Do you carry a gun?

Kishke:

I did not own a gun in 1992. This series is about how I decided to buy a gun, and to to join the NRA.

Specifically in answer to your question:
In California, you must have a Concealed Carry Permit in order to legally carry a gun.

Chilling. Though I grew up in the Valley, I was off at grad school on the East Coast at the time, so the riots did not feel very close. But whenever I hear friends who were living or working in the city tell their riot stories, it hits home. And now that we're considering moving to the Westside from the Valley, these stories give me pause.

You're beating me to the punch! -:)
Mazal tov.

Amazing how ironic, surreal, and scary real life can be! I bet you identify all of the back doors and fire exits without thinking these days. Excited to read part two...

Nedra:

"The riots..." Didn't you get the memo from the left, it was "an uprising."

As for pausing in considering a move to the Westside, let me just say this: no matter where one lives, there is always something to fear. You cannot let the fear of fear rule your life.

Your wonderful use of imagery -- similes & metaphors -- always stand out for me. Your REPEATED wonderful use of imagery always stands out for me.

I recall reading your Jews & Guns essay both in print and online, I believe, and back then when I read how you described eldest daughter trembling like a frightened rabbit, I couldn't shake that perfect image. It was so fitting when I first read it, and equally fitting now.

Maj. Hilts:

Oh boy, am I that easy to read? Anyway, here are:

Seraphic Secret Restaurant Rules:

1. Find table closest to rear exit.
2. Sit with back to wall.
3. Never sit on the inside of a booth. Too easy to get trapped there.
4. Make sure to have 360 view of room.
5. Check for location of walls and barriers that are thick enough to stop bullets.

You're right, don't think, just act. Good instincts can keep you alive on the battlefield. Marine sniper Carlos Hathcock, in his fascinating autobiography, writes in depth about this "survival instinct."

Pearl:

And you know what Offspring #2 says about my rabbit metaphor?

"Oh Daddy, you always say that! It' soooooo annoying."

Tell Offspring #2 that daughters are entitled to think differently than imagery-loving friends! ;)

No, I understood that you didn't have a gun then. You said in an earlier post that it was the riots that sparked the interest in gun ownership. What I was asking was whether you carry today, my point being that if one does not carry, merely owning a gun will not protect against random incidents like the RK riots.

This story is just as gripping as when I heard it from you first hand last year in brooklyn.

I hope your producer friend does not read this blog.

First hand=in person.

I remember that day and those that followed quite well.

I was a poor college student who just happened to be teaching CPR at an office around Vermont and 6th.

My trip back to the valley took me through some clumps of people. It was not pleasant.

During the thick of things I helped two friends leave their apartment on Corning and Pico.

Little did we know that the Baskin Robbins we liked was going to be used as kindling.

There are a lot of stories from those days.

I remember the guns and those who had them.

For a long time afterwards I was asked by friends to come spend the night as they were afraid to be alone.

Some of these events repeated themselves following the Northridge quake.

Sent from my Treo.

I can't wait to read the rest of the story!

The kids (human) were complaining this week that we have not had a family fun day in a while. They want to go to the shooting range...DH assumed it would be a "men only" outing...but I jumped right in..."No way...Robert and Crusin' Mom go shooting...if I don't go...nobody goes!"

"Dad, I think she's serious!!"

They have no idea how serious!

Lisa, imagine if the other "kids" would have been bleating and complaining about not getting out enough, and wanting to go to the shooting range too. On the other hand, maybe you DON'T want to think about that! :)

Ok, now that I am home again I can type a proper response. When I think about the early '90s I remember it as being a wild and woolly time. We had fires, mudslides, the riots and the earthquake.

There was a guy who used to show up on campus with this huge cross and a sign encouraging us all to repent. He was quite the character.

and the police are revealed to be helpless, hopeless -- and useless.

That was quite true. On the first night of the riots I received a phone call from a friend who was afraid to stay home alone so she asked me to pick her up.

On my way over to her apartment I was pulled over by an older cop. I explained why I was out and asked him to let me go. He said ok but told me that I should go as quickly as I could because I was on my own.

He also told me that if I got stuck in a crowd I should do whatever it took to free myself.

That is when I knew that things were much worse than I had thought.

and the police are revealed to be helpless, hopeless -- and useless.

That's what the National Guard is for. If everyone does their job right, then the police are once again capable.

Lisa:

Glad to hear that CM and I are role models. BTW, don't forget the babke afterwards. Contact CM for the recipe.

Jack:

You write: "I remember the guns and those who had them."

It seemed that the criminals and looters were the ones with the guns and we, law-abiding citizens, were at the mercy of the barbarians.

But the Korean shop keepers defended their businesses by force of arms. The Koreans were brave and resourceful, and the looters fled, afraid to confront those with equal firepower.

Robert,

I drove through Koreatown and I remember those store owners on the roof tops.

It seemed that the criminals and looters were the ones with the guns and we, law-abiding citizens, were at the mercy of the barbarians.

Actually I knew quite a few people who had guns who fall into the law-abiding citizen class. Several of them purchased their guns for just such a time as the riots. They had always told me that they expected something like to happen after a big earthquake.

Jeremiah:

You write: "That's what the National Guard is for."

I count on myself when it comes to the safety of my family. I'll never ever trust the authorities. Because in times of civil disorder civil servants melt away to take care of their families, and we're on our own, left to fight off the well-armed barbarians.

Jack:

I will be getting to those law-abiding gun owners in my story. They have, as you can imagine, a special place in my narrative.

Ari:

Glad you like the story, even the second time around.

Well, I must say, my gun-shootin' days are the last thing I ever thought would make me a role model.

Riots are what happens when there is too much love and not enough accountability and responsibility for one's actions.

CM:

I know, you thought it would be the babke. Just goes to show, bullets over babke every time.

S,C&A:

I have to confess, I did not notice a great deal of love.

Riots? Earthquakes? Anyone who went to the L.A. Raiders games at the Collesium back in the 80's quickly learned it was better to go armed or not at all. I still instinctively reach for a gun whenever I see someone wearing a Raiders jersey in public. Come to think of it, they should make people get a special permit to wear Raiders merchandise in public. That would save more lives that gun permit laws.

I was in elementary school when the riots broke out; we were all sent home midday with a rumor passing through the school that there was a fire across the street. I remember how we could see the fires and smoke. It was like the whole Los Angeles was on fire and, on the news, the police stood by and watched as reporters interviewed people bragging about their vandalism.

It's funny how your prespective can change about things when something like those riots occur. I never, ever thought about owning a gun and I despised the NRA. But that changed after Hurricane Katrina hit my hometown of Gulfport Mississippi. My son kept brought his gun from his Dad's and I felt safer. I'm thinking of buying one for myself.

There were no phones working: cell or land. There was no electricity. The police were digging themselves out of their police stations and command centers and rescuing people. I was fortunate that on my street, there were two military families, and we all watched over one another. Strangers(looters?) had no success on my street.

I fully support the NRA after seeing the unlawful confiscation of guns from those in New Orleans who were registered owners.

Your post evokes the fright that I could only imagine when reading or watching about the riots in the news.

Actually, Pearl was kind enough to email me a babke recipe which I will make in the morning so the day is shaping up nicely thanks to you all!

My brief experience with firearm laws taught me that it is virtually impossible to get a concealed weapon permit in any of the urbanized counties in California. Unless you know someone in the police or sheriff's departments, you're basically not getting a license. And G-d help you if the police ever seize (or you voluntarily give them) your gun. Because you're not getting it back without His help.

Fern:

You are absolutely correct -- for the most part. though I do know a few individuals who deal with precious gems and as such are targets for violent crime. They have CCP's. But yes, otherwise, it is extremely hard to obtain the permit.

Seawitch:

I find it highly commendable that you are able to admit that your past position on guns and the NRA were pretty irrational. In the real world, guns in the hands of responsible and lawful citizens, are often what keeps society from slipping into anarchy.