Thoughts about concealed carry
By MARJ LAW
Carrying concealed is very cool. When you carry concealed, it means you passed a test showing you have been taught when, where, and how to carry your gun. It shows you have a basic competency with shooting a gun. It shows you have met requirements for a concealed weapons license.
In Florida, you need to take a class for this or can show evidence of experience gained during military service. Your application goes to the Division of Licensing under the Florida Department of Agriculture. With your application goes fingerprints, a photograph and the application fee.
After you’ve jumped through this hoop, do you really want to carry a gun? Do you think you may be in a location where your life could be endangered?
Personally, I don’t carry most of the time. Most of the time, the likelihood of danger in my mind is very limited. Carrying involves a huge amount of responsibility.
First, in Florida, your gun must be concealed so that others can’t see it. Many people feel viewing a gun shows someone is an aggressive, rude, careless or an angry person. They can see the gun as a threat. Naturally, that will intimidate people, and people who want to protect themselves aren’t out to cause fear in others.
So, you have to make sure your gun doesn’t show. If you wear a see-through shirt, and your gun shows behind it, then it’s not concealed. If you wear your shirt high, and the butt of your gun shows in your waistband, then no, it’s not concealed. When you can see the outline of your gun on your clothing, it’s called “printing.” You can’t do this, because again, the gun is not concealed.
Remembering where you cannot carry your gun is important. You’ll learn this in the class, and need to check when you visit federal buildings, parks, airports and other places. But with all the errands you do during the day, will you remember which buildings you can’t carry in? Some private stores also hang “no gun” signs in their entrances. You need to respect this too. And if you can’t carry it where you plan to go, do you have a locked safe in your car to place it while you do your other errands?
When you do carry, remember to bring your concealed carry license with you. Whew! And you thought all you needed was a license? So not true.
What about safety? When you carry, where is your muzzle pointed? Remember, just like shooting at the range, your muzzle is always pointed at something you’re willing to destroy. Your foot? Your neighbor? Your fanny? No, you don’t want to have that muzzle pointed at any of these.
And that “finger off the trigger until you’re ready to shoot rule?” Yes, it applies here too. What if you trip and your finger is on that trigger? Yikes! Big danger!
Wherever you carry, you’ll want your gun to be very stable, in a condition where you can draw it in a safe manner. I’d always suggest a holster, so that your gun is firmly placed where you can reach it when you have to. And this means practice.
Your shirt will likely cover your gun. Can you lift your shirt quickly and discretely to reach your gun? When you do, will you place your index finger along the gun as you draw, to keep it off the trigger until you’re ready to shoot?
Is your gun in the proper position? If you’re out in public, now is not the time to check. Other people sure don’t want to see you messing with a gun. Practice securing and drawing your gun at home, unloaded. Having all your ammo locked up in another room is a good safety practice, too.
When do you draw?
In the class, you learn that you draw your gun only if your life is in danger or if someone else’s life is in danger. You never ever draw to settle an argument. Never to show that you’ve got a gun and you’re not afraid. Only draw to defend and protect lives.
Where is your gun?
Recently, I’ve asked many friends how they carry their guns. Fortunately, and most carefully, all say they use holsters. The correct holster will place your gun in a secure position to stay in place and to be of a proper angle if you need to draw.
A waistband or belt, therefore, is no place for a gun. How tight is your waistband? Will the angle of the gun change with your movements? Could it slide down your pants if the waistband is loose? Could you experience an accidental discharge of your weapon? Yikes, again! You sure don’t want to allow this to happen!
What about pocket carry? Do you have a small gun that fits in your pocket?
Don’t do it! What angle will the gun be in after you’ve walked, and sat, and gotten in and out of the car? If you have to draw your gun, you sure don’t want to be fumbling around in your pocket, looking for a decent hold. Also, that pocket is full of candy wrappers and washing debris. Will the junk clog your gun? You don’t want to jeopardize the useability of the gun that could save your life. Many holsters are made to fit safely and to angle properly in pockets.
I’m always for a holster. If that bad day should ever come, I want my gun to be placed securely on my body. In a holster. At an angle where I can grab it quickly and safely to myself and others, and with my index finger along the side as I pull it out.
Some girlfriends carry in their purses. Each friend has either a special “carry” purse, designed to hold her gun safely and at a correct angle, or she has a holster, properly angled, that fits in her purse.
The gals who carry in their purses say they always keep their purse on themselves: not on the chair behind them or on the floor beside them, so Mr. Bad can’t slide alongside and whisk it away. Even in public bathrooms, their guns are not hanging on the inside of the doors.
You’ll see IWB and OWB holsters. This stands for “inside the waistband” and “outside the waistband.”
You’ll hear the words: “sticky holsters.” These are soft rubberized holsters, unlike the hard formed Kidex holsters which attach to your belt or pants. You can put sticky holsters IWB and they don’t attach to your belt.
Two men friends, who are tall and somewhat portly, say they don’t choose IWB because their tummies squish the gun and it is not comfortable. One of them carries in an OWB holster within his back pocket. Another man uses a square pack: a Sneaky Pete brown leather OWB holster which attaches to his belt outside his right hand. Two gal friends have carry purses.
The right way to carry depends on the correct holster for your gun. It depends on your body type, your condition, your preference and your comfort level.
As the Alien gear people say: “Safety is relative; if you carry safely, and handle and operate a gun safely, bad things tend not to happen.”
Marj Law is the former director of Keep Wakulla County Beautiful who has become an avid shooter in retirement.