This is what a niece, who is in her forties, told me just now on Facebook. She had posted something earlier in the day saying that she "packs heat" when she and her husband go out in order to protect themselves and their kids. She also carries a gun when she's out alone. She lives near Okeechobee, Florida, not exactly crime city USA, but this is how she feels. She has a sister who lives several miles from her who feels the same way. I've asked her to explain to me why she is so frightened. Her reply was that she wasn't frightened because she carries a gun.
What is it in these people that makes them so paranoid? I grew up in the country in the Northeast, lived in Florida for over forty years and now live close to NYC, and I have never ever in my life felt the need to carry a lethal weapon so I could kill another human being if I had to when I was out because being out was so dangerous. That is what makes me different from my nieces. They live in fear. I do not. I've never owned a gun, nor do I feel the need to own a gun. I'm no more in danger because of that feeling than they are with their paranoia. I'm waiting for her to tell me why she is so frightened.