TexasCHLforum.com

sig229fan wrote:There is a very fine line between paranoid and prepared!

It's the difference between thinking "they're after you" as an individual (tinfoil hat time), and recognizing that you need to be ready for the possibility you may be randomly targeted by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Liberty wrote:

sig229fan wrote:Do we wear our seatbelt because of the law, or to be safe? Do we have smoke alarms in our homes to be safe, or because they were there when we moved in?

Errrmmm ahhhh .. Do I have to answer that?
Most people didn't wear seatbelts until it became law. Most people didn't have smoke alarms until it became "code" Most people don't carry handguns.

They don't do those things because they're so certain that accidents, fires, and criminal attacks only happen to other people - until it happens to them. Then they join the refrain of "I never thought something like this could happen here (or "to me")".

bryang wrote:

mr.72 wrote:Well I think there's that factor, plus there's also the factor of "seeing" what you expect to see. Happens in movies all the time. If you take a lot of movies, especially those that are 10+ years old, and look at the special effects sequences, if you pause a frame and really look at it you will find that it's woefully incomplete. It's probably missing all kinds of stuff. Your brain fills in the gaps, replaces things with stuff you would expect to see, figures if you see something unexpected, maybe it is an error or unimportant information so your brain kind of tunes it out. This is the reality of human perception.

That is exactly right, Mr. 72, I was reading a book on situational awareness a while back that was talking about this and historian James Burkes points out that...

"We deny because we're built to see what we want to see. It is the brain which sees not the eye. Reality is in the brain before it is experienced, or else the signals we get from the eye would make no sense.

Some very interesting reading. This is why in situational awareness training we must be made aware of the different kinds of criminal behavior so we can see it before it gets to us and it is too late.

-geo

Excellent point.

If you don't know what to look for, you're even less likely to notice it.

Morgan wrote:Try this test.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GEEvvTiiQk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Great illustration of how easy it is to miss the obvious when you're looking for something else!!

Thanks, Morgan.

Mr. 72 wrote: Here's an example. We were having Thanksgiving dinner at my house with my family over. My parents don't know I carry, but they probably suspect it. My brother doesn't know. My brother-in-law does, and he also carries, and I'm sure he was carrying that day. We had maybe 20-25 family members at the house all hanging around talking about stuff after dinner and my brother-in-law and I were talking about my recent .22LR purchase, and then he mentioned his new CCW gun, and I mentioned my recent CCW gun and holster purchase, and then I proceeded to actually show him my own gun right off of my hip in front of God and everyone. NOBODY noticed.

This is not unusual.

People do not consciously register everything they're looking at. They form internal "models" or shorthand perceptions that fit certain situations and allow them to use their brain processing power for other things. Unless something calls particular attention to something new or unless someone is specifically looking for new things or differences from the past, the chances are excellent they will miss something like an exposed weapon in the short term.

danpate wrote:
I guess I am fortunate to have a legitimate need to carry a gun in the eyes of the general public. I am a small business owner and am at my shop alone quite often, even in the middle of the night when I've been called by the alarm system (It also means I'm not going to get fired for having a weapon at work). Most people would agree I'd be crazy not to carry a gun. I can always use that reason when someone says "Why the heck do you think you need to carry a gun?". Then when they ask me if I am carrying at the present time I lie to them and say "no". I am required by law to conceal my weapon. If I told them I had one it would no longer be concealed would it?

I would like to hear other CHL holder's perspective on this, and if they have had any negative reaction from people when it was revealed that you had a CHL.

There are lots of good answers to the question of why you carry. Here's a short sampling you can use for your amusement and the consternation of your questioners:

1. Because a cop is too heavy.
2. In view of the crime rate here, the more logical question might be: "Why the heck do you think you don't need to carry a gun?"
3. Because my family depends on me, and I can't predict when or where a criminal might try to take me from them or them from me. I don't plan to let that happen.

There are lots of similarly good answers to the "Are you carrying now?" question. Here are just a couple:

1. That's a very personal question in the category of asking a detailed question about my sexual preferences. You and I aren't sufficiently intimate to justify sharing that information.
2. Part of my personal defensive strategy is to never answer that question for anyone but a law enforcement officer acting in his official capacity. If you're in that category, may I see your badge and ID before I reply?

I'm sure the creative members of this forum can give you lots more to work with, but these should get you started.