Quote:
Originally Posted by GDJMSP
If I may offer a possible explanation. Think of it this way - you;re out in the woods, maybe hunting, maybe just taking a walk and enjoying the outdoors. But you encounter a bear. Now normally this would be no big deal. The bear woul dlikely be aware of your presence long before you were aware of it and both of you would go on your separate ways.
However, if that is a sow bear with a cub or cubs (children) - then the encounter may not be quite as pleasant. It could even turn out to be quite dangerous - to you.
Same thing with a moose and many other wild animals. Same thing with more than a few domesticated animals.
It's the same kind of thing with humans. It is 100% natural for all of us to be overly protective of children. There is no other thing in the world that will elicit a faster and more widespread response than a call of - child in danger. Total strangers will respond instantly and agressively, very agressively. They will instantly be willing to literally give their lives in order to protect the child that they don't even know.
Now to you and me, and most other members of this forum - seeing somebody carrying a gun whether openly or concealed is no big deal. But it is a cold hard fact that the general public does not see it this way. They see someone who is not a LEO with a gun and they become quite nervous. Now if it is a situation where there is no one around but adults, then they may be nervous but will likely not do or say anything.
But let children enter into that situation and the protect the young at all cost instinct immediately jumps to the forefront. And that being nervous can quickly escalate into almost anything.
I guess bottom line there just isn't any explanation other than to say that it is animal and human nature to become overly protective when the young and/or children are present. It's instinctual, not something that is learned or conditioned.
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While the answer you give is logical, it doesn't address the real reasoning. You can not explain away the reactions as instinct because they apply only to people who are not uniformed police, and in almost every case, the gun carrier is approached first before the" OH NOEZ" start. The argument just doesn't work.