The fact that you're asking those questions is proof that you haven't read this thread.

I used my gun when threatened by four assailants. Had I not had the gun at the time, I'm pretty sure my wife and I would've been killed or, if not killed, we'd have been beaten, stabbed, and left for dead.

So, can I justify it?

Yes.

Does it make me feel "safe"?

Maybe not "safe", per se. But I know how to use a firearm, I carry a firearm, and I have no reservations about using it should the need arise. Because of those three things, I'm alive right now...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":




Sayeth John Drake - 10/13/08: "OK, you're right, I admit to LYING"

No shit. Unfortunately, all the other terms I can come up with violate forum rules.
Lemme call the WHAAAAAmbulance for you. I'm so TERRIBLY sorry you're offended by someone who strikes back at your dishonesty with the contempt it deserves.
Its rather meant to be. I have no patience for your kind.

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In case you were wondering, yes, there really ARE more idiots these days....technology has made natural selection obsolete.

Sure. Wonderful thing is, i don't HAVE to justify it. The only justification I need is that it is my choice to do so.
Or a human being.
Yep, sure can. Rifles and shotguns, while they would be more effective at stopping a threat, are frankly not very convenient to tote around on a motorcycle, and tend to clash with evening wear, or even business casual. They also weigh substantially more.

Then there's the whole over-penetration issue. If i had to actually shoot someone with it, since most personal defense situations happen under 25', the round would almost certainly go completely through the intended target and cause a severe risk to anyone in its path for hundreds of yards. My choice to carry a handgun is socially responsible when considered in that context. If you are of the belief that handguns are extremely powerful weapons, allow me to disabuse you of that notion. Truth is, they're far LESS powerful, but have the advantage of being far more portable and useful. Carrying a rifle for personal defense would be rather like taking a tractor trailer to the convenience store to pick up a quart of milk.
None of the above actually. I'm a man anyway, and quite adequate. Safe is a relative term, but I do like knowing its there if i need it, rather like my seatbelt or my helmet and leathers.

I'm sure my girlfriend doesn't feel manly with the .44 Magnum she carries. She simply feels more secure when she has to walk out to her car at an absurd hour of the early morning when she is coming home from the hospital in which she works. She carries one because she is aware that not all areas of Houston are idyllic and there are some very bad people in the world. Incidentally, she's MORE than adequate, i assure you.

I am also quite aware that some of my friends who carry are quite gay to begin with. They carry because of sexually immature people (like yourself perhaps) who may find pleasure in harming homosexuals simply because they are homosexuals. Manliness doesn't enter the picture with a couple of them, but they're quite secure in who they are and certain of their adequacy for their partners.

Your attempt to belittle and degrade the sexuality of those who choose to be armed is noted. It is typical of small-minded sexually insecure individuals to question another's sexuality though, so I'll let it go. In addition, even Freud recognized that fear of weapons is a sign of emotional and sexual immaturity, so that further explains your reaction.

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In case you were wondering, yes, there really ARE more idiots these days....technology has made natural selection obsolete.

Handguns are generally more appropriate for carrying
For me this is actually the case. I have had numerous times potentially dangerous animals in very close proximity. I have had bear, wolf, moose, fox, all within 10 yards of my back door.
More like cautious and responsible

In the meantime, you know it is holiday season in Alaska.
This big fella dragged those damn lights right down the street in downtown Anchorage.
adn.com | wildlife : Buzzwinkle light-free and sober

When someone asks "Can you justify it?", it's really as if they're asking "Can you justify it as something I should do?"

I've never flat-out told someone they should carry a gun. I believe people should, but I'm not about to insist that someone who doesn't want to should do it.

What I have to laugh at is the willingness of those people to insist that I don't do something that I think I should do.

No two situations are identical. I know people who could've benefitted from the possession of a firearm, and I know people who've carried for 30 years, and have never had to take their weapon out of its' holster.

When I drew my weapon, I was in a relatively good part of town that was not known for its' violent crime. Yet, there it was. It wasn't late at night, and we weren't walking the streets drunk acting like easy targets. The police were surprised that such an attack took place where it did and when it did.

Aside from someone making the idiotic suggestion that I should've just "hoped for the best" against four armed assailants, no one has been able to even come close to suggesting a reason why I shouldn't carry a weapon.

Unless I'm headed to the airport to fly somewhere, I'm armed. I might have my .45, or I might have my .380, but I've got something. I don't care of I'm going to the movies, the grocery store, or out to dinner. I'll be armed. My own experience shows me that violent crime can, and does, happen in places where you'd never expect it.

I don't live in fear. I never have. Statistically, I'll probably never again be in a position to have to draw my weapon a second time. But I don't know that. Accordingly, I take a level of preparedness in case I do every find myself in such a position again.

As I've said before, if it wasn't for me being armed, my wife and I would probably be dead right now. Given that, I'll never be convinced, by anyone, that carrying a firearm is a bad thing...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":




Sayeth John Drake - 10/13/08: "OK, you're right, I admit to LYING"

Meaning what???

I dont have the patience to go through all of your posts in this thread to read your little fairytale. Did you blow their asses off or not?

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It all comes down to this on election day: Are you a racist, or do you look down on spastics?

If you don't have the "patience", that's not my problem.

I've not the inclination to explain myself, yet again, to someone who's unable to provide a reason why I shouldn't carry a gun and, instead, would simply prefer that I not do it because they don't like it...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":




Sayeth John Drake - 10/13/08: "OK, you're right, I admit to LYING"

Nope never have carried one and i glad i didn't. I can look back on three situations i had where in all honesty if i had a gun my hatred could have ruled and they would have most likely been dead. I am a vietnam ere veteran sharpshooter and for years had an anger problem that was almost impossible to control. I don't need a gun and i don't want one...i have learned to love rather than hate and now its the only weapon i will ever need. Funny how the simpest answers work.

You use love as a weapon?

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Election 2008 – Addicted to Placebos

So, if someone's coming at you with the intent of doing you harm, and they have, say, a knife, what are you gonna' do?

Hug 'em??

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":




Sayeth John Drake - 10/13/08: "OK, you're right, I admit to LYING"

Realistically, how many times in your life are you approached by someone with intent to do you harm?

Not since high school...

Once.

They were armed, and so was I.

I walked away.

They didn't.

Tell me again why I shouldn't carry a gun...

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Obama's New "57 State Patriotic Pin":




Sayeth John Drake - 10/13/08: "OK, you're right, I admit to LYING"

Maybe you're willing to play the odds and hope for the best. That is your choice, and you're welcome to make it.

Others do not have to make the same choice you do, and you have no right to tell them they cannot.

Thats the biggest difference between people like me and people like you. I don't give a damn if you're armed or not. You want to make sure that I'm not.

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In case you were wondering, yes, there really ARE more idiots these days....technology has made natural selection obsolete.

In your case, you have an admitted inability to control your anger. Frankly sir, thats your problem. It isn't one I have.

I'm happy you've found peace in your own way, but in doing so you're expecting others to provide for your safety.

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In case you were wondering, yes, there really ARE more idiots these days....technology has made natural selection obsolete.

Did you forget Steve? I SF's world, rational people do not carry weapons or associate with those who do, and you have no need to be concerned with someone who may be carrying a knife or a blunt object.

Those nice men were simply carrying harmless objects and you were wrong to use your evil gun and shoot them. They probably just wanted to say hello and invite you to come party with them.

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In case you were wondering, yes, there really ARE more idiots these days....technology has made natural selection obsolete.