Guns Are Only Dangerous If You Use Them

With all the talk going on about gun rights since the Tucson shootings, I was surprised to see a headline about Wisconsin's plans to expand gun owner's rights. It seems with the change of parties in charge, Republicans now, the legislature will finally win out over the former governor's veto.

Did you know, too, that Illinois is the only other state that forbids carrying a concealed weapon? Apologies to Tom Brokaw who said he'd feel uncomfortable in an Arizona bar because of their wide open rules, it seems he shouldn't have singled them out. Granted Arizona and Vermont have less stringent requirements than other states but a concealed weapon is just that and no one has to tell you whether or not one is being carried.  Of course that's what concealed is all about.  Secrecy.

I often wonder why we Americans are so fascinated with guns. I can understand hunters, but for ordinary citizen like myself, I don't get it. That being said, I'm considering taking the course mainly to get a feel for what it's all about.

I remember having a security system rep brag about the fact he wears his weapon even when he goes to church. I had a hair dresser, a woman, who bragged about "carrying". When we had a couple of teenage boys walking around town carrying guns, because they were allowed, I wondered about their parenting. When I commented to a gun store owner I was uneasy knowing how many people carry guns, he asked me why. I had no good answer other than a why not back at him. It was lame.

His view is they most are perfectly honest, sane citizens who are exercising a right. Still, why?

I guess being able to doesn't mean you have to. Yet considering the mind set in today's America, many feel safer doing so than not. I think there is an underlying thread here of which I can't quite get a grasp.

The why. But the laws are what they are. I just hope the requirements for getting those permits include proof of instruction on how to use a weapon properly. And hope for the best.