I’m just curious about firearms and camping

[starleen2]

Gun heck – with those stats, I’m runnin em’ down with the car – but wait, with the price of gas, is it really worth it?

[starleen2]

I’ve been reading some of the post so far and one question comes to mind: has anyone here been shot (gunshot) either accidentally or (god forbid) on purpose?

[ALAN GEDDES]

I'm a Vietnam vet and retired from the Army. Been there done that and have been hit and defended myself to put it nicely. Weapons are a tool. It is a necessity in this country unfortunately. In other countries the laws have more teeth than here. Guns don't kill. People do. I pray that I will never have to use a weapon again as long as I live, but to protect those dear to me I would not hesitate. You will never see my gun as I won't show it to you and I will never threaten you with it. If you see it I will be using it.

[Gaelen]

Gun heck – with those stats, I’m runnin em’ down with the car – but wait, with the price of gas, is it really worth it?

Well...if the car's moving already you're not wasting any EXTRA gas...
And if you want to save gas, you could always fling a dutch oven lid or cast iron skillet...kind of a teardropper's version of a deadly flying disk.

As for your other question:
Never been shot.
Have been shot at, on purpose (three times).
Most people are a lot worse shots than they think they are...and nerves and agitation typically make them worse shots, not better.

If anything, having been on the wrong end of a gun and choosing to work and live for two decades in situations where that could happen only strengthened my opinion about what is the most effective weapon I personally can carry. Carrying wouldn't have prevented being shot at in any of the instances where it happened, nor would knowing that I had a gun have enabled me to settle the situation down any more quickly. At that point, it wouldn't have been insurance, it would have been a threat, a liability, and a situational escalation that would have helped created a less-than-happy statistic.

OTOH, that 350 magnum brain Caseydog mentioned is what got me (and everyone else involved) out alive in each of those situations. In the situations that *didn't* escalate to a display of iron and ordnance, it was my brains, attitude and situation management skills that enabled me to prevent that escalation and get the weapon and the weapon-holder under control. It's not the fast solution but sometimes there's a sound reason to slow things down.

[Bill Fernandez]

Have gun will travel!

Bill

[rbonner]

Ive always carried, and being in air conditioning all my life had to go out on call at all hours and all kind of places. And let me tell you, Im glad i had it, youd be supprised how fast some one will drop a knife and run. All i can say is... Dont show me yours and i wont show you mine.

[caseydog]

Auntie M, I have never been a woman, and don't plan to become one, so I'll have to defer to Gaelen on that issue. She did a dangerous job without a gun, but I don't know how safe she feels at home in her neighborhood.

One guy on that gun owners slide show compared a gun to a fire extinguiser. You hope you never need one, but if you do, it's good to have one. But, does he wear one strapped to his belt on a daily basis? I bet he doesn't even keep one in his car.

As for the parachute comparison, I won't EVER need a parachute, as long as I don't jump out of any planes.

I'm not trying to tell people they can't, or shouldn't carry a gun. I'm just saying that I don't think people NEED to carry anywhere near as much as they may think they do.

People will do what they want to do. I know one guy who carries a gun for protection (legally, with a CC permit), but doesn't wear seatbelts and rides his Harley without a helmet. He's a smart guy, too, so what is he thinking???

I am 46, and not a single one of my family members or friends has died from an assault, where a gun could have saved them. I have lost serveral friends to car accidents, an a few to cancer.

In 1995, I had a gun pointed at me. Not by some black guy in a robbery, but by a nicely dressed, middle class white guy in an expensive Silverado pickup, on I-35 in Round Rock, Texas, a white, conservative suburb. He didn't like my driving, it seems. I guess my failure to get out of his way on the highway constituted a threat in his eyes.

I just wish people would spend more time really evaluating risks, and thinking about when, and where it is appropriate and/or necessary to bear arms, and when and where it is not.

CD

[brian_bp]

I won't comment on the usefulness of guns in general, or the wisdom of carrying them where permitted, because I don't see any connection to the subject of Teardrops & Tiny Travel Trailers.

On the subject of guns in campgrounds:
Please remember when you visit us in Canada that you are not in the United States of America. There is no "right to keep and bear arms" here; you are not permitted them in many places, and a concealed handgun is almost certainly illegal for you (and me, and just about everyone else). I don't want your firearms around me... and "out of sight" is not good enough. Please leave any firearm without a legitimate and legal purpose - which means any handgun - at home.

To put this in perspective: many Canadians own and use firearms for hunting or defense from wildlife, just as they do in the U.S. I have fired hundreds of rounds from rifles and handguns in target ranges (I suppose I'm passably competent), and I followed the Taurus link out of curiosity, just as I occasionally read a firearms magazine.

P.S. The Taurus .45/410 is interesting, and I understand that it fills a specific need, but I believe it has no useful purpose in Alberta wilderness - leave that one at home, too.

[AlaskaJack]

I was raised with guns. Always have one close at hand. (except in Canada ) Only pulled one once.... as 5 guys had "a plan" that I didn't agree with.... so they left in a hurry. Yes I was camping (not in a campground) and I didn't get any sleep for the rest of the night! (this was many years ago)

[MSG Hall]

well you guys know.... I have never had used my life insurance either, but I still have it...

[caseydog]

well you guys know.... I have never had used my life insurance either, but I still have it...

Ah, but if a person has life insurance, there is a 100-percent chance he will use it eventually.

[brian_bp]

well you guys know.... I have never had used my life insurance either, but I still have it...

Ah, but if a person has life insurance, there is a 100-percent chance he will use it eventually.

... and a zero chance that the life insurance will actually kill or injure anyone!

[elmo]

well you guys know.... I have never had used my life insurance either, but I still have it...

Ah, but if a person has life insurance, there is a 100-percent chance he will use it eventually.

... and a zero chance that the life insurance will actually kill or injure anyone!

I don't know about that....don't you watch TV up there....everyone gets killed for the life insurance.

[Tripmaker]

I have nothing against guns and own several. However, I prefer not to "carry" one for protection. I am afraid that if I have it I may at some point need to use it. I know that is the point of carrying one but I would rather not have to make that decision. Others feel differently and that is OK for them as long as they comply with the law.

One possible soulution for those concerned about personal safety would be to carry a can of bear spray. If it will send a 2,000 lb. grizzley running, I would thing it would stop any human attacker without permanent damage. Even in bear country I know there can be serious consequences for shooting a bear, even in self defense.

All that being said. Last night in Fort Wayne someone attempted to rob a video store. The guy behind the counter shot and killed the would be robber. I would imagine that the next criminal will think twice before entering that store.

[caseydog]

I have nothing against guns and own several. However, I prefer not to "carry" one for protection. I am afraid that if I have it I may at some point need to use it. I know that is the point of carrying one but I would rather not have to make that decision. Others feel differently and that is OK for them as long as they comply with the law.

One possible soulution for those concerned about personal safety would be to carry a can of bear spray. If it will send a 2,000 lb. grizzley running, I would thing it would stop any human attacker without permanent damage. Even in bear country I know there can be serious consequences for shooting a bear, even in self defense.

All that being said. Last night in Fort Wayne someone attempted to rob a video store. The guy behind the counter shot and killed the would be robber. I would imagine that the next criminal will think twice before entering that store.

I often wonder why people choose a handgun over mace or perrer spray -- or that bear spray you mention. Pepper spray woks, and you can easily carry it in your pocket.

I used to have a few handguns, just for plinking out in the country, and other than perhaps a little Beretta .25, they are annoying to carry. A .25 is less effective than a can of pepper spray, IMHO, at stopping an attacker, so to carry a truly effective handgun, it has to be a 357 or 9mm.

I wonder if a can of pepper spray just isn't "tough" enough for floks who carry guns. Would Dirty Harry carry pepper spray? I think not.

CD