In the past few days I've recieved lots of advice and suggestions -- in comments here, e-mails, phone calls and personal conversations with friends -- regarding my considering applying for a concealed carry permit -- plans I had long before this blow-up.

I also received a number of invitations to training classes.

I really appreciate all of the generous offers to help.

As many of you know, obtaining a permit is no simple process. "Concealed Carry," in a comment to a previous blog entry, offered what I thought was a pretty good and concise rundown of the process. For those of you who didn't see it, I'll paste it at the end of this blog entry. For the more detailed guide available through packing.org, click HERE.

One thing I learned was that a military DD-214 (discharge form) showing an honorable discharge can help expedite the process because veterans have typically had some firearms training.

Even though I was in the Navy I still got quite a bit of small arms training.

Many of the crew on our ship had to show proficiency with small arms.

I recall qualifying with a .45 pistol at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. I can't remember the exact details, except I know we were at close range, maybe 10 yards from the target. The target was a silhouette and the Marine gunnery sergeant who was overseeing the training told us, as only a gunny can, to shoot only at the torso. "I don't want you all shooting at the head!" I couldn't blame him as he was used to dealing with plenty of people who'd never shot before.

I think we got 25 shots and had to hit 15 or something to meet the requirements. Again, this wasn't for any kind of medal; just a basic proficiency thing.

Not that I was an expert, but I wasn't going to miss the torso at 10 yards. So after connecting with my first 20 shots I was looking for more of a challenge. When the gunny saw those five holes in my target's head he gave me this angry look. I shrugged and said, "It must shoot high when the barrel gets hot." He just gritted his teeth, shook his head and walked away.

I was part of our Ship's Self Defense Force (SSDF) so I got some additional training.

As part of SSDF school we actually got to do some exercises with paintball guns. One of the drills was in a building at Little Creek that was built up to simulate the interior of a ship.

In one drill I was part of the defense force and we were being hit pretty hard by a big group of hostiles. I was in a position behind an open hatch (that's door for all you non-Navy folks) when I saw a hostile slowly approaching from the adjacent compartment. It's not like these hostiles were Navy SEALs or anything. They were just other members of the class, and this guy had left himself pretty vulnerable. We all were wearing heavy-duty protective gear but it just so happened that the best shot I had at this guy was at his neck, which was bare and shining like a beacon in the dim light. Well, I took it and I didn't miss. Have you ever seen anyone hit on bare skin by a paintball at a range of 12 inches? That welt was something to behold.

We were an amphibious ship so we had Marines on board during our cruises and long exercises. Sometimes they would hold "famfires" on our helicopter pad. I would join them whenever I could. We got to shoot everything from 9mm and .45 cal sidearms to good old Ma Duce, the Browning M2 .50 cal machine gun. They would time the famfires with our garbage dumps (back then we just threw bags of trash right off the ship) so that garbage would be our targets. You can guess what a .50 cal round does to a bag of trash. On the way back from cruise they wanted to burn through a bunch of ammo so they didn't have to deal with it when they got back to Camp Lejeune. We shot for hours.

The irony is that when we actually were armed on board -- and we were over in the Med after Desert Storm so things were kind of sketchy at times -- we didn't actually carry ammunition. The guns were just for show. We were worse off than Barney Fife.

Even with that past training I would take a class before applying for a concealed carry permit because there are lots of different issues and responsibilities when it comes to carrying and/or transporting weapons in the civilian world.

Enough about the good old days. Here is that wrap-up I promised, courtesy of commentator "Conceal Carry":

"First. Sign up for and attend an NRA certified basic pistol course fees may vary. This course consists of classroom training, a book, a written test and proficiency with a firearm at the range (shooting the gun) upon successfull completion you will receive a certificate with the NRA logo and instructor information and the date you completed the course.

Second. Go to the clerk of the court of the city or county of your residency, present your driver's license and ask for an application for a conceal carry permit. The application will ask for specific information and you will have to answer questons similar to those that are found on any Federal Firearms form. Answer the questions and otherwise honestly and completely fill out the information. Upon completion your application will be reviewed for accuracy and completeness and you will be assesed a fee for a backround check and processing. This background check can take as little as one week to no more than one month, during that time your history will be reviewed and your name will be put through the FBI and other agencies.

Third. Upon approval you must go back to the court where they will issue the permit only after your fingerprints have been added to the computer.

Fourth. Stay safe and get to the range to practice, practice and practice."

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• Posted by Mark Taylor in Shooting
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