Wednesday, 25 June 2003
It's been an exciting time, and a busy one. Training classes — not just mine — are going off almost every day, and, particularly outside of the Metro area, permits are already starting to be issued.
There's been some surprises, most of them good ones. The games that many people — myself included — expected to sheriffs to play about permit applications largely have not materialized. In Ramsey County, Sheriff Fletcher's apparent insistence on applicants getting appointments in order to turn in their paperwork of turned out to be merely a request; I've had several students call to say that they didn't make an appointment, but had no trouble getting the deputies on duty to accept their applications. I had initially worried that in Hennepin County, the sheriff's opening of a satellite office to accept applications was part of Sheriff McGowan's ongoing opposition to carry reform — but he and his deputies have been Boy Scouts, as far as I can tell. And that's pretty much been the story from the rest of the state, from what I hear.
At first, I was concerned about the uncertified instructors. Under the law, sheriffs have no choice about accepting certification from AACFI or NRA instructors — I'm certified by AACFI — but don't have to accept proof of training when it's signed off on by uncertified instructors. That's sort of thing that, in the past, would have been an opportunity for abuse, but, as far as I can tell, that abuse just hasn't happened. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension — the BCA — has acted as a clearinghouse for uncertified instructors, processing their syllabuses, and validating those with legitimate course offerings. The sheriffs appear to be accepting BCA-validated courses without any complaint, which is all to the good.
So, all in all, the carry permit training seems to be going quite well, generally. At least, for those people who want carry permits who are already experienced handgun users.
But there are two real weaknesses in what's being offered. Right now, the courses aren't for new handgun users. Most courses — including the AACFI Minnesota Carry Permit Course — are designed for people with significant handgun experience. People without that experience have been pretty much left on their own to find a basic safety course to prepare them to take a carry permit course.
On the other end of the initial carry permit course, realistically, any of the carry permit courses being offered is really just — or should be just — the starting point. Any of the good courses, including my own, will prepare a man or woman to get his or her carry permit... but, in mind strongly held opinion, anybody who is considering carrying a handgun in public should take further training, or at least spend a whole lot of time practicing, before actually carrying handgun in public. I'll save the discussion of safety shooting vs. point shooting for some other time — although I have very strong opinions on that — but for now, let me to say that I think somebody who's going to carry needs to spend many hours with his or her carry weapon, loaded with his or her carry ammunition, at the range, in order to have a realistic chance of being able to use it effectively under the men stress of a life-threatening event.
So there is obviously a need for training at both ends: for new shooters, in order to prepare them to be able to take a carry permit course; and for those who are already qualified for the carry permits, in order for them to be able to be sure that they would be able to function reasonably well in an emergency.
Which, through no coincidence, leads to the class that David Dyer-Bennet and I are going to be teaching on June 6, at Oakville Gun Club. What we're calling our Beginner to Carry class is intended to bridge the gap. In addition to the full AACFI carry class, we're going to be doing an introduction to snubby revolver usage. The class is intended for people with little or no handgun experience, bringing them up to speed and putting them through the AACFI Minnesota Carry Course in one long day. It's more prescriptive than most carry classes; we're dealing only with the snubby revolvers. The manual of arms of a revolver, particularly a Double Action Only (DAO) revolver, is very simple and straightforward. There's no need to deal with issues like safety switches, or the problem of a round being left in the chamber, or the "clearing drills" that are ongoing issues for those who carry semiautos. For another, for most people, the combination of a snubby revolver and pocket holster is a terrific carry method — and that's particularly true for new gun owners. (It's not only true for new gun owners; most of the time, what I carry is a snubby in a pocket holster.) For another, new gun owners are frequently dazzled by the vast array of choices available — choosing one carry method can simplify things, and I'm a big believer in keeping things as simple as possible.
If you're interested, or know somebody who's interested, in getting carry permit, but don't have any handgun experience, feel free to sign up for the course, or give me a call. Carry permits aren't just for people to a who already have a lot of experience with firearms, after all. Lots of folks have a personal safety need, after all. Those people with stalkers, or abusive exes, or who live in bad neighborhoods of may well find that carrying handgun is a little bit of extra insurance. Looking into it, at least, is a good idea, I think.