In this country getting a gun is dirt simple - in any largish city, find a pawnshop. Most carry guns. Many don't ask questions. The guns are junk, but if you only need them once, do you really care? Guns are such an ingrained part of our culture that trying to rid ourselves of them would be a fool's crusade. We have to live with them. The black market for firearms is massive, especially when you have states like Vermont which only enforce the bare minimum of gun laws (but consider for a moment you never hear about guns traded in Vermont being used in major crimes).

Personally, I think a handgun carrier is accepting a tremendous responsibility and must be mentally prepared for it. I firmly believe that nobody should carry a gun for purposes of self-defense that is not prepared to use it at a moment's notice should the situation demand it. Furthermore, that gun stays in its holster unless you fully intend to use it, with full knowledge of the risks of that, and the ability to accept whatever consequences may arise. Seriously, people need to think about this. This isn't a matter for law as much as ethics, though.

Still, it makes some people feel safer, or like they are contributing to a safer society, because they carry in public. And given what it's like to be a minority of many different sorts in this country, I can fully appreciate feeling the need for an extra layer of protection. But I personally would caution anyone who is considering it to think long and hard about all of this.