The author, a doctor, makes the case that in our climate of daily random violence and desperate drug addicts, a doctor would be wise to have a gun in his office. He brings up the example of emergency rooms having metal detectors and bullet proof glass because shootings have actually occurred there. So he asks:
Would you not see a doctor if you knew he had a gun in his office?
To those who would fear ....... I ask you this, why would a doctor having a gun bother you? Do you live in fear that your physician is trying to kill you? I mean if he really wanted you dead, he could stab you with a scalpel or inject you with something lethal. He could do so with the tools of his profession in a much more efficient manner than with a gun.
The question is when was the last time you heard of a law abiding citizen using their gun in a crime?
An oxymoron. So as soon as someone uses their gun in a crime, gun advocates say, "he's a criminal, we were talking about law abiding people."
I disagree. Gun owners who have carry permits are awesomely respectful of the law. Few of them commit crimes with their firearms. They do, however, prevent crimes from happening or from becoming worse than they might have been.
The question is when was the last time you heard of a law abiding citizen using their gun in a crime?
I disagree. Gun owners who have carry permits are awesomely respectful of the law. Few of them commit crimes with their firearms. They do, however, prevent crimes from happening or from becoming worse than they might have been.
I agree here. People who abide by the laws and get permits to carry concealed are not the ones committing crimes with guns. It is those who are not law abiding citizens. If you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have them. THAT scares me. It does not scare me to know my neighbor or the little old lady sitting next to me in church may be carrying a gun in her fanny pack. We live in an area which is extremely pro-gun. I think everyone on my street owns at least one gun. There is no violent crime in my area. Coincidence? I don't know. I know I wouldn't commit a violent crime on someone who was known to own a gun...
When you work at a hospital, there is no reason to carry a gun.
People that take them to work may need to check with your HOSPITAL policy on this...I have never worked for an employer in my life that allowed you to take a firearm on company property, in fact, you can be fired for it...regardless of whether the state says you can or not.
If people don't want to walk to their cars alone, and in some cities, it's not safe to, then that is what security is for.
I sometimes question an individual that feels the need that they have to carry a gun on their person all the time. In a car, I can understand...I do this myself, but not on their person.
Just curious. What would your question be? And why does it matter to you what the gun owner "feels". And why should they have to explain their feelings (or anything else pertaining to their constitutional freedoms) to you? After 2 centuries, and much civil discussion, careful law-crafting in 38 states, after purchasing an expensive pistol, learning to use it, taking the class, qualifying with it, been fingerprinted and gone through an extensive background check...
Do you really think your fellow citizens who have made this choice do it for trivial reasons or do it on a whim? If you talked to a certified firearms instructor, (what am I thinking! Facts are superfluous when you have your mind already made up...) But if you ask the guys who teach the classes gun owners have to take, they would tell you that everyone in his classes has a significant reason for going through this extensive and expensive process.
While we're on the subject of self defense and crime there is a book I highly recommend reading.
It's called "The gift of fear" by Gavin de Becker. It recommends listening to your instincts instead or ignoring them, because they can warn you of danger.
Hospitals have parking lots that aren't always well lit or traficked. One has to get from point A to point B.
As for security and walking to the car- there aren't enough security officers employed by the hospital to cover that- (and what do you do for going in- call and ask for the guard to meet you in the lot and describe your vehicle?) many people also prefer the self reliance, and don't feel confident in a security guard versus an armed thug.
I think anyone who carries into a facility that bans firearms is courting a legal charge- let alone job loss- but I think that such policies are asinine. However, that doesn't mean I don't feel it vital to adhere to them. I would point out, though, that in those cases, guns aren't the only options. Tasers, pepper spray, etc. are all possible alternatives to both comply with policy and offer a degree of safety. (Personally I prefer tasers.)
Hospital parking lots are no more "unsafe" than the ones at a grocery store that stays open during the night or a Walmart.
Again, I would bet a dollar if you checked with your hospital policy, it is a violation to carry a gun on their property, regardless if you have a concealed weapons permit.
I have never had a job in my life were that wasn't the first or second item mentioned in a company policy, and if you think you can't lose your job over it...let some members of upper management know about it, and see how quickly you lose your job.
It's a matter of liability to the hospital...if you misjudge a situation and shoot someone at the hospital on their property, the hospital, as their employee, are as liable as you personally whether or not you were clocked out.
Just curious. What would your question be? And why does it matter to you what the gun owner "feels". And why should they have to explain their feelings (or anything else pertaining to their constitutional freedoms) to you? After 2 centuries, and much civil discussion, careful law-crafting in 38 states, after purchasing an expensive pistol, learning to use it, taking the class, qualifying with it, been fingerprinted and gone through an extensive background check...
Do you really think your fellow citizens who have made this choice do it for trivial reasons or do it on a whim? If you talked to a certified firearms instructor, (what am I thinking! Facts are superfluous when you have your mind already made up...) But if you ask the guys who teach the classes gun owners have to take, they would tell you that everyone in his classes has a significant reason for going through this extensive and expensive process.
And you casually dismiss and denigrate them all.
If you are CURRENTLY being stalked, have an ex-husband that has threatened to kill you, I can understand someone wanting to carry a gun.
However, I live in an area where you won't find a household, including mine, without at least two.
So obviously, I have no personal issues of gun ownership. But in my 40 years or so of living in gun-country, the only people I have ever seen that insisted on carrying a gun on their person 24/7, had a few issues with their ego.
I was eating at a restaurant one day, and a man came in with a firearm strapped to his waist. A few customers complained. The manager went over and asked if he was a member of law enforcement in any capacity, he said he wasn't (he was wearing the tightest jeans and a tucked in shirt where everyone could see his gun), he said he had a concealed weapons permit and started to show it to the manager.
The manager said, "I'm sure you do, but we have a policy not to allow firearms on the property unless you are a member of law enforcement. You are welcome to take the weapon and leave it in your car and I will give you two a free appetizer for your trouble."
The man was so angry, and had to have "his gun" where everyone could see it, like a little kid, that him and his wife got up and left.
People like that...scare me.
You are right...some folks that carry a gun 24/7 probably have a reason to carry one all right...and it makes me wonder exactly what they are involved in.
PS: Gun safety courses are dirt cheap around here. Nothing expensive about them.
Hospital parking lots are no more "unsafe" than the ones at a grocery store that stays open during the night or a Walmart.
Again, I would bet a dollar if you checked with your hospital policy, it is a violation to carry a gun on their property, regardless if you have a concealed weapons permit.
I have never had a job in my life were that wasn't the first or second item mentioned in a company policy, and if you think you can't lose your job over it...let some members of upper management know about it, and see how quickly you lose your job.
It's a matter of liability to the hospital...if you misjudge a situation and shoot someone at the hospital on their property, the hospital, as their employee, are as liable as you personally whether or not you were clocked out.
I have never had a job in my life were that wasn't the first or second item mentioned in a company policy,
Really! I've been a nurse for over 30 years and it's never... I swear to you I am not making this up... never been mentioned.
Hospital parking lots are no more "unsafe" than the ones at a grocery store that stays open during the night or a Walmart.
THERE IS, IN FACT, A VERY significant difference between the hospital's parking lot and Walmart's. At precise times every 24 hours a largely female population is walking to and from a hospital. This is not the case in retailers' parking lots. At Walmart, men and women are coming and going randomly at most hours of the day and night.
Further, (I know this is a generalization, but it is generally true) most hospitals are in seedier parts of town, most Walmarts want to be out in the 'burbs where people have valid credit cards.
Thank you for sharing that!
tntrn, ASN, RN
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