One side-effect of moving to Expression Engine from Movable Type is that comments were reopened for all of the old entries which had previously been closed.  So far, this hasn’t been too much of a problem, as EE is more resistant to spam than MT.  I’ve only gotten one spam so far, and that appeared to have been done manually. 

Anyhow, the reason I bring this up is that on Friday someone commented on a posting from January 5th of last year about the Ft. Worth Zoo posting 30.06 signs.  Someone calling himself “guy” left the following comment, which I will present in its original format (i.e. I haven’t fixed any of the numerous mispellings or other errors):

This is in the general safty of everyone weather it be animals, workers, or guest of the zoo. What if they did let a licensed gun carrier(with a gun) into the but this one guy/girl was a little disturbed by an attitude that a worker gave them for breaking a rule of the zoo, and they decided to pull a gun on them. Not to say they shoot anyone but that is still assult with a deadly weapon. It’s not that the person as a whole is not welcome, but the weapon. And whos to say that someone else that is visiting the zoo does’nt steel the gun and then rob’s the place. I’m not trying to convince you to go back to the. i hate it myself! But i just think your a little to dramatic about it. Kind of like mothers getting pissed off about a woman on a TV show dropping her towel to a guy and you dont even see anything!

I’ve heard all of these things before, but it’s starting to get a bit insulting to be told that I’m a violent homicidal maniac just waiting to explode.  Anyhow, I tried to remain calm, and responded thusly:

Guy,

All of your points with regards to concealed carry are incorrect.  But let me address them one-by-one in case you haven’t yet had the benefit of knowing how these things really work.

First, CHL holders are the most law-abiding segment of society you will be able to find.  We’re not going to “go off” on someone just because of some perceived slight or a bad attitude.  Carrying a weapon for your protection is an awesome responsibility and it’s one we take very seriously.  A weapon is not something to be pulled out at the slightest provocation or during an argument.  But don’t just take my word for it.  See if you can find one real incident where a CHL holder (or CCW, depending on the state) has shot someone or pulled a weapon based on an argument or slight.  The people most likely to exhibit the behavior you’re afraid of are gang-banger types, who will carry their guns in the zoo regardless of the signs.

Second, concealed means concealed.  No one can steal what they don’t know you have.  Further, the idea that someone will take your gun and use it on you is a tired old canard of the gun-confiscation movement.  I won’t deny that it can happen.  In fact, there are a couple of interesting documented cases where the criminal had his gun taken… But in any event, it’s a matter of mindset.  If you pull a gun you must be prepared to use it.  That’s an issue that each carrier must be prepared to deal with before making the decision to carry.  In any event, it’s not something that happens often enough to make policy on (in fact, I don’t know of any concealed-carry holders who have had this happen).

Finally, let’s take a look at the “general safety” argument.  A 30.06 sign has the force of a criminal trespass charge behind it, but that’s about all.  But being law-abiding sorts, CHL holders abide by these signs wherever they are legally posted.  I must point out to you, though, that criminals don’t give a rat’s ass about these signs.  So what you’ve effectively done is create a zone where your most law-abiding and safe citizens are legally prevented from carrying a weapon while criminals still have free reign.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t see the “safety” in this.

Finally, I don’t consider it “dramatic” to research and make comments on a policy I consider ill-advised and unsafe and to take action based on that policy to ensure the safety of myself and those around me (namely to avoid gun-free criminal empowerment zones).

Unfortunately, he left an invalid email address in the comments, so I couldn’t reply directly.  Anyhow, I thought this one deserved a front page answer for posterity.