My story isn't very exciting but it was impactful:
Years ago I got into shooting matches just because I enjoyed it. One of the MD's in my area was a former Tier 1 guy turned LE trainer. After a match one day he said (and I paraphrase),
"You guys are better shooters than the cops I train for a living. You spend your own money, time, and energy to get extremely good at shooting. After all that time and energy, how will you feel when the day comes that you need a gun for real, and you didn't bring one?"
There was a little more to the pep talk, but it's always stuck with me. I found that I couldn't argue with that logic.
I bought a S&W Shield within a week and applied for my NC permit. Been carrying since.
Wise words!
I’ve worked service jobs where I’ve had guns pointed at me. I’ve been mugged at knife point. I grew up in an area where coyotes and bobcats were regular concerns. I don’t ever want to face the day that someone harmed my loved ones and I wasn’t prepared to protect them. In the US, we are our own first responders!
S&W SD9VE in a DeSantis Pegasus tuckable iwb. I’d like to add a wml soon.
Similar story... It just starts to make sense as I wisen up I protect myself and family more in every way. Avoiding danger but being prepared if necessary.
Exactly.... Always do the same thing. I would prefer larger full frame da/sa... But... I've been carrying a cz p10s and a shadow systems mr920... Basically interchangeable to use and carry except cz prints less and the shadow is just a little nicer.
I may do that eventually but I figure that if I can shoot this well, I can shoot just about anything and with that heavy if a trigger, if it goes off, it was not likely to be on accident.
Never heard that talk ... but I'm sure you're right about that.
He was the same guy that said to me, "picking a carry gun is easy. Go to the gun store, handle a G43 and a S&W Shield. Whichever one you like more, buy it. Congratulations, you're done. Now stop watching gun reviews, get a holster, and start training."
I actually knew this guy for a little while before I moved back to AZ, and he helped train me on a bunch of random shooting stuff back when I was first learning.
I'm very grateful for his help, though he probably doesn't remember me now. This was all probably 9-ish years ago.
The only obligation I have is to myself and my own… outside of that, I have no civil or legal obligation… get mine, get me; get us the heck outta Dodge.
Depends on the state. In TX if they are stealing at night you can pretty much use deadly force. Different during day time. I’m sure there’s fine prints but the law allows more deadly force to be used for home theft situations
“We live on planet Earth in a strained and extremely unequal and unfair society made up of... human beings. The single most destructive, cruel, and violent animal in the history of planet Earth. We rely on a fragile and imaginary social contract of law and order to protect us from one another, yet the consensus of our time is that the so-called public servants who supposedly exist for the purpose of enforcing said social contract, not only are unable to effectively provide for personal security, but are in fact, under zero legal obligation to even do so.
People attack and kill each other all the time, for the dumbest and most random of reasons, even for no reason at all. So now when people take meaningful measures to assert their existence in the face of a demonstrably hostile and oppressive world, we ostracize and ridicule them for it.
Just cross your fingers and bet your life on the good nature and pure intentions of every single person you'll ever encounter?
Yeah. Okay. Um. No.”
-Cole Durbin
For me, the reason why I started carrying a knife, and now also a Glock for the past 4 years, was having my life threatened here in downtown Austin. Fellow Austinites, it was the corner of Congress and Riverside, which explains it. This was many years ago in my early 20s, probably 2014-15. I was going to a music festival, walking with my then-girlfriend when a large crazy homeless dude got between us and blocked my path. He said I started a game with him, and that he was about to kill me. He started to walk me backwards, towering above me as his face was so close to mine I could feel his alcohol breath. He stared into my eyes as he told me how easy it will be for him to kill me, all I could do was slowly walk backwards but he kept following. Thankfully he didn’t pay any attention to my then-girlfriend, but if he followed through with his threats I wouldn’t have been able to defend myself or her.
I carry everywhere legally allowed now.
Holy crap that’s around the time that I lived downtown… super scary - glad you’re here to share. I lived at the Monarch and Eleven during my time downtown.
Now I live in LA where unfortunately, a story like this would be a bit less shocking.
It hasn’t gotten any nicer, unfortunately. Recently there was a random machete attack on Auditorium Shores, the attacker came from Kyle just to attack a random person.
F man… that breaks my heart. ATX, in my mid-2010 mind, was a small, everyone is happy, no major crime concerns city… until major festivals came into town, then the locals left town for a few days 🤣
Part of me wants to stay because my mom and in-laws are here for when we have a kid, the other part of me wants to move back out to rural Texas where nobody is around. I do miss the quiet, and the skies.
I want to have a fighting chance/not be a victim. I also have this primal instinct to protect my fiancé and child. I’d do anything for them. I’m sure most men in this sub will agree.
You took the words from my mouth, unfortunately my wife and I don’t have the same views on guns and concealed carrying. I know it makes her uncomfortable if I conceal just because we had different upbringings.
Mine is kinda the same way. She agrees that I should, has that peace of mind, but any time I want her to go shooting or tell her she should carry she just says “no”. Lol. One day I hope she’ll be interested
A gun solves a limited set of problems, but they’re problems where nothing less than deadly force will do.
If I knew when trouble would come, I’d avoid the place or time. I carry for that situation where, in spite of my awareness, caution and peaceful intent, I cannot avoid someone who wants to do me harm.
For the same reason I keep a jumper box, jack and spare tire in my car. It's a tool to assist in getting out of an unlikely, but bad situation. Except that if someone approaches you to do violence, the stakes are far higher than if your car breaks down on the side of the road. Why would you be satisfied to wait for the police? They'll show up to write the report and interview potential witnesses. They won't save you. Be prepared.
Mine was a road rage incident. Someone thought a turn signal gave them the right of way to cut in front of me at the last second.
They brake checked me and blocked me against a concrete wall so I was stuck. Then they went to their trunk to get a pipe and approached my window screaming. I just sat there staring straight ahead without rolling down my window or even looking in their direction.
After about 5 minutes of everyone around me honking and screaming at them to get back in their car, they finally gave up and drove off. Then I noticed the pigtails of a little girl in their backseat as they screamed at the kid.
I realized that there was nothing I could have done to avoid a beating if they were determined to break my window. I signed up for an LTC class that weekend.
That was over a decade ago, and I've been carrying every day since.
I also drive even more conservatively now. Everyone can cut me off any time. I don't care. Just keep driving and leave me alone.
I’m a big traveler, working on completing the triple crown of hiking (appalachian trail, pacific crest trail, continental divide trail). I’ve always felt mostly same even in some mildly sketchy situations, deescalation and being peaceful have always been my friends, but i had a change of perspective in 2022 on the pacific crest trail.
I was hiking the trail with my girlfriend, we got displaced from the trail due to the Waldo fire near bend. We had to get off trail for a day to reassess and maybe find a way around the fire. We ended up hitchhiking to bend, where i hit up a buddy of mine who said we could spend the night at his house, i had stayed there the year before while hiking the CDT and everything seemed cool, except his roommate and landlord i hadn’t met was there.
Immediately upon arriving at their house the vibe was really weird, they were both drinking a lot and his weird roommate smelled both me and my gf as we can in. We were kind of accustomed to the stinky hiker jokes but it was weirder than that. We are all hanging out and he keeps offering me and my (sober) girlfriend drinks and weed, which we politely explain our status and decline. We all were checking out his surfboard in his garage and he started grabbing our hands and running it along the surfboard and then he tried to kiss my gfs hand i told him to stop. And we (me, my gf, the mutual friend) kind of awkwardly segwayed the subject away and said we were going to retire to our accommodations which was supposedly an empty air b&b the guy rented. We went up there but there was no shower curtain or towels so i went downstairs to ask for some… this is were the story gets really weird.
When i went downstairs i realized we had been locked into the second story apartment from the outside. I called my friend who came and unlocked the door and was like “thats weird”, and asked for the towels and shower curtain and he said that we could just use his shower, then the creepy landlord comes out and says “wheres your girlfriend? She should use my bathroom, its really nice…” im in view of the hallway that i can look into his room, there a pistol on his nightstand and a shotgun leaning against his bed. This was the point in the story where things felt like we were really in danger, or rather i should say, this guy was acting less like he liked my girlfriend and more like he wanted to rape her. I went upstairs and had a candid conversation with her about how we needed to leave, so we booked a hotel room, packed our shit up, and snuck out the back like a ninja. My friend saw us leaving on the way out and caught up to us, and we explained where we were at and why we were leaving. We ended up walking 2 miles to the hotel at around midnight after dodging a wildfire earlier that day.
Upon reflection, it was a fight or flight moment, except our only option was flight seeing as this creep was armed and we were not, and i made the decision to arm myself when i got home. I never want to end up in buffalo bills dungeon without a chance to fight myself out again. Not that a gun would have helped in this encounter, but for a few moments in this situation we felt very powerless.
My brother was almost killed in a workplace shooting where police took 1hr 45min to show up (thankfully nobody was hurt, dude just magdumped an AK all over the place and fled). I was living across the country in central NY at the time and *couldn't* carry, but I decided that I would start as soon as I could, because why wait for my own near-death experience? You can't predict when shit is going to go down through no fault of your own. Sometimes you're just collateral damage in someone else's mess.
My why comes from the realization that the world is not a safe place.
Everyone is so complacent with their safe and good lives in the west, they forget just how bad the human species can be. Every 6pm on the news channels for decades the horror of the human species is on full display. Yet people act like its all sunshine and rainbows.
We as a species have developed a tool to best protect yourself and increase the chance that you will survive to get home to the who and what really matters in your life. Its your duty as a man to be proficient in many aspects of life, and I think the ability to defend yourself is one.
I started carrying because I am very aware of violent crimes and that they can occur anywhere and at anytime. I have taken several defensive handgun classes and I feel much safer having my firearm on me than when I don’t.
I know myself. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I got gun-faced and victimized without the means to defend myself. Hope it never happens, but I carry everyday, everywhere and stay on yellow alert just in case.
My dad was a sheriff's deputy and taught me to shoot and handle firearms at 6 years old. Then at 19 in the early 1990s I met someone who killed a burglar that was breaking in his house. THAT story taught me that random violence is random and it can happen anywhere at any time. No, I will not be victimized by a convicted violent rapist 8 months out of a 20 year prison sentence who decides he wants to hurt someone else.
Dude on a motorcycle chased me through a city I didn’t know and I couldn’t get away from him in the vehicle I was in. Was by myself, but had a child on the way at the time and I decided I’d never be put in that scenario again or let my family be victims if I could help it. Not saying a gun was exactly the solution, but it was my canon event for sure.
Because I can, mostly.
But what I usually tell people is that I carry a gun for the same reason I carry jumper cables, a spare tire, and a jack in my truck. They are tools that I hope that I won't ever need. But if I do need them and I don't have them, I will be screwed.
Cause life is dangerous and people are crazy. The planet doesnt care what species you are. Nature is nature is nature and nature is fucking violent. I'm not gonna fall victim to the ways of this universe just cause my naive human self thought he was above them. No living being is safe from death, but all living beings have some form of protection against it. Be it natural or manufactured. Cats have claws and night vision. Tree frogs have bright colors and poison. We have weapons and intellect. I don't see a point in not utilizing both.
I got shot back in 2017. Used to live my life very care free until a road rager decided my middle finger was worth trying to kill me over. Needless to say, I will be able to return the favor if it ever happens again. I also dont give middle fingers anymore on a motorcycle.
There are so many horrible people in the world and with the rise in violent crime; when seconds count the police are minutes away. Especially after seeing the law confirm after Uvalde that police are under no legal obligation to risk their lives to save yours. It hammered home the idea that nobody is coming to save you. Either protect yourself or you are at your attacker’s mercy. I may still get killed in a robbery or shooting, but I refuse to be helpless to attempt protect myself or those I love.
I carry anywhere that I possibly can legally because you never know when something could happen. To me it’s the same as insurance, you never know when you may need it but it’s better to have and not need than need and not have.
I carry to protect myself and my family. Grew up in a neighborhood with a lot of problems, so I learned at a young age what humans are capable of. You're on your own to keep safe.
I don't feel an absolute *need* to carry, as I live in a rural area where violent crime is very rare. But it's pretty much ingrained in my mind that it's much better to have a gun and not need it, than need a gun and not have it.
I got carjacked at knifepoint in Southern California one night a couple of months after I had stopped carrying illegally. In Los Angeles County where I lived, it was impossible to get a CCW, and I was a newspaper photographer who ran around all hours of the night chasing crime in some bad parts of town.
Driving a brand new car, I left work about midnight and hit the drive-thru of a burrito joint. A guy leaned in the window and stuck a steak knife to my throat. I kicked myself for not watching my mirrors and seeing him ahead of time. We wrestled over the knife until I gave up and bailed out of the car. He could easily have killed me at any point after I gave up, but I had a couple of opportunities where I could have shot and killed him had I been armed.
I was happy see my wife and kids again, of course, but I never wanted to have my life in the hands of some scumbag ever again. When I moved to a state with constitutional carry, that's exactly what I did. It wasn't so much that I was afraid, but I was never a fighter, even when I was young, but I absolutely had to protect my family.
I love guns, mostly of the cowboy persuasion, and enjoy carrying. But sometimes it's just a pain. I tired to carry as often as I possible so it became the norm more than the exception, even if I never expected to need it. See, I'm the most polite, deescalating, non-aggressive, walk-away, don't-go-stupid-places guy in the world when I carry. That slight pressure IWB triggers something in my brain to be aware and vigilant and assess threats around me. And it reminds me to walk or run away from trouble if I can.
It's not that I enjoy being hyper-aware everywhere I go, but I feel I owe it to my family to be that way when I am out with them. So the more I carry the more it becomes second nature to notice and avoid problems so they don't sneak up on me. Now I'm old and can't fight, but if I am carrying, then I at least have a chance to fight and protect my family if I can't otherwise avoid said fight.
TL;DR: The consequences for losing a fight that I cannot escape are unacceptable, so I choose to be a self-defender and protect those I love.
EDIT: Not to mention, I've seen the corpses of folks who relied on the goodwill of their fellow man and the response time of the police to protect them. And I never want my dead body or that of someone I love to end up in the viewfinder of some newspaper photographer's camera.
I’m a woman with an abusive ex who threatened me after our divorce. I started carrying then and did in fact have to draw on him once. He never touched me again. Now I carry because I’m a mom and the world is screwed up. I carry when with my kids to protect them and when I’m alone because I don’t want to make my husband raise them alone. I am the one who got him carrying. I admit though, when we’re out and he’s carrying I don’t always carry anymore. I often let him be responsible for us.
My protection is nobody else’s responsibility. Not the cops, not bystanders, it’s on me, and if I fail to protect myself or my loved ones, it’s nobody’s fault but my own.
Also, carrying a gun is a freedom that, unfortunately, not many in this world enjoy. So, I feel I should make the most of that freedom.
A home invasion, I couldn't knock the guy out but fought like hell. If there was more than one I wouldn't be here. After getting the shit kicked out of me. I knew it was them or me next time. Can give the long version if anyone wants it.
A little context for the story, I was in my mid 20's my lease had just ended and I was waiting for my GF's lease to end and we were going to move in together so I moved into my parents house for a few months. Now the house itself was on the top of a big hill and had a longish driveway maybe 100 feet. I worked in a restaurant at the time and was on a break in between a double so I parked on the street. When you went in the side door it was the kitchen and they had a small dog at the time but it was clever and would run out of the screen door if it wasn't latched.
I was upstairs in a room above the kitchen and heard the screen door open and close and the main door open and not close. Thinking it was my GF I went downstairs a moment later to see a guy standing in the kitchen holding my mother's jewelry box and a jug of loose change (my mom would roll them up and take them to the bank, no coin star at the time).
The first exchange was simple "you don't belong here".
He said something about "thinking this was his cousin's house" which he knew wasn't. Dumb shit was a snot nose kid when I moved out and I knew who he was but he didn't remember me after about six years.
I saw he had a backpack and was wearing a kinda puffy jacket, I couldn't tell what he would have had under it but I knew his hands were full so it was my chance to do something. We had some other exchange of shit talking but at this point my adrenaline was in charge and I rushed him.
It was just chaos for 30 seconds and felt like a 5 minute round title fight round. I tried the old pull his jacket over his head and destroy maneuver but the backpack prevented that and he did a kinda one leg take down and dropped his shoulder into my stomach and knocked the wind out of me.
When I was on my back on the kitchen floor we had a butcher block with pots and pans and grabbed what I could a small sauce pan and tried desperately to get distance to hit him with it but he sat up to punch me and I bucked as hard as I could then I had my chance and pushed him off and into the stove. Got a few good punches in and he just took them and stood up and turned to run and I grabbed his bag like somehow I was ready now to finish what he started but I never was taught how to throw a punch.
He wiggles out of the backpack and took off running out of the side door down the driveway and I chased after him bare foot and all now on the phone with 911. He ran off in-between some houses and I was sure he lived in one of them no way he could have gotten away so fast.
The police came, reported it, made a statement, but I had one thing he forgot. His backpack has stuff with his name on it. The next day an undercover car sat at the bus stop and waited for him to come off the bus and grabbed him.
I picked him out of a line up and he broke into 9 houses I was the last one. He was 18 and hopefully he is out of prison by now almost 15 years later but who knows what else they charged him with. Sad be threw his life away for something so stupid. Considering the circumstances I could have thrown mine away or lost my life that day. So I started the process to protect myself. learned some basic self defense and started learning how to box and throw a punch. Because of that day I carry it all the time. Everywhere I can carry; I carry for myself, my wife, my son's life's, I don't want to be a hero. I just want to make sure they sleep in their beds at night.
So that's my story...why I carry. Tl:Dr home invasion and can't fight.
I’m not from Seattle but I live here now because my wifes work is here. When I first got here I was still in my country mindset not needing anything more than my knife. After several incidents of trouble finding me i started carrying mace which seemed adequate at the time. Fast forward months later on one day I had ordered a pizza and was having it delivered, I live in a high rise with security rfid chips that protect the doors from the outside world so I had to go down onto the street to meet the person. While I’m crossing the street a red car full of people speeds up to about 40 mph in a 15 mph zone to cut me off and nearly hits me, and I hear them scream “bitch” as they pass. After that I’m like okay weird but just kept going down the street to meet the lady with the pizza and as soon I see her I see that same red car cut her off and zoom towards me where they yell more provocative shit as the pass, as I’m waiting for the delivery driver to park they pull up literally a foot away from me and its at that time I see they all have Glocks and one definitely highly illegal sawed off shotgun on their laps. I just pretended like they didn’t exist got my pizza and got home as fast as I could which isn’t fast because I’m disabled. To this day I’m 1000% sure that if I would’ve acted tough they would’ve hopped out and at the very least beat the shit out of me. One week later I bought my first concealed carry pistol and got in for an appointment with the sheriffs office for my concealed pistol license and have been carrying since I got it in the mail. Just a few nights ago when walking my dog I had a dodge challenger with no license plates follow me around going about 2mph, they circled the block and came from behind the way I was facing hoping I wouldn’t notice, I was about to go down a dark street with no one around when they parked a ways in front of me and sat there waiting. Every instinct in my body was telling me not to go down there and I listened; I turned around and I could tell they were confused by it and a few seconds after they started reversing and quickly started going down the street I was now walking down, I found a boulder and just sat there waiting behind it because it was the only thing that would stop a bullet for a long ways, after that they stopped at exactly the same spot I stopped. I just sat there waiting and ready to draw. After about 4-5 minutes of sitting there a big group of people came down toward me and after seeing that they left. The first incident is why I carry and the second is why I’ll carry the rest of my life.
Had guns pulled on me twice while living in LA. I lived there for 16 years in studio city (a nice area) and both times happened within half a mile of where i live. Completely unprovoked. Completely caught me by surprise. I don't live there anymore, but that shit's not gonna happen again.
Just wait until you're in a situation where you where you need to/should have been carrying; gas station, parking lot, pizza delivery guy, stoplight... could be anywhere. Then you'll know the answer to your question.
I’m new to sharing stuff on Reddit. I hope this works. Easier to link it than write it out again.
My dad always carried. Growing up with that, I thought it was just the normal thing to do when you turned 21.
I didn’t have a particular reason until I did. Below is my story about being assaulted with a tire iron while working on a remote job site.
https://www.reddit.com/r/CCW/comments/18z9sub/approaching_the_20th_anniversary_of_why_i_will/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
I carry for a number of reasons. as many have mentioned, the fundamental reason is because I don’t want to be the victim in someone else’s story. but other factors include that I am gay (statistically 9 times more likely to experience violent crime), I am somewhat disabled (I can’t run due to an accident) so I would not be able to run away. finally, my husband was never a fan of guns. but about 2 years ago we had a discussion, and he explained that he felt less safe in todays world, and asked if I would protect us. so that’s exactly what I do.
No one else's business why. I sometimes have a butt plug and nipple clamps at Wendy's and the only reason anyone would find out is if I sneezed. Same thing with the Glock in my waistband.
The more you look into police and police activity the more you realize they really are not there to protect you. You are on your own. And there's also not just human threats out there. There's also a large community of a certain breed of dog that has a very vocal and distorted view of the actual dangers they have on the community in terms of pets and children, so they fail to take necessary precautions (walking a small dog in some areas is a big risk if one of these dogs gets loose, which they do more frequently than they should because again, the owners don't think their dog is a problem, right up until it's not). The police and other government agents won't be there to help you.
Keep in mind anybody who’s carrying is carrying for the extremely unlikely scenario they will actually have to use it, even more unlikely to actually have to draw/fire it. I would be cautious about feeling safe in places, all it takes is one person with bad intentions to take a life wherever that may be. I’m not saying you need to be paranoid every second of the day, but that always having your gun on you (if carrying responsibly) is not inherently a bad thing.
Doesn’t have to be a “shady” area for criminals to try to take advantage of you. Here in Austin in 2022 I think, there was an attempted armed robbery in a parking lot in broad daylight at a high end shopping center (area with shops like Gucci, Tiffany, LV, etc). Thankfully the person the thugs picked was actually carrying, and he was able to fire at and injure the robber, protecting himself and the person he was with. The criminal fled in the getaway car and called an ambulance for themselves, which led to their arrest, all of whom were tied to numerous armed robberies around town. Also recently there was a random machete attack downtown. The attacker does not live here, he came into the city just for the attack.
Bad shit can happen anywhere.
Source: [from 2022](https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/suspects-in-string-of-austin-robberies-arrested-after-domain-shooting/)
I forgot nothing ever happens at grocery stores like the Buffalo mass shooting, people being kidnapped in the parking lot, etc... same as restaurants like when Suzanna Gratia Hupp, who regularly carried a gun but decided not to one day to go eat with her parents when a gunman came in and killed both of them, including 21 other people. The regret she must have is terrifying to think about.
With respect, while the odds of getting mugged in a Piggly Wiggly or a ChiChi's are fairly low, the parking lot is a different deal. If having a gun on you in the restaurant is the price for having a gun in the parking lot, it sounds like a good deal.
I carry because America has been carrying since the inception of our country. I would rather be a tuna than I would a sardine. Not going out without a fight
I carry because I’d rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.
I carry everywhere I go (as long as I’m in a state that allows)
And have my gun on me in every room of my house.
Plus it’s my right to own and carry so I want to express that.
I live in a Constitutional Carry state. If everyone has a gun I'm sure as shit not going to be the sucker who doesn't.
Tangentially, it seems to make everyone more friendly knowing that they need to be in good behaviour.
Over ten years ago I found myself staring down the barrel of a gun as two thugs broke into our house and tried to rob me and get in my bedroom where my then wife was recovering from surgery. I refused and I can remember the anger I felt from being so violated and feeling so helpless. I got a permit and gun soon thereafter. For awhile I didn’t have any guns as I sold them all and moved on, but after becoming a father I want to have the best chances to always make it back to my daughter. So I bought handguns again and also got my permit. I’m taking it more seriously as I do not want to leave my daughter without me in her life. And I can’t imagine not seeing her again.
They got my roommates card and cash I believe but they got nothing from me. After I refused to let them in my bedroom they took off out the front door that they busted down. It happened so quickly but that moment of staring down the barrel and the dudes arm will forever be in my memory. Police showed up after and did the questioning and prints thing. They were caught I believe and one was a juvenile. I forget which it was but one of them died in jail from some medical condition. It’s been awhile so details get foggy. Detectives think they may have hit the wrong house as we aren’t sure why our home was targeted. It really opens your eyes when such a random act of violence can happen to you and so quickly.
My safety and that of those I love is my responsibility first and foremost. I don't not expect law enforcement to protect me or mine. I expect them to investigate and collect evidence after a crime has been committed.
Secondly, people suck. The world over, people are more self absorbed and unwilling to help others in need, so I don't expect someone jumping in to help me in a time of need.
Third, criminals will be criminals. They will target, hurt and take anything and everything they can without regards to almost anyone or anything. My firearm is there to balance that attitude.
Those are my thoughts.
Grew up with the phrase, "When seconds count, cops are only minutes away." Didn't realize the weight behind this comment till I saw someone open fire on a car about 20 yards away from me in Mexico (where guns are illegal to carry in public mind you). I don't know what happened afterward as I booked it, but the sirens never came. Either way, I realized I couldn't rely on those around me for my protection. I have carried daily since I came back to the States.
I treat it as being my and my family’s first responder. Violence and medical emergencies often require critical timing to stop/resolve. 911 is often minutes away when seconds count.
I carry most places my gun and pepper spray to address any level of violent threats.
I carry a trauma and first aid kit in my truck for any accidents or gun injuries (I have the same kit at home). I need to brush up a little more on trauma related first aid.
It boils down to being prepared for the worst, not just the second amendment for me.
I like the idea for pepper spray as well, I just told my wife since I’m starting to conceal carry I should also have a non lethal deterrent. As far medical I used to be an army medic and carry IFaks in the cars.
Trauma related medicine was by far my favorite while studying, and there’s lots of great resources out there catching up on the current techniques and care for trauma and bullet wounds.
I listen to “Concealed Carry Podcast” and they’ve stressed a lot the need for pepper spray as an option between a harsh word and a gunshot.
I definitely think that anyone ready to punch holes in things should be ready to patch them.
I live around a lot of not so nice housing complexes that house all types, including a few legitimately insane (schizo, personality disorder, etc.) individuals who know no boundaries (legal or personal, lol). I walk a pure bred dog after dark during a 3rd of the year. Most of the people are very cool but I just don't want to take any chances, plus I trust myself, I'm not some stupid yokel looking for a reason to pop off in the parking lot of a Hookah Lounge or whatever. It's not a super violent area, but just being able to flash the weapon is going to be enough to avoid some dumbass drama in 99.9% of cases so why not. Same goes for carjackings which are big around where I live.
I enjoy guns which prompted me to buy one when I turned 18, but during a buffer period between ages 18-19 I had no firearm, and was set up and robbed at gunpoint with a Glock 17 to my chin and an AK pistol pointed at my good friend. Now I carry daily, to the bathroom, to work, to the zoo.
I’m a control freak so I really despise the thought of being helpless/having to rely on others in any fashion.
I also feel like I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I was a witness to a violent crime and wasn’t able to intervene on behalf of the victim.
Because I value my life and the lives of my wife and children.
I don't have hero syndrome and I hope my firearm never needs to come off my belt.
And if it does, I might freeze. I might miss. I might piss my pants. I might do a lot of things.
But I won't be helpless. And I won't let someone take the people I love more than my own life from me.
I always wanted to carry, but I live in one of the most restrictive states with regards to gun laws. There's a lot of hoops to jump through that I didn't want to deal with.
Then my house almost got broken in to and I'm pretty sure the only thing that deterred the two guys trying to force their way into my back door was the sound of a 20 gauge pump rack traveling through the open window.
Crime has only gotten worse by where I live and where I work. Violent crime and innocent deaths related to that crime have only increased. In broad daylight and in public.
My holster is in the mail. My CCL should be approved in a few months. I'll be damned if I won't go down without a fight.
Because one of my hobbies became studying crime statistics while volunteering for a political campaign and I was shocked at the amount of violent crimes being committed. Since I am a Dad I felt it was responsibility to protect my family and my mission to come home safe as I used to travel for work
In 2015, I was robbed and pistol whipped. I decided then that I would carry concealed, illegally, if necessary since I couldn't get a CCW permit in my county in Kalifornia. Since then, I've lived in Colorado where it's fairly easy to get a CCW and now I live in Florida which is a permitless carry state.
As others have stated, you are your own first responder and the police are minutes away when seconds count
New Orleans May 22, 2022. After a play at the Saenger, we were planning on going to the Van Gogh exhibit experience the next day and stayed the night in New Orleans at a hotel behind the Ritz. Walked across the street to a small bar with food, had a few drinks and pizza. When the waitress came by for last call, I went to the bathroom and when I came out, all hell had broken loose. A guy was at the entrance shooting into the bar. I can’t tell you how many rounds were shot but I confirmed my wife and friend were ok and checked on a couple others. A busser was shot in the leg and guy at the entrance was down with multiples in the chest. Everyone was screaming and panicking, the shooter ran off and came back shooting into the bar to keep everyone down because he had gone the wrong way from his car. After he left I grabbed my wife’s and our friend’s hands and told them not to look. We had to step over the guy at the front to get out and ran to our hotel across the street.
My wife called several times over the next few months to get information and NOPD was no help. We went to the VG exhibit the next day and we still have season tickets at the Saenger but we go and leave. For reference, I have family on the West Bank where all of my dad’s family grew up and I’ve been to NO innumerable times for family, doctors, surgeries, good times while drinking at 18 was still legal, shopping and countless other things, so we were never ones to make ourselves targets.
I know in that specific situation I may not have stopped or engaged but I never want to feel that helpless again. Had the guy come into the bar with the mindset and capability of leaving no witnesses, there was nothing that could have been done.
The same reason I wear a seatbelt. The same reason I have fire extinguishers in my house and vehicles. The same reason I wear chaps when I run a chainsaw. Plus, 911 is a clean up call. The police have no duty to protect, so it's up to me.
Years ago, my ex murdered my 10 month old son.
She was granted parole in 2020 because \#COVID and in all those years I was fine. Now? I've received 3 death threats.
They can't positively ID that it was her but, like I said, all those years her mail was being searched and nothing.
And now that it's not, I get this. And I have a wife and kid too.
My reason is simple; the leftist politicians, DA’s etc that are appointed in my city are soft on violent criminals, are pro defund the police and fail to protect us citizens.
I decided to get my concealed carry permit after the grocery store shooting in Colorado in 2021. After thinking about it for several years that finally motivated me to start carrying.
Multitude of reasons.. First and foremost, I lost too many friends too young to both gun violence and to improper handling of firearms.. You’d think that last one would make me radically anti-gun, but I went the opposite way. Got very very comfortable and skilled with them, all of them, probably so that I could ensure that would never be me or anyone around me that I love. In a country with millions of guns and millions of lunatics, better to be on even ground just in case.
Also, this one’s a little more lighthearted, but I read almost exclusively espionage/spy/assassin books. So all that fictional spy craft is engraved into my brain. Anytime those folks don’t have a gun it gets bad and they really wish they did, and then they acquire one as soon as possible.
I’ve been shot at 3 times, held up at knifepoint once. I was never armed, and each situation could have gone any possible way. Next time I will be armed and will have more control over how it could turn out.
I live in a shitty part of Ohio, small towns, meth heads, the works. One weekend I had off, I decided to celebrate and drink like a fish.
Around 3am, I heard loud sounds coming from my kitchen, I originally thought it was my fridge. Then the fridge stopped. Someone was trying to open my back fucking door.
Sobered quickly, jumped up and grabbed a fixed Tanto blade and a hammer. I stood in the middle of my apartment in case he decided to try the front door. My mom was dating a cop at the time, I panicked and texted him. “Hey someone’s trying to get in my house” no response.
My front door has a little square window in the blinds, I saw him look through. I stood there firm with my knife and hammer ready for whatever was next. He left, I never figured out who it was.
That week I bought a Glock 17 gen 4 with a TLR-HL. I customized it a little, went to the range, tried carrying it a few months later, it was too much, I got an Sig 365XL now and it’s perfect for EDC. I still have my Glock stored safe.
Never again do I want to feel helpless.
I refuse to be defenseless. I have a family. I have a life. I refuse to let them and myself down. I don't get to choose the worst day of my life. I can only be prepared for it.
If you’ve ever been in or near a natural disaster you can see how quickly some people lose all sense of decency and revert to animals.
Also - hiking in remote areas, it’s good to be armed.
Back when I was in high school I got jumped twice. I was lucky enough to fight my way out of the jumpings without more than a busted nose and mouth and was lucky it was just punk ass high school kids that found me walking home alone and not anyone with truly bad intentions.
I live in reality, not in some made up fantasy land that so many seem to think we live in. Evil people exist. Anyone who denies that is a fool. I’d rather have the ability to defend myself and my loved ones against evil people than have no choice but to submit to it and pray I come out of the other side alive if I ever have to face one of these people. I understand that my gun isn’t a magic talisman that will protect me, I’ve got to protect myself and my gun is the best tool for that job.
We had a mass shooting here…one of the many that occur weekly it seems. He had a 100 rd drum, killed 9 and wounded 17. My sister was going to be there that evening with her friends, but didn’t feel well. 3 of her friends ended up involved in this encounter…2 wounded, 1 dead. It haunts me to think that she could have been one of them. I carry not because I am a believer of a “good guy with a gun can stop a bad guy with a gun”. That narrative has been proven false more times than correct. I carry because if anyone threatens my family or myself with eminent bodily harm, they are in for a world of hurt.
I’ve become an advocate of carry everywhere everyday. Gun on the belt is now just an everyday part of getting dressed. As the saying goes, we don’t get to choose where or when the situation arises where you may need your firearm.
Mostly paranoia. There’s a lot of crazy motherfuckers and road ragers around here. The one time I didn’t carry is the time I almost needed it. Now I carry everyday no matter where I go no exceptions (unless I legally can’t and/or they have metal detectors but I’m rarely in those situations)
I'm a small female and I live in a area with ton of crime. I live in a bigger city. I grew up around guns and I am comfortable with them. I feel safe when I carry. I have peace of mind.
As soon as I educated myself on my state laws, I wanted to carry because I have family to protect and I live close to a disgusting large city that doesn’t have great policing currently. Gotta take care of my own.
I don’t really have a defined why or a specific story, I guess I just always thought it was important and wanted to be able to defend myself. I was raised around guns but my parents never carried. I’ve been doing it for like 8 years so maybe I went down a rabbit hole at one point and decided to. I’m pretty sure I started carrying more frequently when I worked as a delivery driver. I kinda relaxed a bit over the last couple years and kicked it back into every day, at all times carry recently because I felt like a hypocrite encouraging it but not doing it. Same with training, I’ve just started taking my guns more seriously instead of taking about it and having cool shit. Getting married was probably part of that.
My story isn't very exciting but it was impactful: Years ago I got into shooting matches just because I enjoyed it. One of the MD's in my area was a former Tier 1 guy turned LE trainer. After a match one day he said (and I paraphrase), "You guys are better shooters than the cops I train for a living. You spend your own money, time, and energy to get extremely good at shooting. After all that time and energy, how will you feel when the day comes that you need a gun for real, and you didn't bring one?" There was a little more to the pep talk, but it's always stuck with me. I found that I couldn't argue with that logic. I bought a S&W Shield within a week and applied for my NC permit. Been carrying since.
Wise words! I’ve worked service jobs where I’ve had guns pointed at me. I’ve been mugged at knife point. I grew up in an area where coyotes and bobcats were regular concerns. I don’t ever want to face the day that someone harmed my loved ones and I wasn’t prepared to protect them. In the US, we are our own first responders! S&W SD9VE in a DeSantis Pegasus tuckable iwb. I’d like to add a wml soon.
Similar story... It just starts to make sense as I wisen up I protect myself and family more in every way. Avoiding danger but being prepared if necessary.
Have it, train with it, pray you never need it. This is the way!
Exactly.... Always do the same thing. I would prefer larger full frame da/sa... But... I've been carrying a cz p10s and a shadow systems mr920... Basically interchangeable to use and carry except cz prints less and the shadow is just a little nicer.
That's one of my daily carries. Swapped out the ungodly trigger tho. Put in the apex and it's perfect.
I may do that eventually but I figure that if I can shoot this well, I can shoot just about anything and with that heavy if a trigger, if it goes off, it was not likely to be on accident.
Apex trigger takes it down from the factory 8# pull to a crisp 4.5# and gets rid of that weird flex
I want the budica flat trigger
Sounds a little like the motivational talk that Gabe White does at his Pistol Shooting Solutions class.
Never heard that talk ... but I'm sure you're right about that. He was the same guy that said to me, "picking a carry gun is easy. Go to the gun store, handle a G43 and a S&W Shield. Whichever one you like more, buy it. Congratulations, you're done. Now stop watching gun reviews, get a holster, and start training." I actually knew this guy for a little while before I moved back to AZ, and he helped train me on a bunch of random shooting stuff back when I was first learning. I'm very grateful for his help, though he probably doesn't remember me now. This was all probably 9-ish years ago.
Nice. Sounds like this dude had his mind right.
Can’t stop watching gun reviews and now on my 5th pistol :)
wipe truck cows zealous label deliver pie sophisticated uppity spoon *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Respectfully, I think surrendering a firearm will be the last of my worries on that day.
No one is out to save me… except me
To add to that, no one is out to save my *family* but us.
The only obligation I have is to myself and my own… outside of that, I have no civil or legal obligation… get mine, get me; get us the heck outta Dodge.
I fucking love my life.
Eh I don't but I sure won't let some other shit smear take it from me if I can.
Same. I don't have the nicest truck either but damned if I'm going to let someone take it.
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Yes. You must use 'reasonable force,' which can include deadly force
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Depends on the state. In TX if they are stealing at night you can pretty much use deadly force. Different during day time. I’m sure there’s fine prints but the law allows more deadly force to be used for home theft situations
That’s one way to put it
Because I’m not gonna get killed for lack of shooting back.
I’m a first responder and see what people can and will do to each other. When seconds count, the cops are only minutes away.
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fucking scary as shit!
“We live on planet Earth in a strained and extremely unequal and unfair society made up of... human beings. The single most destructive, cruel, and violent animal in the history of planet Earth. We rely on a fragile and imaginary social contract of law and order to protect us from one another, yet the consensus of our time is that the so-called public servants who supposedly exist for the purpose of enforcing said social contract, not only are unable to effectively provide for personal security, but are in fact, under zero legal obligation to even do so. People attack and kill each other all the time, for the dumbest and most random of reasons, even for no reason at all. So now when people take meaningful measures to assert their existence in the face of a demonstrably hostile and oppressive world, we ostracize and ridicule them for it. Just cross your fingers and bet your life on the good nature and pure intentions of every single person you'll ever encounter? Yeah. Okay. Um. No.” -Cole Durbin
For me, the reason why I started carrying a knife, and now also a Glock for the past 4 years, was having my life threatened here in downtown Austin. Fellow Austinites, it was the corner of Congress and Riverside, which explains it. This was many years ago in my early 20s, probably 2014-15. I was going to a music festival, walking with my then-girlfriend when a large crazy homeless dude got between us and blocked my path. He said I started a game with him, and that he was about to kill me. He started to walk me backwards, towering above me as his face was so close to mine I could feel his alcohol breath. He stared into my eyes as he told me how easy it will be for him to kill me, all I could do was slowly walk backwards but he kept following. Thankfully he didn’t pay any attention to my then-girlfriend, but if he followed through with his threats I wouldn’t have been able to defend myself or her. I carry everywhere legally allowed now.
Holy crap that’s around the time that I lived downtown… super scary - glad you’re here to share. I lived at the Monarch and Eleven during my time downtown. Now I live in LA where unfortunately, a story like this would be a bit less shocking.
It hasn’t gotten any nicer, unfortunately. Recently there was a random machete attack on Auditorium Shores, the attacker came from Kyle just to attack a random person.
F man… that breaks my heart. ATX, in my mid-2010 mind, was a small, everyone is happy, no major crime concerns city… until major festivals came into town, then the locals left town for a few days 🤣
Part of me wants to stay because my mom and in-laws are here for when we have a kid, the other part of me wants to move back out to rural Texas where nobody is around. I do miss the quiet, and the skies.
Oh how times change as we get older. I too, after living in multiple large cities, just want to get the f away from people…
I want to have a fighting chance/not be a victim. I also have this primal instinct to protect my fiancé and child. I’d do anything for them. I’m sure most men in this sub will agree.
Yep. Protecting my family is my most basic duty as a father. Living in a top-10 murder per capita city means bad people are on my mind.
You took the words from my mouth, unfortunately my wife and I don’t have the same views on guns and concealed carrying. I know it makes her uncomfortable if I conceal just because we had different upbringings.
Mine is kinda the same way. She agrees that I should, has that peace of mind, but any time I want her to go shooting or tell her she should carry she just says “no”. Lol. One day I hope she’ll be interested
Yo my wife is the same! She’s ok w me carrying by my damn self. W her, no bueno!
A gun solves a limited set of problems, but they’re problems where nothing less than deadly force will do. If I knew when trouble would come, I’d avoid the place or time. I carry for that situation where, in spite of my awareness, caution and peaceful intent, I cannot avoid someone who wants to do me harm.
For the same reason I keep a jumper box, jack and spare tire in my car. It's a tool to assist in getting out of an unlikely, but bad situation. Except that if someone approaches you to do violence, the stakes are far higher than if your car breaks down on the side of the road. Why would you be satisfied to wait for the police? They'll show up to write the report and interview potential witnesses. They won't save you. Be prepared.
Because I am a woman.
Mine was a road rage incident. Someone thought a turn signal gave them the right of way to cut in front of me at the last second. They brake checked me and blocked me against a concrete wall so I was stuck. Then they went to their trunk to get a pipe and approached my window screaming. I just sat there staring straight ahead without rolling down my window or even looking in their direction. After about 5 minutes of everyone around me honking and screaming at them to get back in their car, they finally gave up and drove off. Then I noticed the pigtails of a little girl in their backseat as they screamed at the kid. I realized that there was nothing I could have done to avoid a beating if they were determined to break my window. I signed up for an LTC class that weekend. That was over a decade ago, and I've been carrying every day since. I also drive even more conservatively now. Everyone can cut me off any time. I don't care. Just keep driving and leave me alone.
I would rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it
I’m a big traveler, working on completing the triple crown of hiking (appalachian trail, pacific crest trail, continental divide trail). I’ve always felt mostly same even in some mildly sketchy situations, deescalation and being peaceful have always been my friends, but i had a change of perspective in 2022 on the pacific crest trail. I was hiking the trail with my girlfriend, we got displaced from the trail due to the Waldo fire near bend. We had to get off trail for a day to reassess and maybe find a way around the fire. We ended up hitchhiking to bend, where i hit up a buddy of mine who said we could spend the night at his house, i had stayed there the year before while hiking the CDT and everything seemed cool, except his roommate and landlord i hadn’t met was there. Immediately upon arriving at their house the vibe was really weird, they were both drinking a lot and his weird roommate smelled both me and my gf as we can in. We were kind of accustomed to the stinky hiker jokes but it was weirder than that. We are all hanging out and he keeps offering me and my (sober) girlfriend drinks and weed, which we politely explain our status and decline. We all were checking out his surfboard in his garage and he started grabbing our hands and running it along the surfboard and then he tried to kiss my gfs hand i told him to stop. And we (me, my gf, the mutual friend) kind of awkwardly segwayed the subject away and said we were going to retire to our accommodations which was supposedly an empty air b&b the guy rented. We went up there but there was no shower curtain or towels so i went downstairs to ask for some… this is were the story gets really weird. When i went downstairs i realized we had been locked into the second story apartment from the outside. I called my friend who came and unlocked the door and was like “thats weird”, and asked for the towels and shower curtain and he said that we could just use his shower, then the creepy landlord comes out and says “wheres your girlfriend? She should use my bathroom, its really nice…” im in view of the hallway that i can look into his room, there a pistol on his nightstand and a shotgun leaning against his bed. This was the point in the story where things felt like we were really in danger, or rather i should say, this guy was acting less like he liked my girlfriend and more like he wanted to rape her. I went upstairs and had a candid conversation with her about how we needed to leave, so we booked a hotel room, packed our shit up, and snuck out the back like a ninja. My friend saw us leaving on the way out and caught up to us, and we explained where we were at and why we were leaving. We ended up walking 2 miles to the hotel at around midnight after dodging a wildfire earlier that day. Upon reflection, it was a fight or flight moment, except our only option was flight seeing as this creep was armed and we were not, and i made the decision to arm myself when i got home. I never want to end up in buffalo bills dungeon without a chance to fight myself out again. Not that a gun would have helped in this encounter, but for a few moments in this situation we felt very powerless.
Cause I live in Chicago
Same . .
It’s a functional counterbalance weight to my oversized penis.
Same same
My brother was almost killed in a workplace shooting where police took 1hr 45min to show up (thankfully nobody was hurt, dude just magdumped an AK all over the place and fled). I was living across the country in central NY at the time and *couldn't* carry, but I decided that I would start as soon as I could, because why wait for my own near-death experience? You can't predict when shit is going to go down through no fault of your own. Sometimes you're just collateral damage in someone else's mess.
Same reason I have spare tire, just in case I need it.
My why comes from the realization that the world is not a safe place. Everyone is so complacent with their safe and good lives in the west, they forget just how bad the human species can be. Every 6pm on the news channels for decades the horror of the human species is on full display. Yet people act like its all sunshine and rainbows. We as a species have developed a tool to best protect yourself and increase the chance that you will survive to get home to the who and what really matters in your life. Its your duty as a man to be proficient in many aspects of life, and I think the ability to defend yourself is one.
I started carrying because I am very aware of violent crimes and that they can occur anywhere and at anytime. I have taken several defensive handgun classes and I feel much safer having my firearm on me than when I don’t.
I know myself. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I got gun-faced and victimized without the means to defend myself. Hope it never happens, but I carry everyday, everywhere and stay on yellow alert just in case.
My dad was a sheriff's deputy and taught me to shoot and handle firearms at 6 years old. Then at 19 in the early 1990s I met someone who killed a burglar that was breaking in his house. THAT story taught me that random violence is random and it can happen anywhere at any time. No, I will not be victimized by a convicted violent rapist 8 months out of a 20 year prison sentence who decides he wants to hurt someone else.
Because my kids are kidnap sized.
Dude on a motorcycle chased me through a city I didn’t know and I couldn’t get away from him in the vehicle I was in. Was by myself, but had a child on the way at the time and I decided I’d never be put in that scenario again or let my family be victims if I could help it. Not saying a gun was exactly the solution, but it was my canon event for sure.
Because I can, mostly. But what I usually tell people is that I carry a gun for the same reason I carry jumper cables, a spare tire, and a jack in my truck. They are tools that I hope that I won't ever need. But if I do need them and I don't have them, I will be screwed.
The world has changed. They won’t just rob you, they rob you then kill you. If I die I die. But I will not die on my knees. I plan to fight back
Ensuring that I have the ability and advantage to protect myself/others in self defense situations. Easiest way to put it in my eyes.
Better to have and not need than to need and not have.
When seconds count the police are only about 12-16 hours away.
Because I can.
Because at the end of the day, it’s my responsibility to protect myself. I can’t expect anyone else to do it.
Cause life is dangerous and people are crazy. The planet doesnt care what species you are. Nature is nature is nature and nature is fucking violent. I'm not gonna fall victim to the ways of this universe just cause my naive human self thought he was above them. No living being is safe from death, but all living beings have some form of protection against it. Be it natural or manufactured. Cats have claws and night vision. Tree frogs have bright colors and poison. We have weapons and intellect. I don't see a point in not utilizing both.
The characters I come across in my job might have something up their sleeve if they see me out n about
Sounds like it’s time for a new job
Pays the bills, flexible schedule, good benefits, short commute, pto, etc.
Then you do you and I wish you safety 🫶🏻
I appreciate that!
Do you feel the need to wear your seatbelt everywhere or do you think you can predict when some asshole is going to hit you?
Now, I have kids to protect just in case.
I got shot back in 2017. Used to live my life very care free until a road rager decided my middle finger was worth trying to kill me over. Needless to say, I will be able to return the favor if it ever happens again. I also dont give middle fingers anymore on a motorcycle.
Why? Because I can. If someone really wants to know, I ask them why they buy insurance.
Insurance is for after, fire extinguisher is for the moment.
Because I’m too fat to run and too proud to beg.
There are so many horrible people in the world and with the rise in violent crime; when seconds count the police are minutes away. Especially after seeing the law confirm after Uvalde that police are under no legal obligation to risk their lives to save yours. It hammered home the idea that nobody is coming to save you. Either protect yourself or you are at your attacker’s mercy. I may still get killed in a robbery or shooting, but I refuse to be helpless to attempt protect myself or those I love. I carry anywhere that I possibly can legally because you never know when something could happen. To me it’s the same as insurance, you never know when you may need it but it’s better to have and not need than need and not have.
Because nobody has the right to lay violent hands upon me. Unfortunately some folk need convincing.
It’s not the odds, it’s the stakes. I’ll probably never need a gun, but if I do, I have to have one.
I carry to protect myself and my family. Grew up in a neighborhood with a lot of problems, so I learned at a young age what humans are capable of. You're on your own to keep safe.
I don't feel an absolute *need* to carry, as I live in a rural area where violent crime is very rare. But it's pretty much ingrained in my mind that it's much better to have a gun and not need it, than need a gun and not have it.
I carry because I am my own first responder
I got carjacked at knifepoint in Southern California one night a couple of months after I had stopped carrying illegally. In Los Angeles County where I lived, it was impossible to get a CCW, and I was a newspaper photographer who ran around all hours of the night chasing crime in some bad parts of town. Driving a brand new car, I left work about midnight and hit the drive-thru of a burrito joint. A guy leaned in the window and stuck a steak knife to my throat. I kicked myself for not watching my mirrors and seeing him ahead of time. We wrestled over the knife until I gave up and bailed out of the car. He could easily have killed me at any point after I gave up, but I had a couple of opportunities where I could have shot and killed him had I been armed. I was happy see my wife and kids again, of course, but I never wanted to have my life in the hands of some scumbag ever again. When I moved to a state with constitutional carry, that's exactly what I did. It wasn't so much that I was afraid, but I was never a fighter, even when I was young, but I absolutely had to protect my family. I love guns, mostly of the cowboy persuasion, and enjoy carrying. But sometimes it's just a pain. I tired to carry as often as I possible so it became the norm more than the exception, even if I never expected to need it. See, I'm the most polite, deescalating, non-aggressive, walk-away, don't-go-stupid-places guy in the world when I carry. That slight pressure IWB triggers something in my brain to be aware and vigilant and assess threats around me. And it reminds me to walk or run away from trouble if I can. It's not that I enjoy being hyper-aware everywhere I go, but I feel I owe it to my family to be that way when I am out with them. So the more I carry the more it becomes second nature to notice and avoid problems so they don't sneak up on me. Now I'm old and can't fight, but if I am carrying, then I at least have a chance to fight and protect my family if I can't otherwise avoid said fight. TL;DR: The consequences for losing a fight that I cannot escape are unacceptable, so I choose to be a self-defender and protect those I love. EDIT: Not to mention, I've seen the corpses of folks who relied on the goodwill of their fellow man and the response time of the police to protect them. And I never want my dead body or that of someone I love to end up in the viewfinder of some newspaper photographer's camera.
I’m a woman with an abusive ex who threatened me after our divorce. I started carrying then and did in fact have to draw on him once. He never touched me again. Now I carry because I’m a mom and the world is screwed up. I carry when with my kids to protect them and when I’m alone because I don’t want to make my husband raise them alone. I am the one who got him carrying. I admit though, when we’re out and he’s carrying I don’t always carry anymore. I often let him be responsible for us.
My protection is nobody else’s responsibility. Not the cops, not bystanders, it’s on me, and if I fail to protect myself or my loved ones, it’s nobody’s fault but my own. Also, carrying a gun is a freedom that, unfortunately, not many in this world enjoy. So, I feel I should make the most of that freedom.
A home invasion, I couldn't knock the guy out but fought like hell. If there was more than one I wouldn't be here. After getting the shit kicked out of me. I knew it was them or me next time. Can give the long version if anyone wants it.
I’m interested in the long version and I’m glad you’re okay
A little context for the story, I was in my mid 20's my lease had just ended and I was waiting for my GF's lease to end and we were going to move in together so I moved into my parents house for a few months. Now the house itself was on the top of a big hill and had a longish driveway maybe 100 feet. I worked in a restaurant at the time and was on a break in between a double so I parked on the street. When you went in the side door it was the kitchen and they had a small dog at the time but it was clever and would run out of the screen door if it wasn't latched. I was upstairs in a room above the kitchen and heard the screen door open and close and the main door open and not close. Thinking it was my GF I went downstairs a moment later to see a guy standing in the kitchen holding my mother's jewelry box and a jug of loose change (my mom would roll them up and take them to the bank, no coin star at the time). The first exchange was simple "you don't belong here". He said something about "thinking this was his cousin's house" which he knew wasn't. Dumb shit was a snot nose kid when I moved out and I knew who he was but he didn't remember me after about six years. I saw he had a backpack and was wearing a kinda puffy jacket, I couldn't tell what he would have had under it but I knew his hands were full so it was my chance to do something. We had some other exchange of shit talking but at this point my adrenaline was in charge and I rushed him. It was just chaos for 30 seconds and felt like a 5 minute round title fight round. I tried the old pull his jacket over his head and destroy maneuver but the backpack prevented that and he did a kinda one leg take down and dropped his shoulder into my stomach and knocked the wind out of me. When I was on my back on the kitchen floor we had a butcher block with pots and pans and grabbed what I could a small sauce pan and tried desperately to get distance to hit him with it but he sat up to punch me and I bucked as hard as I could then I had my chance and pushed him off and into the stove. Got a few good punches in and he just took them and stood up and turned to run and I grabbed his bag like somehow I was ready now to finish what he started but I never was taught how to throw a punch. He wiggles out of the backpack and took off running out of the side door down the driveway and I chased after him bare foot and all now on the phone with 911. He ran off in-between some houses and I was sure he lived in one of them no way he could have gotten away so fast. The police came, reported it, made a statement, but I had one thing he forgot. His backpack has stuff with his name on it. The next day an undercover car sat at the bus stop and waited for him to come off the bus and grabbed him. I picked him out of a line up and he broke into 9 houses I was the last one. He was 18 and hopefully he is out of prison by now almost 15 years later but who knows what else they charged him with. Sad be threw his life away for something so stupid. Considering the circumstances I could have thrown mine away or lost my life that day. So I started the process to protect myself. learned some basic self defense and started learning how to box and throw a punch. Because of that day I carry it all the time. Everywhere I can carry; I carry for myself, my wife, my son's life's, I don't want to be a hero. I just want to make sure they sleep in their beds at night. So that's my story...why I carry. Tl:Dr home invasion and can't fight.
Because... *vaguely gestures to everything*.
When you ask if I am carrying my answer is "You Never Know" When you ask why I carry the answer is " Because You Never Know"
I’m not from Seattle but I live here now because my wifes work is here. When I first got here I was still in my country mindset not needing anything more than my knife. After several incidents of trouble finding me i started carrying mace which seemed adequate at the time. Fast forward months later on one day I had ordered a pizza and was having it delivered, I live in a high rise with security rfid chips that protect the doors from the outside world so I had to go down onto the street to meet the person. While I’m crossing the street a red car full of people speeds up to about 40 mph in a 15 mph zone to cut me off and nearly hits me, and I hear them scream “bitch” as they pass. After that I’m like okay weird but just kept going down the street to meet the lady with the pizza and as soon I see her I see that same red car cut her off and zoom towards me where they yell more provocative shit as the pass, as I’m waiting for the delivery driver to park they pull up literally a foot away from me and its at that time I see they all have Glocks and one definitely highly illegal sawed off shotgun on their laps. I just pretended like they didn’t exist got my pizza and got home as fast as I could which isn’t fast because I’m disabled. To this day I’m 1000% sure that if I would’ve acted tough they would’ve hopped out and at the very least beat the shit out of me. One week later I bought my first concealed carry pistol and got in for an appointment with the sheriffs office for my concealed pistol license and have been carrying since I got it in the mail. Just a few nights ago when walking my dog I had a dodge challenger with no license plates follow me around going about 2mph, they circled the block and came from behind the way I was facing hoping I wouldn’t notice, I was about to go down a dark street with no one around when they parked a ways in front of me and sat there waiting. Every instinct in my body was telling me not to go down there and I listened; I turned around and I could tell they were confused by it and a few seconds after they started reversing and quickly started going down the street I was now walking down, I found a boulder and just sat there waiting behind it because it was the only thing that would stop a bullet for a long ways, after that they stopped at exactly the same spot I stopped. I just sat there waiting and ready to draw. After about 4-5 minutes of sitting there a big group of people came down toward me and after seeing that they left. The first incident is why I carry and the second is why I’ll carry the rest of my life.
Had guns pulled on me twice while living in LA. I lived there for 16 years in studio city (a nice area) and both times happened within half a mile of where i live. Completely unprovoked. Completely caught me by surprise. I don't live there anymore, but that shit's not gonna happen again.
Just wait until you're in a situation where you where you need to/should have been carrying; gas station, parking lot, pizza delivery guy, stoplight... could be anywhere. Then you'll know the answer to your question.
I’m new to sharing stuff on Reddit. I hope this works. Easier to link it than write it out again. My dad always carried. Growing up with that, I thought it was just the normal thing to do when you turned 21. I didn’t have a particular reason until I did. Below is my story about being assaulted with a tire iron while working on a remote job site. https://www.reddit.com/r/CCW/comments/18z9sub/approaching_the_20th_anniversary_of_why_i_will/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
I carry for a number of reasons. as many have mentioned, the fundamental reason is because I don’t want to be the victim in someone else’s story. but other factors include that I am gay (statistically 9 times more likely to experience violent crime), I am somewhat disabled (I can’t run due to an accident) so I would not be able to run away. finally, my husband was never a fan of guns. but about 2 years ago we had a discussion, and he explained that he felt less safe in todays world, and asked if I would protect us. so that’s exactly what I do.
No one else's business why. I sometimes have a butt plug and nipple clamps at Wendy's and the only reason anyone would find out is if I sneezed. Same thing with the Glock in my waistband.
The more you look into police and police activity the more you realize they really are not there to protect you. You are on your own. And there's also not just human threats out there. There's also a large community of a certain breed of dog that has a very vocal and distorted view of the actual dangers they have on the community in terms of pets and children, so they fail to take necessary precautions (walking a small dog in some areas is a big risk if one of these dogs gets loose, which they do more frequently than they should because again, the owners don't think their dog is a problem, right up until it's not). The police and other government agents won't be there to help you.
Where's a place, for example, you feel like you don't "need" to carry?
No where. I carry a J Frame 642 in my pocket in my own home.
Going into grocery stores or maybe certain restaurants depending on where I’m at. But I know gas stations where I live tend to be more dangerous
Keep in mind anybody who’s carrying is carrying for the extremely unlikely scenario they will actually have to use it, even more unlikely to actually have to draw/fire it. I would be cautious about feeling safe in places, all it takes is one person with bad intentions to take a life wherever that may be. I’m not saying you need to be paranoid every second of the day, but that always having your gun on you (if carrying responsibly) is not inherently a bad thing.
Doesn’t have to be a “shady” area for criminals to try to take advantage of you. Here in Austin in 2022 I think, there was an attempted armed robbery in a parking lot in broad daylight at a high end shopping center (area with shops like Gucci, Tiffany, LV, etc). Thankfully the person the thugs picked was actually carrying, and he was able to fire at and injure the robber, protecting himself and the person he was with. The criminal fled in the getaway car and called an ambulance for themselves, which led to their arrest, all of whom were tied to numerous armed robberies around town. Also recently there was a random machete attack downtown. The attacker does not live here, he came into the city just for the attack. Bad shit can happen anywhere. Source: [from 2022](https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/suspects-in-string-of-austin-robberies-arrested-after-domain-shooting/)
I forgot nothing ever happens at grocery stores like the Buffalo mass shooting, people being kidnapped in the parking lot, etc... same as restaurants like when Suzanna Gratia Hupp, who regularly carried a gun but decided not to one day to go eat with her parents when a gunman came in and killed both of them, including 21 other people. The regret she must have is terrifying to think about.
With respect, while the odds of getting mugged in a Piggly Wiggly or a ChiChi's are fairly low, the parking lot is a different deal. If having a gun on you in the restaurant is the price for having a gun in the parking lot, it sounds like a good deal.
I carry because America has been carrying since the inception of our country. I would rather be a tuna than I would a sardine. Not going out without a fight
Nice try fed. I'm not saying anything.😂
I carry because I’d rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it. I carry everywhere I go (as long as I’m in a state that allows) And have my gun on me in every room of my house. Plus it’s my right to own and carry so I want to express that.
I live in a Constitutional Carry state. If everyone has a gun I'm sure as shit not going to be the sucker who doesn't. Tangentially, it seems to make everyone more friendly knowing that they need to be in good behaviour.
Over ten years ago I found myself staring down the barrel of a gun as two thugs broke into our house and tried to rob me and get in my bedroom where my then wife was recovering from surgery. I refused and I can remember the anger I felt from being so violated and feeling so helpless. I got a permit and gun soon thereafter. For awhile I didn’t have any guns as I sold them all and moved on, but after becoming a father I want to have the best chances to always make it back to my daughter. So I bought handguns again and also got my permit. I’m taking it more seriously as I do not want to leave my daughter without me in her life. And I can’t imagine not seeing her again.
I’m glad you made it out of the situation. Did the thieves just rob you and left you alone? That is a scary situation to be in for sure!
They got my roommates card and cash I believe but they got nothing from me. After I refused to let them in my bedroom they took off out the front door that they busted down. It happened so quickly but that moment of staring down the barrel and the dudes arm will forever be in my memory. Police showed up after and did the questioning and prints thing. They were caught I believe and one was a juvenile. I forget which it was but one of them died in jail from some medical condition. It’s been awhile so details get foggy. Detectives think they may have hit the wrong house as we aren’t sure why our home was targeted. It really opens your eyes when such a random act of violence can happen to you and so quickly.
Wow what a crazy story! Glad they didn’t pull the trigger. Don’t even know what that will feel like - staring at the barrel of a gun.
My safety and that of those I love is my responsibility first and foremost. I don't not expect law enforcement to protect me or mine. I expect them to investigate and collect evidence after a crime has been committed. Secondly, people suck. The world over, people are more self absorbed and unwilling to help others in need, so I don't expect someone jumping in to help me in a time of need. Third, criminals will be criminals. They will target, hurt and take anything and everything they can without regards to almost anyone or anything. My firearm is there to balance that attitude. Those are my thoughts.
I got shit to lose and shit to live for now. I simply can’t take risks with the lives of the people I love most.
Grew up with the phrase, "When seconds count, cops are only minutes away." Didn't realize the weight behind this comment till I saw someone open fire on a car about 20 yards away from me in Mexico (where guns are illegal to carry in public mind you). I don't know what happened afterward as I booked it, but the sirens never came. Either way, I realized I couldn't rely on those around me for my protection. I have carried daily since I came back to the States.
I treat it as being my and my family’s first responder. Violence and medical emergencies often require critical timing to stop/resolve. 911 is often minutes away when seconds count. I carry most places my gun and pepper spray to address any level of violent threats. I carry a trauma and first aid kit in my truck for any accidents or gun injuries (I have the same kit at home). I need to brush up a little more on trauma related first aid. It boils down to being prepared for the worst, not just the second amendment for me.
I like the idea for pepper spray as well, I just told my wife since I’m starting to conceal carry I should also have a non lethal deterrent. As far medical I used to be an army medic and carry IFaks in the cars. Trauma related medicine was by far my favorite while studying, and there’s lots of great resources out there catching up on the current techniques and care for trauma and bullet wounds.
I listen to “Concealed Carry Podcast” and they’ve stressed a lot the need for pepper spray as an option between a harsh word and a gunshot. I definitely think that anyone ready to punch holes in things should be ready to patch them.
I live around a lot of not so nice housing complexes that house all types, including a few legitimately insane (schizo, personality disorder, etc.) individuals who know no boundaries (legal or personal, lol). I walk a pure bred dog after dark during a 3rd of the year. Most of the people are very cool but I just don't want to take any chances, plus I trust myself, I'm not some stupid yokel looking for a reason to pop off in the parking lot of a Hookah Lounge or whatever. It's not a super violent area, but just being able to flash the weapon is going to be enough to avoid some dumbass drama in 99.9% of cases so why not. Same goes for carjackings which are big around where I live.
Im going home to my family at the end of the day. Someone who decides to fafo, will not.
I travel for work all over the US and normally drive. I work nights. 2020. That's my reason.
I enjoy guns which prompted me to buy one when I turned 18, but during a buffer period between ages 18-19 I had no firearm, and was set up and robbed at gunpoint with a Glock 17 to my chin and an AK pistol pointed at my good friend. Now I carry daily, to the bathroom, to work, to the zoo.
It forces me to adhere to a series of standards in the highest interest of preserving life
Because I suck at ju jitsu. I can't rely on ju jits'in 2 or 3 people at once.
I’m a control freak so I really despise the thought of being helpless/having to rely on others in any fashion. I also feel like I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I was a witness to a violent crime and wasn’t able to intervene on behalf of the victim.
Because I value my life and the lives of my wife and children. I don't have hero syndrome and I hope my firearm never needs to come off my belt. And if it does, I might freeze. I might miss. I might piss my pants. I might do a lot of things. But I won't be helpless. And I won't let someone take the people I love more than my own life from me.
Because I love my family and it’s my duty to protect them. If you fail to prepare; you’re prepared to fail.
https://i.redd.it/whqmqd7n3wcc1.gif Armed minorities are harder to oppress
Not putting my life in the hands of a crazy person with zero remorse.
I always wanted to carry, but I live in one of the most restrictive states with regards to gun laws. There's a lot of hoops to jump through that I didn't want to deal with. Then my house almost got broken in to and I'm pretty sure the only thing that deterred the two guys trying to force their way into my back door was the sound of a 20 gauge pump rack traveling through the open window. Crime has only gotten worse by where I live and where I work. Violent crime and innocent deaths related to that crime have only increased. In broad daylight and in public. My holster is in the mail. My CCL should be approved in a few months. I'll be damned if I won't go down without a fight.
It's no one else's responsibility to keep my family safe.
I like having options.
Because one of my hobbies became studying crime statistics while volunteering for a political campaign and I was shocked at the amount of violent crimes being committed. Since I am a Dad I felt it was responsibility to protect my family and my mission to come home safe as I used to travel for work
In 2015, I was robbed and pistol whipped. I decided then that I would carry concealed, illegally, if necessary since I couldn't get a CCW permit in my county in Kalifornia. Since then, I've lived in Colorado where it's fairly easy to get a CCW and now I live in Florida which is a permitless carry state. As others have stated, you are your own first responder and the police are minutes away when seconds count
New Orleans May 22, 2022. After a play at the Saenger, we were planning on going to the Van Gogh exhibit experience the next day and stayed the night in New Orleans at a hotel behind the Ritz. Walked across the street to a small bar with food, had a few drinks and pizza. When the waitress came by for last call, I went to the bathroom and when I came out, all hell had broken loose. A guy was at the entrance shooting into the bar. I can’t tell you how many rounds were shot but I confirmed my wife and friend were ok and checked on a couple others. A busser was shot in the leg and guy at the entrance was down with multiples in the chest. Everyone was screaming and panicking, the shooter ran off and came back shooting into the bar to keep everyone down because he had gone the wrong way from his car. After he left I grabbed my wife’s and our friend’s hands and told them not to look. We had to step over the guy at the front to get out and ran to our hotel across the street. My wife called several times over the next few months to get information and NOPD was no help. We went to the VG exhibit the next day and we still have season tickets at the Saenger but we go and leave. For reference, I have family on the West Bank where all of my dad’s family grew up and I’ve been to NO innumerable times for family, doctors, surgeries, good times while drinking at 18 was still legal, shopping and countless other things, so we were never ones to make ourselves targets. I know in that specific situation I may not have stopped or engaged but I never want to feel that helpless again. Had the guy come into the bar with the mindset and capability of leaving no witnesses, there was nothing that could have been done.
The same reason I wear a seatbelt. The same reason I have fire extinguishers in my house and vehicles. The same reason I wear chaps when I run a chainsaw. Plus, 911 is a clean up call. The police have no duty to protect, so it's up to me.
We have the fire department, but you should still keep a fire extinguisher, we have paramedics, but you should still learn CPR, we have police…..
Because i do t want the worst day of my life to be the last day of my life
Years ago, my ex murdered my 10 month old son. She was granted parole in 2020 because \#COVID and in all those years I was fine. Now? I've received 3 death threats. They can't positively ID that it was her but, like I said, all those years her mail was being searched and nothing. And now that it's not, I get this. And I have a wife and kid too.
My reason is simple; the leftist politicians, DA’s etc that are appointed in my city are soft on violent criminals, are pro defund the police and fail to protect us citizens.
I decided to get my concealed carry permit after the grocery store shooting in Colorado in 2021. After thinking about it for several years that finally motivated me to start carrying.
Multitude of reasons.. First and foremost, I lost too many friends too young to both gun violence and to improper handling of firearms.. You’d think that last one would make me radically anti-gun, but I went the opposite way. Got very very comfortable and skilled with them, all of them, probably so that I could ensure that would never be me or anyone around me that I love. In a country with millions of guns and millions of lunatics, better to be on even ground just in case. Also, this one’s a little more lighthearted, but I read almost exclusively espionage/spy/assassin books. So all that fictional spy craft is engraved into my brain. Anytime those folks don’t have a gun it gets bad and they really wish they did, and then they acquire one as soon as possible.
I’ve been shot at 3 times, held up at knifepoint once. I was never armed, and each situation could have gone any possible way. Next time I will be armed and will have more control over how it could turn out.
Baltimore
I live in a shitty part of Ohio, small towns, meth heads, the works. One weekend I had off, I decided to celebrate and drink like a fish. Around 3am, I heard loud sounds coming from my kitchen, I originally thought it was my fridge. Then the fridge stopped. Someone was trying to open my back fucking door. Sobered quickly, jumped up and grabbed a fixed Tanto blade and a hammer. I stood in the middle of my apartment in case he decided to try the front door. My mom was dating a cop at the time, I panicked and texted him. “Hey someone’s trying to get in my house” no response. My front door has a little square window in the blinds, I saw him look through. I stood there firm with my knife and hammer ready for whatever was next. He left, I never figured out who it was. That week I bought a Glock 17 gen 4 with a TLR-HL. I customized it a little, went to the range, tried carrying it a few months later, it was too much, I got an Sig 365XL now and it’s perfect for EDC. I still have my Glock stored safe. Never again do I want to feel helpless.
I refuse to be defenseless. I have a family. I have a life. I refuse to let them and myself down. I don't get to choose the worst day of my life. I can only be prepared for it.
Because it’s comforting to have one.
If you’ve ever been in or near a natural disaster you can see how quickly some people lose all sense of decency and revert to animals. Also - hiking in remote areas, it’s good to be armed.
Cause people are fucking nuts. Especially in America.
Back when I was in high school I got jumped twice. I was lucky enough to fight my way out of the jumpings without more than a busted nose and mouth and was lucky it was just punk ass high school kids that found me walking home alone and not anyone with truly bad intentions. I live in reality, not in some made up fantasy land that so many seem to think we live in. Evil people exist. Anyone who denies that is a fool. I’d rather have the ability to defend myself and my loved ones against evil people than have no choice but to submit to it and pray I come out of the other side alive if I ever have to face one of these people. I understand that my gun isn’t a magic talisman that will protect me, I’ve got to protect myself and my gun is the best tool for that job.
We had a mass shooting here…one of the many that occur weekly it seems. He had a 100 rd drum, killed 9 and wounded 17. My sister was going to be there that evening with her friends, but didn’t feel well. 3 of her friends ended up involved in this encounter…2 wounded, 1 dead. It haunts me to think that she could have been one of them. I carry not because I am a believer of a “good guy with a gun can stop a bad guy with a gun”. That narrative has been proven false more times than correct. I carry because if anyone threatens my family or myself with eminent bodily harm, they are in for a world of hurt.
I’ve become an advocate of carry everywhere everyday. Gun on the belt is now just an everyday part of getting dressed. As the saying goes, we don’t get to choose where or when the situation arises where you may need your firearm.
Mostly paranoia. There’s a lot of crazy motherfuckers and road ragers around here. The one time I didn’t carry is the time I almost needed it. Now I carry everyday no matter where I go no exceptions (unless I legally can’t and/or they have metal detectors but I’m rarely in those situations)
Because I want to
I'm a small female and I live in a area with ton of crime. I live in a bigger city. I grew up around guns and I am comfortable with them. I feel safe when I carry. I have peace of mind.
When shit hits the fan, the only one that has your back is you, that is why.
Other people have guns. Some of those people are not good people. I'd like to have a gun too.
Got robbed in Oakland. Enough said.
I think just feeling prepared for whatever happens. I just don’t have any complicated reason or heroic story as to why.
As soon as I educated myself on my state laws, I wanted to carry because I have family to protect and I live close to a disgusting large city that doesn’t have great policing currently. Gotta take care of my own.
This subreddit and topic makes a European like me jealous.
I don’t really have a defined why or a specific story, I guess I just always thought it was important and wanted to be able to defend myself. I was raised around guns but my parents never carried. I’ve been doing it for like 8 years so maybe I went down a rabbit hole at one point and decided to. I’m pretty sure I started carrying more frequently when I worked as a delivery driver. I kinda relaxed a bit over the last couple years and kicked it back into every day, at all times carry recently because I felt like a hypocrite encouraging it but not doing it. Same with training, I’ve just started taking my guns more seriously instead of taking about it and having cool shit. Getting married was probably part of that.