Recently in Florida, a man confronted a lady sitting in the passenger seat of a car parked illegally in a handicapped space. There were two children in the car as well. When the male owner of the car returned to this heated discussion, he pushed the man to the ground. In return, the man who was pushed pulled out a weapon and fired killing the man. The Sheriff said they wouldn’t press charges on the concealed carrier because of the stand your ground laws.

There are obvious problems with this altercation on numerous levels. To be honest, I’m a person who believes in laws. There were reasons why they are put into place. When I see a seemingly stupid sign that states something obvious, it usually means some stupid person actually did whatever the sign is warning against. And believe me, there are some very not-so-smart people in this world. I watch Cops on TV when I have a few minutes to spare. Its so obvious that a majority of the people law enforcement has to deal with don’t have a full sense of right or wrong. If you don’t like laws, then you should do what you can within the process to get the law repealed.

I get slightly riled when I see someone selfishly parking in a handicapped or no-parking zone just because they are too lazy to park where they should. This was the case in this incident. I would have said something too. In fact, if I could make a citizen’s arrest, I would be doing that on a daily basis. But do you want to know why I resist blabbing my mouth? Why I resist honking my horn or making gestures that would escalate a situation? Its my concealed carry permit. When I carry, I don’t do anything that stirs a boiling pot. Because I know that if someone threatens my life, I have the means to end theirs. And that is the last thing I ever want to do.

If you ask most concealed carriers, they would say the same. Its one reason why you never carry if you have even a drop of alcohol in your system. Its why you don’t carry into bars. For a very few immature people, having a weapon on them makes them more brazen. They become more bold about what they do. Its like a woods thick with Kodiak brown bears. Normally, you wouldn’t even think of going in there. But if you have bear spray and a .454 magnum on hand, you think you’ll tempt fate. Its always a very dangerous thing to do. You never carry looking for a fight. In fact, most of us carry because we don’t want a fight. But if we’re crouching under a table just waiting like sheep to the slaughter, we have a means to protect those we love, including ourselves. We never seek a fight.

This guy was looking for a fight. He wanted to vent his frustration on some illegal action by someone. I can see if he was handicapped or was transporting someone who was handicapped and these people occupied the only space available, then maybe say something. Otherwise, leave it alone. You don’t escalate a situation with heated words ever, but especially if you have a weapon. Even if you are completely justified, you are still going to have to hire a lawyer to protect any criminal or civil litigation. You may also need some therapy to heal your own mind.

Don’t put yourselves in situations where you have to fight. I’m rarely out after 9pm when most danger occurs. I’m not in bars or places where fights take place. I’m not road raging on every car that bothers me. If you are the type who is looking for a fight, you better not be carrying weapons. Its the best way to find trouble and end up fighting for your livelihood.