Does your CHL make you nicer?

[Embalmo]

Guys,

Does you CHL make you a nicer, friendlier person? I have found that when I am carrying, I am more inclined to used a softer, less argumentative tone, and I tend to back down from heated arguments, especially when the discussion gets heated to the point of a verbal fight. I just don't want to find myself in a situation where I'm in a yelling or shoving match and I hear in the distance, "Over there officer, that's them!" and have to explain the gun in my pocket; or I have to draw on a moron who's grabbed a tire iron.

I think Anti's don't get that we as CHLs want draw and/or discharge our weapons just as much as we want to use our life insurance policies, but we certainly see the need for both. I always think of the REM song when I think of the consequences of drawing on a human-"It's the end of the world as we know it", but I most assuredly don't feel fine.

Embalmo

[davidtx]

Definitely. I'm much calmer when driving. I haven't had any personal confrontations since carrying, but I'm sure I'd be much more likely to let the other guy win the argument.

[Embalmo]

Still, it's a guilty pleasure of mine to, while being insulted or berated, think to myself, "You absolute moron, you have no idea that my right hand is on the handle of a loaded gun!" Is that wrong?

Embalmo

[Embalmo]

It's not just that I worry about my gun, I'm now keenly aware how easy it is to obtain and conceal (illegally) multiple weapons, so I now maintain the assumption that everyone is armed.

Embalmo

[jester]

I don't think there's a difference in my behavior. However, I'm a big guy and I started studying martial arts when I was 11 so by the time high school rolled around, I knew I didn't have to fight to prove anything.

[lowonair]

i've always been a nicer person(maybe too nice) but it has made me more aware of my surroundings and keeps me from participating in alot of shenanigans that would probably cause trouble.

[fickman]

I don't know about nicer. . . in fact, I have to shy away from some friendly "nice-to-see-you" hugs.

I'm definitely calmer, slower to anger, and impossible to rile with words alone. . . with my ego in check and my pride unafraid of leaving incoming insults uncontested.

[03Lightningrocks]

I have always tried to be a friendly guy and I am just big enough that the average tough guy looking to pick a fight is either going to choose the little guy or someone bigger than me to prove he is tough. I have however had a habit of "debating" a position less while armed. I try not to get too upset over issues that are not going to matter ten minutes later. I really don't want to cause the other feller to do something that will cause me to have to take a life.

I have been involved in two self defense shootings. One was after taking three shots to my head with a ball bat. The first a straight on blow the second two got me but I deflected the blows with my arms enough that the guy didn't kill me. He jumped me in a parking lot after he earlier tried to stab me and I darned near knocked him out, as he came at me, with a small round cooler I had filled with ice. He was larger than I and it helped in my legal situation that he not only attacked once but waited in a parking lot 20 minutes to attack me again. That was in the days before CHL and believe it or not some police departments would allow these things to go as long as nobody gets killed or hospitalized. Neither of us pressed charges because I was illegal having a gun and he was facing aggravated assault. It was swept under the rug by the supervisor because his officers arrested neither of us that night and I think he knew they had handled it wrong as well. By the way... I reported the incident right after he drove off very quickly. First to report the incident usually gets extra points...LOL.

The second shooting was a road rage(against me) that I could not get them to leave me alone. They drove up on me with a shotgun hanging out the window and I unloaded on them. I went home and reported the incident and got arrested. They denied having a shot gun but several witnesses had called on the cell phone saying the two guys were trying to kill a guy and his son in a truck on the Dallas Tollway. 17500 dollars later and a two night stint in Lew Steret I went home. No-Billed... the D.A. said he was disgusted that I was arrested but it was too late to get my 15 grand (10%) back in bail money. the Judge who set bail was some kind of anti gun nut and hated men. The bail was set about 125K higher than it should have been but she was trying to make me sit in jail... I showed her...LOL.

This would be the first time I ever went into what kind of self defense shootings I was involved in so what the heck... I have been asked privately a few times what it was and there it is now. Point is... things like this make you question if you could have done anything to avoid these situations and even causes you to be real hesitant when getting challenged. My daughter and son are both good at telling me to not let folks get me riled up too. Even if you try to be the nicest guy in the world, some folks just won't leave you alone.

Armed or not... I am never friendly or even cordial when approached by a person acting threatening in public. I get aggressive very fast if threatened. Armed or not. Thank god it rarely ever happens.

[lowonair]

Even if you try to be the nicest guy in the world, some folks just won't leave you alone.

this is true. do you think that staying and calling 911 would have saved you the money in the end?

[03Lightningrocks]

Even if you try to be the nicest guy in the world, some folks just won't leave you alone.

this is true. do you think that staying and calling 911 would have saved you the money in the end?

In the first situation I am not sure 911 was around yet but it would be hard to call 911 while someone is beating you over the head with a bat. DFW airport is a very lonely place at 2 am or so. I worked there and it was a fellow employee. He was known to be a bully and it was my turn. he settled down after that and turned into a nice guy. I think the bullets flying past him had some affect. We didn't have cell phones back then and being 21 years old I was dumb enough to think it was over after his first attack.

The second one I could not grab my phone because it had slid under the seat after he tried to ram me and i made a sharp manuever. The gun was tucked tighly between the seat and console so it was in my hand before they got up beside me. I only fired after seeing the shot gun hanging out the window. I tried slowing down and speeding up... the nut would not leave me alone. To this day i am not sure what I did to make him mad at me. That ws also a late night thing. We were coming home from a Turkey day deer hunt. Nice way to end an otherwise terrific weekend.

Noone was hit either time as the situations were very fast moving. i am glad nobody was killed either time.

[lowonair]

Even if you try to be the nicest guy in the world, some folks just won't leave you alone.

this is true. do you think that staying and calling 911 would have saved you the money in the end?

In the first situation I am not sure 911 was around yet but it would be hard to call 911 while someone is beating you over the head with a bat. DFW airport is a very lonely place at 2 am or so. we didn't have cell phones back then and being 21 years old I was dumb enough to think it was over after his first attack.

The second one I could not grab my phone because it had slid under the seat after he tried to ram me and i made a sharp manuever. The gun was tucked tighly between the seat and console so it was in my hand before they got up beside me. I only fired after seeing the shot gun hanging out the window. I tried slowing down and speeding up... the nut would not leave me alone. To this day i am not sure what I did to make him mad at me. That ws also a late night thing. We were coming home from a Turkey day deer hunt. Nice way to end an otherwise terrific weekend.

i meant the second one. you never know how you will handle it until it happens. glad you are still above ground.

[03Lightningrocks]

Even if you try to be the nicest guy in the world, some folks just won't leave you alone.

this is true. do you think that staying and calling 911 would have saved you the money in the end?

In the first situation I am not sure 911 was around yet but it would be hard to call 911 while someone is beating you over the head with a bat. DFW airport is a very lonely place at 2 am or so. we didn't have cell phones back then and being 21 years old I was dumb enough to think it was over after his first attack.

The second one I could not grab my phone because it had slid under the seat after he tried to ram me and i made a sharp manuever. The gun was tucked tighly between the seat and console so it was in my hand before they got up beside me. I only fired after seeing the shot gun hanging out the window. I tried slowing down and speeding up... the nut would not leave me alone. To this day i am not sure what I did to make him mad at me. That ws also a late night thing. We were coming home from a Turkey day deer hunt. Nice way to end an otherwise terrific weekend.

i meant the second one. you never know how you will handle it until it happens. glad you are still above ground.

My son was around 12 or 14 at the time and having him with me probably saved my life. back then...15 years or so ago.... I would have stopped at the side of the road and duked it out with him...LOL. he would have probably blasted me with that shot gun on the side of the road. Having my son with me kept me from confronting them. I could not risk his safety to do it.

[03Lightningrocks]

P.S. Something else that made the second situation even tougher is that they kept trying to get on the right side of my truck. They even jumped on the shoulder at one point to try this. That was my sons side and not knowing if they had a gunor not, no way in hell were they going to get on his side. Any shots from them were going to have to get through me to get my son.

[karl]

Still, it's a guilty pleasure of mine to, while being insulted or berated, think to myself, "You absolute moron, you have no idea that my right hand is on the handle of a loaded gun!" Is that wrong?

Embalmo

I do it too, I would guess that sins of the mind are still sins but my lips are sealed . I noticed the biggest change in my driving style. I was never really an aggressive highway driver but wouldn't hesitate to flip the bird to someone who acted like a complete boob. Now I generally just suck it up, although I do occasionally flash my brights a little longer than I ought to, I catch myself now and again.

[mgood]

I have found that when I am carrying, I am more inclined to used a softer, less argumentative tone, and I tend to back down from heated arguments, especially when the discussion gets heated to the point of a verbal fight.

Yes.
I don't want to be seen as having escalated the situation in any way. If someone cuts me off in traffic and I flip him the bird (not something I ever made a habit of, but I'm not going to say it never happened), then he follows me to where I'm going and jumps out to confront me, possibly with a knife or club, and I have to shoot to defend myself . . . someone will say I started it by flipping him off.
I can't get into an argument that could potentially lead to a fight. If it does . . .
I go further out of my way to avoid trouble when I'm armed than I ever did before I got a CHL.

Still, it's a guilty pleasure of mine to, while being insulted or berated, think to myself, "You absolute moron, you have no idea that my right hand is on the handle of a loaded gun!" Is that wrong?

Maybe a little wrong, but human.