Conversation with a Federal Officer

[PennsyPlinker]

I was out and about in the environs of Allentown doing actual work today, "harvesting" a very large walnut tree trunk. The tree came from the mother of the guy who sold me my truck a couple of months ago. We were close to the dealership, so I thought I would stop by for two reasons - one to say thanks again for putting me on to the tree, and two, I was having an electrical problem with my trailer. As an aside, this dealership, Scott Chevrolet, has been a real winner to deal with, and I mean that without the slightest hint of sarcasm. So far these folks have gone over and above anything I have ever experienced at any dealership.

So we were all out front, my friend who was helping me, the salesman, and a mechanic from the service department. I was getting ready to work the light switches on the truck, when I noticed a guy coming up behind me. As I turned to acknowledge his presence, he said,

"Wat'cha carrying there?"

"A .357 magnum."

"I carry a forty."

He raised his cover to display his pistol. I was about to ask him if he was familiar with this forum, when his wife piped up, and this is where the conversation got a little weird.

"See! Why can't I get a gun and carry it like him!?!"

I said, "You can ma'am, and you don't even need a LTCF to carry like I am carrying."

"No, it's him. He won't let me."

"You won't let her? A lady like her could use some protection."

"No. I'm a federal agent. I'm trained for this. There's little kids around. Too many people bring their gun up and then just freeze." He made a motion of drawing and presenting.

"Well I'm just a private citizen. And that's what practice at the range is for", I replied. "And, all my kids grew up learning to handle guns."

"That doesn't do any good. That's only shooting at paper. We train constantly for this stuff."

That was the end of the conversation. I could tell she was frustrated, but there was no way I was getting into it between a man and his wife. Proverbs puts it this way:

Like one who takes a dog by the ears is he who passes by and meddles with strife not belonging to him. Proverbs 26:17

So we let it drop there. There was no comment from him on how I could not carry openly, or it wasn't a good idea, nothing. But I got to thinking, here is a guy who claims to be a federal agent. His wife actually wants to carry, but he won't let her. How many of us would like our wives to have this attitude? There was a random comment about children around, and then the comment about range time only being good for putting holes in paper.

I do not possess the legal acumen of a lot of people on this board, but I can say this with certainty. No one - no one at all - knows if he or she will be able to pull the trigger on another human being until they are in that situation. It is a psychological issue, and different people will respond differently. Men trained as soldiers can crack under the pressure of having to kill their fellow humans. Shy, retiring women can kill in remorseless cold blood if the person is threatening their children. So I don't know what kind of practice this guy does "constantly", and perhaps I don't want to know. I just have to wonder how prepared he, or any of us is in this regard. We can think about it, plan for it, train for it, etc, but until we have someone in our sights with the safety off and a live round in the chamber, we really don't know.

I was glad to not hear anything about my own method of carry. Maybe even the Feds know, or perhaps they just don't care.

[cigarmanpa]

so federal officers train in killing people....so that's what we're doing with people from gitmo

[4XLT]

thanks for sharring Pennsy,, when you quoted his reason all i coudl think of was WOW are you kidding me ???

you would think someone in that line of work would want his wife/family to be able to protect themselves.. why couldnt he "train" her on the proper use and methods of attack ??

just wow...

[JoeWilliams]

A woman with her own gun is self-sufficient and powerful.

Some men don't deal well with that.

[MostlyHarmless]

Swap wives, move on.


Jan

[Paradigm]

I'd be thrilled if my wife was even remotely interested in firearms, let alone shooting one, let alone carrying one!

Kinda amazing that a federal agent is perfectly content leaving his wife vulnerable. Either he thinks she simply can't handle a gun, or he thinks that he'll be able to protect her all of the time. He's wrong on both counts.

[chrisjames_71]

What a tool..every fed I know (and its quite a bit), none would just come out and tell you that.

[JCWohlschlag]

Nice to know that our government trains its employees to be that obtuse. There aren’t enough naturally obtuse people in the world, so training is important.

[camper]

Sounds like the guy is an agent of douche.

camper

[FNG19]

No one - no one at all - knows if he or she will be able to pull the trigger on another human being until they are in that situation. It is a psychological issue, and different people will respond differently.

Wise words indeed, and they echo my sentiments on the matter. Once again, you've proven an excellent ambassador of the Right Wing Extre... er, Gun Community. I'd rep, but the rep button is being reformed by the Obama Administration. I have to spread a little wealth first.