Why did you start carrying?

[Guest Red5]

That meaning being harassed by the cops...had to raise hell to the sheriff an mention the word "lawsuit". The local cops kept pulling me over an searching my car for drugs over a 2 month period.

What was their reason? That you were legally carrying?

[Guest motenn]

What was their reason? That you were legally carrying?

I've got the "you look like a suspect they were searching for" a few times. One cop followed me over 6 miles, then told me I was driving like was was drunk. Had to argue with the same cop 3 different times that my gun wasn't stolen, bought it new. Had a lady call the cops one day as I was pumping gas cause she could see the butt of my pistol. Bout got shot by a cop over that...so I carry mostly when I'm going out of town

[Parrothead]

My wife and myself took the class together on Feb 14, 2008. I pushed for the class and she took it with me so she would have a basic knowledge of firearms. I started carrying because i don't like relying on others. In reality, doing so sets yourself up for failure. I took self defense and home defense upon myself at that time. I have total respect for leo's and their job. Unfortunately, they don't follow us on a daily basis. If a need arises they are a phone call away. Unacceptable in a time of need..... in my opinion.

[Guest Grantonius]

I made the decision to start carrying when for about 4 years I spent 8 hours a day with some of the "finest" guys to ever pass thru the tn legal system. Now when I'm not in school, I work at two different gas stations around town.

[jimic]

Have carried all my adult life,without a problem. Times changed as to need a permitt. Now this get complicated.More laws more complications.

[Oh Shoot]

Have carried all my adult life,without a problem. Times changed as to need a permitt. Now this get complicated.More laws more complications.

I've never been able to find when it was first illegal to carry a gun in TN, but it certainly dates way way before the permit process came to be.

- OS

[Guest RichieRich]

That home invasion in Connecticut where the doc's family was raped, tortured, and burnt. A few days later, a home invasion right around the corner from me was my epiphany. That terrible tragedy in Connecticut was not going to happen at my house. Never.

Until that point, I had never fired a gun even once in my life. Now, I've spent dozens of hours in the classroom at Range USA and even more hours on the range, and have 6 firearms strategically (and quite safely) placed throughout the house.

It ain't gonna happen at my house. Never.

[Guest FHTMcrt]

How do I delete my reply to a post?

Edited April 1, 2011 by FHTMcrt

[Fallguy]

How do I delete my reply to a post?

You can't delete, you can only edit after it has already been posted.

[g2122]

My reason to secure my carry permit and to be able to carry boiled down to the crime, not only around middle Tennessee where I live, but also when I travel on the road with my family. A friend of mine who is a FBI agent told me, anytime you travel between city to city on the road, you need to carry a gun.

[MikePapa1]

My story is similar to what J Reed related. I've practiced law since 1983, doing basically a general practice which involved divorce work. In 1988, I was doing a divorce representing a wife for whom I got custody of their three sons. The husband was an ex-cop, having been fired for repeated abuse complaints, who decided that I was tearing apart his family and who made some threats. He was stopped by the police about a block form my house with a .357 and a 12 gauge. He was arrested, based upon his threats to me, for which he also blamed me. Through the police, they expedited my permit, this is allowed in Indiana, and I got a permit within a week. I also worked as a public defender in one of the courts and the Judge convinced the sheriff to put me through their weapons training and semiannual qualifications which allowed me to carry everywhere, even in court.

I still carry everywhere I can. Based upon an informal survey I've conducted, about 40% of the male lawyers here and about 20% of the female lawyers carry at least part of the time.

[Guest mklaglock19]

I have two small children I need to protect. My husband will be getting his as well soon.

We live near Memphis...need I say more.

Edited April 4, 2011 by mklaglock19

[Guest mklaglock19]

My wife and myself took the class together on Feb 14, 2008. I pushed for the class and she took it with me so she would have a basic knowledge of firearms. I started carrying because i don't like relying on others. In reality, doing so sets yourself up for failure. I took self defense and home defense upon myself at that time. I have total respect for leo's and their job. Unfortunately, they don't follow us on a daily basis. If a need arises they are a phone call away. Unacceptable in a time of need..... in my opinion.

Like my permit instructor (he is a sherriff) said "When you really need me...I wont be there".

[Guest AmericanWorkMule]

. .

Edited March 17, 2012 by AmericanWorkMule

[FJCrusing]

I obtained my permit 3 years ago. Wished I had done it sooner but a close friend of mine had recently obtained his and encouraged me to get mine for a lot of the same reasons listed above (protect family, myself, crime, etc.). Will be sending my wife to obtain her permit in the near future also.

[1pointofview]

i starting carrying because I live in franklin. Franklin is in one of the wealthiest counties in the nation. over the last year there have been a number of hold ups, stabbings and car jackings in broad daylight in the middle of busy areas. criminals see all the nice cars and nice looking people and see opportunities. well with a wife and 2 daughters, that crap aint going to fly around me. I carry everywhere I can and everytime I find a place that is posted i make it a point to tell the manager how he just lost my business

[QuietDan]

You can't delete, you can only edit after it has already been posted.

Edit it down to a single period.

[Proscene]

Being robbed at gunpoint twice! As a former military veteran I knew I didn't have to put up with that. It's a bad world out there, we just choose to ignore it. I put my butt in gear and did "the right thing" and feel allot better for doing it!

[Proscene]

Being robbed at gunpoint twice! As a former military veteran I knew I didn't have to put up with that. It's a bad world out there, we just choose to ignore it. I put my butt in gear and did "the right thing" and feel allot better for doing it!

For those of you that just did it or are thinking about it I say "do it!" but, get some additional training after you get the HCP. Remember, there is at least 1 lawyer attached to every bullet you fire!

[QuietDan]

1. Carried an M9 Pistol every day for the 22 total months deployed in Iraq and felt naked without a weapon.

2. Lived in a dicey neighborhood in San Antonio with vehicle break-ins and a neighbor's door-kicked-in burglary.

3. I'll be damned before I let the low-lifes get the upper hand in my neck of the woods.

4. Because it pisses off the liberals.

5. Because I can.

Edited March 17, 2012 by QuietDan

[-Bristol-]

It was the wifes idea really. She works for a Pharmacy and they stay open late. And our home has been broken into twice. We've been married 25+ years and had often done target shooting and clays on our own acreage but in recent years we've moved away from long guns and more into handguns and self defense drills. I hope I never have to use against an attacker but ready if needed.

[turkeydad]

When I started buying and selling things on craigslist and ebay. . .

[Jamie Jackson]

Because it's my Responsibility to do so as a Free Man.

And I believe in the Defender's Creed:

The Defender's Creed

John Farnam

I accept and understand that human predators exist. Criminal or terrorist, they take advantage of our civilized society to prey upon the weak. They represent evil and must be confronted and defeated.

I believe that self-defense is a moral imperative, and that illegitimate force and illegal violence must be met with righteous indignation and superior violence.

I will not rely on others for the security of myself, my family and my community. I proudly proclaim that I run with a like-minded pack. I do not amble through life with the mind-numbed herd.

I will train with my chosen weapons, maintain them and carry them in a condition of readiness at all times. I will be mentally prepared and physically equipped to effectively respond to an attack or emergency.

I will constantly test myself against realistic standards to discover my strengths and weaknesses. I will turn weakness into strength.

I will seek to learn new skills and techniques, and then teach what I have learned to other members of the pack. Be it with firearm or blade, empty hand or blunt object, I will hit my enemies hard, fast and true.

I will live a quiet and unobtrusive life, but I will develop and retain the capacity for swift and decisive violence. I recognize that I am the modern equivalent of the traditional Minuteman, and that I may be called to service at any time against heavily armed enemies. I will respond effectively.

I accept that I am a pariah among some of my countrymen, and a quaint anachronism to others. I will not hold their ignorance against them.

I will win, or die trying.

I swear this creed before God, my family and my fellow citizens.

[Guest Scwrod]

My brother was shot in the back while trying to run from a robbery. He died. I put it off for a while, then just last year a friend of mine was killed in seal beach,CA when a man walked into a hair salon shot and killed 8 people. That is when I made the decision. You will never catch me without a loaded handgun at the ready.

[Guest Atomic]

I'm not paid well enough to be someones victim