Re: Weapons

[K S Swigart <katswig@deltanet.com>]

On Mon, 2 Mar 1998, Cathy Adair wrote:

> I ride alone a lot and have been contemplating carrying a pistol in a fanny
> pack.  

I am not an expert on this, and laws vary from state to state, but to my
knowledge there isn't a state in the Union that doesn't require a special
permit for carrying a concealed weapon.

Here in California you can carry one in plain sight (i.e. shoulder holster
on the outside--not under your coat--holster on your hip).  And you can
carry it in your car as long as it is not loaded or if it is not
accessible in the passenger compartment-such as in your trunk).  There are
a bunch of other rules too which vary from state to state and depend on
the type of weapon you are talking about (i.e. not just guns, hand guns,
vs rifles vs shotguns, etc.)

Before anybody contemplates carrying a pistol anywhere they should make
sure they know exactly what they are doing, how to use it properly, what
the laws are in the places they are going and understand the one
fundamental rule of wielding firearms, "Never point a gun at anybody
unless you are prepared to shoot them with it." (Because I'll tell you,
if you ever point one at me you had better shoot me with it or I'll wrap
it around your head.)

And being prepared to shoot somebody with a gun takes more than just
learing the technique of using a gun: firearm safety lessons, target
practice, etc.  There is a whole psycological aspect to it which you don't
want to have to deal with "in the heat of the moment" (if you will).

Ask yourself, before you go about brandishing a weapon for self-defense,
if you are prepared to loose off a live round at a living person, and
depending on where you hit them and the type of weapon you are using
watching the back of their skull disintigrate in a bloody mass, etc.

Sorry to be so graphic (I could be a lot more so, having done an intership
at USC county general emergency room on the 4 to midnight shift), but that
is what we are talking about here. Guns are not just for pointing, they
are for shooting.  And there are a huge number of attendant consequences
(not only the legal ones) associated with shooting a person.  Don't just
contemplate getting a pistol and carrying it in your fanny pack,
contemplate all the attendant consequences of electing to USE one.  If you
are comfortable with ALL the possible consequences, THEN you can go
through all the trouble of getting a permit to carry a concealed weapon. 

As a total aside:  I find it ironic all the people talking about wanting
to have their dog along with them for the threat that dogs propose.  As
threatening animals go, horses are much more so than dogs...and when I
went down to ask the people who had come up to my place over thanksgiving
if they had any business being there I took my 1,300 pound, very alert
horse along with me, just leading her mind you.  She is VERY intimidating,
just by her very presence (why do you think they use mounted police for
crowd control?).

I have never felt threatened in any way when I am out on the trail.  Most
people, in fact, feel quite threatened by me.  I am, after all, the one on
the thousand pound animal with hooves and teeth.  If I truely felt
threatened by anybody while I was out riding (including mountain lions,
coyotes, and the other sundry wild life we have around here) I would
simply charge them on my horse--far more effective than a gun.

kat
Orange County, Calif.