An armed society is a polite society

[billh58]

7. Not sure that I would agree

with that statement, but I understand the emotion behind it. When you get right down to it, "the government" is us, and is made up of ordinary everyday Americans just like you and me. The FBI agent, the cop on the beat, the soldier, sailor, airman, national guardsman, are all part of the fabric of our society.

"Trust," as we have heard so often, is not given freely and blindly, but is earned over time. The right-wing gun lobby insists that we "must" trust all CCW holders just because they have passed a weakly structured "background check" which only means that they have not been caught doing anything illegal. A background check does not investigate an applicant for spousal abuse, alcoholism, mental disorders, or any of a multitude of potentially disqualifying conditions for gun ownership.

The real issue is why do I have to "trust" someone I don't know to carry a gun on the same sidewalk that I use just because they are paranoid or apprehensive? Those emotions in and of themselves would be reason to make me wary of such people.

For the most part, the minority of Americans who own guns can be trusted to keep their precious at home. Public carry -- not so much.