GRASPING FOR STRAWS: Chicago Sun-Times cries like Chicken Little on Constitutional Carry

The Chicago Sun-Times proves once more than fears and emotions run the office there, not logic, science or empirical reason.

(Chicago Sun-Times) – The United States Concealed Carry Association itself warns: “Carrying a concealed weapon can be very dangerous if you are not well trained.”

Carry a concealed weapon can be very dangerous even if you are well trained.  Life can be dangerous if you’re living it to its fullest.

To which a growing number of states are saying, “So what?”

On Saturday, West Virginia became the eighth state to do away with training — or any other — requirements for the concealed carrying of firearms, despite safety worries voiced by police officers. Because the state’s legislature overrode a veto by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, most people over 21 soon will be able to tote hidden guns even if they have no idea what do do with them in a crisis situation.

No idea what to do with them, huh?  Maybe the editorial staff at the Chicago Sun-Times have no idea what to do with guns carried for defensive purposes, but frankly, most Americans don’t have below average intelligence.

Seeing how trained police officers can make mistakes, imagine untrained citizens with guns stepping into a situation where shots are being fired. We think “can be very dangerous” sums it up well — and at least one new study says that is exactly true.

I don’t know many people who willingly step into situations where shots are being fired, on duty cops excepted of course.  Most folks step away from situations where shots  are being fired.

This new trend will affect Illinois residents who travel to states without training requirements — or that have reciprocity agreements with states that have eliminated such requirements. Visitors to those states could find themselves in the middle of dangerous scenarios.

Oh yes, just like Florida’s Stand Your Ground law has resulted in deaths to Illinois residents visiting Florida.  Yeah, that’s sure happened a lot, now hasn’t it?  (Sarcasm off).

Moreover, a big part of concealed carry training is teaching gun owners their legal responsibilities. People from states without training requirements are likely to cross state lines, including into Illinois, not knowing what the local rules are or even that they exist.

Discounting the fact that mandated training for a Constitutionally-protected right is nothing more than discouraging exercise of said right, especially for the poor or less educated.  Frankly, the most important thing people can take away from concealed carry training is the judicious use of deadly force and to act to the standard by which they will be judged.  Frankly though, in the many states that do not require any training, there are very few instances of criminal misuse of firearms by people who didn’t use good judgement in pulling out their carry piece.

Before 2003, only Vermont allowed people without training or permits to carry concealed firearms. But as more states jump on the NRA’s latest bandwagon, the chances of untrained people causing unintentional harm soars.

We’re up to eight states with Constitutional Carry now.  And effectively zero problems.

Last year, professors at Mount St. Mary’s University in Maryland tested 77 volunteers in a simulator facility that the Prince George’s County police department uses to train its officers.

In the study, commissioned by the National Gun Victims Action Council, volunteers with varied levels of training turned out to be anything but the competent defenders of the peace envisioned by concealed-carry advocates.

“In the study commissioned by the National Gun Victims Action Council”…  C’mon…  Do they think people are so stupid as to think the people who commissioned the study weren’t commissioning the results as well?

In a carjacking scenario, most or all of the citizen gun carriers would have been killed. In an armed robbery scenario, the citizens who took on the robbers were killed. In a larceny scenario, the citizens killed the suspect, not realizing he was unarmed.

Is this half-assed junk science “study” the best argument they’ve got against Concealed Carry?

That’s hardly a ringing endorsement for allowing citizens without training to carry concealed firearms.

Illinois now requires training, but you can be sure that concealed carry proponents soon will come around to demand we toss training and permit requirements to the wind. Keep that in mind during the current legislative session as lawmakers debate new proposals to allow concealed guns on public transportation, at Interstate rest stops, in parks and at athletic facilities.

It’s irresponsible to have hidden guns at those locations. It would be even more irresponsible if the people with those hidden guns had zero training.

Yeah, the Sun-Times for decades argued that it was irresponsible to have concealed carry by card-carrying good guys too.  And we’re into our second year with concealed carry and they can’t trot out much in the way of stories about blood in the streets from CCW misuse.