Do you feel the need to be unarmed and defensless while camping?

[Longrange308]

To kind of get back on track. I carry a .357 revolver almost every time I am out in the back country. The places I go up here, I am not worried about bears so much as I am wolves. I bring dogs with me and there have been more than a handful of situations where wolves have attacked dogs because they are very territorial. Mountain Lions are also a real threat in some of the places I visit as well.

If I have an encounter with any of these animals, the first response from me with my pistol would be a warning shot, followed by an actual target engagement if the warning shot had no effect. The flip side of this is the fact that I can also use said pistol to signal others and procure food if things go south.

I do not carry one because I feel insecure when I am in the woods (or in my day to day life when I conceal carry), but because I want to be prepared for any conceivable situation I may find myself in. I take my own experiences, as well as the experiences of others that have gone before me, and make my own decisions.

You should find someone that does risk analytics for a living and ask them to crunch some numbers and see what their thoughts are after looking at the facts. I have a friend that does this for the financial industry (used to do it for the government) and his results are always in favor of carrying, regardless of where you are.

 

[Dalko43]

The question was about carrying while out in the boonies camping. My sole point on this is that if people feel the need to be able to defend themselves even while far away from most people... That is the insecurity I was referring to. Sorry if I hit too close to home ( don't shoot me!)

Yes, the conversation has wandered around a bit ( as conversations do). Don't recall disrespecting anyone else's opinion, though.

I understand that you don't see any reason or need to carry while camping. If that is your choice, good for you. But don't try to pretend that you haven't been making unfair and inaccurate generalizations about those who do choose to carry:

I do wonder how many people who carry have such training as you mention. I am willing to bet the numbers are few.

What living and traveling overseas has done, is to break me out of the typical self centered tunnel vision most American's have.

What a typically American thing to discuss....

My 2 cents based on personal expiriance? The need to be armed all the time is a sign of insecurity. There is no real need. In fact, the presence of a firearm in any given situation will tend to escalate things and make matters worse.

I am sure the gung-ho John Wayne's will point out that they will defend ( kill if needed) to protect x ( property, lives, etc....fill in your own blanks) with their last breath....yada, yada, yada. What is forgotten in this view is that such things always have consequences after the act....and I don't mean only legal consequences.

I also believe that carrying a firearm alters the way the person carrying acts and thinks. They tend to feel more secure (remember those insecurity comments I keep making?) and a little bit invulnerable. They are now tough and ready to take on the world (and if they need a weapon to feel this way....insecurity again). Ok, maybe I am blowing that out of proportion a bit to make my point.....but it does alter the way folks think. Take the not too distant Zimmerman incident.... armed with a handgun, Zimmerman no doubt felt able to confront the suspicious person he was following...would he have done so without being armed?

If you think people who carry have an altered state of mind and become Gung-ho, John Wayne, take on the world, only one bad move away from Zimmerman types then:

A) I highly doubt that you carry or even own a firearm, despite your claims to the contrary
and
B) You obviously haven't met many, if any, people who do actually carry.

Your point of view comes across has amateurish, media-inspired, cliche dribble. If you want to have a conversation on this topic, then keep the conversation focused on the topic and stop putting out these false stereotypes.

Edit: Also the comment about the typical "self-centered tunnel vision" that most Americans have really doesn't add to your credibility.

 

[LocoCoyote]

I understand that you don't see any reason or need to carry while camping. If that is your choice, good for you. But don't try to pretend that you haven't been making unfair and inaccurate generalizations about those who do choose to carry:









If you think people who carry have an altered state of mind and become Gung-ho, John Wayne, take on the world, only one bad move away from Zimmerman types then:

A) I highly doubt that you carry or even own a firearm, despite your claims to the contrary
and
B) You obviously haven't met many, if any, people who do actually carry.

Your point of view comes across has amateurish, media-inspired, cliche dribble. If you want to have a conversation on this topic, then keep the conversation focused on the topic and stop putting out these false stereotypes.

Edit: Also the comment about the typical "self-centered tunnel vision" that most Americans have really doesn't add to your credibility.

Well, so much for intelligent. How is any of that unfair? Better question...why do you get so upset about it? Naw, don't answer ...I doubt it would be anything other than another petty attack.

At this point I think this has stopped being a discussion and is turning into a squabble...so I will be moving on now.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[MTSN]

It comes down to risk and probability... An engine fire is very rare, but it can be catastrophic if left unchecked, therefore we bring a fire extinguisher.

I'm glad you brought up the fire extinguisher. I have carried one in my vehicle for almost 2 decades and never used it once. I was replacing them because they expired instead of being used. However, I had the unfortunate experience recently of waking up to a horrible accident in front of my home where a guy was literally burning to death pinned inside his crashed vehicle. My Jeep was right there, so I had immediate access to the fire extinguisher and used it for the first time. Story is here: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/146376-Fire-extinguishers

I also have at least one real flashlight (and a knife) on my body at all times, and I keep two 500 lumens flashlights in my desk drawer at work. We are in a high rise on the 10th floor, and a massive power outage a couple of years ago caused even the backup generators to explode and create a fire. The stairwells are on in the interior of the building, and it was pitch black to evacuate. I was able to give a couple of other people lights and in a group helped about 100 safely out of the building.

Do you think I had a fire extinguisher and flashlight in those cases because I was afraid and insecure? No it's preparedness. Am I afraid sometimes when it's warranted? Sure! When I'm on the freeway on my motorcycle and a guy with a loose load of plywood jerks his truck without working tail lights and no license plates across three lanes right in front of me you can be sure I'm terrified of what he's going to do next (then I proceed to safely go around asap). But I'm not a paranoid person assuming every second of every day my life is in danger which is what Loco is trying to insinuate.

 

[mvbeggs]

If you got 'em, carry 'em- one sheriff's perspective

Not really applicable to carrying while camping, but applicable to the discussion in general. Here it is from one NY Sheriff's perspective:

NY Sheriff encourages licensed gun owners to take up arms

 

[wobblypete]

On the news last night they said there had been over 350 mass shootings in the USA this year?

Is it now so bad that even camping in the sticks necessitates a handgun?

What a crazy world we live in.

 

[plainjaneFJC]

Gun deaths per capita have been on the decline since the 80's. You can thank the 24hour in your face media for all the hysteria.

 

[mvbeggs]

.....Is it now so bad that even camping in the sticks necessitates a handgun?....

No.

 

[mvbeggs]

Gun deaths per capita have been on the decline since the 80's. You can thank the 24hour in your face media for all the hysteria.

Amen to that brother!

 

[Dalko43]

On the news last night they said there had been over 350 mass shootings in the USA this year?

Is it now so bad that even camping in the sticks necessitates a handgun?

What a crazy world we live in.

The way they define mass shootings now is where 4 or more people get shot, though not necessarily killed.

The problem with that definition is that it incorporates a whole bunch of gang/organized crime related gun violence. Oddly enough, the media doesn't give those incidents nearly as much press coverage as they do for the lone-wolf and terrorist style attacks.

The reality is over the course of 2015 we've had 1 or 2 dozen lone-wolf or ideological style shooting sprees; much of the rest has been gang and organized crime violence. And as others have said, gun violence per capita has been on the decline since the 80's.

The context matters when you start throwing around statistics like that.

 

[scanny]

If the world is so dangerous as you say (and I am not saying it isn't ) then why is this need to carry something that only Americans seem to feel? And that in America! In Other places this need doesn't seem to be felt....I base that on never having met anyone outside of the US who has ever expressed to me the feeling that they wished they were armed. ( speaking of traveling....camping). Has the US become so dangerous that even when we are away from population centers, we still are concerned enough that we must carry a firearm?

Hmm.. Not sure who were you speaking to but I would expect that in all countries with a lots of woods and wildlife such as Canada or Russia for example people usually go deep in the woods armed. I would guess that some states in US have bear population as well as wolves, coyotes etc so lots of people might want to have a gun just in case. Normally wildlife tries to avoid people, but some folks don't want to be in the 1% who got killed by wild animals.

 

[Lynnrb]

Hmm.. Not sure who were you speaking to but I would expect that in all countries with a lots of woods and wildlife such as Canada or Russia for example people usually go deep in the woods armed. I would guess that some states in US have bear population as well as wolves, coyotes etc so lots of people might want to have a gun just in case. Normally wildlife tries to avoid people, but some folks don't want to be in the 1% who got killed by wild animals.

What? 3,000,000 killed by wild animals. 300,000,000=pop of USA X 1%=3,000,000 I think I would of heard of this.

 

[scanny]

What? 3,000,000 killed by wild animals. 300,000,000=pop of USA X 1%=3,000,000 I think I would of heard of this.

Actually 1% meant to be from people who have closer encounters with dangerous wild animals, don't remember where I read it, but make it 0.0000001% - doesn't really change the fact that some people don't want to be in that statistics.

 

[Lynnrb]

Actually 1% meant to be from people who have closer encounters with dangerous wild animals, don't remember where I read it, but make it 0.0000001% - doesn't really change the fact that some people don't want to be in that statistics.

Well that changes things to vanishing rare occurrence. Maybe we should stay indoors to avoid lighting. Wait, a plane my crash into the house. Point is, packing a gun is more hazardous than most threats it might solve.

 

[Lynnrb]

Statistically,
78.2% of all statistics are fabricated 7.8 minutes before they are published.
Coincidence ? I dont think so...

I suppose it took you 7.8 min to think that up.