Why I Carry a Gun
The Gun Is Civilization
by Maj. L. Caudill USMC (Ret)
Human beings only have two ways to deal with one another: reason and force. If you want me to do something for you, you must choose either convincing me via argument, or compelling me under threat of force. Every human interaction falls into one of those two categories, without exception – reason or force, that's it.
In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact through persuasion. Force has no place as a valid method of social interaction, and the only thing that removes force from the menu is the personal firearm, as paradoxical as that may sound to some.
When I carry a gun, you cannot deal with me by force. You must employ reason and try to persuade me, because I have a way to negate your threat or employment of force.
The gun is the only personal weapon that puts a 100-pound woman on equal footing with a 220-pound mugger, a 75-year-old retiree on equal footing with a 19-year-old gang-banger, and a single guy on equal footing with a carload of drunk guys wielding baseball bats. The gun removes the disparity in physical strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and his intended target.
There are plenty who consider guns to be the source of bad force equations. These are the people who think that we'd be more civilized if all guns were removed from society. However, a firearm makes it easier for an armed mugger to do his job if the mugger's potential victims are mostly disarmed – either by choice or by legislative fiat. It has no validity when most of a mugger's potential marks are armed.
People who argue for the banning of arms ask for automatic rule by the young, the strong, and the many – the exact opposite of a civilized society. A mugger, even an armed society, can only make a successful living where the state has granted him a force monopoly.
Then there's the argument that the gun makes confrontations lethal that would otherwise result only in injury. This argument is a fallacy in logic. Without a firearm, confrontations are won by the physically superior inflicting overwhelming injury on the lesser.
People who think that fists, bats, sticks, or stones don't constitute lethal force, are those who watch too much TV. On television, people take beatings and come out with a bloody lip at worst. The fact that the gun makes lethal force easier, works solely in favor of the weaker defender, not the stronger attacker. If both are armed, the field is level.
The gun is the only weapon that is as lethal in the hands of an octogenarian as it is in the hands of a weightlifter. It simply would not work as well as a force equalizer if it wasn't both lethal and easily employable.
When I carry a gun, I don't do so because I am looking for a fight. I carry it because I'm looking to be left alone. The gun at my side means that I cannot be forced, only persuaded. I don't carry it because I'm afraid. Rather, it enables me to remain unafraid. It doesn't limit the actions of those who would interact with me through reason, only the actions of those who would do so by force. It removes force from the equation … And that's why carrying a gun is a civilized act.
I Don't Carry a Gun ...
I don't carry a gun to kill people...
I carry a gun to keep from being killed.
I don't carry a gun to scare people.
I carry a gun because sometimes this world can be a scary place.
I don't carry a gun because I'm paranoid.
I carry a gun because there are real threats in the world.
I don't carry a gun because I'm evil.
I carry a gun because I have lived long enough to see the evil in the world.
I don't carry a gun because I hate the government.
I carry a gun because I understand the limitations of government.
I don't carry a gun because I'm angry.
I carry a gun so that I don't have to spend the rest of my life hating myself for failing to be prepared.
I don't carry a gun because I want to shoot someone.
I carry a gun because I want to die at a ripe old age in my bed, and not on a sidewalk somewhere tomorrow afternoon.
I don't carry a gun because I'm a cowboy.
I carry a gun because, when I die and go to heaven, I want to be a cowboy.
I don't carry a gun to make me feel like a man.
I carry a gun because men know how to take care of themselves and the ones they love.
I don't carry a gun because I feel inadequate.
I carry a gun because unarmed and facing three armed thugs, I am inadequate.
I don't carry a gun because I love it.
I carry a gun because I love life and the people who make it meaningful to me.
Police Protection
Police Protection is an oxymoron. Free citizens must protect themselves.
Police do not protect you from crime, they usually just investigate the crime after it happens and then call someone in to clean up the mess.
A Little Gun History
In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control. From 1929 to 1953, about 20 million dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Germany established gun control in 1938 and from 1939 to 1945, a total of 13 million Jews and others who were unable to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated.
China established gun control in 1935. From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated
Guatemala established gun control in 1964. From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Uganda established gun control in 1970.. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Cambodia established gun control in 1956. From 1975 to 1977, one million educated people, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Defenseless people rounded up and exterminated in the 20th Century because of gun control: 56 million.
Another Set of Thoughts
The purpose of fighting is to win.
The sword is more important than the shield, and skill is more important than either... The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental.
1. Don't pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.
2. If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck.
3. I carry a gun because a cop is too heavy.
4. When seconds count, the cops are just minutes away.
5. A reporter did a human-interest piece on the Texas Rangers. The reporter recognized the Colt Model 1911 the Ranger was carrying and asked him 'Why do you carry a 45?' The Ranger responded, 'Because they don't make a 46.'
6. The old sheriff was attending an awards dinner when a lady commented on his wearing his sidearm. 'Sheriff, I see you have your pistol. Are you expecting trouble?' 'No Ma'am. If I were expecting trouble, I would have brought my shotgun.'
7. Beware the man who only carries one gun ... He probably knows how to use it.
And one more ...
I was once asked by a lady visiting if I had a gun in the house. I said I did. She said, "Well I certainly hope it isn't loaded."
To which I said, "Of course it is loaded. It can't work without bullets."
She then asked, "Are you that afraid of someone evil coming into your house?"
My reply was, "No not at all. I am not afraid of the house catching fire, either, but I have fire extinguishers around, and they are all loaded too."