East Coast Grappling Championship?
Export Credit and Guarantee Corporation of India Ltd.?
Ok old man, you could take me with one arm tied behind your back.
Tell us some war stories. Maybe I could learn something.
They had food in the clubs you went to?
Okay, we've both prowled in a circle and growled with our ears laid back. Now maybe we can talk turkey.
You annoyed me, because you talked down to me like I was a punk, which I am definately not. I returned the favor, and doubt you liked it any more than I did.
Okay, you don't know me and I don't know you. I don't know what you've done, and you don't know what I've done. Tell ya what... I'll do you the courtesy of assuming you have some actual experience in dealing with violence, you return the favor...because I definately do.
Putting aside all the rhetoric and penis-fencing, let's look at the substance of your arguments.
You assert that
1. Millions of barfights will turn into millions of gunfights, because the drunks will have guns.
Rebuttal: Not everybody has a permit. You have to have a clean record, and keep it clean, to have a carry permit. Permit holders have an excellent record of staying out of trouble. Habitual drunken brawlers with a rap sheet as long as my arm ain't getting a carry permit.
Point two: Illegal to drink and carry still. Permit holders want to keep those permits, so they're generally pretty careful not to do things that will lose it.
Point three: Bar owners can still post their bar "no guns" and it applies. There's a difference between a nice restaurant that serves alcohol, or a bar that caters to a middle-class clientele, and a redneck dive or hood joint. The latter will probably be posted, and permit holders who want to stay out of trouble and keep that permit better stay out of them anyway.
2. You assert, If you're carrying a gun, someone will take it away from you.
Lord, if I've heard this once...
It isn't that easy. First of all its a
concealed-carry permit. Meaning if you're doing it right, nobody is likely to know you have a gun on you. They can't take what they don't know is there.
Second, taking a gun isn't like taking candy from a baby. Well, if you're dealing with a total dweeb and you're well trained, it may be fairly easy. A lot of permit holders also have hand-to-hand training; I do. A lot of permit holders get advanced firearms instruction, in how to disarm people and how to retain your weapon against a disarm attempt.
I'm not saying it is impossible, just that its not as simon-simple as many people make it sound. The first part is knowing who has a gun, and where the gun is. If they're doing it right you'll hardly ever know either of these things.
3. You say, the presence of a gun may escalate a fight into a killing.
Well, in this you could have some point. IF Joe is running his mouth about his piece and what he's going to do...well he's an idiot to start with but it could happen. Most of the time you aren't going to know that an educated gunman is carrying at all, until it is out. Crime statistics indicate that when a citizen is armed the perp usually runs off. A properly educated gunman is going to try to avoid penis-fencing barfights, nobody really wins and it isn't worth it once you're past 25.
Self defense requires a number of components to be legal. You must be where you have a right to be, doing what you have a legal right to do. In many jurisdictions you must be without fault in the incident. You must believe yourself to be in imminent danger. A "reasonable man" in your position should also believe himself in imminent danger. Generally, just because someone is armed and maybe running his mouth, isn't of itself justification to kill him on the spot. If he makes a verbal threat, then makes a gesture that indicates he is going to carry out that threat,
then you've got cause. Jeopardy plus Opportunity plus Ability.
The short version is, its not going to be a case where every power-drinker and drunken brawler chugging Jack Daniels is packing heat. To be legal, you have to have a permit/clean record, the bar is not posted, and you're not drinking.
If it were lawful to get drunk while carrying, hail even
I would oppose that. Guns and drinking do not mix.
Are we understanding each other a little better now?
G.