I know: it’s The Bill of Rights, not The Bill of Needs. The Second Amendment prohibits the government from infringing on Americans’ right to keep and bear arms — regardless of their “need” to do so. But it’s also true that some Americans are more at risk of “gun violence” than others. NRA Commentator Colion Noir makes a good case that single-parent mothers in economically deprived areas have a greater need for a gun than say, a Minneapolis mom demanding action for gun sense in America in a gated community.

desantis-blue-logo-no-back-4-smallI’ve encountered plenty of gun owners with carry permits who don’t carry. They might carry when they go someplace that might be dangerous. Otherwise, they reckon their everyday world is safe enough to forgo firearms. You know what? They’re right. They’re wealthy enough and smart enough to avoid stupid people in stupid places doing stupid things. The odds that they’ll be a victim of a violent crime are lower than a snake’s belly.

Better to have it and not need it? I’m definitely with you. And no matter what the chances of a violent attack, I still “need” a gun. I need it for my peace of mind. To know that I have immediate access to a tool that gives me and mine a high probability of survival during a low probability event. What about you? I know you don’t have to justify gun ownership, but I’ll ask anyway: how much do you need a self-defense firearm?

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78 COMMENTS

    • “…a high probability of survival during a low probability event.”

      That pretty much sums up the answer to the question right there. Well said, Mr. Farago.

  2. I don’t feel particularly unsafe in my area so I guess I don’t ‘need’ it in the strictest sense of the word. In fact, my work situation prevents me from carrying most days.

    That being said, I do carry whenever I can.

    • Depends on how many people are around, if it’s more than 1, then yes. Now, for the nature of and what constitutes the government . . . that’s a good question.

      • Government(s) (wherever on this planet that you happen to find them) are comprised of your a-hole neighbors who needed a job. They might be the kind to usurp power and then oppress you.

        • Thomas Hobbes: “Leviathan, or the matter, forme, and power of a commonwealth, ecclesiasticall and civill”, 1651.

          Hobbes described the natural state of mankind (the state pertaining before a central government is formed) as a “warre of every man against every man”. In the book he outlines the ‘incommodites’ of such a war:

          “Whatsoever therefore is consequent to a time of Warre, where every man is Enemy to every man; the same is consequent to the time, wherein men live without other security, than what their own strength, and their own invention shall furnish them withall. In such condition, there is no place for Industry; because the fruit thereof is uncertain; and consequently no Culture of the Earth; no Navigation, nor use of the commodities that may be imported by Sea; no commodious Building; no Instruments of moving, and removing such things as require much force; no Knowledge of the face of the Earth; no account of Time; no Arts; no Letters; no Society; and which is worst of all, continuall feare, and danger of violent death; And the life of man, solitary, poore, nasty, brutish, and short.”

          You go ahead and try to live without any government, Joe. We’ll keep trying to make this one work the way it was originally intended.

  4. No thanks, I have several already for defense against human threats.
    Though now that you mention it, I still need that Glock 20 SF 10mm for bears!

    • I like mine! I may not need it every day, but I’m glad I have it when I’m out in the Great Outdoors!

  5. “Do You Really Need A Self-Defense Firearm?”

    Absolutely not.

    That is, until you do. Then you really, REALLY need it.

    • I’m in your camp. I don’t need one and fortunately never have.

      I own at least one, however, because at the time I do one day need it (and may that day never come) it will be too late to go shopping.

      • The only time I ever needed a self defense fire arm, I didn’t have it. Fortunately I was able to fake having it. Just making it looking like a had my hand on a gun under my shirt on my back hip kept me out of a fight with a likely druggie who was mad I interrupted him breaking into parking meters at 5 am. As soon as he saw me take a stance and reach under my shirt and seem to grab a handle, he stopped approaching, cussed at me and left.

    • Gun sales is just a part-time gig for me, I have an office job too. A female coworker of mine remarked that she’d like to sell her 3″ Security Six (tempting!). Curiosity piqued, I asked why. She hesitated and mumbled that she was afraid she might use it in an emergency.
      I quirked an eyebrow at her and slowly repeated back to her what I heard:
      “You want to get rid of it… because you’re afraid you might need it…”
      “Well, I guess it sounds silly when you put it that way…”
      “Yes,” I replied, “it certainly does.” I reached into my Bag of Rhetorical Tricks and pulled out a favorite, “Tell me, if I look under your kitchen sink, will I find a fire extinguisher?”
      “Well, yes…”
      “Why do you have one? Are you hoping to put out a grease fire this evening?”
      “No! I hope I never need to!”
      “Of course not,” I replied, “because you’re normal. But you’re also practical enough to realise that IF you need it, it would absolutely be the right tool to deal with an emergency that cannot wait for a 911 response.” I let that sink in for a moment.
      “This,” I said, tapping the phone photo she had shown me of her gun, “is your fire extinguisher. If you don’t like it anymore, trade it for one you do like and will be comfortable using… but don’t let yourself be put in a situation where you wish you still had the gun you got rid of.”
      Last I checked, she still has it.

  7. The way media in general portrays our world – YES! Realistically, not so much. If I was blessed with omniscience and knew, beyond any doubt, I didn’t need one I wouldn’t carry.

    Since I have no way to predict what’s going to happen, I’ll continue the practice.

  8. Well, I understand how some people don’t feel the need to carry to protect their children – you know, people who’s children are protected by “large men with guns”, who incidentally live in limited-access compounds with controlled access, fences and walls,

    I do not understand how these same people seem so hell bend on denying that same ability to protect their children with guns, if necessary, to poorer people, single parents, people who don’t have gated communities, fences and door men, to people who live surrounded by more violence; more likely to be victims of opportunity, because of where they live, because of what they can afford.

    I’m kind of appalled at these people’s apparent distaste for women, women living alone, single mothers, and of course “people of color”, demographics that all skew toward both more likely to be targeted, and living in higher-risk areas.

    Why do they insist on disarming the most likely victims; least likely perpetrators?

    Inquiring minds want to know.

    • “Single-parent mother”

      Is this what we’re calling “single mothers” today?
      —————————–
      A Single-parent mother is a mother who is raising a child without assistance from the father.
      A single mother is an unmarried or divorced mother who is raising a child, but the father is still involved.
      The reason why the distinction is important is because some left wing people began to exploit single mother as a victim status, when the father was not only in the life of the child, but paid the majority of expenses for the mother.
      For example, see Wendy Davis of Texas, who was claiming to be a single mother, while in fact, her ex husband was paying for her expenses and had joint custody with her biological children from a previous marriage.
      http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/30/us/texas-democrat-defends-back-story-under-criticism.html

  11. I hope that I never need a self-defense firearm. Still, I’d rather have and not need than need and not have.

    I have responded to friends who ask why I have guns thusly: If I go to my grave never having to fire my guns(s) in self-defense, I’m OK with that. I will not view the expense and training as a waste. On the other hand, I don’t know how I could live with myself if I did not have a gun at hand when it could have been useful.

  13. Do I *hope* to ever need one? Absolutely not.

    Do I *expect* to ever need one? Well, I can’t say as I can’t foresee the rest of my life with perfect accuracy.

    If I’m lucky, I will never need one. However, that said…

    In my experience, there’s no such thing as luck.

    – Obi-Wan “Ben” Kenobi

  14. I have to totally disagree with the idea that most people are in a safe enough environment that they don’t “need” it. My personal experience has taught me otherwise. You are not safe. You are never safe. Saftey is a myth. No matter what anyone says, no matter how clear the area looks, violent attacks can occur at any place at any time, for any reason. Just a few weeks ago I was involved in a DGU outside a gas station at night. Luckily, I didn’t have to kill anyone, but I still had to draw on a guy who decided he wanted to pick a fight with me while he was having a domestic while he was filing his car up. I had the audacity to try and fill up at the pump across from him, which I guess he felt was his. I wasn’t in a rough nieghborhood. It was about 8pm on a Sunday, and in a rather nice area next to a free way, full of people. It wasn’t like this was some sleazy bar at 1am. The point is dangerous people don’t stay in their small circles. They spread out into yours.

    • “The point is dangerous people don’t stay in their small circles. They spread out into yours.”

      Pearl of wisdom for the day.

      • That. Right there.

        Bad people do bad things. ‘Normal’ people lose it and do stupid things in ‘safe’ places all the time.

        Roll the dice or carry a fire extinguisher.

    • Actually, that well known list is incomplete because it omits security.

      Sure, insufficient calories, water, and core body temperature can kill us. So can insufficient security for attackers, both man and beast.

      Some might argue that list implies security under the “shelter” category. I challenge those advocates to explain how a tent is security against a cougar, bear, elephant, or knife-wielding human attacker.

      • You are right about that. I and just about every commentator on this site would list security as a need. I just wanted to illustrate that there actually are very few “needs” in life.

      • I remember looking at the needs hierarchy in a college education course. It was a rather petite gal who brought up the fact that it neglects security. She pointed out that as a single mom she put security ahead of shelter and clothing at least in marginal ways, because not-quite sufficient clothing and not-quite sufficient shelter were inconvenient and uncomfortable, but not-quite-sufficient security put her kid at risk for far more than discomfort or inconvenience.

        Given the rather liberal make-up of the class (and definitely the professor), it was an uncomfortable moment of inconvenient truth.

  16. Do I need one? So far, no. I’ve never needed a fire extinguisger, either. Does anyone suggest banning those?

    So im gonna keep hoping never to need it and I’m gonna keep it handy just in case I ever do.

  17. Statistically speaking no. Statistically speaking I probably don’t need to use a seatbelt either. Statistically speaking no one is going to fly an airliner into my place of work.

    I say this again: I carry (or wear a seatbelt) to protect myself from a black swan event. If I expect something bad to go down I don’t go there.

    • This pretty much sums up my carry reasons.

      If I could carry a parachute and force-field in my pocket, I would 😉

  18. You do not need a self-defense firearm … until you do.

    The problem is that you almost never know ahead of time when you will truly need a self-defense firearm.

    I have experienced multiple events where I truly needed a firearm and did not have one. I have zero interest in repeating such events.

  19. Well, according to The Hollies, “All I Need Is The Air That I Breathe”

    And to love you! /;-D

    But I think I’ll still keep a couple of firearms around, just in case.

  20. The UN says you don’t.

    It also says the U.S. is one of its United “States”

    It says it’s going to achieve single-payer universal healthcare for the entire world by 2030.

  22. I haven’t had a flat tire in just over 30 years and I still have a spare; some things are better to have and not need than to need and not have.

    • No kidding! My last flat was just four miles from home, but putting on the spare and driving beat walking or sitting and waiting for a service truck.

  23. Libtards democrats heads must explode hearing that from a street smart, educated, non poverty pimp, black man.

  25. My son lives in Texas. He called us last night, rather distraught. His brother in law was apparently victim of a mugging and shot to death. His wife’s family is pretty anti-gun and I have all his guns with me in Virginia. I asked him if he was thinking about tooling up. So maybe there’s a trip to Dallas in my future.

    Just like a fire extinguisher you don’t need them until you do. Do I really need a self defense firearm? I sure hope not. But certainly wouldn’t want to put out a fire with my pee.

  26. Don’t need a smoke detector, till you do.
    Don’t need a seatbelt, till you do.
    Don’t need health insurance, till you do.
    Don’t need car insurance, till you do.
    Don’t need social security, till you do.
    Yet the government compels you to have these.
    Don’t need a weapon, till you do.
    Yet the government does all within it’s ability to prevent it.

    Interesting the differences between personal needs and government wants.

    • That’s my thought. You don’t need a weapon until you do, and when you do, if you don’t already have one handy, it’s too late. There are no good substitutes. A cell phone to call 911 is an especially poor substitute.

  28. I “needed” it more when I was younger and didn’t carry. Got robbed twice at gunpoint in my early twenties delivering pizzas. Could have been killed at any moment. Luckily I learned. Ever since I started carrying I became more aware. Don’t go to stupid places with stupid people doing stupid things. As long as I follow that rule it would be extremely rare for me to have to pull my weapon.

  29. It’s interesting to read how people rationalize when, where, why, and if to carry. I do the same thing. I try to carry everywhere and all the time, though not in my home (yes TTAGers that horse is dead). However, when it comes to self defense, I am more concerned about “the” event. Whatever it may be, where general society breaks down and mayhem abounds. This is the scenario, short term or long term, that worries me the most and for which I spend considerable thought and effort preparing for. Any time I travel more than 50 miles from my home I pack accordingly. Rifle, check. Handgun(s), check. Tons of ammo, check. Survival backpack, check. Check, check, check. Yeah, I know the likelihood of such an event happening is even lower than being attacked in my own home yet for some reason I just don’t want to be caught with my proverbial pants down. Am I nuts?

  30. Clearly the only right answer is:

    No. No-one ever needs a firearm for self defense – ever – right up until the instant they do. Then it’s, “Damn! I wish I had a gun on me”. Falls in the same category with all the other stuff you never need like a fire extinguisher, spare tire or jumper-cables. Need and not have, and all that.

    One big difference is there aren’t any jumper-cable ranges where you can enjoy the camaraderie of other jumper-cable aficionados,and argue the perils and pitfalls of 4ga wire while practicing to improve your skills.

  31. What’s interesting to me is where and when I’ve needed one. The two big times that jump out, when my gun actually served to protect me from someone, were when I was doing volunteer work, once in a state park and the other on other public land, both times involving safe beach access. Who would list a state park or public beach area as a place where a gun would be needed for self-defense?

    I’ve carried in the inner city, I’ve carried in the wilderness, both because it seemed reasonable that there would be dangers — but those were not the places I needed the gun.

  32. No I do not need a cowards tool to defend myself because I never needed it!

    I will never submit to the lies of the fascist NRA and the gun lobby in general.

    P.S. The NRA tyrants called me about why I should elect trump….I told them to FOAD and called them the fascist tyrants they are.

    • As a general rule, I prefer to know the meanings of words before I use them. Apparently, some others have no such preference.

    • I’m going to say a silent prayer ever chance I think of it that you will in fact need a self defense firearm.

      Have a nice day.

  33. How much do I need a self-defense firearm?

    About as much as I need pants. Sure, I could walk around without them, but I hate to be so exposed.

  35. “They’re wealthy enough and smart enough to avoid stupid people in stupid places doing stupid things”–what an asinine remark–NONE of use know when or where a criminal will choose to strike–one of the most common remarks to media now a days is “this sort of thing NEVER happens here”-until it does–the so called medical profession is nothing more than legalized drug pushers that makes addicts out of people that will literally do anything for a fix, up to and including murder–because of these ‘last days’ we are in, nothing is the same anymore–need?-absolutely

  36. 1. I’ve never been anywhere that couldn’t INSTANTLY become VERY dangerous at the whim of a single person. How many people were shot at VA Tech the day BEFORE Cho Seung Hui brought his guns to school?

    2. I haven’t believed in the fairy tale of police “protection” of individuals since the 1970s. If you’re not willing and able to protect YOURSELF, you’re just not going to get protected AT ALL. Anybody who tells you different is a liar.

  39. I hope that I’ll never need a firearm. That hope and $4 – $8 will get me a cup of double espresso latte mochachino juice somewhere.
    I carry just about every single place that I can. I can’t respond about the places that I can’t carry, got to keep the bad guys guessing.

  40. No, I don’t need a gun, but the more I hear that question the more I want one…. because fuck you, that’s why.

  43. No. Not really. Not in the basest meaning of need; required for life. But I live in a county 4X larger than RI with 7K people, and I know most of them. I mostly know who the trouble makers are. We rarely have armed robberies here, because virtually all stand ready to repel boarders. The number of guns here dwarfs the number of people. The lowest I know of is about six each, and many have hundreds. The murders(that still happen about once a decade) are mostly family squabbles gone bad, with the victim(s) closely related to the perp. When I carry, its openly, for that requires no permission or fees(bribes) from or to anybody. We still have the actual right to bear arms, so long as we don’t hide them, and the police all know that and don’t cause trouble over it.
    And I still keep a handgun in my vehicle at all times. Its not the bill of NEEDS. I don’t need a 4X4 either, but I sure as hell wouldn’t want to be without one. They are rather useful in a place that can get 3 feet of snow in 24 hours, and three day long blizzards. And fun besides. Exactly like guns. Anyway, whoever wants mine is welcome to them, but they will get the bullets before the firearms.

  44. I’ve only needed to defend myself twice so far in my life. The first time I was a young teenager walking home from a football game (too young to drive) when I was jumped by at least a couple of older guys who only stopped beating on me when a car came by. I started carrying a knife everyday after that. Second time was at a party in college when someone I knew and considered an ok guy started beating on me until I could get away. Since I was at a liberal college in a liberal state, I had (stupidly) stopped carrying my knife. Started carrying it again and joined the Tae Keon Do club the next week. So, you don’t need a weapon until something goes sideways, and then it’s too late if you don’t have one.

  45. I feel grateful knowing that I’ll never need one. Probably. Still, I hope someday to be able to properly exercise my freedoms.

  46. You cannot discount the “Herd Immunity” effect.
    Bad guys know that there are lots of good guys with guns out there, so they modify their behavior to reduce their risk.

  47. Is there a credible threat to me and mine? No. I live in a safe community. I could throw a rock from my back yard into the parking lot of the local police station. I avoid going to stupid places where I may encounter stupid people doing stupid things like the plague. The chances of anything happening to me and my family are very, very low.

    I still need my firearm, for the same reason I need my fire extinguisher. No matter how careful I am or how unlikely an event is, it may still happen. I believe in being prepared, taking care of myself, and taking care of my family. I would call myself negligent if I failed to keep a firearm (or several) around.

  48. Do I need insurance on my car?
    Haven’t used it in the last decade.
    The state says I do.

    Do I need a motorcycle helmet?
    Haven’t had to try it out.
    The state says I do.

    Do I need Health Insurance?
    That I’ve used.
    The State say I must.

    Do I need seat belts?
    Haven’t had a situation where I needed them.
    Again the state think I must have them.

    Do I need a Fire Extinguisher?
    The state…oh wait I figured that one out without the state.

    Seems to me the state should be making it mandatory for me to have a firearm.
    Figured that one out by myself too

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