Moving to Dallas, 0% Knowledge on Guns, I Need Help/Advice (Santa Fe: violent crime, how much)

[mikeh19468]

Originally Posted by MckinneyOwnr

Great advice. If you've never owned/shot a gun before, a .45 is a really poor choice to have as a concealed carry.



I don't think people are trying to talk you out of this... more like we are advising you not to have a "knee jerk reaction" and buy a gun based on irrational fear and lack of knowledge about them.

I personally would recommend a .40 or 9mm if you intend to carry it. A 45 has a lot of drawbacks when used for that purpose, as EDS has stated. It also isn't going to do you any good if you can't hit your target if you're holding a gun that is too big/powerful.

You can practice shooting til the sun goes down every day, but when you're in the heat of the moment, in danger, your calm and skill will be affected, and you're better off having a smaller round that you can control easier.

Also keep in mind that while quite a few people here do have their CCW, you won't find them waving it around either, and most have probably never had to touch it in their daily lives outside of a range. The few that have pulled and used them usually shouldn't have done so, and those kinds of stories give us all a bad reputation as trigger happy gun toting Texans.

+1. I'd probably go with a 380 if I felt the need to carry. Lighter, easier to carry, very easy to shoot, and a well trained person with lots of range time with a 380 will be more effective than a person who just took the CCW course and bought the largest caliber weapon they could conceal.

Now if I lived over in El Paso, or some other place right across the border from Juarez, all bets would be off....

[BigT3x]

A .45 is an extremely poor choice, you're not going to be carrying any gun while jogging, and carrying a shotgun in your car is only useful if you're planning a drive by shooting.

[Bideshi]

Originally Posted by rageman24

Thanks again

Please don't handle a firearm without first learning how to use one. Please take a firearms training course. There are many for beginners to choose from.

[Ablebodied]

I'm sure most people don't carry. In one's lifetime, most people will never be in a situation where they need a gun. Yes, those odds caught up with the OP. Gun groups put the number of permits at 6 mil, and many who have permits still don't carry. Even a gun can be a false sense of security. A murderer is not going to ask you if you have a permit to carry. Police have the most training with split second decisions than anyone, and many times they get it wrong and kill innocent people. You won't have the same protection as they do when a mistake is made. Not attempting to change the OP's mind, but that's why Zimmerman will be arrested soon, reacting to what happened in the past.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by Ablebodied

I'm sure most people don't carry. In one's lifetime, most people will never be in a situation where they need a gun. Yes, those odds caught up with the OP. Gun groups put the number of permits at 6 mil, and many who have permits still don't carry. Even a gun can be a false sense of security. A murderer is not going to ask you if you have a permit to carry. Police have the most training with split second decisions than anyone, and many times they get it wrong and kill innocent people. You won't have the same protection as they do when a mistake is made. Not attempting to change the OP's mind, but that's why Zimmerman will be arrested soon, reacting to what happened in the past.

I have no problem with folks deciding not to carry or own guns for that matter.

So far as current firearms training most police departments require very little ongoing firearms training. There is no question I practice more than most Dallas police officers - several are good friends of mine.

A prospective murderers, as you say, is not going to ask if I am armed. But he will also not know that I am armed. As my police buddies like to crack, "when seconds count the police are only minutes away".

So far as Zimmerman is concerned....it does not matter much if he is arrested. It matters if he is convicted of a serious crime. At first the media had me more or less convinced that he was going down for manslaughter or maybe some level of murder. It now looks like there is only some chance he will be convicted of anything serious.

[Ablebodied]

Since right to carry laws, I would say that criminals assume you are carrying. Remember the guy who walked out of the elevator and shot the woman from behind in the head? He surely could have over-powered her, but with right to carry, he left no chance for error.

[ETex2]

Originally Posted by Ablebodied

Since right to carry laws, I would say that criminals assume you are carrying. Remember the guy who walked out of the elevator and shot the woman from behind in the head? He surely could have over-powered her, but with right to carry, he left no chance for error.

Yep, and that NEVER would have happened before carry laws were passed, right?

Good grief......

[Ablebodied]

Of course it has. But just saying a gun can be a false sense of security and most of us feel secure enough in our skin without carrying. Hey, there were people that felt after the last election they needed to buy more guns and ammo for some reason that still escapes me. That's their reasoning...or lack thereof.

[ETex2]

Originally Posted by Pemberly283

How about learning some Jusitsu or martial arts instead? Get some hardcore workout at the same time!

Not a bad idea, but, when someone says something like this, I think of the original Crocodile Dundee movie - the scene where the marshall arts expert badguy stands there in front of him twirling around these huge knives to intimidate him - superbad to the bone. Guess what happened......

[Ablebodied]

Originally Posted by ETex2

Not a bad idea, but, when someone says something like this, I think of the original Crocodile Dundee movie - the scene where the marshall arts expert badguy stands there in front of him twirling around these huge knives to intimidate him - superbad to the bone. Guess what happened......

LOL

And I have to admit, in real life, people don't stab you like they do on television, with that downward motion where you stop them by grabbing their wrist!