Allowing concealed guns a bad idea

Coulee News ^ | November 23, 2005 | ADAM A. MEYERS

[jdege]

Allowing concealed guns a bad idea

By ADAM A. MEYERS Racine, Wis.

I am a police officer with the Racine Police Department and a part-time police officer for another community in Racine County. This is strictly my opinion and I am not speaking on behalf of the communities or law enforcement agencies that employ me.

The Wisconsin law against carrying a concealed firearm has worked effectively for over 130 years. Deciding to pass a concealed carry law in Wisconsin that will allow almost every adult to carry a concealed firearm is a potentially dangerous decision.

Carrying a concealed firearm and deciding to shoot another human being is different from what is perceived on television, in the movies or while playing a video game. Allowing Wisconsin residents to carry concealed firearms may not reduce crime. If anything, crime may increase and there will be, without a doubt, more firearms in our homes and on our streets.

I strongly support the ability for people to defend themselves, but I don’t believe that carrying a concealed firearm is the only way to accomplish this. There are a lot of responsibilities that come with carrying a concealed firearm and being able to effectively use it against someone in their self-defense or in the defense of another human being.

I agree that retired law enforcement professionals should be permitted to carry a concealed firearm as long as they follow state and federal laws and those policies presented to them by their former law enforcement agencies.

I believe that there is no credible evidence that carrying a concealed firearm reduces crime and that passing a concealed carry law in Wisconsin will do more harm than good.

[adamsjas]

The officers arrived and found a very large dog pounding away at my front door.

How does a dog "pound"? And where did the dog's owner run to when he saw the police approaching?

[Ninian Dryhope]

"I strongly support the ability for people to defend themselves, but I don’t believe that carrying a concealed firearm is the only way to accomplish this."

Then no gun for you either, copper.

[facedown]

I am a police officer with the Racine Police Department and...

...will be running for public office as a Democrat.

[VaGunGuy]

Um, is there a real problem with illegal immigrants applying for CCW permits? Around here, most wouldn't, if for no other reason than those pesky fingerprint cards...

[Myrddin]

The AR 15 would not be my first, second or third choice for a rifle unless I was hunting prairie dogs.7.62 NATO(.308) in the mini 14 is a much better choice

Mini-14 is .223/5.56...same as the AR-15. Mini-30 is 7.62X39...same a SKS or AK-47. 7.62X51 NATO(.308) is found in Springfield M1A, some models of Saiga, M14 (non-civilian), FN-FAL and others.

[sgtbono2002]

Have you ever noticed how Police Officers who are against anyone else carrying concealed weapons, never go anywhere without theirs? When they go on vacation they go armed. When they go to the store they go armed.When they go to a party they go armed. Inside or outside their own jurisdiction. They rely on the Police in other places to look the other way because they are police officers.Mostly if they carry off-duty its always concealed.

[papertyger]

No body ever raped a .38 .

My .45 felt one up ;^>

[Myrddin]

My bad , said mini 14 when I should have said M-14 or M-1.

M1 shoots a 123 gr 7.62 from a straight-walled case. Usually called .30 Carbine when looking for reloading dies. M1 Garand shoots 30-06. A 7.62 with a longer case than the .308.

[brazzaville]

Good afternoon.
"Carrying a concealed firearm and deciding to shoot another human being is different from what is perceived on television, in the movies or while playing a video game."

I wonder if this Barney Fife has ever had to fire his weapon at anything but paper. He sounds like he is lecturing children in grade school, and he clearly has no regard for the intelligence and courage of the average citizen.

He's also either not very well informed about the affect of CCW on crime rates or he is a liar.

Before anyone listens to this cop's opinion of CCW, they should watch the film of the Compton PD shooting up an SUV.

Michael Frazier

[papertyger]

I'll bet he supports the troops, too!

[MaDeuce]

"The AR 15 would not be my first, second or third choice for a rifle unless I was hunting prairie dogs.7.62 NATO(.308) in the mini 14 is a much better choice"

YOU MEAN MINI-30, not Mini-14. And 7.62 do much better in M14/M1A's ;o)

[dhuffman@awod.com]

Wonderful pro-gun comments - to the choir. Write the fool and his news-rag.

[Myrddin]

Then again maybe it was wishfull thinking on my part for a Mini-14 in 7.62 nato.

If it helps, Ruger did create a variant of the Mini-14/Mini-30 that fires 7.62X51 NATO, but they never brought it to market. Too bad. It is a pretty good design. The main failing of those two rifles is a very thin barrel that differentially heats after about 5 rounds. The consequence is vertical stringing of the point of impact.

[VaGunGuy]

Dude, the mini-30 is 7.62x39, not 7.52x51 (which is 7.62 NATO)

[VaGunGuy]

Sorry, dude, the Ruger mini series sucks uniformly. Accuracy is substandard. About the only positive thing to say about the Mini system is that it doesn't jam....TOO often.

[Americanexpat]

I took some personal security training and the whole concept was different than anything I had been through before in military, law enforcement and civilian weapons training where the emphases is on safety. In these course we carried loaded weapons at all times. we were even told to shoot a targets with the instructors standing next to them. Most of the time when a terrorist attacks he is within 3 to ten feet and there are usually other people close by so that is not the time to worry if you can hit the bastard without hitting an innocent bystander. No one in the class was under 25 years of age and many had 10 to 20 years experience using firearms.

When your on the job, as I was in Iraq, you went everywhere armed, locked and loaded. You never new when the terrorist were going to strike or what the circumstances would be, you were ready all the time. When we got back to the hotel at night we slept with loaded rifles and pistols beside our beds.

I know thats a lot different than what most people are used to and how they have been trained but I am glad I got the chance to go through a course where we were treated like professionals and adults.

[MaDeuce]

Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...
Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...
Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...
Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...
Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...
Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...
Some people shouldn't post their opinions on web sites ...

Ooops .... got carried away.

[papertyger]

About the only positive thing to say about the Mini system is that it doesn't jam....TOO often.

Ah...the "ranch rifle" cured that problem. They jam plenty.

I think they messed up when they changed the ejection angle to avoid scope damage.

[ArmyTeach]

Mr. Meyers, I don't know about Wisconsin, but in Alaska applicants for a Concealed Carry license take an intensive full week end course on the care and handling of a firearm, the legalities regarding its use, and marksmanship training. To date the only concealed carry citizen to fall afoul of the law did so because he received a traffic ticket and failed to inform the arresting officer that he was a concealed carry permit holder. If he had, the policeman would probably let him off with a warning, such is the reputation of Alaska concealed carry permit holders. Nobody is under the illusion that carrying a hand gun equates to a video game or a TV show.
An increase in firearms on the streets and in the homes is not ipso facto a bad thing as long as those in possession of firearms are responsible citizens. Alaska has recently done away with the requirement for classroom time, certification and licensure for concealed carry. I might anticipate an increase in gun crime as a result, but so far crime has not spiked appreciable.
I do think its a bad thing when good policemen don't trust good citizens.

[jrp]

These people come from a lower social, educational, economic and cultural level and cannot be trusted to carry a concealed gun.

Statistics say otherwise. CCW holders have proven to be overwhelmingly safe and law-abiding, even in states with no or minimal training/permitting requirements to screen out these "undesirables" you believe are a problem.

Indeed, gun owners in general are extremely safe and law-abiding. Otherwise how can one explain ~1000 (and declining) annual fatal firearms accidents in a county of 300 million people and 250+ million guns?