If you own a TV, you probably heard your fair share of “specialists” talking about gun control. After a while, you’ll get fed up with the usual gun-bashing script. You decide to turn off your TV and zone out away from politics – you grab your phone and check social media. And you walk right into the trap: people are talking about how much we need unconstitutional laws regarding gun control. Right then and there, you may begin to wonder: do we need gun control? Are guns harming more people than the lives they are saving? Past this point, the discussion isn’t centered on what’s right or what’s real anymore, but on emotions. There’s nothing more to do but to take a step back and get a reality check: real-life situations, statistics and good old common sense are what anyone needs to decide on guns. Eventually, you’ll realize the importance of a CCW.

A reality check: real stories with real heroes. CCW Saves Lives

Down in Rockledge, a man armed with a .45 caliber handgun walks into an auto-shop and starts shooting for no apparent reason, killing an employee and severely injuring another. A third employee hears the commotion and stops the tragedy right at the beginning, shooting the assailant.

In Tennessee, a man walks into a dentist’s office and opens fire, killing a random person waiting for his dental appointment – A women nearby draws her CCW, raises her gun against the shooter, and she shoots him: another tragedy prevented.

Three days before 2019 is over, in Fort Worth Texas, a man hellbent on causing harm walks into a church and fatally shoots two people. A third man stops him right in his tracks before he could keep killing churchgoing people.

Time and time again, tragedies bound to happen are stopped because of heroes who have one thing in common: they’re carrying a concealed weapon. The list goes on and on. What more is there to wonder? Do we more need gun control or more law-abiding citizens carrying weapons?

CCW statistics don’t lie.

There are more than enough cases – both recent and old – to talk about the many times someone with a permit to CCW has saved lives. You cannot list them all. It would be pointless to do so anyway. What you can do is add up all the cases and get statistics out of them. The numbers do not lie:

• Guns are used 80 times more to protect a life than to take one.
• The countries with the highest gun ownership rates are among the safest ones (USA, Switzerland, and Finland.)
• The countries with the highest crime rates also have the strictest gun control laws (Honduras, El Salvador, Jamaica.) – the most violent country in the European Union (The United Kingdom) is also the one with the most severe gun control laws.
• According to the FBI, CCW permits reduce 8.5% of murders, 5% of rapes, amongst other crimes.

Numbers don’t lie… unless you know how to tamper them.

Now you know the statistics related to gun ownership and concealed carry permits. But how come mainstream media is always using numbers to favor gun-control related views? It’s because they don’t use numbers, they simply state a (false) headline as a fact. Or even worse, they don’t show you the full picture. For example:

•  This might be true somewhere other than America because Florida saw a 34% decrease in crime after passing a CC law; Texas saw a 50% decrease in murder rates and an astonishing 93% decrease in rape rates; on average states without CCW have over 11% more crime.
•  That’s true. And taken by itself it seems an awful number, right? But there’s more to it than that. There are over fourteen million people with CC permits in America. That’s a 0.003% kill rate. Most of them are in self-defense as well.

The first headline is used by most news channels. It’s completely false. The second one doesn’t provide enough information, otherwise, it would be detrimental for their views.

Gun control favors gun-related crime.

The logic used by gun-control enthusiasts is rather simple: We prevent people from owning guns and there is less gun-related crime – but nothing is that easy. There are plenty of statistics that show gun-control laws favor criminals and CCW permits favor law-abiding citizens.

If you take the guns away from righteous people, you are only making them fall prey to those who do not care about the rules and laws of this country. If someone is going to break the law to kill or steal, they will also break the law to get a gun. Gun control hurts good people.

Mass shootings, home invasions, murder, rape, and robberies are all done by criminals: they are all willing to use force to get what they want. Gun control laws take the only tool common people have to defend themselves from such a terrible threat. If you allow citizens to carry guns, they will use them to defend themselves and other people, not to cause harm. It’s been proven time and time again. Real-life cases are even mentioned above.

Better safe than sorry.

If you want to keep your friends and family safe, owning a gun and training with it is the way to do it. There is no reason to appeal to the good nature of criminals – for they have none. And you should be able to carry your gun everywhere to stay safe anywhere. A concealed carry weapon is the right way to do it. But remember: a gun is not a toy but a responsibility. You need to learn how to use one and train yourself constantly to use it right. You’ll be grateful for it when the time comes to use your weapon. Otherwise, you are bound to do more harm than good. Make sure you know what kind of weapon is suited for you and visit the gun range regularly to stay sharp, or even take a private shooting lesson to really hone your skills.

Sources:
A reality check: real stories with real heroes.
https://www.wftv.com/news/local/armed-employee-shoots-gunman-who-shot-two-employees-at-rockledge-auto-shop-police-say/653550325

The statistics don’t lie.
https://americangunfacts.com/

Numbers don’t lie… unless you know how to tamper them.