[ QUOTE ]
The chances of you actually succesfully protecting yourself with a gun is much less than the chances of a horrible accident occurring.

[/ QUOTE ]

Prove it.

[ QUOTE ]
If you're being robbed/mugged you are much better off appearing defenseless to the attacker.

[/ QUOTE ]

If you feel like getting robbed/mugged, sure. I'd rather not. Have you ever been mugged? Robbed? I haven't, so this is all assumption. If someone's gonna whack me in the back of the head with a bat, nothing I can do is gonna do any good. However, if someone's gonna walk up to me with a knife (or gun) and demand my money, chances are pretty good I'd have noticed him coming, and would be suitably prepared. I'd venture that muggers usually avoid people who look like they'd be a handful, and eye contact goes a long way. Being aware of your surroundings is something that seems to come with carrying a concealed handgun.

[ QUOTE ]
All you are doing by carrying a gun is ensuring that the criminal will have to resort to violence.

[/ QUOTE ]

And not carrying a gun ensures he'll just politely ask you for your money/valuables and leave?

[ QUOTE ]
You also can't say for certain how you will react emotionally to an attacker. Next thing you know we will have people pulling out their gun and shooting wildly in public at a purse snatcher.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're absolutely right. I can't tell you how I'd react if I were ever faced with a situation where I actually had to draw and fire my weapon. I plan to be well trained enough, and knowledgable enough of the law to know what I can and can't do, and when I can or can't do it.

The purse snatcher comment is the comment of someone who doesn't know what else to say. Anyone who draws and fires at a purse snatcher has already broken numerous laws, though the actual wording of those laws depend on what state they reside in.

For me to be legally allowed to draw my gun, a lot has to occur. A purse snatching doesn't give me that right. A man walking up to me and demanding money doesn't give me that right. A man walking towards me with a knife doesn't even necessarily give me that right. Surprising?

For me to be legally allowed to fire it, even more has to occur. If you do some digging, you can find these laws as they apply in your state.

And if I don't abide these rules, I'm going to jail. And they know where to find me - remember, I have a permit for my weapon.

Lastly:

[ QUOTE ]
Whate scares a rational human being like me, is the fact that there are actually people who think that the way to reduce gun related deaths is to increase the number of guns on the streets.

[/ QUOTE ]

Increase the number of guns, in the hands of trained, knowledgable individuals, remember? Not increase the number of guns on "the street." There are already more than enough (easily millions, but I don't know if there's any real data out there) unlicensed, illegal handguns on the "streets," many of which are in states that allow NO concealed carry whatsoever (New York, as one example).

What scares a rational human being like me is the fact that other rational human beings refuse to apply logic, and instead cling hard and fast to the idea that "guns are bad" and that "guns increase crime." In the wrong hands, they damn sure do. But otherwise? I don't know if there's unbiased data either way. You can dredge up the Brady initiative's information, and I can dredge up Lott's studies.

I'm quite liberal on a lot of things... but you can bet I'm gonna be spending a decent amount of money in gun stores before my Democrat bretheren get the House, the Senate and the White House again.

Edit:

[ QUOTE ]
The error in your thinking is that having a concealed weapon somehow protects you. It doesn't, it is a danger to you and everyone around you.

[/ QUOTE ]

You really need to start providing some sort of proof with these accusations. You're making statements, without any data to back them up. That's bad science.

I could stand here and say having concealed handgun permits lower states' crime rates. I'm not, because I don't trust the data that's out there that says it. It's from relatively biased sources. But at least its data of any sort...

All you're doing is blowing smoke.

Go be rational and logical and actually prove something.