Here is an interesting opinion piece by blogger Frank M Taylor of Colorado about the theater massacre in Aurora. It is basically a rant against the debate on gun control. He blasts those that think there should be more gun control and he blasts those that think there should be less. He is especially critical of those who talk about what they would have done in that situation had they had a gun. He makes outstanding points. Keep in mind that he himself owns an assault rifle, two handguns, and a shotgun.

However, many of his points talk about the difference between those that have been in the military or police officers and just civilians that get a conceal carry license and play with their guns every now and then. He says:

"Even if you’re police or military, there’s a difference between training for this and experiencing it. Unless you’ve experienced a fire-fight, shut up."

I can personally say I have been in the military, have been in fire fights, and have killed people. So I know he is not talking about me when he says "shut up". But the point he does make is that with our current laws about who can obtain a conceal carry permit, having civilians with guns on scene might not have necessarily resulted in the gunman being taken down.

Here are a few of his key points for people wanting to get a conceal carry license:

It is perfectly legal to conceal a firearm in a movie theater in Colorado if you have a license
Colorado concealed-carry classes aren’t required to be taught by law enforcement
Colorado concealed-carry classes don’t require that you demonstrate proficiency with a fire arm
Colorado concealed-carry classes don’t require that you even shoot a firearm

That is pitiful. Absolutely pitiful standard for obtaining a conceal carry license.

So while I am completely against weapon bans, I do believe the standard for being able to carry a concealed weapon needs to be raised quite a bit. We can still allow any law abiding citizen to own a gun, keep it at home for self defense and allowed to go out for target practice in the middle of a field or hunting, but we do not need inproficient idiots running around with weapons.

Some may argue that they do not have to be proficient because most of the time just pulling a gun on a would-be robber will make them flee. But the standard should be that you should never pull it unless you intend to use it. That does not mean you would pull the trigger if the robber runs away, it just means you intend to. Anybody who carries a concealed weapon should be expected to have a high level of proficiency if they intend to use it.

Here is his entire blog post:

http://blog.frankmtaylor.com/2012/07/21/yes-you-can-shutup-about-colorado-and-keep-your-opinions-on-gun-control-to-yourself/