Should Military Recognize State Concealed Carry Licenses
31 JAN letter to the Army Times at http://www.armytimes.com/community/o...ditor-013111w/
Quote:
Let soldiers carry arms
The concealed carry of firearms is against the law on all military bases. Why are those sworn to protect our nation against all enemies prohibited from carrying firearms by shortsighted and risk-averse policies of the past? Our families, units and friends sit defenseless on post. I thought this policy would have changed following the Fort Hood, Texas, massacre, but it has not. Does someone think soldiers are going to shoot at the military police? Are we going to road rage and shoot fellow servicemen and families on post? Are we disarming the whole military to bring the risk of accidental discharge down from .003 percent to zero?
How absolutely ridiculous do these reasons sound after one looks at the carnage and sorrow caused by just one villainous traitor at Fort Hood? Would 13 have died at Fort Hood if even 5 percent of the soldiers in that room had been armed? Would the shooter even have carried out his crime if he knew that his victims would not be defenseless? Maybe not.
At this time, the only people that serve as first line of defenders for our communities are those who carry a pistol despite the possibility of Uniform Code of Military Justice action being brought against them.
We are professionals. Let us carry our weapons. Do not prevent us from fulfilling our oath to duty.
— Sgt. John Koenig, Columbus, Ga.
What do you think?
Where will you draw the line ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
DVC
What do you think?
There's probably just as many that would argue against concealed carry on a US Military base. I'm an NRA life member and take my gun ownership rights seriously. But, I don't see the immediate benefits of an overall concealed carry on base. Who's next ? The guys that drive in with the trash trucks ? Who's responsible for all this ? The base commander :rolleyes:
I can only imagine the end result that day on Hood if Hasan was faced with 13 firearms from every direction blasting away. If Hasan was considered crazy, it's unlikely that he would have had second thoughts knowing his potential victims were all armed.
Ask Council Member Slapout how his "shootout with a friggin nut-case" went.
I also have a law enforcement ppt with four wounded LEOs and the perp still standing and reloading after being hit with six 5.56 and four .45 rounds.
Honestly, I see a nightmare in the making.
Johnny Cash Wrote A song About It
"Dont take your guns to town, leave your guns at home."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raXKeQ5qFwo
Some good points on both sides of this argument
Military bases are like schools in that they are both gun free zones. This means that a terrorist or a lunatic could do a lot of damage before security forces arrive on scene. I work in a secure office building on a military base and sometimes worry that if an armed attacker gained access to the building he or she could kill a lot of persons before armed security personnel arrived to eliminate the threat.
At a personal level, the DOD policy means that I cannot exercise my concealed carry privileges when I am going to and from my workplace. At this current point in time I carry a concealed weapon whenever I can but the DOD restriction limits these periods to evenings and weekends.
I agree that unrestricted carry by everyone on base is probably a bad idea but I think that the limitations mentioned by some posters as to who could carry make sense. I would go a little further and suggest restricting carry privileges to E-6 and above in the enlisted ranks, and O-4 and above in the officer ranks.