When getting ready for the annual vacation this summer, the first thing on our list of priorities is to get our Utah CCW permits. It will be for a good reason – we like to travel via other than Interstates to scenic places – and we’re getting a little older and could be seen as easy targets by those with criminal intent.
I read an article today where the problems facing older unarmed Americans is described:
Criminals like easy targets. A nice new Motor home with out-of-State plates, some friendly retired folks traveling on vacation, out of their normal environment, sounds like an easy target? Have you ever considered what you would do if you were traveling in a remote, unpopulated, unfamiliar area and your vehicle broke down or you had a tire blow out?
For some reason that expensive cellular phone plan with three bars and excellent coverage around town suddenly has a dead zone exactly where you are now stranded? What if the wrong person stopped to help you? He or she may look innocent enough, but could actually be a serious criminal predator, searching for stranded motorists in need of assistance.
The author of the article also quotes John Lott on the effect of CCW on violent crime:
John R. Lott, Jr.: Author of More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws, reveals that States with the largest increases in gun ownership also have the largest decreases in violent crimes. Thirty-eight states now have such laws – called “Shall-Issue” or “Right to Carry” laws. These laws allow adults the right to carry concealed handguns if they do not have a criminal record or a history of significant mental illness. Lott also points out that States with the most restrictive Gun Laws, such as California, New York, and Washington D.C., also have some of the highest violent crime rates in the Nation.
The Utah CCW permit is accepted by many states. When planning our vacation route, states that are candidates for where we’ll be spending our vacation dollars are shown in pink below.
This morning we took off for the gun show. We haven’t been for almost six months, and had a list of things we needed to get. Well, we scored everything on the list and then some. At the left is a montage of three items that we brought home with us today.
You know how some people will hang a tennis ball in the garage to assist them as they pull in to park? They will screw in a cup hook or an eyelet into the ceiling and hang the tennis ball with twine such that it’s positioned on a certain point on your windshield when your car is more-or-less precisely parked. This is especially important for small garages or when the garage is shared with another vehicle (the latter is true in our case).
“We’ve come to a moment in our history when party labels are unimportant. Philosophy is all important. Little men with loud voices cry doom, saying little is good in America. They create fear and uncertainty among us. Millions of Americans, especially our own sons and daughters, are seeking a cause they can believe in. There is a hunger in this country today — a hunger for spiritual guidance. People yearn once again to be proud of their country and proud of themselves, and to have confidence in themselves. And there’s every reason why they should be proud. Some may have failed America, but America has never failed us, and there is so much to be proud of in this land.” — Ronald Reagan