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BLACK SEA (July 19, 2017) Exercise participants in Bulgarian maritime exercise Breeze steam together in the Black Sea. Ships gathering for the formation include BGS Verni, BGS Smeli, BGS Reshitelni, ROS Regele Ferdinand, TCG Yildirim and SNMG2 flagship HMS Duncan. Exercise Breeze 2017 is a multinational exercise in the Black Sea led by the Bulgarian Navy. The task force this year included the Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2). NATO photo by LPhot Paul Hall/Released.

Olympus Trip 35

Ultrafine Xtreme 400

Medical Friendly Shelter Full Scale Exercise 2018

 

The City held a full-scale exercise of the Medically Friendly Shelter (MFS) designed to establish a learning environment for participants to exercise their MFS operational plans.

The exercise served as a practical walk through of planning, operational coordination, operational communication, logistics and supply chain management, public health, healthcare, and emergency medical services

The MFS is only activated for a Category 2 or greater hurricane or as directed by the City Manager. The MFS is for people who, during periods of evacuation or emergency, require sheltering assistance due to physical, mental or cognitive impairment, or a sensory disability that exceeds the basic level of care provided at a general population shelter, but does not require the level of care provided at a skilled medical facility. This includes help with administering medication, personal hygiene assistance with activities of daily living (washing, dressing and eating).

For more information, visit

www.vbgov.com emergency-preparedness

  

Photography by Craig McClure

18101

 

© 2018

ALL Rights reserved by City of Virginia Beach.

Contact photo[at]vbgov.com for permission to use. Commercial use not allowed.d.

Canadian Armed Forces members of 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group regroup after destroying an objective on a level 5 range during Exercise AGILE RAM, at 3rd Canadian Division Support Base Detachment Wainwright training area, May 27 2021.

 

Photo: Corporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos, Canadian Armed Forces Photo

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Des membres des Forces armées canadiennes du 1er Groupe brigade mécanisé du Canada se regroupent après avoir détruit une cible sur un champ de tir de niveau 5 au cours de l’exercice AGILE RAM, dans le secteur d’entraînement de la Base de soutien de la 3e Division du Canada, détachement Wainwright, le 27 mai 2021.

 

Photo : Caporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos, Forces armées canadiennes

 

Armoured tanks from Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) move out of concealment during Exercise MAPLE RESOLVE 16 in Wainwright, Alberta on June 3, 2016.

 

Photo: Master Corporal Jonathan Barrette, CF Combat Camera

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Dutch Air Force Cougars dropping there cargo at Carlisle Airport during Exercise Tac Blaze 30/5/16

Members of the United States Army Alaska and members of 3rd Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment, Canadian Army parachute to the ground after jumping out of C-130 and C-17 aircrafts over the training area of Fort Greely, Alaska, USA during Exercise Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 22-02 on March 12, 2022.

 

Please credit: Master Sailor Dan Bard, Canadian Forces Combat Camera, Canadian Armed Forces photo

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Des membres de l’armée américaine en Alaska et du 3e Bataillon du Royal 22e Régiment de l’Armée canadienne sautent en parachute depuis des avions C-130 et C-17, au-dessus du secteur d’entraînement de Fort Greely, en Alaska (É. U.) au cours de l’exercice Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 22-02, le 12 mars 2022.

 

Photo : Matelot chef Dan Bard, Caméra de combat des Forces canadiennes, Forces armées canadiennes

 

For a year up in San Francisco, I couldn't get myself to the gym. I went bike riding and walking, but couldn't find my way down the street to the gym (yes, it was 1 block away!). After only 2.5 weeks back in L.A., it was back to the gym today! I am working out at a small private gym without all the fancy machines. It is owned by a trainer who calls himself "the most hated trainer." He is GREAT, somehow managing to get me to do things I was convinced I couldn't do, without pushing me over the edge. It is back to basics: squats, push-ups, pull-ups, kettlebells, TRX, and weights, as well as motion, flexibility and balance. It felt great to be back working out!

A member of The 2nd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment shouts orders to troops during a simulated attack as part of Exercise MAPLE RESOLVE in Wainwright, Alberta on May 21, 2022.

 

Photo by Cpl Aimee Rintjema, Canadian Armed Forces Photo

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Un membre du 2e Bataillon, The Royal Canadian Regiment, crie des ordres aux troupes lors d’une attaque simulée dans le cadre de l’exercice MAPLE RESOLVE, à Wainwright, en Alberta, le 21 mai 2022.

 

Photo : Cpl Aimee Rintjema, Forces armées canadiennes

 

BAY OF BENGAL (Sept. 7, 2007) - A Boeing F/A-18F "Super Hornet" assigned to the Strike Fighter Squadron 102, left, and a Boeing F/A-18E "Super Hornet" from Strike Fighter Squadron 27, foreground, fly in formation with two Indian Navy "Sea Harriers", bottom, and two Indian Air Force "Jaguars", right, over USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) during exercise Malabar 07-2. More than 20,000 personnel from the navies of the United States, Australia, India, Japan and Singapore are participating in the exercise.

1944 - 'OPERATION ORB' - (OPERATION RUFFORD BRIDGE) - 'EXPLOSIVE EXERCISE'

502nd PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT (502nd PIR)

Malian special forces soldiers conduct close quarters battle maneuver training near base camp Loumbila, Burkina Faso, Feb. 25, 2019. The exercise enables Malian soldiers to become proficient with battle movements and communication. (U.S Army photo by Spc. Peter Seidler)

Maybe in some parts of the world, splitting wood is easy, but I grew up with the adage "Split your own wood and warm yourself twice" - once when you split it and again when you burn it. This stubborn piece of oak had me going. In fact, I had buried an inch of a wedge into the chopping block before I realized it had gone all the way through. Then, it took some work to remove the wedges so I could flip the hunk over and work at it from the other side.

Leopard 2A4 tanks from the Royal Canadian Dragoons, C Squadron travel in the Wainwright Garrison training area during Exercise MAPLE RESOLVE on May 15, 2017.

 

Photo: Sgt JF Lauzé, Garrison Imaging Petawawa

PA01-2017-0146-066

Pictured are seven Apache attack helicopters operated by 3 Regiment Army Air Corps flying low over Suffolk during Exercise Talon Gravis.

 

Army aviators have demonstrated the range and power of the punch their Apache attack helicopters can deliver.

 

Exercise Talon Gravis has seen 3 Regiment Army Air Corps (3 Regt AAC) launch formations of up to eight Apaches from their base at Wattisham Flying Station in Suffolk to find and strike targets on land and at sea more than 300 miles away.

 

Flying against simulated enemy air defences, missions have ranged from a daylight attack on shipping in the English Channel off Plymouth to hunting armoured vehicles on Salisbury Plain under the cover of darkness.

 

The Apaches were replenished at a Forward Arming and Refuelling Point (FARP) - the military equivalent of a Formula 1 pit stop – set up at Keevil airfield on Salisbury Plain.

 

3 Regt AAC’s role is to provide an aviation deep manoeuvre battlegroup – made up of attack, reconnaissance and transport helicopters - to 3rd (UK) Division, the British Army’s high readiness warfighting division.

 

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© Crown Copyright 2014

Photographer: Richie Willis

Image 45164292.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk

  

This image is available for high resolution download at www.defenceimagery.mod.uk subject to the terms and conditions of the Open Government License at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/. Search for image number 45164292.jpg

 

For latest news visit www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence

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An American AH64 Apache and UH-60 Blackhawk fly past as a CH-147 Chinook during Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Capability 22-02 at Fort Wainwright, Alaska on March 1, 2022.

 

Please credit: Corporal Angela Gore, Canadian Armed Forces Photo

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Un hélicoptère américain Apache 64 d’attaque et un hélicoptère Blackhawk UH-60 survolent un hélicoptère CH-147 Chinook au cours de l’exercice Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Capability 22-02, à Fort Wainwright, en Alaska, le 1er mars 2022.

 

Photo : Caporale Angela Gore, Forces armées canadiennes

  

Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAV) from Combat Assault Company, 3rd Marine Regiment and the Indonesian Marine Corps along with the United States Ship RUSHMORE (LSD-47) participate in AAV training at Kaneohe Bay, Marine Corps Base Hawaii during Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) on July 9, 2014.

 

Photo: Sgt Matthew McGregor, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

 

Des véhicules d’assaut amphibie (VAA) de la compagnie d’assaut du 3e Régiment des Marines (États-Unis) et du Corps des Marines d’Indonésie ainsi que le United States Ship RUSHMORE (LSD-47) participent à un entraînement avec des VAA dans la baie de Kaneohe, à la base Hawaii du Corps des Marines, le 9 juillet 2014, dans le cadre de l’exercice Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC).

 

Photo : Sgt Matthew McGregor, Caméra de combat des Forces canadiennes

IS2014-1026-08

Merlin Helicopter landing in the snow picking up simulated supplies during exercise Joint Viking.

 

UK MOD / Crown copyright 2023

Divers from St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Mexico, Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago search a ship's hull during Exercise TRADEWINDS 19 in St.Vincent and the Grenadines on 12 June 2019.

 

Photo: MCpl True-dee McCarthy, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

IS03-2019-0011-004

Exercise BALTOPS16 - PHOTEX - 09 JUN 2016 - Photo by WO C. ARTIGUES (HQ MARCOM PHOTOGRAPHER)

Members of 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, conduct a range during exercise PATRICIA STRIKE at 3rd Canadian Division Forces Base Edmonton Detachment Wainwright training area on November 19, 2020.

 

Photo: Corporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos

 

Des membres du 1er Bataillon, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, participent à un exercice de tir dans le cadre de l’exercice PATRICIA STRIKE, dans le secteur d’entraînement du détachement Wainwright, à la Base de soutien de la 3e Division du Canada Edmonton, le 19 novembre 2020.

 

Photo : Caporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos

 

One, it's an exercise of backlight photography. And two, I took these photos at an exercising ground in the park. No, I didn't exercise there, I usually do that in the gym. This is more for kids to play or for older people to maintain their mobility.

French Navy ship, FS AQUITAINE D-650 moves into position in preparation for a Replenishment at Sea (RAS) at sea with MV ASTERIX during Exercise JOINT WARRIOR on October 10, 2020.

 

Photo by: S1 Louis-Philippe Dubé, Canadian Armed Forces

 

Le navire de la Marine française FS AQUITAINE D-650 se met en position en vue de procéder à un ravitaillement en mer (REM) avec le MV ASTERIX au cours de l’exercice JOINT WARRIOR, le 10 octobre 2020.

 

Photo : Mat 1 Louis-Philippe Dubé, Forces armées canadiennes

 

U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Kyle Nielson, with 2nd Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team out of Norfolk, Va., demonstrates how FAST Marines transition from primary to secondary weapons for Australian Army Soldiers with 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment at Robertson Barracks, Darwin, Australia, Nov. 23, 2011. FAST Marines are attending Exercise Semper Fast 2011, a combined training event hosted by 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment focusing on small arms ranges, direct fire ranges, military operations on urban terrain, and light infantry operations. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Pete Thibodeau)

Canadian Armed Forces members from 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group conduct a level 5 range during Exercise AGILE RAM, at 3rd Canadian Division Support Base Detachment Wainwright training area, June 1, 2021.

 

Photo: Corporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos, Canadian Armed Forces Photo

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Des membres des Forces armées canadiennes du 1er Groupe brigade mécanisé du Canada participent à un exercice de tir de niveau 5 au cours de l’exercice AGILE RAM, dans le secteur d’entraînement de la Base de soutien de la 3e Division du Canada, détachement Wainwright, le 1er juin 2021.

 

Photo : Caporal Bryce Cooper, Forces armées canadiennes

 

Yes, I love these shoes to much I had to buy the black pair. It was a nice quick stroll

3 United States Air Force (USAF) C-130 Hercules aircraft carrying German Special Forces paratroopers prepare for take-off during Exercise MAPLE FLAG at 4 Wing Cold Lake, Alberta on June 3, 2016.

 

Photo: Corporal Ian Thompson, 4 Wing Imaging

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©All photographs on this site are copyright: DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) 2011 – 2020 & GETTY IMAGES ®

  

No license is given nor granted in respect of the use of any copyrighted material on this site other than with the express written agreement of DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) ©

  

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I would like to say a huge and heartfelt 'THANK YOU' to GETTY IMAGES, and the 36.018+ Million visitors to my FLICKR site.

  

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This Ten seconds long exposure was taken at 04.15am on a beautiful mist filled Springtime morning in the Golden hour around sunrise (Sunrise was at precisely 05.44am), at an altitude of Twenty fivemetres on Friday 24th April 2020, off Bexley Lane and Rectory Lane within Foots Cray Meadows in Bexley, Kent.

  

After weeks of self isolation due to the global pandemic that we know as COVID-19 Coronavirus, we are allowed to go out for exercise once per day and keep away from others. A walk in the misty meadows today to taste the fresh air and get my limbs moving again.

  

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Nikon D850 Focal length 35mm Shutter speed: Ten seconds long exposure Aperture f/13.0 iso64 Image area FX (36 x 24) NEF RAW L (8256 x 5504). NEF RAW L (14 bit uncompressed) Image size L (8256 x 5504 FX). Focus mode AF-C focus. AF-C Priority Selection: Release. Nikon Back button focusing enabled. AF-S Priority selection: Focus. 3D Tracking watch area: Normal 55 Tracking points.AF-Area mode single point & 73 point switchable. Exposure mode: Manual exposure. Matrix metering. Auto ISO sensitivity control on (Max iso 800/ Miniumum shutter speed 125). White blance on: Auto1. Colour space: RGB. Actve D-lighting: Normal. Vignette control: Normal. Nikon Distortion control: Enabled. Picture control: Auto (Sharpening A +1/Clarity A+1

  

Nikkor AF-S 24-120mm f/4G ED VR. Lee filters SW150 holder. Lee filters SW150 77mm screw in adapter ring. Lee filters SW150 0.6 (2stops) ND Grad Soft resin filter. Mcoplus professional MB-D850 multi function battery grip 6960.Two Nikon EN-EL15a batteries (Priority to battery in Battery grip). Matin quick release neckstrap. My Memory 128GB Class 10 SDXC 80MB/s card. Lowepro Flipside 400 AW camera bag. Nikon GP-1 GPS module. Hoodman HEYENRG round eyepiece oversized eyecup.

    

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LATITUDE: N 51d 25m 21.79s

LONGITUDE: E 0d 7m 14.78s

ALTITUDE: 25.0m

  

RAW (TIFF) FILE: 130.00MB NEF: 90.3MB

PROCESSED (JPeg) FILE: 37.20MB

  

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PROCESSING POWER:

 

Nikon D850 Firmware versions C 1.10 (9/05/2019) LD Distortion Data 2.018 (18/02/20) LF 1.00

 

HP 110-352na Desktop PC with AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 APU 64Bit processor. Radeon HD8400 graphics. 8 GB DDR3 Memory with 1TB Data storage. 64-bit Windows 10. Verbatim USB 2.0 1TB desktop hard drive. WD My Passport Ultra 1tb USB3 Portable hard drive. Nikon ViewNX-1 64bit Version 1.4.1 (18/02/2020). Nikon Capture NX-D 64bit Version 1.6.2 (18/02/2020). Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 (Version 2.4.5 (18/02/2020). Nikon Transfer 2 Version 2.13.5. Adobe photoshop Elements 8 Version 8.0 64bit.

   

HMCS BRANDON sits just outside the area of Juneau Alaska, as the ship supports divers from Fleet Diving Unit Pacific while they conduct mine countermeasure missions on the ocean floor during Exercise ARCTIC EDGE 2022 on March 8, 2022.

 

Please credit: Master Sailor Dan Bard Canadian Forces Combat Camera, Canadian Armed Forces photo

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Le NCSM BRANDON est stationné juste en dehors du secteur de Juneau, en Alaska, à l’appui des plongeurs de l’Unité de plongée de la Flotte (Pacifique) qui participent à des missions de lutte contre les mines sur le fond marin au cours de l’exercice ARCTIC EDGE 2022, le 8 mars 2022.

 

Photo : Matelot chef Dan Bard, Caméra de combat des Forces canadiennes, Forces armées canadiennes

 

Exercise BALTOPS16 - PHOTEX - 09 JUN 2016 - Photo by WO C. ARTIGUES (HQ MARCOM PHOTOGRAPHER)

Canadian Armed Forces members of 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group prepare for a level 5 range during Exercise AGILE RAM, at 3rd Canadian Division Support Base Detachment Wainwright training area, May 27, 2021.

 

Photo: Corporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos, Canadian Armed Forces Photo

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Des membres des Forces armées canadiennes du 1er Groupe brigade mécanisé du Canada se préparent en vue d’un exercice de tir de niveau 5 au cours de l’exercice AGILE RAM, dans le secteur d’entraînement de la Base de soutien de la 3e Division du Canada, détachement Wainwright, le 27 mai 2021.

 

Photo : Caporal Djalma Vuong-De Ramos, Forces armées canadiennes

  

An American Blackhawk helicoptor from the Wisoconsin National Guard rehearses a medical evacuation in preparation for Exercise MAPLE RESOLVE in Wainwright, Alberta on April 29, 2021.

 

Photo: Cpl Rachael Allen, Canadian Forces Combat Camera, Canadian Armed Forces photo

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Un hélicoptère Blackhawk américain de la Garde nationale du Wisconsin s’exerce à des évacuations médicales en préparation à l’exercice MAPLE RESOLVE, à Wainwright, en Alberta, le 29 avril 2021.

 

Photo : Cpl Rachael Allen, Caméra de combat des Forces canadiennes, Forces armées canadiennes

 

Corporal Nicolaus Lalopoulos, a Door Gunner with 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron, mans a FN GAU-21 .50 Caliber Heavy Machine Gun on a CH-146 Griffon training flight during Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 22-02 at Fort Wainwright, Alaska on March 8, 2022.

 

Please credit: Corporal Angela Gore, Canadian Armed Forces Photo

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Le caporal Nicolaus Lalopoulos, mitrailleur de porte au sein du 408e Escadron tactique d’hélicoptères, utilise une mitrailleuse lourde Browning M2 de calibre .50 lors d’un vol d’entraînement à bord d’un hélicoptère CH-146 Griffon au cours de l’exercice Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness 22-02, à Fort Wainwright, en Alaska, le 8 mars 2022.

 

Photo : Caporale Angela Gore, Forces armées canadiennes

 

Technicians from Air Task Force-Romania change one engine on a CF-188 Hornet in Constanta, Romania during Exercise RESILIENT RESOLVE on March 17, 2016.

 

Photo: MS Steeve Picard, 3 Wing Bagotville

BN03-2016-0125-021

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Des techniciens de la Force opérationnelle aérienne en Roumanie changent le moteur d’un chasseur CF-188 Hornet, à Constanta, en Roumanie, au cours de l’exercice RESILIENT RESOLVE, le 17 mars 2016.

 

Photo : Matc Steeve Picard, 3e Escadre Bagotville

BN03-2016-0125-021

30 June 2015

 

London Ambulance Service is today involved in a major exercise to test the emergency services and government response to a terrorist attack in central London.

 

More than 140 operational and support staff alongside specialist London Ambulance Service teams will be testing their emergency medical response to this kind of incident.

 

Director of Operations, Jason Killens, said: “Our response involves getting to the scene as quickly as possible and assessing, triaging and treating any patients there.

 

“In a real life situation we would also be taking these patients to the most appropriate hospital for their care.

 

“We have specialist teams who receive specialist training to work at the scene of mass casualty firearms attacks. The specialist kit includes ballistic vests, helmets and personal protective equipment."

 

This operation, which has been planned for over six months, has been developed jointly by the Metropolitan Police Service and the Home Office. Over 14 different organisations and agencies are taking part.

 

Jason said: "We regularly carry out live exercises to test our plans about how we and the other services would respond to an incident like this.

 

"This exercise will also test our tactical response including working with our emergency services partners and other parts of the NHS.”

 

A full debrief will be carried out after the exercise to make sure that any learning is properly captured.

 

For More info contact:

Communications Department

London Ambulance Service NHS Trust

220 Waterloo Road

London SE1 8SD

Phone: 020 7783 2286

When I arrived in Arizona, a coworker and I started discussing off-roading in all of the beautiful remote places the state had to offer. My coworker told me I needed 4 things:

 

1. A good pair of sunglasses

2. Tinted windows

3. A wide-brimmed hat

4. A gun

 

I'd never even handled or fired a gun until I came to Arizona. The idea of getting one both scared me and intrigued me. I'm not a conservative or a Republican, but I've always believed in gun rights from a theoretical standpoint. It has always shocked me when I hear stories of mass shootings. I always wonder, why didn't any of those innocent bystanders have a gun? The answer isn't always "because it's illegal" (i.e. school campuses). Most people have come to believe that it's acceptable to outsource our personal security to the police. I respect and admire the police. I have friends and relatives who are police officers. But realistically, the job of the police is to get there as soon as they can, clean up the mess, maybe do a little detective work, and every now and then, catch a bad guy (or girl).

 

"When seconds count, the police are minutes away." --bumper sticker

 

Living on the East Coast for so long might have had something to do with my inexperience with guns. The more-Democratic "blue" states on the coasts are much less gun-friendly than the more-Republican "red" states in the middle. Our country has an important history with guns, and that's why it's written right into the Constitution that our right to own guns "shall not be infringed." What's been happening over the past few decades, however, has been that gun rights have been infringed--er, "regulated"--more and more, bit by bit.

 

Nevertheless, in many places out west, it's still perfectly legal to carry a gun on your hip, with no special permits or anything. To me, an Easterner, this seems like an overtly political act. All the employees at the gun store (who are also the teachers of my gun classes) carry guns on their hips (at least when they are at work). They tell stories of being harassed by law enforcement and confronted by concerned strangers. One of my teachers said that if he's not allowed to carry a gun into an establishment, he stops visiting that establishment. Places he's been kicked out of include the local mall and the county fair. He says he hasn't been to either in a decade. After hearing those stories, I realized that it is a very political act to carry a gun, especially openly, and I admire them for it.

 

The biggest hassle of carrying a gun is dealing with all the places you're not allowed to go. It's absurd that a gun owner is not considered a threat outside the post office, but inside it she is (federal law). There are so many surprising and difficult-to-abide-by gun laws that almost every gun owner inadvertently violates one or two of them occasionally. This is one reason why people often prefer to carry concealed. If you have no way to be sure you're not violating a law without hiring a lawyer to follow you around everywhere, it's easier to avoid scrutiny by concealing your weapon. This can be done legally here, with a permit acquired after a couple classes in safety, shooting, and the legal issues involved with gun ownership and concealed-carry.

 

The problem with concealed-carry is that criminals won't have the sight of a gun on your hip to deter them, so you may be mugged even though you're carrying. Then you have to decide what to do. That's a tough decision to make, and it's an even tougher one to execute properly if your plan involves actually pulling out your gun. Usually, the best thing to do, carrying or not, is throw your money on the ground and run.

 

The advantage to concealed carry is you'll be harassed less by people who don't realize that guns are legal and safe when used correctly (or not used at all, which is usually the correct thing to do). It's often the police themselves that don't even realize it's legal for regular citizens to carry guns on their hips, since it happens so rarely (especially in states where permits are required and nearly impossible to obtain). The best thing about concealed-carry is that it has the potential to reduce crimes committed against everyone, even those who aren't carrying guns, since criminals cannot know who is and who isn't carrying.

 

The next thing to rant a bit about is the War on Drugs. I've never used or sold drugs and never will. Nevertheless, I think the drug war is absurd. One of the most frightening aspects of it is that police have abandoned the "knock and announce" procedure they used to follow when serving warrants. Nowadays, if you're suspected of a drug crime, they will simply throw small bombs (flash-bang grenades, intended as a non-lethal distraction, but which occasionally permanently injure or kill) into your house and break in through windows and doors while shouting "Police! search warrant!" Of course, home invading criminals are quite capable of shouting "Police!" just as well as the police can. Police enter homes this way because it is very easy to flush a large amount of drugs down a toilet in a small amount of time.

 

The problem with this is, what if they have the wrong house? It happens fairly often. What if they're acting on bad information? That also happens fairly often. These situations often lead to police officers being shot and the shooters being convicted of murder when the shooters only thought they were defending their homes against invading criminals.

 

What a mess.

 

Another thing I've come to understand is why "gun nuts" stockpile guns and ammunition.

 

In researching all of these arcane gun laws, I've discovered that one trick that is often used by gun-fearing legislators is to chip away at gun rights rather than take them away altogether. They will outlaw some kind of gun, but only if you don't own a gun like that already. This angers gun owners and pro-gun legislators, but since it doesn't require people to turn in their existing guns to the police, it is seen as less of a draconian violation of rights. Automatic weapons were outlawed in the 80s, but only if you didn't own one already. In Washington DC, handguns were outlawed in the home in the 70s, but if you already had one you were exempt. This pattern is repeated time and time again.

 

Imagine yourself as a gun owner, wanting to preserve your rights. Wouldn't it make sense to buy as many guns and as much ammunition as you could? Tomorrow they might outlaw revolvers or semiautomatics. Perhaps they will outlaw guns of a certain caliber. Perhaps they will outlaw hollow-point ammunition (it is more likely to kill, which of course makes it more useful for both crimes and self-defense). But you can rest assured that, if you own that stuff already, you'll be exempt.

 

No, i'm not stockpiling guns or ammo. and no, I'm not turning into a gun nut. If I could wish every gun off the face of the earth, I would. but since guns exist, I believe that I should be able to have one in case I need it. I see it as a tool. I have no emotional attachment to the hammer in my toolbox, and I have no emotional attachment to my gun.

 

"Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it." --bumper sticker

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