Hey, New Yorkers! So, you’re worried about sitting on a bus or subway next to an armed person now that the Supremes have slapped down your state’s unconstitutional carry law? Sorry to tell you, but you already have been. It’s just that the armed person you’ve been sitting next to was likely a criminal. With the law change, now, you’ll be more likely sitting next to a law-abiding gun owner.

I won’t waste any energy on the anti-gun lefty who wants to strip Americans of their self-defense rights. You can’t reason with the unreasonable. As Cartman from South Park would say, “Screw those guys!”

But I will spend energy on good, Second Amendment-supporting people who just feel uncomfortable not only around firearms but also, with the concept of carrying guns in public either open or concealed.

Essentially, for over a century, New York has required people to prove to some bureaucrat their self-defense needs are legitimate before receiving a carry permit (most did not). Imagine having to prove to some government flunky your legitimate need for free speech or religion before being allowed to say your piece or pray (I know… don’t give the Democrats any ideas).

The other night I was watching a TV show. The discussion was about the Supreme Court striking down New York’s unconstitutional concealed carry law. The conservative guest and hosts are all people I like. But something one guest said to the host, and the host seemed to agree, struck me.

One guest said something to the effect, that she agreed with the Court striking down the law but said, “I wouldn’t want to sit next to someone on the subway who’s carrying a gun.” The host said, “Yeah….” And moved on to another guest.

All I could think of, and no matter how loud I yelled, she didn’t seem to hear me, was to tell her, “YOU ALREADY ARE!”

I mean, I don’t live in New York and haven’t been there in years (and have no plans to go there), but if she lived where I do, and she sat by me—surprise—she’d be sitting next to someone carrying a gun.

I won’t even get into the armed criminals she’s been sitting next to all these years.

This is where even people on “our” side (gun rights) slide into the leftist, anti-gun narrative. It’s the myth that it’s the gun that’s dangerous, not the person pulling the trigger. I use car analogies frequently because the comparison is so apt.

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A gun, like a car, can be dangerous depending on how someone uses it: properly, accidentally, negligently, recklessly, or criminally. When people first learn to drive a car it’s a scary, potentially dangerous thing you must be careful with. After you’re familiar with a car, it is no longer scary, although you still must be careful. Same goes with a gun.

I’ve never taken a non-shooter shooting who didn’t lose at least some fear as he or she became more comfortable with the gun. Although it’s great that the guest supports the Second Amendment, I wonder if she’s ever even held a gun never mind fired one.

While America still has a gun culture, it’s not nearly as prevalent across our society as it once was (although with the Democrats’ defund-the-police rampage, people are slowly changing that with even Democrats buying guns for self-defense because they can’t count on cops coming in time if at all).

If you support gun/self-defense rights, but guns still make you nervous, think about this. If you were sitting next to a law-abiding carpenter at a lunch counter somewhere, would you be afraid he or she would pull a hammer out of a tool belt and use it to crack your noggin? Of course not. Same with the law-abiding guy or gal carrying a gun.

It’s important that supporters of liberty who fear guns deliberately do what they can to lessen that fear. Encourage themselves to think differently about guns. So what if law-abiding citizens might be carrying a firearm while seated next to you? They are not a threat. Learn that.

In fact, not only are you in no danger but also, you’re likely safer. Most concealed carriers are familiar with their guns and have probably received some training or regularly practice. If an armed criminal were to attempt to commit a mass shooting or other crime while a concealed carrier was nearby, your odds are improved from that of a sitting duck.

Every gun rights supporter uncomfortable with guns should seek out people who can familiarize them with firearms. You probably have friends or family members who’d be happy to talk to you about guns, show you how to handle them safely, and maybe even take you to the range.

If not, then go online and check out sites like the NRA, Gun Owners of America, or Sisters of the Second Amendment. You’d be surprised how much you can learn and how more comfortable you can become with something that intimidates you by listening, watching, and reading about the subject.

Just watching people like you talking about and handling and shooting guns can make you understand why it’s insane for politicians to want to punish good law-abiding gun owners whenever a bad person commits a crime with a gun. It’s not only unfair but also it makes no sense.

Again, this outreach is for the conservative/libertarian who supports liberty but still has—I can’t believe I’m using this term, forgive me—unconscious bias (based on unfamiliarity with guns) against firearms that make them more willing to compromise with anti-gun Democrats, even if only on the fringes, where they shouldn’t.

You know, like the 15 Republicans who just voted with the anti-gun Democrats for gun control.