Quote:
Originally posted by tkkfan
In 1996, handguns were used to murder 2 people in New Zealand, 15 in Japan, 30 in Great Britain, 106 in Canada, 213 in Germany and 9,390 in the United States. FBI Uniform Crime Report, 1996
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Wrong. Handgun deaths are
not all the result of murder. These sort of stats have to be analyzed fully before you can jump to any conclusions about handgun use in the US. Take that 9,400 number, subtract suicides, subtract people killed by police, subtract hunting accidents, subtract "I-didn't-know-it-was-loaded" accidents, and you will have a more realistically comparable number considering our history and our constitutional right to bear arms.
Quote:
Originally posted by tkkfan
Secondly, if I knew that the gang-banger down the street from me could get a CCW, and I could get a CCW--for whatever reason I might have to get one, then I would be totally freaked out. There is no need to carry unless you plan to use it. The DMV gives out licenses to ppl that are careless all the time. What about ppl that are allowed to carry guns? Lets say someone has a really bad day. I dont want to worry about being a potential target.
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Are you even reading my posts? Gangbangers are
not able to get CCW permits in any state that (rightly) institutes background checks before issuing permits. A gangbanger will carry a gun anyways, even if there is no CCW permit program in your state, so either way you are in a bad position.
As for "there is no need to carry unless you plan to use it," I think that someone
shouldn't carry unless they are absolutely positive that they can, and will use it if they need to. You don't get a CCW permit and "hope" that something bad happens, you just prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
Quote:
Originally posted by tkkfan
Now by having a weapon, you are automatically thrust into a position of power. That your way goes...heh Anarchy. Leave it to the police to carry weapons and the citizens to be citizens. Defend yourself by not putting yourself in a compromizing situation. If it does happen, POLICE.
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You couldn't be more wrong here. The first "C" in CCW means "concealed" which means that you should not expose the gun, thus not giving you any power over others unless you absolutely need to draw your weapon. In my CCW training we learned to back down at all points and ONLY draw if we felt that our lives were in immediate danger. You
will get arrested, and your permit taken away, if you show your weapon to try to get a discount at a store, or anything ridiculous like that.
As for the Police, there is no guarantee that Police will be able to help you and they cannot be held responsible if they flat-out ignore your request for help. So, protect yourself just in case. If you are afraid of guns, do not get one as you will probably misuse it and hurt yourself or someone else.
Quote:
Originally posted by tkkfan
Finally, I love guns. I want a CCW, but Im afraid that I would use it, or threaten with it, whatever. Times when I should and times when I shouldn't. I do not want anarchy. I do not want the guy next door to rule me because hes got a bigger gun, or more guns, etc. Lines have to be drawn that affect good and bad people. One might demonstrate that he is sane to have a CCW, but when a situation is thrust on this individual, he might overreact and have a slaughter. Do you want to worry about that??? I dont.
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If you don't trust yourself with a gun, do not get a CCW permit. I don't want to have to use my handgun when I carry it to the mall or a movie, but I know that if I never need to, I will be able to. CCW laws are there to provide good, law-abiding citizens, the ability to protect themselves and their loved ones. Bad people do not care about laws in the first place, so a CCW law does not empower them in any way.