Tough Question....

I have been thinking about applying for a concealed carry permit for months now. I've more or less decided to go ahead with it and am currently waiting for the funds. However I was talking to a friend of mine this past weekend and she asked me a tough, yet interesting, question.

Could I kill another human being?

If I decide to begin carrying, and I have a need for the weapon could I in fact kill someone. I knew my default reaction was to say "of course" yet I bit my tongue and actually thought about it.

I think I could. I understand that what I train in does enable me to do serious harm to another human being however I know that with my bare hands I can regulate the amount of force applied, do I want to pin, submit, choke? How long do I want to hold a choke? I can make these decisions and regulate the effects better in an unarmed situation.

I also know despite my training I'm not comfortable carrying a knife. I know I would be unable to stab someone if the need arose. So is a gun all that different?

I took a moment and reconsidered my desires for wanting to carry concealed. I want to be able to defend myself should the need arise, I distrust the police and do not wish to be wholly reliant on them for my protection. Lastly, I fear loosing the right without ever exercising it.

I feel I would be able to shoot if the need arose, yet the thought worries me. I plan on training, and hopefully competing to make sure I am as wholly comfortable with my chosen firearm. I plan on seeking out the advice of professionals in both what firearm I carry and how I carry, the holster, the position etc.

I hope all these measures will make me as comfortable and sure of myself as possible.

However, Until I have reached that level of comfort I think I would hesitate to carry concealed 24/7. Yet only time will tell.

So to answer the tough question, I think I could kill in self defense though I hope to never have to find out.