Is Armed Your Default Setting?
- Thread starter The Night Rider
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Ignition Override
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No.
And I very seldom carry in the last few months.
It would take far too long to explain the reasons for seldom carrying, but I still attend two Krav (“unarmed”, so to speak, self-defense) classes per week; these began three years ago.
Whether you carry or not, have a “Plan B”.
And I very seldom carry in the last few months.
It would take far too long to explain the reasons for seldom carrying, but I still attend two Krav (“unarmed”, so to speak, self-defense) classes per week; these began three years ago.
Whether you carry or not, have a “Plan B”.
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Hokkmike
Member
I remember Rod Sterling's opening to the TV series the "Twilight Zone" where he says that man is predominantly guided by the emotion of fear. To some extent in today's society that is true. A little bit of fear can be a healthy thing.Carrying a gun, situational awareness, and rational thinking along with a practiced response alleviates the concerns of many - if not so, then why carry at all?
shootstraight57
Member
Yes. By default I am a carrier.
RetiredUSNChief
Member
Well put.
I don't carry because I "fear". I carry to be prepared.
If I actually feared certain circumstances, scenarios, places, people, etc., then I'd "avoid".
My carry is a weapon of last resort...when all lesser means have failed or cannot reasonably be employed.
One side of the political spectrum says that anyone who disagrees with them has a phobia. Heartfelt, reasoned disagreement doesn't exist for these persons. They just say those disagreeing with them have a phobia. Which, I'm sure they know, is calling anyone who disagrees with them cowards.
An argument falls apart when all you have left is to call someone else names.
An argument falls apart when all you have left is to call someone else names.
Alexander A commented that at 78 he's already led a full life.........well, young fella, I am 82 and not done yet by a damn sight. I still carry most everyplace I go.....not major hardware, just a .380 casually stuffed in my right jeans pocket, should I crap out and they take my carcass to the ER or the undertaker they are gonna have to defang me or plant me with the thing. For the very life of me I cannot fathom how someone could adopt the attitude of willful helplesness, which is exactly the result of AA's position. And for the record I hope I don't meet the criterial he expounds for carrying that pocket life preserver...........carried one for an over three decade LE career and I never calculated sticking either my service piece of the backup in my shirt pocket as an act of paranoia............just insurance. Somebody asked if he wore a seat belt and I'd ad to that asking if he'd bother with hurricane insurance in my home state of Florida...........the equation is precisely the same!
armoredman
Member
That's why the Ignore feature exists - I'm here to have a good time and learn from LIKE minded enthusiasts. Like I said, no more DU for me.
One in 10 adults in Florida has a CWL. Not as many as Alabama, but a lot. It's funny you mention defensive driving. If anyone here thinks Floridians are quaking in their boots with fear, they've never been on I4.
Deus Machina
Member
Unfortunately, my default the last few years is unarmed. Aside from a leatherman or occasional other pocket knife. And at home, I'm never more than a room and a drawer away from a firearm.
I work for the county. Not sure if all county buildings are off-limits, but I'm not ready to risk the best job I've had.
And for 'concealed means concealed', yes, but I have to change in and out of scrubs. Which don't do well with extra weight and a lack of belt loops, especially when I'm unlikely to change around other people. My route is safe aside from road-rage incidents, and we're high priority for police response.
Besides, if the rare nutter that comes around causes issue, they can't get in without us knowing, and then there are multiple lockable doors. Push comes to shove, a couple of those doors are lined with stainless steel and are in quick reach of a large stock of 16" carving knives and a great many other sharp implements. Of course, the cold in there gets uncomfortable after a while...
On the rare occasion I'm out on my own, not just stopping at the store on the way home, I have at least an LCP in my pocket.
I work for the county. Not sure if all county buildings are off-limits, but I'm not ready to risk the best job I've had.
And for 'concealed means concealed', yes, but I have to change in and out of scrubs. Which don't do well with extra weight and a lack of belt loops, especially when I'm unlikely to change around other people. My route is safe aside from road-rage incidents, and we're high priority for police response.
Besides, if the rare nutter that comes around causes issue, they can't get in without us knowing, and then there are multiple lockable doors. Push comes to shove, a couple of those doors are lined with stainless steel and are in quick reach of a large stock of 16" carving knives and a great many other sharp implements. Of course, the cold in there gets uncomfortable after a while...
On the rare occasion I'm out on my own, not just stopping at the store on the way home, I have at least an LCP in my pocket.
Interesting statistic @wayneinFL
One in 10 adults in FL have a carry permit. Which is 2.6 million:
At least one FL county allow employees to carry:
https://winknews.com/2023/04/20/man...mitted-to-carry-concealed-weapons-on-the-job/
According to one individual (post #72) all these people in FL alone suffer from "paranoia".
One in 10 adults in FL have a carry permit. Which is 2.6 million:
At least one FL county allow employees to carry:
https://winknews.com/2023/04/20/man...mitted-to-carry-concealed-weapons-on-the-job/
According to one individual (post #72) all these people in FL alone suffer from "paranoia".
hoardingthemanual
Member
Don’t be sassy if you want to call him out say his name. Why stop there? He has unpopular opinions and now members have him in their sights. Idk if I want to be a member of this community if this is how they handle differing opinions.
AlexanderA
Member
Yes, I wear a seat belt, and I also keep fire extinguishers in the house and car. The difference is that these things have no downside. With guns, there is plenty of downside. (For example, nobody steals a fire extinguisher. Guns are prime targets for theft.)
AlexanderA
Member
Indeed. To what, specifically, are you referring?
AlexanderA
Member
The one and only time in my life that I have been mugged was on the Athens subway, in 1999, when I got "swarmed" by a gang of about 5 pickpockets. They were so good at what they did, that I wasn't even aware of what was happening until after it happened. Lost about $7,600. Even if I had been carrying a gun (which of course wasn't possible under the circumstances), it wouldn't have done me any good. In fact they would have taken the gun along with the money.
Anyway, it was a learning experience. I'm never going to fall for that again.
An unpopular opinion is one thing. Shafter also expressed a similar opinion regarding priorities regarding managing risk. Others have as well. The difference is they didn't come across as condescending or insulting.
If AlexanderA had said he didn't keep any firearms for defense because he felt safe enough, I don't think anyone would have paid him any attention. When he makes judgmental blanket statements that everyone who does have defensive firearms is either inviting deadly confrontations or has a mental disorder, he elicits a reaction. At 78 years old, if he expresses criticism this freely, he's probably developed thick enough skin to take criticism.
I don't think it bothers him. It wouldn't surprise me if he was deliberately provocative.
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Kevin5098
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I carry by default wherever it is legal to do so. I am a substitute teacher a couple days a week and have to leave it at home on those days. I am nearly 70 and lived most of my life without carrying, despite once being robbed at gunpoint (Happened so fast a CCW would not have made a difference). I began carrying about 10 years ago after a murder was committed in a grocery store where I shopped. A victim was selected due to her apparent inability to defend herself and her throat was slit by a mentally disturbed person. As the number of mentally disturbed people seems to be rapidly increasing, so does the probability one will have to defend themself with lethal force. I don't live in fear, but have made a decision that I will be prepared should the need arise.
AlexanderA
Member
The Russian playwright Anton Chekhov gave a dramaturgical rule that if, for example, a pistol is seen hanging on the wall in the first act of a play, then by the third act it must be fired. In other words, you don't open plot elements and then fail to resolve them.
‘If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it’s not going to be fired, it shouldn’t be hanging there.’
The promiscuous carrying of guns is like this. If millions are being carried, a certain percentage are going to be used. Some are going to be used justifiably, but some are going to be used unjustifiably. The odds of unjustifiable use rise in tandem with the number being carried. That's why the trend of more carrying is worrisome.
Archie
Member
Yes.
OP
OP
The Night Rider
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I just requested a lock on this discussion.
There used to be a moderator here named Art Eatman(RIP) who used to have a theory that once a discussion goes beyond four pages everything that can usefully be said about it has already been said.
This discussion has become nothing more than an argument between everybody else and one guy. I don't see how anything can usually be gained by continuing it
There used to be a moderator here named Art Eatman(RIP) who used to have a theory that once a discussion goes beyond four pages everything that can usefully be said about it has already been said.
This discussion has become nothing more than an argument between everybody else and one guy. I don't see how anything can usually be gained by continuing it
To be mugged is to be "attacked and robbbed in a public place."
Since you weren't aware of it until afterwards, you were not attacked or robbed, therefore you were not mugged. Someone stole from you. Theft is very different from robbery/mugging in this context because...
...it is not generally legal to use deadly force to prevent theft while it can be legal to use deadly force to prevent an attack or robbery depending on the circumstances.
Because not everyone is wise and not everyone is good, freedoms are sometimes misused. That doesn't make them worrisome, it's just a fact of life. The benefits of freedom generally outweigh their misuse, but in some cases, certain freedoms are considered so important that the law says that even if a simple balancing between the benefits of the freedom vs the negatives of the misuse is unfavorable, that still isn't justification for infringing on the freedom.
Anyway virtually anything can be misused.
- People misuse cellphones to distract themselves while driving. The more ubiquitous this technology is, the more likely it is that there will be accidents.
- People misuse the freedom of speech to spread misinformation, either intentionally or otherwise.
- People misuse alcohol and do ill-advised, dangerous, or criminal things.
- People misuse electronic devices to hack. The more widespread/inexpensive/easy to use this technology is, the more likely some people will use it for hacking.
- People misuse video technology to create child pornography. The more widespread/inexpensive/easy to use this technology is, the more likely it is that some will use it for child porn.
- People misuse cars by driving carelessly or recklessly.
- People misuse their right to privacy and their right to not be searched without a warrant to facilitate breaking the law in various ways.
- People misuse their right to move around in society generally unfettered to commit various crimes.
We tolerate these things in spite of the fact that they can be misused because the perception is that the benefits outweigh the negatives. Maybe even because the freedom itself is considered so important that its existence and protection is sufficient reason, in and of itself, to justify accepting the negative results of its misuse.
But, there are certainly countries, states and societies where people who think that society is justified in proactively severely restricting rights that other societies consider to be important, basic human rights for one reason or another. It is to be hoped that people are able to match up their views on human rights with a governmental system that fits their view. There's certainly a broad range to choose from.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who, rather than choosing a government/country/state that fits their views, instead try to modify the system of government they find themselves in to restrict the rights of others to match their view of the ideal. That is worrisome.
To answer the OP, armed is my default. I may not be armed to the teeth, but I always have something if I am dressed, even if it's just the J-frame in my pocket.
When you mention the wife asking if you are carrying (or keeping a firearm in a home or car), I think it's a good idea for her to know whether you are armed, and what to do in the occasion that you would have to use your firearm.
LimaCharlie
Member.
Yes
theotherwaldo
Member
What they are really saying is that anyone that disagrees with them is insane... .
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