Interesting article in the Houston Chronicle about the spike in applications for gun permits. Despite the blogginations of various anti-law enforcement blogtaters, the citizens we serve are showing that they are so afraid of crime that they are arming themselves in increasing numbers.

I would be very interested to see a geographic breakdown of applicatant locales, to see whether the spike is from big cities, small towns, the country or all of the above.

To me, this sends a strong implied message that the populace supports vigorous prosecution AND lengthy incarcertion of violent criminals, and that an increasing number of the public recognizes the random violence threat that persons like violent parolees pose.

I personally think that it is the fear of violent crime instead of the presidential election that is causing the spike in gun permits.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5762984.html

Texas caught off guard as more seek handgun permits

Some point to anti-gun politics as applications rise 39 percent and swamp the state


By JANET ELLIOTT
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle

During the week that ended Friday, DPS said, it processed 1,043 original and renewal applications but received 1,871 requests.

AUSTIN � Demand for concealed handgun licenses has risen nearly 40 percent in Texas in a year, an increase being attributed to many factors, even presidential politics.

this ties in with the next post about the shooter-in-the-making at Wal-Mart. It seems as though the information age is making it clear to people that there are these things happening in their cities and small towns, and they don't want to be caught un-aware and vulnerable.

I have heard that DPS training recently included an instructor who warned the troopers that as trained officers, they should be carrying their weapons off-duty because the Wal-mart type of thing, or the campus shootings seem to have the "you never know what can happen" effect. The officers were told to imagine how frustrated they would be if caught in a situation where they were the best trained shooter in a dangerous and possibly deadly situation, but were unarmed.

You're absolutely right, Suzanne. I think it is more the school shootings, the recent austin Wal Mart example, and many other local car jackings, etc that is motivating law abiding citizens to start packing. Responsible citizens should be able to protect themselves against mayhem.

As they taught me in my police academy days years before I went to law school, the #1 rule of being in a gunfight is to have a gun.

With the corollary to that rule being: never bring a knife to a gunfight.

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To me, this sends a strong implied message that the populace supports vigorous prosecution AND lengthy incarcertion of violent criminals,

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I do not understand how you can come to this conclusion just because more people are getting gun permits?

Frankly, I am surprised that more people are getting permits since it is now so easy to have a gun around whenever you feel like it, like in your car.

But, in any event, other than wishful thinking, I can find no evidence for that kind of conclusion just from these facts.

Actually, the crime rate has been dropping in Texas since it hit it's high point in 1988. That year, the crime rate was 8,018 Index crimes per 100K population. The last year for crime rates on the DPS website is 2006, which showed the crime rate was just shy of 4600 Index crimes per 100K population. This is about the same level of crime we had the in mid-1970s (and about double what it was in the early 1960s.)

I believe in the last couple of years the crime rate has dropped even further, altho violent crime, or some violent crimes, have started to inch up.

I am baffled by the 40 percent increase in applications for permits to carry.

I am not baffled by the drop in crime rate. It coincides with the massive expansion of TDC, which started in late 1987. During the next 10 years TDC went from about 40K beds to about 130,000 beds, and the crime rate dropped like a rock.