaps a significant one but when carrying, I'm not. However, above all else, I'm leaving the situation before escalation but if that's not option or things go sideways fast, I am super happy I live in a country (state) where I can shoot back.

2nd:
Rights are like muscles. If you don't exercise them, you tend to lose them. Considering the political climate and it's progression I figured should exercise this right while I still have it because it might be neat to say to my kids: "You may not believe this many years ago they actually allowed us to own firearms, they even allowed us to carry them on us for protection!" It's a bit like a Bucket-List entry so to speak.

3rd:
The impermanence of life and the delicacy of it all.

We live in a relatively civilized world but I'm not under any illusion that it won't come to a sudden end, we are just bags of blood after all. Life is kind of like being on a race track... it's all working out great right up until it isn't. In that moment I'm looking to escape with my life, if I cannot I'm looking to defend it and if I'm going to die may I also kill my assailant or save the ones I love.

4th:
I'm not religious or even spiritual. There is no 2nd chance for me, there is no afterlife, there is no kingdom of heaven or reincarnation. The fact that I exist and am aware of that is a miracle, a temporary one at that and I'm not willing to leave my safety in the hands of a god I don't believe in.

Finally:
The world is always dangerous. Always. Mankind has always carried a weapon, a device of protection. Sticks, spears, fire, swords, axes, and firearms. The world has yet to give mankind a reason to cease this behavior and mankind has failed to produce a society in which a firearm isn't needed.




If a robber/burglar/criminal wants into my home I'd rather have it turn out like this:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBGXUrR9Vvo"]Man breaks into wrong house, gets shot - YouTube[/ame]



Instead of this:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oaJn5yqdIU"]man breaks in and beats woman in front of children - YouTube[/ame]

This thread really makes my debate-muscles want to twitch...

For a non-political forum, this thread is pretty damn political. Best parts of this thread were when someone compared a gun to a fire alarm/extinguisher and the "Founding Fathers" being a monolithic group. It's like scale doesn't exist and someone has time-traveling mind-reading powers. It makes me EL OH EL

Extra points to the person that apologized for their fellow countryman for being a "gun hating idiot" because they don't have the same opinion on the gun ownership despite saying that guns are cool.

Conceal Carry and HandGun Thread
 

I'll have to look into the technaclip!!

I usually carry in my jacket chest pocket (LCP). I have carried with one in the chamber with no issues previously, but am getting into the habit of not carrying with one in the chamber anymore.

^This post doesn't help. Nor does my post addressing your post.

However, gun owners talking about the reasons they own them isn't exactly political.

There, now I've excused myself. :)