The following incidents are a big part of the reason why I carry sometimes depending on the places I go. Based on some of what I've observed and actually been through over the years, I think I'm well within my rights feeling the way I do regarding this topic. With that said I want to be clear on something here... I have never advocated for individuals to own an arsenal just in order to defend themselves, making such a decision is strictly a matter of personal choosing that is up to each individual, and I am fine with individuals making whatever choices that satisfy them. The sidearm I carry is a small caliber pistol that holds eight rounds, certainly nothing terribly formidable, but serves the purpose. Also, the following is primarily geared towards my fellow Americans, but may apply to other countries as well.

The first incident that got me thinking about carrying a gun for protection at certain places might not be a bad idea, was a bank robbery in broad daylight right up the street from where I live. Whilst I was not present at said bank during the time of that robbery, after the robbery the suspect allegedly was roaming around on the property where I live for awhile until he finally made his getaway by car. Now, some would maybe claim such a situation as that might not be enough immediate concern to warrant carrying a gun around for protection, to which I'd say okay maybe that isn't serious enough to justify my position, but the next incident surely is though...

A little over a year after the bank robbery incident mentioned above, I witnessed a shooting exchange between an alleged shoplifter and a Pennsylvania State Police Trooper at a local Walmart supercenter parking lot. Long story short... got home from work that day knowing I still needed to restock some groceries badly but was pretty tired, so ate and took a nap then went out to Walmart for groceries later in the evening. Was around 8:30 pm by the time I arrived at Walmart and a little after 9:00 pm by the time I was finished shopping. Got inside the car and checked my phone and before driving off was catching up on some of my text messages, didn't even start the ignition at that point. Was sitting there in my car for a few minutes, when I heard what sounded like a gunshot, and it sounded awful close. I look up immediately to see someone dressed in dark clothes (that be the police officer, but didn't realize that right away) with a gun drawn, and then I saw him discharge his weapon into a nearby white minivan. At that point first thing that came to mind was either a robbery or an assault was taking place, and got my sidearm ready preparing for the worst, then realized the individual I saw discharging his weapon was a police officer, and looked like he was still shouting towards the vehicle he just shot at. Whatever the situation was there, once I realized a police officer was on the scene already and had apparently responded to the incident, I got out of there as quickly as possible. That happened in late March 2018. It's not like in the movies, when you witness something like that in real life it sticks with you for a long time afterwards. When I got home and got my thoughts together, it dawned on me that had I departed from the store about three to four minutes later than I did, I would have found myself right in the middle of that shooting, not a pleasant thought and witnessing it from about seventy or so feet away was more than enough. I'm sure there are alot of folks out there who think the odds of finding themselves in such a situation are slim, that it's something that happens to other people, but if something like that could happen to me then it could happen to anyone else, and given the trying times we live in it would be foolish to think otherwise. Now, if that ordeal from back in March 2018 wasn't bad enough, get this one...

If you've been following the news recently (again, this mostly applies to fellow Americans), then I'm sure most of you have heard about these "smash and grab" crimes that have been occuring across the US, namely in big cities that are Democrat controlled and that of which have seen a recent reduction in the local police forces (due to either vaccine mandate refusal or defunding). A day ago I found out an Ulta beauty store in a shopping complex that I frequent often got robbed earlier in the week, the store was allegedly robbed of over $20,000 in merchandise. The band of thieves (there were five I think) got away with their loot in about a minute's time. Whilst that crime occured in a neighboring township and not the city where I live, I fear that given enough time gone by such crimes will eventually make their way to the city, and this time of year around the holidays and all there's usually an increase in both unarmed and armed robberies/muggings. Don't know if this matters or not here, but both suspects from the bank robbery and Walmart shooting were not caucasian males, and latest news on the Ulta store theft indicates at least two of the thieves were black.

So when it comes to the self defense gun carry debate, I'd much rather be able to live my life in peace and not have to worry about potentially violent thugs seeking to make me their next victim and thus not have to worry about arming myself when out and about, but what I'd prefer on the matter is not the reality that we live in. Back in the late 1980s through the 1990s I was a kid in school, and for the most part back in those days we didn't have to worry about some deranged gunslinger with a chip on his shoulder coming into the school and turning the place into a shooting gallery, not so these days though. The many laws/restrictions in most states have done relatively little to nothing in deterring these violent offenders, which tells me more of the same in an effort to combat the problem would not be the answer. I have a theory as to why shortly after the turn of the new millennium there was a sharp increase in armed assaults, but that's a whole other story perhaps for a future post.

My point for this post is, that life is not meant to be fair and sometimes we all have to do things that we'd rather not do but pretty much have to, and that the world is filled with evil and self-centered human beings who seek to harm others. Knowing such is why I carry at times, even though I'm not thrilled to do so. As I see it, a gun is very much like a condom in concept... I'd rather have one on me and never need it, than needing one badly and not having it at the ready. We gun owners are not your enemy, we are just as concerned as you are over deranged gunslingers and are saddened when innocent life is needlessly wasted. I cannot stress enough how terrifying it can be to find yourself on the scene of a shooting, and it's even more terrifying if you're unarmed, as an unarmed target would be totally at the mercy of the armed thug. Where the Police and Government fail to deal with the criminal element (or for some reason are totally unable to), we the people need to look out for each other, and I'd be among one of the first to lay his life on the line if an armed aggressor should ever show up with the intent to harm others.